STEPHEN COOK
Stephen Cook with Allmusic gives the album 4½ stars and writes: “Taking Brit blues invaders like Them, the Animals, and the Yardbirds as a template, not to mention plenty of ’60s garage inspiration, San Diego’s Tell-Tale Hearts forged a fairly original beat homage between 1983-1986. A bit too gritty and blues-based to really fit in with L.A.’s contemporary Byrds and pop-psychedelia revival (the Rain Parade, the Three O’Clock, Plasticland), the Hearts only cut one album, an EP, and a smattering of singles and live tracks. . . . Compiled by bassist Mike Stax and featuring the snider-than-Van Morrison vocals of Ray Brandes, the 21-track collection includes studio highlights like ‘(You’re a) Dirty Liar’ and ‘Me Needing You’, as well as some super lo-fi demo covers and a live rendition of the Seeds’ ‘Satisfy You’.”
(September 2017)
