Frankie Miller - ...That's Who! The Complete Chrysalis Recordings (1973-1980) (2011) {4CD Box Set}

Frankie is one of the legends of the British music scene, with a powerful voice that has drawn numerous comparisons. His distinctive voice and song writing ability have earned him the respect of his peers and that is reflected in the number of world renowned artists, including Rod Stewart, Joe Cocker, Etta James, Cher, The Everly Brothers and Ray Charles, who have covered his songs.

Scottish whiskey-voiced vocalist Frankie Miller never made much of a splash in the States, despite, or perhaps because of, his fixation on American soul and R&B. Yanks have never been terribly appreciative of the music that originated in their homeland, which might have been a contributing factor to Miller's marginal popularity in the U.S. He was a fairly major star in the U.K., though, big enough for EMI to remaster, repackage, and reissue his catalog (at least for the titles on their Chrysalis imprint) into this generous four-disc box. They even include a few rare singles and, more importantly, the original mix of his second effort, High Life, along with the previously released one, expanding this set's total to eight albums from 1973 through 1980. Because he has recorded just a handful of platters since, and only one after his debilitating brain hemorrhage in 1994, this covers the bulk of his output and all of his best-known songs. The playing time of each runs over 75 minutes, yet there are songs missing that were included as extras reissued on the individually expanded editions by Eagle/Repertoire in 1994. Not including those cuts, most of them as good and some even better than the ones on the albums they were appended to, is a major miss for a compilation that implies completeness. Regardless, the spiffed-up audio is crisp and warm, and while some of the material is spotty, Miller's performance is consistently energized and enthusiastic. From the gritty pub rock of his Brinsley Schwarz-backed debut to the raw soul of the Allen Toussaint-assisted High Life to the harder-edged rock of The Rock and the somewhat slick Easy Money, there is a plethora of terrific material here. Miller is as impressive singing ballads as tough, Faces-styled rockers, which makes each release reverberate with an ebb and flow making even some of the filler – and make no mistake, there is a good-sized helping of that – worth hearing. Well-arranged horns and occasional strings help, and a wide variety of producers, some of whom aren't mentioned in the skimpy notes, all do well by Miller's substantial talents. The set is reasonably priced, which makes it a logical choice for those who want to explore Miller's talents more exhaustively than Capitol's excellent 1993, 19-cut collection allows. Unfortunately, the slapdash booklet with a few hastily thrown-together pictures and credits that are lodged under the translucent trays that hold the CDs is a huge disappointment. It's difficult to see who plays what and only the most basic information about each album is available. It follows suit with similarly poorly annotated sets in the 2010-2011 Chrysalis remaster series (Robin Trower, Tangerine Dream, Ten Years After), but because Miller is less well-known worldwide, it's more frustrating that EMI wouldn't have taken the same care they did with the remastered audio to provide more information. Still, for those looking to get a sense of what makes Miller such a respected musician by his peers and dedicated U.K. fan base, it's convenient to have the bulk of his finest music in one handy package.

~ Hal Horowitz, All Music

Track List CD1:

01. You Don't Need To Laugh (To Be Happy) (Once In A Blue Moon) [03:35]
02. I Can't Change It (Once In A Blue Moon) [03:10]
03. Candlelight Sonata In F Major (Once In A Blue Moon) [02:34]
04. Ann Eliza Jane (Once In A Blue Moon) [03:06]
05. It's All Over (Once In A Blue Moon) [02:40]
06. In No Resistance (Once In A Blue Moon) [03:04]
07. After All (I Live My Life) (Once In A Blue Moon) [03:45]
08. Just Like Tom Thumbs Blues (Once In A Blue Moon) [04:10]
09. Mail Box (Once In A Blue Moon) [03:17]
10. I'm Ready (Once In A Blue Moon) [03:13]
11. High Life (High Life) [01:04]
12. Play Something Sweet (Brickyard Blues) (High Life) [03:38]
13. Trouble (High Life) [03:33]
14. A Fool (High Life) [02:56]
15. Little Angel (High Life) [03:23]
16. With You In Mind (High Life) [03:21]
17. The Devil Gun (High Life) [03:40]
18. I'll Take A Melody (High Life) [04:38]
19. Just A Song (High Life) [02:51]
20. Shoo Rah (High Life) [02:51]
21. I'm Falling In Love Again (High Life) [03:59]
22. With You In Mind (Filler) (High Life) [01:00]




Track List CD2:

01. Play Something Sweet (Brickyard Blues) (High Life - Original Mix) [03:39]
02. Trouble (High Life - Original Mix) [03:32]
03. Little Angel (High Life - Original Mix) [03:24]
04. With You In Mind (High Life - Original Mix) [03:22]
05. I'll Take A Melody (High Life - Original Mix) [04:38]
06. High Life (Filler) (High Life - Original Mix) [02:03]
07. Shoo Rah (High Life - Original Mix) [02:51]
08. The Devil Gun (High Life - Original Mix) [03:41]
09. A Fool (High Life - Original Mix) [02:56]
10. I'm Falling In Love Again (High Life - Original Mix) [03:59]
11. Just A Song (High Life - Original Mix) [02:50]
12. A Fool In Love (The Rock) [03:07]
13. The Heartbreak (The Rock) [04:03]
14. The Rock (The Rock) [03:34]
15. I Know Why The Sun Don't Shine (The Rock) [06:01]
16. Hard On The Levee (The Rock) [03:18]
17. Ain't Got No Money (The Rock) [02:55]
18. All My Love To You (The Rock) [05:37]
19. I'm Old Enough (The Rock) [04:52]
20. Bridgeton (The Rock) [04:47]
21. Drunken Nights In The City (The Rock) [03:53]




Track List CD3:

01. Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever (Single A-Side) [03:32]
02. I’m Old Enough (Single Edit B-Side) [03:33]
03. Be Good To Yourself (Full House) [03:03]
04. The Doodle Song (Full House) [02:49]
05. Jealous Guy (Full House) [04:42]
06. Searching (Full House) [03:50]
07. Love Letters (Full House) [03:02]
08. Take Good Care of Yourself (Full House) [03:17]
09. Down the Honky Tonk (Full House) [03:10]
10. This Love of Mine (Full House) [03:49]
11. Let the Candlelight Shine (Full House) [03:01]
12. (I’ll Never) Live in Vain (Full House) [02:58]
13. Have You Seen Me Lately Joan (Double Trouble) [02:16]
14. Double Heart Trouble (Double Trouble) [03:25]
15. The Train (Double Trouble) [03:57]
16. You’ll Be In My Mind (Double Trouble) [03:35]
17. Good Time Love (Double Trouble) [05:03]
18. Love Waves (Double Trouble) [02:59]
19. (I Can’t) Break Away (Double Trouble) [04:25]
20. Stubborn Kind Of Fellow (Double Trouble) [03:10]
21. Love Is All Around (Double Trouble) [04:56]
22. Goodnight Sweetheart (Double Trouble) [04:06]




Track List CD4:

01. When I'm Away From You (Falling In Love) [03:24]
02. Is This Love (Falling In Love) [02:55]
03. If I Can Love Somebody (Falling In Love) [02:48]
04. Darlin' (Falling In Love) [03:07]
05. And It's Your Love (Falling In Love) [03:58]
06. A Woman To Love (Falling In Love) [03:38]
07. Falling In Love With You (Falling In Love) [04:38]
08. Every Time A Teardrop Falls (Falling In Love) [02:37]
09. Papa Don't Know (Falling In Love) [03:40]
10. Good To See You (Falling In Love) [05:00]
11. Something About You (Falling In Love) [03:01]
12. Easy Money (Easy Money) [03:23]
13. The Woman In You (Easy Money) [03:16]
14. Why Don't You Spend The Night (Easy Money) [03:17]
15. So Young So Young (Easy Money) [03:35]
16. Forget About Me (Easy Money) [03:22]
17. Heartbreak Radio (Easy Money) [03:21]
18. Cheap…Thrills (Easy Money) [03:17]
19. No Chance (Easy Money) [03:03]
20. Gimme Love (Easy Money) [03:04]
21. Tears (Easy Money) [03:33]
22. Sail Away (EP B-Side) [04:51]