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Better Than the Rest

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Better Than the Rest
Studio album by
George Thorogood
ReleasedSeptember 1979
RecordedSeptember 1974
Genre
Length27:38
LabelMCA
ProducerDanny Lipman
George Thorogood chronology
Move It On Over
(1978) 		Better Than the Rest
(1979) 		More George Thorogood and the Destroyers
(1980)
Singles from Better Than the Rest
  1. "My Way" / "You're Gonna Miss Me"
    Released: 1979 (UK)
  2. "In the Night Time"
    Released: 1979

Better Than the Rest is the third album of songs by American blues rock band George Thorogood and the Destroyers, recorded in 1974 and released in September 1979. The album peaked at No. 78 on the Billboard Top LPs chart.

Background and recording

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In September 1974[1] Thorogood and the Destroyers recorded a 20 songs demo, with producer Danny Lipman.[2] At the time, Thorogood was in a production agreement with Lipman, and wasn't signed to any label.[3]

After the Destroyers released Move It On Over, MCA Records, who bought the demos from Danny Lipman, wanted to release ten of those songs as Better Than the Rest on July 6, and the other ten later that year. Thorogood and Rounder weren't happy with this and threatened legal action if MCA released the album.[4] Eventually they reached an agreement and only Better Than the Rest was released.[5]

According to Thorogood, the band didn't have anything to do with Better Than the Rest, as they didn't own the masters to the album.[6]

Release

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MCA Records released Better Than the Rest in September 1979.[1][7][8] The album peaked at No. 78 on the Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart.[1][9][10] "My Way", c/w "You're Gonna Miss Me" was released as a single in the UK.[11]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[12]
DownBeat[13]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[14]
The Virgin Encyclopedia of the Blues[15]

CD reissue

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See also: Nadine (album)

In 1986, the songs from this album were released on compact disc with the title Nadine, in a different track order.[16] Better Than The Rest itself was never reissued on CD.

Track listing

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Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."In the Night Time"Michael Henderson, Sylvester Rivers3:08
2."I'm Ready"Willie Dixon2:46
3."Goodbye Baby"Joe Josea, Jules Taub, Sam Ling3:08
4."Howlin for My Darling"Dixon, Howlin' Wolf3:24
5."My Weakness"Vetter Smith, N. Wilson2:26
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Nadine"Chuck Berry4:03
2."My Way"Eddie Cochran, Jerry Capehart1:56
3."You're Gonna Miss Me"Eddie Jones2:14
4."Worried About My Baby"Howlin' Wolf3:29
5."Huckle Up Baby"Bernard Besman, John Lee Hooker2:24
Total length:27:38

Personnel

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Musicians

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Technical

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Charts

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Chart (1979) Peak
position
US Top LPs & Tape (Billboard)[9] 78
Canada (RPM Magazine)[17] 71
New Zealand (RMNZ)[18] 43

References

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  1. ^ a b c uDiscover Team (March 8, 2020). "George Thorogood - Prodigiously-Talented Boogie Blues Guitarist". uDiscover Music.
  2. ^ "Billboard". Billboard. March 31, 1979. p. 178.
  3. ^ Chrispell, James. "Better Than the Rest Review". AllMusic.
  4. ^ Berlin, Joey (June 9, 1979). "MCA Sets Thorogood Release Date, Legal Actions Expected" (PDF). Cash Box. pp. 8, 52 – via World Radio History.
  5. ^ "The Music of Business" (PDF). Cash Box. March 22, 1980. p. 14 – via World Radio History.
  6. ^ Moser, John J. "Interviewing George Thorogood: Rocker, coming to Allentown, says touring is what bluesmen do". The Morning Call.
  7. ^ "BETTER THAN THE REST". George Thorogood official website.
  8. ^ Reader Staff. "George Thorogood & the Destroyers, Saturday, April 20, 2024, 8 - 11pm". River Cities' Reader.
  9. ^ a b "Billboard 200". Billboard.
  10. ^ "George Thorogood Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on December 3, 2012. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
  11. ^ "Releases - Single Index" (PDF). Music Week. October 27, 1979. p. 32 – via World Radio History.
  12. ^ "Better Than the Rest Review by James Chrispell". AllMusic. Retrieved December 22, 2023.
  13. ^ "Record Reviews" (PDF). DownBeat. March 1980. p. 51 – via World Radio History.
  14. ^ The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 706.
  15. ^ The Virgin Encyclopedia of the Blues. Virgin. 1998. p. 346.
  16. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Nadine Review". AllMusic.
  17. ^ "Item: 4984 - Library and Archives Canada". Library and Archives Canada.
  18. ^ "charts.org.nz - George Thorogood & The Destroyers - Better Than The Rest". charts.org.nz.
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