Bruce Von Stiers

If you grew up listening to bluesy rock back in the late ‘60’s and early ‘70’s, one of the artists you heard was Jesse Colin Young. He was the leader of a band called The Youngbloods and then struck out on a solo career. Jesse had a string of minor hits throughout the years, only to be like most musicians of that era, and mostly disappear from the radar. Now, with ‘60’s through ‘80’s music becoming popular once again, it makes sense for artists like Jesse to release some of his older material. And that is what he is doing. There will be a re-release of several of Jesse’s albums. On top of that, there will be a Christmas album released. And the album that this review is about, Jesse Colin Young Greatest Hits, is about to be released as well.

This Greatest Hits album has a total of 14 songs on it. 11 of these songs have been previously released and 3 of them are brand new to audiences. The album is being released on the Liquid 8 label and distributed by BMG Entertainment. It is being released on a single CD disc.

The insert for the album has liner notes for each of the songs. Jesse lets us know about a house that burnt down in California and an opening for Crosby Stills Nash and Young, only to have fans light matches in the middle of one of his songs. And we find out about the song of Jesse’s that won his wife’s heart.

The first song on the album is Light Shine. “We all got a light inside” goes one of lyrics in the song. This one is telling us to bring out the best in ourselves so that others might see it.

Songbird is the second song. It is a song that was inspired by a bird that Jesse heard one morning in Virginia. It reminds us that there are a whole lot of beautiful things out there if we just take some time to pay attention to them. Morning Sun is another song that wants us to take in things around us and be thankful. This one has a nice harmonica bit in the middle of it.

Song For Juli was a tribute to Jesse’s daughter Julia. It has about three and a half minutes of light bossa nova style instrumentals before launching into lyrics about how special Juli is. Ridgetop is a bluesy funk piece that will have you tapping your feet in a matter of seconds.

Get Together is Jesse’s version of the Youngblood’s song. This was the signature song for the band and one that Jesse later took on as his own. The liner notes tell about how Jesse first heard the song being sung by Buzz Linhardt backstage one day and fell in love with it. The song has always been popular, even garnering a whole new generation of fans with it being included on the Forrest Gump soundtrack.

Other songs on the album include Darkness, Darkness, Sunlight, and California Child. There is also Lonely Day and Sugar Babe.

Dreams About You Baby is one of the new songs that are on the album. It deals with dreaming about the woman that the singer loves. There is also How Long, a song that opens up a little like Bob Seger’s Fire Down Below. It is about someone snapping out of a long depression and seeing things as they really are. Aloha E is a song that was influenced by September 11th and the grief that the nation felt.

If you were ever a fan of Jesse Colin Young, then this album is a “must have” for your collection. If you haven’t heard of Jesse except for Get Together, then now would be a good time to explore the musical talents of a great singer.