The Lot (stylised as the lot) is a compilationbox set by Queen drummer Roger Taylor, containing nearly all of his solo work outside of Queen, including material released both under his own name and with his band the Cross.[1] The box set's release was originally scheduled for 11 October 2013,[2] but was pushed back a month; both The Lot and Taylor's fifth solo album Fun on Earth were released on 11 November 2013.[3][4]
Initial pressings featured numerous technical issues, which Taylor and his manufacturing team attempted to address by asking buyers to return affected copies in exchange for corrected copies.[5] The album was re-released on 10 November 2014.[6][7]
Backgroundedit
Apart from his work with Queen, Taylor recorded five solo albums, and three with the Cross. He released his first single, "(I Wanna) Testify", in 1977. He went on to record two solo albums, Fun in Space (1981) and Strange Frontier (1984).[8] They were modestly successful when released.
After the breakup of the Cross, Taylor released his third solo album, Happiness?. It engendered some controversy, due to the inclusion of the track "Nazis 1994".[10] The furore likely increased sales, however. In 1998, Taylor released his fourth album, Electric Fire.[11] He would not record another album until Fun on Earth, which was released on 11 November 2013,[12] simultaneously with the release of The Lot.
All of Taylor's solo albums and the three albums by the Cross, as well as numerous standalone singles and alternate mixes, are included in The Lot. Discs One through Eight consist of the Taylor and Cross albums, in chronological order, while discs Nine through Twelve include alternative single edits, remixes, non-album singles, B-sides and a handful of previously unreleased rarities. Disc Thirteen is a DVD containing Taylor and the Cross' promotional music videos, along with a number of never-before-seen Taylor live performances.
Upon release, it became apparent there were several technical problems with the first pressing of the box set. These included errors in the printed lyrics, the inclusion of incorrect mixes of certain songs, and several other audio issues.[13] Consumers who had bought the initial release were asked to return their copies to Universal Records, which would replace them with corrected copies.[5]
Taylor assessed The Lot as a good retrospective of his career: "It's very satisfying to get it all in one place. I didn't realise how much there was: eight CDs, videos, lots of singles. I’d forgotten a lot. But it's very satisfying".[14]
Track listingedit
All tracks written by Roger Taylor, except where noted.
^The Lot – Roger Taylor | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic, retrieved 12 May 2020
^"Roger Taylor to Release New Album in October Plus a Solo Work Compilation". VVN Music. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
^hennemusic. "Queen: Roger Taylor to release new album and solo catalog". Retrieved 22 June 2020.
^Chapman, Phil. (2017). The Dead Straight Guide to Queen. Croyden: Music Sales. ISBN 978-1-78759-050-2. OCLC 1036778770.
^ abSinclaire, Paul (11 November 2013). "Fans left disappointed over errors on Roger Taylor "Lot" box". Super Deluxe Editions. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
^"Roger Taylor — The Lot – Omnivore Recordings". Retrieved 30 April 2020.
^The Lot – Roger Taylor | Releases | AllMusic, retrieved 22 June 2020
^"Roger Taylor | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
^"Taylor's anti-Nazi song consigned to off-peak play". The Independent. 15 May 1994. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
^International who's who in popular music (4th ed.). London: Europa. 2002. ISBN 1-85743-161-8. OCLC 49206740.
^Fun on Earth - Roger Taylor | Releases | AllMusic, retrieved 22 June 2020
^Purvis, Georg (30 October 2018). Queen: Complete Works (revised and updated). Titan Books (US, CA). ISBN 978-1-78909-049-9.
^"'IF PEOPLE DON'T LIKE IT, TOUGH SHIT' – Record Collector Magazine". recordcollectormag.com. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
