England's Yardbirds were often overlooked in favor of other bands during the heyday of the British Invasion, but their legacy has loomed large for decades after their demise. After all, they fostered the careers of Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Jimmy Page, and bands such as Renaissance, Cream, Led Zeppelin, Blind Faith, and the Jeff Beck Group. After cutting their teeth as faithful, if energetic, blues revivalists on live albums and a handful of singles, they cut this, their first real studio album, in 1966. Taking their cue from previous singles like the Gregorian-influenced "Still I'm Sad" and the future-shocker "Shapes of Things," the 'Birds produced what remains one of blues-rock's most progressive and distinctive albums--and one that, remarkably, was never initially released in the U.S. in its original form. Veering sharply from Beck's classic riffing on the rollicking "Over Under Sideways Down," the band explores broad palettes of style and hue, be it the more traditional blues of "Lost Woman," neomedieval turns ("Ever Since the World Began," "Turn Into Earth"), strange psychedelia ("Hot House of Omagarashid"), or showcases for Beck's playful, pioneering fret work ("Jeff's Boogie"). As an added bonus, the CD includes both sides of the band's sonically apocalyptic single "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago"/"Psycho Daisies" (with the rare twin-lead guitar lineup of Beck and Jimmy Page) and a handful of extremely rare solo tracks vocalist Keith Relf cut during the same period. An album as enjoyable as it is historically influential. --Jerry McCulley