Hombres G - Del rosa al amarillo [2LP]

Four decades of Madrid pop-rock fit onto two LPs in Del rosa al amarillo, the Hombres G collection that gathers the band's best-loved songs in one place.

Formed in Madrid in the early 1980s around singer and bassist David Summers, Hombres G became one of the defining Spanish bands of their generation, writing cheeky, impossibly catchy songs about girlfriends, school and teenage chaos. Their records travelled well beyond Spain, building a devoted following across Latin America that never really went away. After splitting in the 1990s, they regrouped the following decade and kept writing, which is why this set runs well past the early hits.

The 24 tracks open with Venezia and Devuélveme A Mi Chica, the song from their 1985 debut whose chorus still gets shouted back at their concerts. Marta Tiene Un Marcapasos shows off the band's absurdist streak, all bright guitars and deadpan wit, while later material brings in friends such as Dani Martín, and Carlos Rivera lends his voice to the soaring Se Me Sale El Corazón.

Heard in sequence, it traces a band growing up without losing its sense of humour.

For fans who grew up on these choruses, or anyone discovering why crowds on both sides of the Atlantic still sing them word for word, this is the essential Hombres G shelf copy.