Harmony In My Head: UK Power Pop & New Wave 1977-1981 / Various;

UK three CD set. Harmony In My Head is another of Cherry Red's celebrations of a bygone era - this time, the boom in Power Pop and New Wave which followed the Punk explosion in 1977. New Wave was a term coined in 1977 to describe a clutch of new artists whose music shared much of the energy of punk, but boasted a more sophisticated level of musicianship and a heavier reliance on traditional pop melodies. The British scene's reiteration of the appeal of a more traditional pop approach saw several attempts to provide an alternative to the unsatisfactory new wave epithet. Harmony In My Head includes many of the new wave/power pop scene's biggest hitters alongside the more melodic Punk bands. Name acts include Elvis Costello, Squeeze, Buzzcocks, Eddie & The Hot Rods, Nick Lowe, The Jags and Wreckless Eric, who are joined by other less successful but nevertheless key players (The Records, The Freshies, The Flys etc) as well as a host of rare 45s on tiny labels, many of which have never been on CD before. The deluxe clamshell package includes a weighty booklet full of illustrations, with a 12,000-word sleeve-note incorporating band-by-band biographies by compiler David Wells