The Small Faces

Yet another Small Faces compilation, boasting what seems like state-of-the-art sound and a booklet with some cool graphics, re-creating the art on the group's 45-rpm picture sleeves. As a single-CD compilation it's roughly as good as any prior assembly of the band's Immediate Records legacy, with lots of presence and good, healthy volume -- the producers have favored the mono versions and mixes wherever they're relevant, and there is the usual complement of outtakes as well. On the other hand, the title is a little misleading, since the group's Decca Records material, steeped in R&B, is much more representative of the mods and their tastes than the trippier songs represented here, not that there aren't some superb soul-style shouters here (and a few missing as well), including "I Feel Much Better" and "Tin Soldier." Since this disc's release, there's been a better compilation issued: Ultimate Collection sorts out a lot of the outtakes, combines the Decca and Immediate catalogs, and also has the moral advantage of generating royalties for the bandmembers, something they've never seen before except as composers. ~ Bruce Eder, All Music Guide