20 Golden Greats

While not flush with the digital sheen of recent CD packages, this early Buddy Holly hits collection will please vinyl fans in search of the bespeckled one's late-'50s hits. Including perennials like "That'll Be the Day," "Oh Boy," "It's So Easy," and "Peggy Sue," the album also features fine covers of "Brown Eyed Handsome Man" and "Bo Diddley," not to mention lushly orchestrated stunners such as "Raining in My Heart," "True Love Ways," and the Paul Anka-penned "It Doesn't Matter Anymore." Along the way, one hears hefty premonitions of the Beatles' pre-1965 sound, one of the first self-contained rock bands in fine form, and some of most lyrical and substantial songs from the music's golden beginnings. Holly's sound was more country than R&B, and as such also prefigured the folk-pop of both the British Invasion and the West Coast sound of the '60s. A perfect introduction for those trolling the discount bins.