In 1981, I stumbled upon a tape that introduced me to a band that to this day sets a standard by which so many others are measured. The recording was the album, "Ghosts", and that album introduced me to Strawbs, a group that has produced an oeuvre of so much beautiful and haunting music and words over the years. I was priviledged to travel about various places around the world, and in time I was able to fing other recordings, on LP, of "A Collection of Curious Curios" (sp?), "The Witchwood", "Hero and Heroine", "Grave New World", and "Ghosts". It was only recently, when the Internet Age started, that I learned that this group was known and loved by many thousands like myself, who have come to admire them. Over the years, these albums have mysteriously disappeared, but in finding "Halcyon Days", I can bring them back into my living room, feeling just as wonderfully creepy as I did before. "Halcyon Days" is a superb collection of some of the best songs recorded by Strawbs, including some of my favorite tracks including "Grace Darling", "The Weary Song","Where is this Dream of Your Youth?" and so much more. For those who are interested in putting something new into their CD players, this is about as good as it gets. The fidelity of the recordings is very high, and the liner notes are a pleasure to read. For those who have known and loved this group, this collection will bring so much back. Buy it today, and sit back, close your eyes, and let the "Night Light" bring you back that place you loved and left so long ago....

This is the OUTSTANDING VERSION of this cd (german import) . If you are a Strawbs fan this is a must have , you will not be disappointed .Highly recomended

Where do you start on such an incredible collection of great songs by a horrendously underrated band of virtuoso musicians?
I had the benefit of seeing this band live for their "Ghosts" tour in New York and was totally spellbound. I have had all of the albums in their 12" versions and the remasters that were done by A&M were done with much love and care. There is something for everyone on this collection and one thing you will notice as you go from song to song is how this band could go from one style to another without losing a beat. I really cannot get into how anyone could find fault with this music, so if you read anything even partly negative completely disregard it.
The version I have of this disk was made in Germany and available at Tower records for $18.99 U.S. dollars which is an absolute bargain considering the song "Blue Angel" by Dave Cousins is easily worth that much alone. Disk one opens with "Ghosts" taken from the recording of the same name. My other favorites on this disk are: "Stormy Down","Benedictus", "Hero and Heroine", and "Round & Round",.
Outstanding cuts from cd two are: "Grace Darling","Blue Angel","Floating in the Wind",(a great song from a recording by Hudson/Ford), and of course their one big British smash "Part of the Union", and "Down By the Sea". If you like what you find here search out the cds. I would say that there are 4 that are absolutely essential:
1. Hero & Heroine
2. Ghosts
3. From the Witchwood
4. Bursting at the Seams
My favorite two recordings by Strawbs members are:
1. Two Weeks Last Summer (Dave Cousins solo)
2. Free Spirit (Hudson/Ford) Unreleased as of right now, WHY?

For Strawbs fans, this is an excellent sampler of their early/middle periods on A&M.

However, you should be aware that if you buy this title through MusicExpress of Germany (as I did - way cheaper!), one of Amazon's 3rd-party vendor partners, you will probably receive the European (UK) version of Halcyon Days, which differs greatly from the advertised US version on Amazon.ca. I hasten to add that the service from MusicExpress was exemplary. Also, the UK version is terrific.

The UK version (clearly compiled for the Euro market) contains great liner notes and gems rarely heard in North America such as "Will Ye Go" (a revamped Celtic trad tune done in the pub-thumping style of "Part of the Union" (also included)-- "Will Ye Go" is easily the equal of the early Byrds' version of the same song, which thay called "Wild Mountain Thyme"), "Ciggy Barlust" (a kind of spoof of Bowie's Ziggy Stardust phase), a few really good non-Strawbs Hudson-Ford tunes, and about a dozen others (including B-sides) not on the US version. Although it does contain much of the same material, some key tracks from the US version are missing, e.g., "Autumn," Tears and Pavan," "Lemon Pie," "Glimpse of Heaven," "Heavy Disguise," "Hanging in the Gallery" and quite a few others.

Short of buying the individual A&M albums (which remain ludicrously expensive), "A Choice Selection of Strawbs" (also ludicrously expensive), in combination with the UK Halcyon Days, appears to be the best alternative, minimizing duplication and overall cost. Be aware, however, that "Choice" (which I haven't heard) has not been recently remastered and may not sound as good as Halcyon or the original albums, which have been. Oh, well..... perhaps A&M should consider a combo version triple set ("The Compleat Halcyon Days"?), combining all tracks from both versions.

In the meantime, Amazon should be more diligent in ensuring that their 3rd-party partners have the same version as advertised, or make it clear that differing versions exist (Amazon seemed to have no problem with the US vs. UK versions of the Stones' "Aftermath," "Between The Buttons," and "Out Of Our Heads," for example). I do realize how hard it must be to keep up with all the various differing versions of albums out there, but there's really no excuse.

Still, although I give "Halcyon Days (UK) 5 stars for content, subtract two stars for Amazon's ambiguous product information and/or faulty communication with their third-party vendors.

If I remember correctly they were originally the Strawberry Hill Boys before the group's name was shorted to the Strawbs. They also had a reputation as the hardest drinking group in rock, which does seem strange for a group that would best be described as British Progressive Folk Rock. These double disc collection covers the early and middle periods of the Strawbs when they recorded by A&M. This means that their best work is included on these discs.

Although this collection does include several tracks by Richard Hudson and John Ford, I have to profess that I have always preferred the work of Dave Lambert with the group a bit more, even though I readily admit that his work does mesh as well with the songs of Dave Cousins, who has always been the heart and the soul of the Strawbs. I also like the keyboard work of John Hawken over Blue Weaver. Even if neither of them is Rick Wakeman, the group certainly thrived without having a virtuoso on keyboards. Consequently, the second disc in this collection gets a lot more play than the first at my house, although "The Hangman and The Papist," "Benedictus" and "New World" certainly capture the variety and quality of the group during their first period.

Hudson and Ford contributed their best work right before leaving the group, writing "Lady Fuschia," "Part of the Union," and co-writing "Tears and Pavan" with Cousins on the 1973 "Bursting at the Seams" album. One special treat of this collection is that "The River" proceeds "Down By the Sea" (the opposite order of how they appear on the original album). When I saw the group in concert those were the two songs they played in their encore, using the former to set up what was then their signature piece in performance. It was that song, played by a DJ at a FM station in Albuquerque that persuaded me to go see the Strawbs in concert when I did not have any of their albums. Of course, that all changed the week after the show.

"Hero & Heroine," the 1973 concept album usually considered the group's best album, is well represented in this collection as is the 1974 "Ghosts." Each album began with a trio of songs combined into seamless set pieces, "Autumn" and "Ghosts" respectively. This was the most ambitious creative period for Cousins, who I always thought sounded like Cat Stevens with a more aggressive sense of soul. I also like the choices of Cousins' "Hanging In the Gallery" and Lambert's "The Promised Land" to end the collection. This seems quite appropriate to me.

The Strawbs are pretty much forgotten. When I was staging a high school production of Christopher Fry's "The Lady's Not for Burning," I used music from "Tears and Pavan" and "Hero and Heroine" for the show. Everyone thought the music appropriate and effective but none of them had ever heard of the Strawbs. For those of us who followed them in the 1970s, I have to believe they are one of our more memorable groups.