Hoyt Axton - Flashes Of Fire - Hoyts Very Best 1962-1990 (2004)

First rising to prominence as a songwriter, Hoyt Axton carved out successful careers as a singer and actor as well; rooted equally in country, folk and pop, his gravelly baritone and wry, earthy songs projected an uncommon wit, warmth, and optimism, yielding a consistently engaging body of work extending across four decades. Axton was born March 25, 1938 in Duncan, OK, the son of a naval officer and his English teacher wife. Raised primarily in Jacksonville, FL, he studied classical piano as a child before switching to guitar, writing his first songs at 15.

Although his only chart success as a musical performer came with a few minor entries on the country lists, several of Hoyt Axton's songs were smashes in cover versions on the pop side of things, starting with the Kingston Trio's hit take on Axton's "Greenback Dollar" in 1962, Three Dog Night's renditions of his "Joy to the World" in 1971 and "Never Been to Spain" in 1972, and ex-Beatle Ringo Starr's treatment of "No No Song" in 1975. Steppenwolf's searing cover of Axton's "The Pusher" also garnered a lot of attention and airplay when it turned up on the Easy Rider soundtrack in 1969.

All of this points to Axton's uniqueness. His odd, literate songs weren't exactly country, folk, rock or pop but an intriguing mixture of all of these, and it difficult to think of a songwriter quite like him. This generous 25-song remastered survey of Axton's career from Australia's fine Raven Records hits all the key spots, beginning with a live take of "Greenback Dollar" from 1962 and ending with the goofy but endearing "Fearless the Wonder Dog" from 1990, and includes Axton's own versions of "Joy to the World," "Never Been to Spain," "No No Song" and "The Pusher" as well as a lovely duet with Linda Ronstadt on "When the Morning Comes."

Drawing tracks from several labels, including Axton's own Jeremiah Records, "Flashes of Fire" makes both an ideal introduction to this unsung artist as well as an intelligently chosen survey of his nearly 40-year recordingcareer. All the essentials are here.