I have heard couple of the songs in this album before however I have never had the chance to listen to majority of the songs from this period of Al Stewart. What can I say? Magnificent can be the word to describe this album. Life and Life Only, Electric Los Angeles Sunset, Ivich, Bedsitter Images, Anna, My Enemies Have Sweet Voices and Small Fruit Song make this collection unmatchable. Al Stewart's voice, music and lyrics have always touched me. But this period of his career is seemed to me really different. It is pure and more experimental. This CD is a must not only for those who would like to explore Al Stewart's music but also for those who are looking for an immortal piece from 60s.

So glad this is on CD. Al Stewart is truly an amazing songwriter and I love his early songs and was worried I would have to go without these tunes now that I am CD bound. This is a great compilation of songs from his earliest albums

Years and years ago, around 1984, in high school, I was introduced to Al Stewart by way of a Swedish foreign exchange student who swapped cassettes with me in art class. It was a homemade cassette, but included a few early numbers and a bunch of stuff from the mid '70s. I was hooked. I bought a couple used LPs and even found a weird blue cassette of "The Early Years" that I listened to until it started to wear out. Thank God for CD!

Something happened to Al around 1976, when he pumped up the band, the production and became a big star with Year of the Cat. Now, that and Time Passages are outstanding. Then there were other albums that were identifiably Al, but not particularly something you'd want to put on with your friends around. Then he ditched his corduroy jacket and fogbound English libido and started hanging around in California, playing wineries and whatnot, losing his hair and his edge -- and God bless him for it, it's his life and he's still -- but to really know Al, you've got to dig into his beginnings. This is the place to begin.

There are a few duds on this collection (e.g., the first half dozen songs, when he was coerced (?) into heavy strings and annoying orchestration (he was just a kid, so I don't care), but then it really gets going.

A lot of the savage lead guitar was done by Jimmy Page, of all people. The lyrics are great, and there's a sort of rockin', folky, poetic, coffeehouse feel to it. Al's voice has always been a bit flimsy -- nothing he can do about that -- but at least in the old days, he compensated with some severe lyrics. There's a little of that historical epic stuff he got into later, but a lot of the songs are very personal, rough, artsy and great. Gethsemane Again, Zero She Flies ... man, those are among the best. And the stuff that's from the '70s is so '60s, I don't know whether Al was way ahead or way behind. Either way, this is one musician who needs to get a lot more credit than he has.

I guess to include the invaluable "Orange" on this collection would have taken another CD, but fortunately that's now available, too.

It's hard to believe I can now listen to almost all of Al's songs on crystal clear CD, after so many years of tracking down albums from Japan, or listening to my worn-out cassettes.

Buy it! Buy it now!!

This album is great because it has songs such as "The Ballad of Mary Foster" and "Brooklyn" which are hard to find on many of his recordings. Also, there are some live cuts, which showcase his incredible talant as a guitarist!

This is how collections should be. This has his entire first three albums all on two discs, and reprints of the cover sleeve, albeit in smaller sizes, in the CD booklet. The music is also excellent. I agree with other reviewers that Al is one of the most underrated songwriters of all time but I don't agree that most of his best work was in his early days. Unlike most acts that began in teh 1960s Al still produces brilliant albums. His 2000 album was very good but his 1995 album Between the Wars was a masterpeice just as good as his early stuff. However, To Whome it May Concern is not the best starting point for people wanting to get into Al Stewart. The best place to start is Year of the Cat, which is his most commercial and also his most accessible (although Al's music is not very hard to get into). His first three albums, which are contained in this set, are very introspective. Later on he would go on to write less about himself and more about history and other subjects. Almost all the songs are excellent but standouts include Beleeka Doodle Day, Life and Life Only, Electric Los Angeles Sunset, Manuscript and the extended masterpiece Love Chronicles which is a true (and humerous) account of his love life.