Troubadour: The Definitive Collection 1964-1976

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Heaven knows, the Scotsman born Donovan Leitch was ripe for ridicule, even when he was hitting the charts with regularity. He was the ultimate flower child, and his airier pronouncements made cynics want to tighten up those love beads around his neck. Listening to Troubadour, however, it's striking how versatile, melodic, and agreeable most of his material sounds decades after "Mellow Yellow" has faded into a jaundiced yellow. Clearly under the sway of Bob Dylan early on in his career, Donovan nevertheless was capable of directing his reverence into something as enchanting as "Catch the Wind." Amping up as the '60s progressed, he assembled a series of psychedelic-pop classics, including "Season of the Witch," the "Hey Jude"-like sing-along "Atlantis," and the uncharacteristically driving "Hurdy Gurdy Man" (the latter features three-quarters of what was to become Led Zeppelin providing stellar support). This two-disc anthology may be more Donovan than some desire, but the booklet, seven previously unreleased tracks, and expansive perspective it provides makes it a more-than-worthy overview for those who take their paisley folk-rock with a beatific smile. --Steven Stolder

Album Description
Features 21 total tracks including 'Mellow Jellow', 'Jennifer Juniper', 'Colours', 'Riki Tiki Tavi', 'Hurdy Gurdy Man', 'There Is A Mountain', 'Atlantis' and more. Epic. 2005. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Tracks:

London Town
Codine
Catch The Wind
Universal Soldier
Colours
Sunshine Superman
Season Of The Witch
The Trip
Guinevere
Breezes Of Patchulie
Museum
Super Lungs
Mellow Yellow
Writer In The Sun
Sand And Foam
Sunny South Kensington
Epistle To Dippy
There Is A Mountain
Wear Your Love Like Heaven
Oh Gosh
The Tinker And The Crab
Poor Cow

Tracks:

Hurdy Gurdy Man
Jennifer Juniper
Teen Angel
Lalena
To Susan On The West Coast Waiting
Atlantis
Barabajagal
Happiness Runs
Celia Of The Seals
Riki Tiki Tavi
Clara Clairvoyant
Roots Of Oak
Riki Tiki Tavi (Previously Unreleased Version)
Maria Magenta
Cosmic Wheels
I Like You
Yellow Star
Rock And Roll Souljer
The Quest
Age Of Treason
What The Soul Desires
Dark-Eyed Blue Jean Angel

Amazon.com

Heaven knows, the Scotsman born Donovan Leitch was ripe for ridicule, even when he was hitting the charts with regularity. He was the ultimate flower child, and his airier pronouncements made cynics want to tighten up those love beads around his neck. Listening to Troubadour, however, it's striking how versatile, melodic, and agreeable most of his material sounds decades after "Mellow Yellow" has faded into a jaundiced yellow. Clearly under the sway of Bob Dylan early on in his career, Donovan nevertheless was capable of directing his reverence into something as enchanting as "Catch the Wind." Amping up as the '60s progressed, he assembled a series of psychedelic-pop classics, including "Season of the Witch," the "Hey Jude"-like sing-along "Atlantis," and the uncharacteristically driving "Hurdy Gurdy Man" (the latter features three-quarters of what was to become Led Zeppelin providing stellar support). This two-disc anthology may be more Donovan than some desire, but the booklet, seven previously unreleased tracks, and expansive perspective it provides makes it a more-than-worthy overview for those who take their paisley folk-rock with a beatific smile. --Steven Stolder

Album Description

Features 21 total tracks including 'Mellow Jellow', 'Jennifer Juniper', 'Colours', 'Riki Tiki Tavi', 'Hurdy Gurdy Man', 'There Is A Mountain', 'Atlantis' and more. Epic. 2005.

Customer Reviews:

Donovan Rules!!.......2007-05-22

If you remember this era in time, you will love this CD by one of the greatest folk artists from the sixties. This is a classic CD of the most beautiful music of that time and it still is beautiful today. I love Donovan!!

Definitive seems to be an overused word for "Epic" these days........2007-04-24

The compilers for this compilation didn't always pick the best non-hit tracks: Where's "Get thy Bearings" or "The River Song" from Hurdy Gurdy Man? Or, "Someone's Singing" from Wear Your Love Like Heaven? Or, amazingly not included: "Young Girl Blues" or "Hampstead Incident" from Mellow Yellow? I can probably add to this many more songs that are essential that weren't included .... "Bert's Blues" from Sunshine Superman, for example. Meanwhile, some of the songs included I've considered kind of un-definitive (e.g., "Writer In the Sun" or "Oh Gosh") -- also, although it was a hit, "Jennifer Juniper"'s kind of dull to me. Basically what I'm saying is this: Don't write off this musical Eastern mystic from the West too soon based merely on the selection choices on this compilation. He wrote and performed many good songs during these years -- not necessarily just these. Donovan deserves better than this compilation, imhumbleo -- but for the price offered, it's agreeable barter at least.

Really A Best of the Best Donovon.......2007-01-21

DONOVON emerged from the folk scene with Sunshine Superman, one of his best recordings. His music can be divided in two basic modes: the simplicity of valued human relationships & a new interpretation of mythic themes. The selected CD TROUPADOUR is the definitive collection of his early to more current work. SUNSHINE SUPERMAN includes such classic Donovan as Legend of a Girl Child Linda, Mellow Yellow, and Season of the Witch.

Donovan's Greatest Hits
Sunshine Superman
A Gift from a Flower to a Garden
The Hurdy Gurdy Man
Mellow Yellow

A fine introduction to the work of Donovan.......2006-09-20

As one who has owned copies of Greatest Hits (both the original CD release and the expanded remaster from 1999), this comp and the 3-CD Try for the Sun box, I have to admit there has yet to be a Donovan anthology that truly does justice to the man's catalogue, as each one seems to exclude one track or another that a fan would want to have there. These, however, are such minor quibbles as to be truly insignificant. Greatest Hits is perfect for the casual fan looking for Don's classic-era songs; Troubadour gives us a complete overview of his decade with Epic plus the two years preceding it in which he cemented his reputation as a Scots Woody Guthrie; while Try for the Sun is for the true completist.

I first bought this set when it was released and there were few enough Donovan CDs to be had; Sony had only seen fit to put Sunshine Superman, Hurdy Gurdy Man, Barabajagal and Greatest Hits out, and sad to say, they are still woefully deficient in their reissue of his catalogue (although Troubadour forgave a multitude of sins, as the Try for the Sun box has also done). Troubadour gives you two wonderful Donovan demos, "London Town" (Don's take on Tim Hardin's "Green Rocky Road") and "Cod'ine" (an early anti-drug song, and one of two Buffy Sainte-Marie songs Don covered, the other being the more famous "Universal Soldier," also included here), and his three hit singles for Pye/Hickory: "Catch the Wind," "Colours" and the aforementioned "Universal Soldier." From there, it launches full-on into his Epic years (1966-76); for me, this collection truly opened my eyes to all Don's music, and the rarities were often the most revealing as to his talents. "Breezes of Patchulie," an outtake from the Sunshine Superman sessions, was nothing like its title would suggest--not some hippie dream, but real folkish angst with sitar and violin to add some colour. A decent selection of songs from the Mellow Yellow LP and A Gift From a Flower to a Garden, which hadn't been available at that point, plus tracks from Open Road, Cosmic Wheels, Essence to Essence, 7-Tease and Slow Down World, all of which had been out of print at the time, were also welcome additions, and only Don's best songs (no embarrassments like the oft-cited "Intergalactic Laxative"--even the title is embarrassing) were included. Of the later rarities, "What the Soul Desires" was my favourite, and one I still play for myself on my guitar even now.

In 1992, this was a much-needed career overview of Donovan's work; even now, in 2006, it's the best set of classic Donovan tracks. For the completist or rabid Donovan fan, I would recommend the box set Try for the Sun, as it gives you loads of rarities and tracks otherwise only available on imports (e.g. the HMS Donovan album, never given a US release) and dares to cover his comebacks (a track each from the Rick Rubin-produced Sutras from 1996 and 2004's Beat Cafe, which I also recommend highly), plus adding the film There Is an Ocean on DVD. But for those wanting more than just the obvious hits, but less than a real vault-raider, Troubadour is just what the doctor ordered.

Um... not a huge fan.......2006-09-12

I love folk music, folk rock, and any genre that is even remotely related, but I have to say that I am disappointed with this collection. There were only three songs worth noting - Catch The Wind, London Town, and What The Soul Desires - that were any good. The rest of the songs were musically well executed, but the lyrics and themes were just shy of idiotic. I ordered this set just to get Catch The Wind, so I guess I can't say I'm upset by it, but I guess I'm just thinking that perhaps Donovan may just be a bit overrated as far as this genre is concerned. He's got a good sound and a good voice, but his lyrics are a bit on the stupid side. Now, if you could give his melodic voice to Bob Dylan or Dylan's song writing ability to him, then we'll have something.

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