The Sweet - Sweet 16: It's It's....Sweet's Hits (1984)

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The Sweet - Sweet 16: It's It's....Sweet's Hits (1984)

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Incredibly, it took until 1984 for the Sweet to be gifted with the all-consuming greatest-hits collection they truly deserved, but the wait was surely worthwhile. Literally a journey from alpha to omega, Sweet 16 was precisely that – 16 of the biggest hits the band ever scored, with a couple of puzzling omissions (the debut smash "Funny Funny" and its follow-up, "Co Co") more than remedied by the inclusion of some lesser-known goodies (1971's under-performing "Alexander Graham Bell," 1974's LP track "Rebel Rouser"). Even more rewardingly, listeners actually get to enjoy a happy ending – previous Sweet compilations, based on their years at RCA alone, had no choice but to wind down with the clutch of non-performing turkeys that closed that particular tenure. However, 1978 saw the group signed with Polydor (Capitol in the U.S.) and enjoy a sudden resurgence with the masterful "Love Is Like Oxygen" – a one-off, to be sure, but still a joyous return to the Top Ten that the band (and much of the rest of Sweet 16) had once dominated. Absent from the album, but integral to its majesty, Anagram also released a 12" single mega-mixing five of the Sweet's biggest hits into one solid clump of glee – "It's…It's…the Sweet Mix" is an essential purchase for anyone for whom the hits alone are simply not enough.

by Dave Thompson