Sealed 1974 Original Housed In A Tri-Fold Gimmick Jacket. Small Cut Corner. “The Second 1974 Release By The Hudson Brothers, The Follow-Up To The Hollywood Situation Project, Was Produced By Bernie Taupin On Rocket Records And Should Have Been Huge. It Is Frosted With Beatlesque Pop Beyond Badfinger And Beyond The Rutles; This Material Is So Liverpool That It Is A Shame It Got Very Little Attention. "Straight Up And Tall" Bounces Along As Good As Bread's "Let Your Love Go," That Adult Contemporary Group's Foray Into Pop/Rock. There Is So Much Beatles Emphasis On Songs Like "If You Really Need Me" That The Members Of Elton John's Entourage Included On This Disc, Davey Johnstone On Mandolin And Clive Franks On Piano, Must've Had A Blast For Themselves. "Sunday Driver" Is Some Remake Of "Baby You Can Drive My Car" With The Naughty Background Vocals From John Lennon's "Girl." How Can You Not Help But Love It? "Isn't It Lovely" Begins Like Some Whacked-Out Let It Be Monologue, Till It Plunges Right Back Into The Rubber Soul And Revolver Rips. Bill Hudson Has Really Studied His George Harrison Licks, Not To Mention Stephen Stills, As They Rewrite "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" With A Dash Of Donovan On "La La Layna." Everything Is Written By The Hudson Brothers Except For The Taupin Co-Write, "Lover Come Back To Me" (It's Excellent), And "Long Long Day," Which Is Credited To Francis Brown And The Hudsons. The Material Rocks, Those Beach Boys Flavors From The Previous Album Totally Abandoned For The Fab Four, As Taupin Sharpens The Sonic Treat And Gives It More Focus. Rocket, Like Apple Records, Had Lofty Goals, But Outside Of A Fluke Hit For Kiki Dee Or A Comeback For Neil Sedaka, Some Of The Records Released Posed No Threat To Label Owner Elton John's Chart Supremacy. "Be A Man" Is About The Most Original Song On The Disc, And It Contains Elements Of Their Near Hit From Hollywood Situation, "So You Are A Star." Nothing Wrong With A Sequel, And Maybe Some Smart Music Historian Can Take These Recordings And Repackage Them. There Is Gold In These Grooves, For That Beatles Market Has An Insatiable Appetite. The Beatles Gave Listeners "If I Needed Someone" And The Hudson Brothers Come Back With "If You Really Need Me." Grand Production And Solid Harmonies Make This Stuff Irresistable. The Album Was Recorded In France And London To Get A Different Flavor From The L.A. Studios Where The Previous Disc Was Tracked.” Joe Viglione, AMG.