Among serious fans of British rock of the 1960s, few mysteries are more perplexing than how a band as exciting, innovative, and talented as the Creation failed to become major stars during their all-too-brief run from 1966 to 1969. They attracted a healthy following in Germany but were little more than a cult item in their native England (and essentially unknown in the United States); the only Creation album that appeared during their original run was We Are Paintermen, a collection of single sides and stray tracks that was issued only in Germany and Denmark. Decades after the fact, the Creation have been hailed as heroes by critics and record collectors bowled over by their combination of mod style, R&B edge, and freakbeat sonics, with particular praise going to the lead guitar of Eddie Phillips, heralded for his bracing use of volume, feedback, and the violin bow (the latter technique would be lifted by Jimmy Page with much greater success). If Phillips was the band's wildest talent, vocalist Kenny Pickett, bassist Bob Gardner, and drummer Jack Jones were more than just along for the ride, reinforcing the bold attack of the songs at every turn. The Creation's output in the '60s amounted to just 25 tracks, and the British Edsel label has pulled them all together on We Are Paintermen/How Does It Feel to Feel?, a two-part set that features a remastered version of the 1967 We Are Paintermen album on disc one, with a revised version of Edsel's 1982 Creation compilation How Does It Feel to Feel? on the second. This package ignores their early recordings as the Mark Four and the uneven reunion albums they cut in the '90s in favor of a well-packaged and well-mastered presentation of the Creation's essential canon. Unless you're an especially obsessive fan, this is all you really need from this great band. From the taut, danceable R&B of "Cool Jerk" and the would-be mod anthems of "Making Time" and "Biff Bang Pow" to the sweet psychedelia of "Ostrich Man" and the glorious sonic chaos of "How Does It Feel to Feel?" (featuring some of Phillips' most savage guitar work), the Creation were a group who captured the sound and mood of their time with a sense of experimentation and a forward-thinking vision that still sounds fresh and vital more than 50 years later. We Are Paintermen/How Does It Feel to Feel? isn't the most elaborate Creation collection you can find, but it's a fine, straightforward presentation of their most vital work, and for anyone with an interest in the more esoteric sounds of the British Beat era, this is brilliant and essential music. ~ Mark Deming