This three-disc budget-priced (and packaged) set of material from Yorkshire-based
pop/rock outfit
Smokie may appeal more to European listeners than the U.S market, where the band never managed to climb high enough chart-wise to develop the kind of following that similarly themed acts like
America,
the Hollies, and
Bread did. They did, however, land an impressive number of U.K. hits, including
"If You Think You Know How to Love Me," "Don't Play Your Rock 'n' Roll to Me," "Living Next Door to Alice," "It's Your Life," and
"Oh Carol," all of which appear here. That said, 52 tracks is more
Smokie than any listener has the right to inhale, making the more streamlined collections like
Paradiso's
The Best of Smokie and
BMG International's
With Love from...Smokie: The Best of the Ballads better bets for the casual fan. ~ James Christopher Monger