Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel ★★★★ The Best Years Of Our Lives CHRYSALIS. LP

Extended, coloured vinyl, 45th anniversary version. 1974’s The Psychomodo seemed to have set up Cockney Rebel as a major force, until the band upped and left leader Steve Harley. He recruited a new band, put his name in front of them and wrote a new song, Make Me Smile (Come Up And See Me), about the desertion. Still an inspiring slice of vitriol, his only Number 1 proved to be Harley’s pension plan, but its attendant album was more than the hit plus filler. Mr Raffles (Man It Was Mean) remains his most beautiful song; the title track was heroically self-indulgent (“If there’s no room for laughter, there’s no room for me”), while he was even slinky on 49th Parallel. This 2-LP version, on blue and orange vinyl to reflect a line in The Mad, Mad Moonlight, adds a selection of extra tracks, although nothing here is previously unreleased.