Holly Beth Vincent was the unsung hero of the New Wave. Her band Holly and the Italians' first album, "The Right to Be Italian," was the perfect blend of power pop, '60s girl group and punk attitude, yet somehow never found an audience the way Blondie and the Pretenders did. But it was her confusingly titled debut solo LP, called "Holly and the Italians," that convinced me she was a genius. With its lush orchestration, thick production and dark subject matter, it was like no other album from the era. Fans of her first release were horrified by it, but some 30 years later it remains one of the period's best. In the 2000s, Wounded Bird put out superb reissues of both LPs, complete with tons of bonus material. Both seem to be out of print now, but you can download the classic "Holly and the Italians" LP HERE.
More fun HBV clips HERE.
1 comment:
the Right to be Italian was a fantastic album. I've heard the 'follow up' was quite different...time to download it from iTunes. holly did a duet with Joey Ramone - a version of I Got You- fantastic stiff from another decade.
Nico
Post a Comment