Bearing the same name as the 2004 compilation The Essential Donovan and containing every one of that disc's 14 songs, the 2012 double-disc set The Essential Donovan -- its release timed to coincide with the singer/songwriter's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame -- is perhaps better compared to the 1992 box Troubadour: The Definitive Collection, another two-CD set that delved deeply into Donovan's career. Troubadour contained 44 songs and The Essential Donovan tops out at 32, yet those 12 songs aren't necessarily missed. All the hits are here, along with a handful of rarities -- cuts that have never shown up on CD in the U.S., including an early mono version of "The Land of Doesn't Have to Be" and two songs, "Sunny Goodge Street" and "Sand and Foam," taken from a 1967 concert at the Anaheim Convention Center, plus "Hey Gyp (Dig the Slowness)" -- but what distinguishes this Essential from Troubadour is that it emphasizes Donovan's psychedelic mod hipster side over his wannabe Dylan folkie (the title of Troubadour was no accident on the 1992 set) and for audiences that prefer "Mellow Yellow," "Sunshine Superman," "Hurdy Gurdy Man," "Wear Your Love Like Heaven," "Jennifer Juniper," and "Barabajagal (Love Is Hot)" to "Catch the Wind," "Colours," and "Universal Soldier," this is the preferable collection.
Condition:NEW. Drilled case
TRACK LISTINGS
Disc: 1
1. Catch The Wind (single version)
2. Colours
3. Summer Day Reflection Song
4. Universal Soldier
5. You re Gonna Need Somebody On Your Bond
6. Turquoise
7. Sunshine Superman (extended version)
8. The Trip (single version)
9. Legend Of A Girl Child Linda
10. Season Of The Witch
11. Ferris Wheel
12. Mellow Yellow
13. Young Girl Blues
14. Museum
15. Hampstead Incident
16. Sunny South Kensington
17. Epistle To Dippy
18. The Land Of Doesn t Have To Be (early version)
Disc: 2
1. There Is A Mountain
2. Wear Your Love Like Heaven
3. Sun
4. Isle Of Islay
5. Sunny Goodge Street
6. Sand And Foam
7. Jennifer Juniper
8. Hurdy Gurdy Man
9. Get Thy Bearings
10. Lalena
11. To Susan On The West Coast Waiting
12. Atlantis
13. Barabajagal (Love Is Hot) [with The Jeff Beck Group]
14. Happiness Runs
15. Riki Tiki Tavi
16. Celia Of The Seals
17. I Like You
18. Hey Gyp (Dig The Slowness)
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