Doing a 180: The Hollies, Evolution / Butterfly

Rhino has made it a point to reissue classic albums on 180-gram vinyl on a regular basis. This is the latest to get that treatment. You're welcome.

EVOLUTION:The Hollies built their career by delivering some of the catchiest singles of the mid-1960s, but as the decade progressed, the band evolved, and the end result of this evolution was that The Hollies began to phase out the use of songs written by folks outside the band and stick to material composed by members of the band. As a result, by the time they released FOR CERTAIN BECAUSE… in December 1966, every song on the album fit that criteria, as did the second album, which was – you guessed it – EVOLUTION. Interestingly, despite receiving critical acclaim both when it first hit record store shelves as well as in the intervening years, not a single song from EVOLUTION was selected for release as a single in the UK.

“Then the Heartaches Begin": Listen here

BUTTERFLY:
If you know anything about your Hollies history, then you know that this was the last album by the band to feature Graham Nash until 1983’s WHAT GOES AROUND. As the material confirms, Nash was clearly enjoying the opportunity to spread his wings (no butterfly pun intended) as a singer and a songwriter, but he was also being reminded at every turn that he was only one of the Hollies’ three primary songwriters, and there was also further frustration when BUTTERFLY turned out to be the second consecutive album by the band without any single releases in the UK. As such, it’s an album of great historical importance in terms of the Hollies’ career, but it’s also one that features some fine songs, including “Dear Eloise.”