Triumph Classics

Hi

Yes, "Hold On" is the original recording (LP Version)on this disc. When the band moved to MCA, the rights to their previous albums went with them.

-MM

Todd Ireland wrote: If not, does anyone know if a U.S. pressing of Classics was ever released?

MCA 42283 is a U.S. release, Todd. :-) I bought it on cassette myself shortly after it first came out in 1989, and have loved this Canadian band since I first became familiar w/ their material in the mid '80s. (My favorites on "Classics" have always been "Lay it on the Line", followed closely by "Follow Your Heart", "Spellbound", and "Tears in the Rain".) MMathews is correct in that all of the band's prior catalog on RCA went w/ them when they signed to MCA in 1984, so rest assured that all of the recordings on "Classics" are indeed the originals...

The entire Triumph catalog (including "Classics") went out-of-print here in the U.S. when Canada's TRC label re-issued it about 8-10 years ago. When I first bought "Classics" new on CD some five years ago, it was the same Canadian import that you have on TRC, Todd. (Have it right here - the markings on my copy are the same as yours.) At the time, the label apparently set up some sort of distribution deal here in the States as well, which is why MCA was forced to delete their catalog. The Canadian TRC re-issues are all I ever see in U.S. stores anymore, and all titles seem readily available here south of the border; however, I know they wouldn't qualify for inclusion in Pat's book/database, since they are clearly imports...

Anyway, like Fetta, I've since picked up an original U.S. CD pressing of "Classics" on MCA 42283 as well. (Can't locate my copy of that one at the moment, so I'll leave it to Fetta to supply Pat w/ the timings for "Hold On" and "Somebody's Out There", but I see no reason why the Canadian edition on TRC wouldn't be identical.) I actually noticed the omission of "Classics" on MCA from the 10th edition of Pat's book shortly after I bought it about five years ago; I assume it was just an oversight. Then again, I've noticed several other older U.S. CD hits collections missing from the book/database as well, which definitely belong (Eric Carmen and Steve Forbert immediately come to mind)...

I don't know about anybody else, but IMO, at just 11 tracks, "Classics" falls more than a bit short as the only overview of Triumph's fantastic '70s/'80s heyday that's ever been released to date. It's actually missing quite a few of the band's biggest AOR hits here in the U.S., including "All the Way", "Long Time Gone", and the title track from "Never Surrender", not to mention the near pop hit, "Say Goodbye" ("bubbled under" at #102)! Hopefully us fans will get a more in-depth compilation from these guys SOON! :-)

Has anyone been able to find the 45 edit of "Hold On" on an
import CD? Also what is the actual time for the 45 edit
(listed time is 2:59)? Thanks in advance.

I noticed another original parent album missing from the on-line database - and in this case, that album was actually issued on CD TWICE here in the U.S. The parent album of Triumph's 1979 hit, "Hold On", was Just a Game. (And as I mentioned upthread six years ago, my favorite Triumph tune, "Lay it on the Line", is also off that album, and was the follow-up to "Hold On" - but alas, that one hit only #66 in Record World, #77 in Cash Box, and #86 in Billboard, although it should've done a LOT better!)

The first U.S. CD issue of Just a Game came in early '86, on MCA MCAD-1454. Because this was still the early days of CD, all copies were Japan-for-U.S. pressings. Listing for this original version w/ photos on 45worlds: TRIUMPH - "Just a Game" (U.S. CD) (MCA 1454) By the end of '87, it had been re-issued again, this time on MCA MCAD-31118. At least some copies of this second version also exist as Japan-for-U.S. pressings, but later U.S.-for-U.S. pressings are also out there. There are currently several used copies of the later MCA 31118 edition listed on eBay (but none on MCA 1454, which is clearly rarer), w/ these two being the cheapest and in the best condition: TRIUMPH - "Just a Game" (U.S. CD) (MCA 31118) and TRIUMPH - "Just a Game" (U.S. CD) (MCA 31118)

Oh, and Pat, it seems you omitted another U.S. CD w/ "Hold On" from the db listings - one you apparently already have, though, since I see it appears under all of the other top 40 hits that are featured on it. Note that "Hold On" is also track 6 on the 1992 V/A compilation, 70's Greatest Rock Hits Volume 14: Kings of Rock, on Priority CDL 7080. Don't have the CD myself, so I can't report the actual running time, but it wouldn't surprise me if it's also the LP version there...

Santi Paradoa wrote: Has anyone been able to find the 45 edit of "Hold On" on an import CD?

About a year ago, I finally broke down and bought the group's 28-track/2-CD U.K. import from 2005, Livin' for the Weekend: The Anthology (Castle Music/Sanctuary CMEDD1089), which I mentioned above in '09. As expected, "Hold On" is the LP version on that one, w/ an actual time of (6:01). Regrettably, the set is missing a few key tracks - such as "Rock 'n' Roll Machine", "Say Goodbye", and "A World of Fantasy" - but if you're a fan, it's still the best (and most in-depth) Triumph collection assembled to date. Prices have come down slightly, but used copies still seem to go for about $40-$50 nowadays (ugh!)...

80smusicfreak wrote: Hopefully us fans will get a more in-depth compilation from these guys SOON! :-)

And indeed it happened the following year, when the group released the two-disc set, Greatest Hits Remixed, which consists of a 14-track CD, plus a DVD; it came out in the Spring of 2010, and is still in print. It's definitely better than Classics, but from a strictly musical standpoint, it doesn't top Livin' for the Weekend: The Anthology. It also features both of the group's top 40 hits, "Hold On" and "Somebody's Out There". I don't have it (yet), but on-line sources indicate that "Hold On" is also the LP version there - so at this time, I'm not aware of the 45 version appearing on CD, domestic or import...

It hasn't happened yet, but I'm still hoping these guys eventually reunite for a full-blown tour! :-)