Following a string of vinyl reissues, and in preparation for their world tour kick-off next week in Toronto (D.C. date on September 9), the seminal Roxy Music are releasing The Best of Roxy Music this Friday. On vinyl for the first time, this compilation reminds one again at the genres bridged, and created by this set of legends. Call it glam, or art rock, or New Wave even, but the output of Roxy Music has been transformative for decades. And it doesn't hurt that these tunes have likely never sounded as good as they do now.
From the familiar blissful tunes of 1982's Avalon, like the title cut and "More Than This", both here, this set veers into that fertile middle period of Roxy Music. Faced with a music world embracing New Wave after the crash of punk, Roxy Music responded with two records that both simplified and refined the band's sound. Manifesto, from 1979, yielded the heartfelt "Dance Away", and the disco-tinged "Angel Eyes", both here, before 1980's better Flesh & Blood set the band more firmly on the course that would end up with 1982's Avalon. A scattershot record in terms of vibe, Flesh & Blood, still served up a few masterpieces. The singles "Same Old Scene", "Over You", and "Oh Yeah" revealed a band older and wiser, but still capable of setting trends. While "Same Old Scene" roared with real New Wave power, "Over You" took the sentimentality of "Dance Away" and wrapped it up in faux doo-wop stylings. It's an extraordinary single still, one which pulses and yearns like the best numbers from the era. By comparison, "Oh Yeah" feels like Roxy, and singer Bryan Ferry facing middle age with a kind of wistful nostalgia.
And while most Americans are more familiar with that era of the group's output, The Best of Roxy Music thankfully has a bunch of reminders of the revolutionary Roxy of their earlier years with Brian Eno, and right after his departure. "Re-make/Re-model" represents that first album with a racket that's more garage rock than prog, while the anthemic "Do the Strand", from For Your Pleasure (1973) waves a flag for both glam and art rock hordes to flood the dance-floors. "Mother of Pearl", an epic of introspection still, is here from Stranded (1973), Ferry's lyrics still touching a nerve and the heart, while a clutch of tracks from Country Life from the next year reveal the astonishing ease with which this band had found its sound, thanks in no small part to guitarist Phil Manzanera's extraordinary runs in "Out of the Blue" and "All I Want is You", two highlights collected here. Siren offered up the band's biggest hit with "Love is the Drug", but it's "Both Ends Burning" that still scorches the earth.
Non-album singles here make up the difference for Roxy Music, including their Lennon tribute ("Jealous Guy"), and their debut freak-out, "Virginia Plain". Still, it's 1973's "Pyjamarama" that to these ears may be this group's absolute peak as a band. With a sound that prefigures a few Eno solo records later in the decade, the cut buzzes and twitches with a unique energy, propelled into the stratosphere by Bryan Ferry's impossibly cool vocals, and Manzanera's fiery solo. It's glam, but without much of the silliness of the genre then. On par with many of Bowie's singles from the era, it's still an extraordinary piece of music. The Best of Roxy Music covers a lot of territory, but the juxtaposition of early singles like this one and those New Wave-y ones remains a thriling listen to me.
More details on Roxy Music, the reissues, and the band's upcoming tour at BryanFerry.com.
[Photo: Brian Cooke]