VA - Shine On: A Tribute To Pete Ham (2023)

Pete Ham was a genius. He was an incredible songwriter and performer. Of course, he was one fourth of Badfinger, one of the finest power pop and rock bands of all time. Sadly, the comparisons to The Beatles overshadowed their incredible, complex, and beautiful music. Both Ham and Badfinger’s stories are tragic, and for Ham ended when he took his own life on April 24, 1975. The story is a complex one and books have been written about the band’s unfortunate management deals. Shine On: A Tribute To Pete Ham pays tribute to the writer and his incredible legacy of songs. Additionally, all net proceeds go to Mental Health America of Southeast Florida.

Y & T Music have assembled a number of artists who have recorded 35 Pete Ham songs, or songs he cowrote. It is an excellent variety of artists and musicians who are clearly fans, and in some cases were influenced by Badfinger. What is interesting about this compilation is that while the hits are here, some artists went for the deep deep cuts, such as Albert Castiglia Band (featuring Mandy Marlane) covering “Piano Red”, a song available as a bonus track on Badfinger’s Ass rerelease. Here they emphasize the honky tonk aspect and the track features a wonderful guitar solo. Another deep cut comes from Fernando Perdomo, who does an excellent version of “Savile Row” which is from the unreleased album Head First. It features a very short instrumental named for the London address of Apple Records. It is short, but it packs a punch. Tobin Sprout takes his turn with “Dear Father”, which was only available on a compilation of Pete Ham demos (7 Park Avenue). He gives an idea of how the song would have sounded had Badfinger recorded it.

Of course, the hits are covered, although you will not find “Come And Get It”, one of their biggest hits, because the song was written and produced by Paul McCartney for their debut album, Magic Christian Music. It was also the theme song of The Magic Christian starring Ringo Starr and Peter Sellers, to which they also contributed three songs. But “No Matter What” is here twice with two very different versions by The Speaker Wars, one ‘world’ and one ‘pop’ version. Shelby Lynne does a lovely cover of “Day After Day” and “Apple Of My Eye” by Amy Allison. She does a wonderful job conveying the sadness Ham felt. Also, worth noting is “Song For A Lost Friend” from The Parlophonics.

Wreckless Eric and Amy Rigby cover the beautiful “Midnight Caller” from No Dice, but here they alter vocals and make the song much more sinister than the original. It is an interesting take and actually works in many ways. Melanie’s sparse arrangement for “Without You” is very different from Badfinger’s, and from Harry Nilsson’s hit version. Again, it is different, but it is a loving version that is original and quite good. Melanie’s vocals are particularly beautiful and full of emotion. Mary Karlzen does a fantastic job interpreting “We’re For The Dark”. She brings out more of the rock side of the song but again, her arrangement is quite stunning.

Not every cover version works but it can be said that all the songs were done with a great deal of respect for Ham and his music. It is hoped that people who listen to this album may want to explore the originals. Badfinger put out six albums while Ham was alive, seven if you count The Iveys which was their original name. Every single album they released was brilliant.