The Hollies: "Changin' Times" Track By Track Discussion Thread

Track 17, Disc 1; 'Cos You Like To Love Me'



Okay, NOW we're talking! The Hollies back on their A-game with this Tony Hicks penned 3-minute pop gem that became the B-side of 'He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother'. A catchy opening riff played on Allan's harmonica, a nice rolling tempo, very prominent three-way harmonies, a middle eight I believe on the harmonium, it even has that little snare shuffle by Bobby to introduce it, which I love. This is the start of great things to come, 4/5.

 

'Cos You Like To Love Me' - fantastic song. Love the middle eight - simply beautiful. Extremely catchy and one of the best B-sides in their history. 5/5

 

Cos You Like To Love Me is the return to songwriting form they (and we) needed. Tony's first song (not including songs credited as co-writes) for a long time. The record has that "Hollies" sound to it but at the same time is unique in its arrangement. It's really too bad it was overshadowed by the very worthy A-side we'll be coming to shortly. 4.25/5

 

'Cos You Like To Love Me has always been one of my favorites - although it's kind of a throwback to Merseybeat, I think it could have made a fine A-side. I like it much better than its other side, that overwrought piece of generic balladry that turned out to unfortunately be one of their biggest hits.

5/5

 

Excellent song though a bit of a throw back as mentioned. The fairground organ really makes it and it has some very 60s lyrics, "come and be good to me". I love that insistent "stay" plea too.

I do think the sort of lyrically generic chorus holds the song back overall.

It must have made for a very schizophrenic B-side to the ultra serious He Ain't Heavy.

 

I always felt 'Cos You Like To Love Me' might have gone better on 'Hollies Sing Hollies' maybe as opening track - it later kicked off the EMI /Parlophone compilation of 'B' sides album; 'The Other Side of The Hollies' in 1978 in fine style so perhaps they rather wasted it as just a 'B' side and on HSH it might have shone even more...

A fine song tho' lyrics; 'Cos', 'Like', Love' were a bit over familiar then - the title sounds very akin to 'You Love Cos You Like it' on HSH hence maybe it's absence from the album - whatever it's a excellent Tony Hicks composition that the group perform spot on with an interesting if brief harmonium solo probably played by Bernie Calvert

it is quite a lively number and they needed those at that point as a few good if rather melodramatic sad themed numbers began to emerge then as they matured as songwriters so these more jaunty style upbeat songs were very important in order to balance out the more sombre reflective style material

 

I enjoy this track a fair bit - you can tell it’s the Hollies, but you can also tell it’s a bit different from the group the year before. It’s not perfect, but a decent track for sure, especially the pre-chorus, which is the best part. 4/5

 

Definitely.

 

I was contemplating saying the same thing about the chorus, which lets the song down. Verses great, chorus poor. 4/5

 

here is the stereo version

 

I can't really get behind that analogy of 'He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother' as it's just glorious from start to finish. Beautiful chord progression, lovely descending bass line, Bobby's full kit drum rolls on the middle eight, Terry's really tight high harmony, Allan's mournful sounding harmonica and even the slight roughness in Allan's voice (attributed to a sore throat on the day of recording) just really make that song perfect. It's one of their biggest hits for a reason, and it was a MASSIVE departure for them stylistically as a single when it was released.

 

Track 18, Disc 1: 'Please Let Me Please'



Again, three minutes of absolute pop perfection. This is probably my favourite song from 'Hollies Sing Hollies'. I love the pace of it, Tony's jangly guitar, his guitar riff, the subtle orchestral arrangement and that fantastic build up in the instrumental section. Slightly twee lyrics, but we can overlook that because the song is just so infectiously catchy and has your foot tapping along every time. A strange co-writing credit of Allan Clarke and Tony Hicks, presumably written before Terry came into the fold or at least early days of him being in the band. The whole song is kind of a throwback to mid-1960s beat boom but with the late 1960s "cabaret style" orchestral embellishments. Very of its time, I don't think it's aged too badly. 5/5.

 

'Cos You Like To Love Me'- Very nice poppy song that, as mentioned, would have made a great opening track for HSH. 92/100 -
'Please Let Me Please'- Another sure fire single that never was. Love the drums and Tony's rocks on this one. The horns are perfect, almost sounds like the Tower Of Power. 96/100

 

'Please Let Me Please' - great guitar sound throughout. Very catchy pop song. It works on all levels, and easily could have been a hit single. 5/5

 

'Please Let Me Please', it certainly powers along merrily, but for me, it doesn't do anything. Instrumentally proficient, but it's the same all the way through. I suspect that the main issue for me is that the lyrics are once again less than inspired. Sorry, 3/5

 

Please Let Me Please is a great album track and another hit that never was. Those lyrics could have used a little more work, but the music is so great that I wouldn't want to change anything. 4.5/5

 

'Please Let Me Please' on HSH like 'Wheels on Fire' on HSD were the closest in style to the 'mark one' Hollies of the Nash era with dynamic harmonies and a powering style - these songs were key as they stand out among the deeper more reflective often 'wordier' numbers that came to prominence in this first chapter of the 'mark two' Clarke fronted Hollies featuring Terry Sylvester

Tony Hicks guitarwork shines on 'Please' while the additional accompaniment is good tho' careful listening reveals it was initially even more dominent and was 'mixed back' in passages

 

Another poor one! Not a terrible song per se but inappropriate for the Hollies again.

I can imagine this working for the likes of the Band with Levon singing and rootsy, looser sound. Here the playing is too perfect and lifeless and Allan's vocal style is lifeless too. Just not the right song for them!

 

Glad you like it, but I hear bland, MOR-leaning, 70s style balladry with religious overtones. Not my cuppa.

 

The 'religious overtones' might be in the song's message

the song's title comes from the actual statue in that 'Boys Town' (remember the Spencer Tracy film ?) of a boy carrying a smaller boy which has the title something like;

'He Ain't Heavy Father...He's M' Brother'

The priest Father Edward Flanagan said he heard this said to him by a boy named Reuben Grainger carrying a younger lad named Howard Loomis who had Polio with leg braces on up the stairs at the home in 1918

this inspired the songwriters to come up with the song

tho' another version was from 1884 re a girl carrying a boy who said;
'No he's not heavy...he's my brother'

also the addition of a 'heavenly choir' - The Mike Sammes Singers - at the conclusion probably adds any religious overtones

A UK no.3 in 1969 later a UK no.1 in 1988 , while charting in at least twenty countries in 1969, topping the charts in four countries, making top five in ten of those countries and making no.7 in the USA suggests not everybody found it bland...

 

I guess we are on holiday break.

 

Sorry, I've been away for the week - some of us have to work, unfortunately!

Let's catch up with a few postings and try to round off disc one...

Track 19 Disc One: "Goodbye Tomorrow"



No doubt a lament to Graham Nash with this Allan Clarke solo penned offering that originally closed out 'Hollies Sing Hollies'. Lyrically, it's nothing to do with a relationship breakup really, there's way too many parallels with Graham and Allan's friendship here. I like how it builds slowly, with some rather tasty guitar licks thrown in by Tony throughout. Not a particular favourite of mine though. I'd give it a 3.7/5.

 

Track 20, Disc One: 'She Looked My Way'



This was canned at the time, presumably because it was written by outside writers, and the Hollies were making a go of self-composition again. I actually really like this song, it's stylistically quite different for them with the tempo changes into the chorus. There's an unusual chord progression. I just don't like the "fairytale" harpsichord intro, the door was wide open there for Tony to do something on the guitar. Ultimately, the song doesn't really go anywhere, it needed a contrasting middle eight section, which the Hollies were famous for. I can see why they left it in the can... 3/5 from me.

 

Track 21, Disc One: "My Life Is Over With You"



This one is certainly about Graham Nash, it's not even disguised. It's a clear letter from Allan to his former best friend. His typical poetic lyrical style developing nicely here with lines like "I've found a new part to play in life, there's different actors on my stage"... a catchy refrain, tight harmonies, an emotive vocal from Allan... the only bit missing the mark for me is the orchestral arrangement, which seems a bit cheery for the song subject. There's some great drum fills from Bobby on this track too. I think overall, it's one of the better tracks on 'Hollies Sing Hollies'. 4/5.

 

I think this is a gorgeous song, and Exhibit B in my contention that Alan Clarke was writing far more profound and affecting songs than Graham Nash did following their split — despite Nash contending that he left The Hollies because he wanted to do more "significant" and less "pop" material. (I can see that Exhibit A is already on deck!)

It's not a popular opinion, I know, but my perspective on that is "Yeah — how did that work out?"