Editorial Review

The songs collected on Read more

Features

• Collector's Edition

Reviews (26)

Should have been a box set
While this is a great collection of earlier R.E.M., I would have rather seen a box set including the IRS material, live songs, and b-sides.The 2 CD offering is far too skimpy for this band.
Great Collection
This is a good buy for new listeners as well as old fans.It's good to hear the early stuff in a collection like this.Brings back many memories and recreates many moods.I am disappointed by recent REM recordings, but we always have music like this to appreciate.A must even for diehards.Nice packaging, too, with comments on many of the songs by the band members included in the accompanying booklet.

Poor Sound quality- Remastering gone very wrong
This is really sad, this is an otherwise excellent collection. But in today's quest for everything to be LOUD, the over compressed this so that it's lost almost all dynamic range, and is just stressfull to listen to. You hear things you never did before-- BECAUSE THAT WEREN"T SUPPOSED TO STAND OUT IN THE MIX!Everything just stays at the same level, it sounds like there are some phase issues on some tracks as well.
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Subjects:  1. Adult Alternative Pop/Rock    2. Alternative Pop/Rock    3. American Underground    4. College Rock    5. Jangle Pop    6. Pop    7. Pop/Rock    8. Rock    9. Rock/Pop    10. United States of America   

Editorial Review

How do you condense 15 years of music down to 76 minutes? In the case of this survey of the second phase of R.E.M.'s career, the answer is: Exceptionally well. The dangling carrot for diehards is two new songs; the rapid fire "Bad Day" hurtles along like the kissing cousin of "It's the End of the World as We Know It," while "Animal" is anchored by a majestic drone reminiscent of the Beatles' "Tomorrow Never Knows." In a surprising, but gratifying move, the rest of the program shortchanges the band's breakthrough, Read more

Reviews (164)

good but what if.
With the remarkable IRS compilation just released, the question has to be presented...could this cd have been as good as that one is?
Too much missing
No "Radio Song", "Turn You Inside Out", "Crush with Eyeliner", or, most shockingly, "Shiny Happy People"? Guess I'll wait a few more years for Warners to put out a better best of, like IRS just did of REM's early years.

Recurring Best
There are endless ways to assemble an R.E.M. anthology, let alone one from any other group, but this selection is marvelous. It is not only put together for their best work; it is arranged like an album. Many fans have lamented the absence of some big songs, like "Shiny, Happy, People," but this collection works well together.
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Subjects:  1. Alternative Pop/Rock    2. American Underground    3. College Rock    4. Jangle Pop    5. Pop    6. Rock    7. Rock/Pop    8. United States of America   

Editorial Review

Electrifying performers and pure-pop songwriters of the highest order, Toronto's Barenaked Ladies have emerged over a decade as that strangest of beasts. They'll never land a dishy cover story in Read more

Reviews (89)

Here's an exception...
In the past I've said that compilations are, as a rule, pure evil. I am willing to backtrack on those sentiments in the case of this disc, however. It's simply a great collection of songs from a great band. One can't really complain much. With the Barenaked Ladies, this should only be a jumping-off point, since they have so much great material beyond what's included here. If you're new to them, this is a great place to start.

New BNL Fan
I bought this CD prior to seeing the BNL's in concert. It has all the best songs from all their albums and it is a great mix for first time listeners. It has sold me to buy other albums by them.

All Barenaked Fans Should Get This CD
I love this CD because it has most of my favorite BNL songs as well as some others that I like.I own everyone of their CDs, but there are songs on them that I just don't like to listen to.I like every song on this CD and I never have to skip around.It's great to listen to, and it's a nice addition to any BNL collection.I reccomend this CD to anyone who loves BNL, even if you already have all the CDs, and to anyone who wants to get a taste of this great band.If you don't like what you hear on this CD, try listening to one of the other albums (I love their X-mas CD).Don't be turned of from this band by reviews saying that the CD is terrible.Their an awesome band. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Adult Alternative Pop/Rock    2. Alternative Pop/Rock    3. College Rock    4. Jangle Pop    5. Pop    6. Post-Grunge    7. Power Pop    8. Rock    9. Rock/Pop   

Editorial Review

Chronicling The Replacements' gloriously tempestuous decade on a single disc ostensibly seems akin to reading Cliff's Notes for the New Testament: No sooner do you grow fond of the protagonist than they've nailed him up. And if that comparison sounds a tad sacrilegious, perhaps you underestimate the Mats' hallowed place in modern rock history--and the hearts of their ardent fans. Yet somehow even this condensed format focuses the songs of Paul Westerberg and playing of bandmates Bob and Tommy Stinson and drummer Chris Mars into a dramatic arc that can't be denied. The initial tracks of this 20-track collection display a band joyously besotted by nascent punk thrash, yet one not so different from the scores of similar bands tearing up local clubs in the '80s. Read more

Reviews (16)

Unreplaceable?
Ahh the Replacements. That band you've heard about for so many years but have no idea what they sing. Well as intended, here's the new first choice for the casual fan. This is better than their past collection because it draws from more than just 4 albums, sounds great, and is 20 tracks. The last 2 are "new" songs by the way, both decent. The first half of this disc is awesome. Song after song of primo 80's alternative. The later songs I still dig too, so they're a bit more polished and pop. "Alex Chilton" and "Can't Hardly Wait" might be the biggest hits here, but "Bastards Of The Young", "Achin' To Be", and "Merry Go Round" are great as well. I actually wish "Talent Show" was here too, but that's just me. Anyway, new fans or old, don't fuss over what's missing, just love what's here. I'd say this would go well with Paul's "Besterberg" disc.

Welcome to the (anti) legend
Normally when you browse amazon for replacements or westerberg/stinson related material, all of the "customers who bought this item also bought" entries are similar replacements/westerberg/stinson/etc. albums.Look at the list now... not another Minneapolis rocker to be found at all.
Not quite everything, but pretty close
Listening to this album brought me back to my teenage years growing up in the burbs, but made it seem like I actually had fun.Starting with the early punkier stuff to go with my early adolesent rage and wanting to get drunk to the later more mature songs of heartbrake and relationships, and wanting to get drunk.It's a good trip down blurry memory lane. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Alternative Pop/Rock    2. American Underground    3. College Rock    4. Hard Rock    5. Jangle Pop    6. Pop    7. Rock    8. Rock/Pop    9. United States of America   

Features

• Live

Reviews (45)

Great!
The 10,000 Maniacs have been around since 1981, and it has been a great ride. This album came out in 1993, and features Natalie Merchant's excellent vocals. The band survived Natalie's move to a solo career, and she has done well on her own, but I must say that this album is when they all reached their absolute peak! With the excellent instrumentation and Natalie's beautiful voice, this is a great album to listen to.
A surprising little find
It's amazing what you can find buried under a pile of junk in the local as-is Goodwill. Sometimes you can find near mint condition CDs, such as "10,000 Maniacs Unplugged." That's exactly what happened to me a few months ago.
My favorite live album
I have never been a fan of live albums because most live albums seem to have audio problems and at times it seems like the vocalists can't even come close to what they are able to pull off in the studio.This album is an exception and in this case I actually enjoy the "unplugged" live versions better than the originals.I think a lot of the 10,000 Maniacs albums of the 80s suffered from what a lot of albums suffered from which is being just WAY over produced. I don't think a band like this should have ever been given the glossy shine their albums were given back in the day.Here we have a chance to hear the band as they actually sound in an intimate live environment that if it wasn't for the fact you hear the applause between tracks you wouldn't even know it was recorded live.I think another thing that helps this album is Natalie Merchant's voice has matured quite a bit at this point and is now much more pleasant to listen to.I think this has also benefited her much in her solo career.If you like what you hear here I would recomend Natalie Merchant's two disk Retrospective. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Adult Alternative Pop/Rock    2. Alternative Pop/Rock    3. College Rock    4. Pop    5. Popular Music    6. Rock    7. Rock/Pop   

Editorial Review

Continuing to specialize in the art of curve-throwing, R.E.M. followed up its 1991 smash, Read more

Reviews (341)

Decision vs. Fateand Fortune:"Just Let Go..."
'Automatic for the People' has to rank with 'Document' and 'Murmur' as the all-time best R.E.M. C.D.Conceptually, it is the most consitent and powerful rendering of a theme.And themes and concepts have been taken with intelligence and passion since their inception.Significantly, the vinyl and cassette versions had their two side parody:"Drive" and "Ride".
We deserve a quiet night
Let's face it: all these Amazon review are written by those that either love or hate the product. Even the worst (stuff) will get 5 stars if the owner likes it.
Deep pop,not hip-hop or trip-hop
REM is one of the greatest alternative rock bands around.GET THIS ALBUM!
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Subjects:  1. Adult Alternative Pop/Rock    2. Alternative Pop/Rock    3. Alternative/Indie-Rock    4. American Underground    5. College Rock    6. Jangle Pop    7. Pop    8. Rock    9. Rock/Pop    10. United States of America   

Editorial Review

The Bangles' transformation from Merseybeat and garage-smart guitar band to near-definitive example of buffed-and-polished corporate popsters is one of the great rock mysteries of the '80s. What was Read more

Features

• Enhanced

Reviews (64)

Nice Collection
I haven't cared for much pop music since the late 60's, but the Bangles are enjoyable listening for anyone.The harshest reviewers of this album complain about not enough good songs and then go on to name 3 or 4 that are good.How many times does an album have more than one good hit song?This one has several outstanding songs and the remaining ones are good listening too."Going Down to Liverpool" repeates a little too much, but I still like the song.Manic Monday, Eternal Flame and Hazy Shade of Winter are all excellent.Walk Like An Egyptian was a big hit and it's on here too of course.This is a good album and probably a good introduction to the Bangles.It has enough variety to keep it interesting and enough hits to probably more than justify the Greatest Hits title.

Never gets old
The Bangles are great group that never goes out of style...I remember as a child purchasing the Manic Monday 45rpm.....and I played it over and over......When this was released..I bought it and of course all the hits are here....Standouts are If She Knew What She Wants,Manic Monday,Eternal Flame,In Your Room,Walk Like An Egyptian,Walking Down Your Street,A Hazy Shade Of Winter,and Be With You...........MAKE SURE YOU GET A COPY OF THIS GREAT ALBUM FROM A GREAT GROUP!

One of the Greatest Girl Groups of the 80s
During the 80s, the Bangles solidified themselves not only as one of the best girl groups, but one of the best groups overall.This CD contains an anthology of their greatest hits and will take you back in time to the 80s.
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Subjects:  1. Jangle Pop    2. New Wave    3. Paisley Underground    4. Pop    5. Pop/Rock    6. Popular Music    7. Rock    8. Rock/Pop    9. United States of America   

Editorial Review

R.E.M.'s early recordings purposefully bury Michael Stipe's vocals, allowing them to dominate the audio mix no more than Peter Buck's jangly guitar figures or Mike Mills's bass. Read more

Features

• Original recording reissued

Reviews (116)

R.E.M.'s Rich Recording
'Life's Rich Pageant' is the fourth R.E.M. full-length album, and like the predecessors, is accomplished.This album, like the others, has a trademark.Here it contains their most unconventionally conventional pop and rock songs."...Pageant" contains propulsive anthems and some of their most pop-pleasing songs of any album. Their accomplishments were enough to propel them to the top ten next time around.
The best of REM
Pageant is REM's best album, in my opinion, followed by Murmur and Automatic. This album contains a unique blend of their jangle-folk-rock roots and the lyrical mainstream band they would later become. For the first time, political themes show up frequently through a number of songs (Flowers of Guatemala, These Days, Begin the Begin, even Cuyahoga). This style is fantastic, but unfortunately unique to Pageant.Sadly, they basically abandoned this style for Document and Green (their worst work), finally rising out of the ashes with Out of Time and Automatic. So buy this album, because it's your only chance to hear something this good from REM.
Their best
I've followed REM since their "Fables" days, and "Pageant" is my favorite of all of their albums followed closely by "Automatic for the People". I get the feeling that REM is running out of melodies as of late...or else, they don't want to repeat themselves.
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Subjects:  1. Alternative Pop/Rock    2. American Underground    3. College Rock    4. Jangle Pop    5. Pop    6. Popular Music    7. Rock    8. Rock/Pop   

Editorial Review

Though critics swamped R.E.M.'s 1983 full-length debut with country-rock comparisons to the Byrds, Read more

Reviews (155)

Resusitated the Heartbeat of Music
If you don't count R.E.M.'s first long E.P (extended play) beginning 'Chronic Town,' then their debut starts here.'Murmur' their first album is brilliant, deserving all the accolades that are heaped upon it.With brilliant echo effects, a repertoire of ecclectic guitar, including folk, rock, punk, and new-wave patterns, 'Murmur' would be the crowning achievement of any other band.Having romantic, religious, and surreal images, R.E.M. propulsively and hypnotically lives up to the band name with a solid set of songs that work well together.Before alternative was a household world, R.E.M. came up with an avant guard folk-rock, new wave masterpiece before anyone could give the genre a name.
This album is gold... literally.
I'll keep this short and sweet, because anything I have to say about the actual album has already been said by other reviewers.This particular version is the Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs version, which was remastered at their very high-tech labs and pressed on a 24-karat gold disc.Why gold?2 reasons: it reflects the laser better than standard aluminum, and it lasts longer, too.So what makes the MFSL version of this album so special?Well, to quote Shawn Britton of MFSL, "...the original version was mastered such that there wasn't much low frequency information...."This version is a flat transfer of the original master tape, meaning that all the low, deep bass you were originally supposed to hear is there in this version.
When I learned of this, I knew they would one day be huge
I was a college freshman in the spring of 1983 and already had "Chronic Town" (just the 5-song EP, on vinyl), and my dorm roommate thought they stank and would never release anything else and would fade into oblivion along with hundreds of other Next Big Things.
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Subjects:  1. Alternative Pop/Rock    2. American Underground    3. College Rock    4. Jangle Pop    5. Pop    6. Popular Music    7. Rock    8. Rock/Pop    9. United States of America   

Editorial Review

Though R.E.M. titled a later album Read more

Reviews (154)

Watershed with a Geyser
'Out of Time,' but certainly not out of talent, R.E.M. reinvented themselves in sound and outlook like never before. The double images of a watershed on the album's cover can't fail to make its point: They will never be the same. To accentuate their makeover, the back photo shows the group in black, mourning their old image. (It is an update to the Beatles at their own funeral on the cover of 'Sgt. Pepper'.) Mike Mills has an all-knowing smirk, and Michael Stipe's arms are raised to embrace the horizon like the tragic characters in Joyce Carol Oates' story, "Where Are You Going? Where Have You Been?" They definitely go to new destinations from here on out. The desperation, angst, and appeals made for divine and human love seemingly gone wrong are brilliantly presented on this their, er..., watershed...album.
Doesn't deserve the bad rap
Out of Time tends to get a bad rap from serious REM fans, which is somewhat undeserved. Yes, it's far from their best album, but it still contains some real gems.
"Out of Form"
REM hooked listeners into 'Out of Time' with "Losing My Religion" and you either bought the album because you wanted to hear that song in particular or you were hoping all the songs were similar to it if you hadn't heard it before. "Out of Time" is pretty much a set of ho-hum little ditties with a jewel thrown in. What gets me is, if a band can construct a masterpiece like 'Religion' for an album, how can they bring themselves to compose really-oh-so-boring music...perhaps they saved the quality for "Automatic For The People" which is their best, and a superior, creation. Two stars for the jewel. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Adult Alternative Pop/Rock    2. Alternative Pop/Rock    3. College Rock    4. Jangle Pop    5. Pop    6. Rock    7. Rock/Pop   

Editorial Review

The 1984 follow-up to R.E.M.'s brilliantly murky debut features Michael Stipe's ambiguous moan, drummer Bill Berry's strong backbeat, and guitarist Peter Buck's endless wave of catchy, jangling riffs. They wouldn't fully beef up their hard rock until roughly 1986's Read more

Reviews (64)

Musical 'Reckoning'
'Reckoning' documents R.E.M.'s growing expertise at creating a virtuoso variety of songs with a crystal clear production seldom found during their early years.From the frenetic New Wave thrust of "Harborcoat" to the progressive country of "Don't Go Back to Rockville," R.E.M. provided an energetic early classic.The variety isn't the only thing stunning about 'Recokoning,' the musical athleticism of fast-forward numbers like "Second Guessing" and "Pretty Persuasion" are admirable as well.They are at their hynotic best with other fine songs like "Seven Chinese Brothers," "Letter Never Sent," and "South Central Rain"."Time After Time" elicits tenderness well in the mix.The only real flaw is the langorous "Camera," which has the effect of someone taking too long to take a picture.
This album is gold... literally (part two)
Once again, I'll limit my review to the more technical stuff, as most reviewers already echo my appreciation for this album.
Fine Early Album!
Judged from this second R.E.M. album from 1984 their general style hasn't changed very much over the years. The sound on this early album is not as slick as recent years R.E.M. but Stipe's voice sound almost like it doestoday.
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Subjects:  1. Alternative Pop/Rock    2. American Underground    3. College Rock    4. Jangle Pop    5. Pop    6. Rock    7. Rock/Pop   

Editorial Review

"What I Am," the leadoff track on Read more

Reviews (38)

Shooting Rubberbands At the StarsEdie Brickell
Excellent CD all songs on the CD are great

Shooting Rubber Bands at the Stars
Absolutely awesome!!! My 24 year olds favorite cd when he was younger and still loving it!!!

Great back up band
This CD was released in 1988.It is 48 minutes long.The sound quality is very good to excellent.
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Subjects:  1. Alternative Pop/Rock    2. College Rock    3. Folk-Rock    4. Jangle Pop    5. Pop    6. Pop/Rock    7. Rock    8. Rock/Pop   

Editorial Review

This 1987 collection of Smiths album tracks, B-sides, and singles (and roughly half of Read more

Reviews (76)

How do you describe the perfect album.
It sounds cheesy, doesn't it, stating LTB is the quintescential Smiths album. I remember listening to the Beatles over and OVER and OVER again and my mother telling me that they were the perfect band, that no one else would be able to take their place. I hated her for that. It felt like she had stolen something necessary for growing up. Can't describe the feeling, kind of a jealousy that festered.
Lyrics Speak Louder Than Bombs
"Louder Than Bombs" is a Smiths compilation of sorts, a collection of non-album singles, B-sides and several tracks from the Smiths' first compilation "Hatful of Hollow". Many of these tracks you can't get anywhere else. Well, you can get them on "The World Won't Listen", but that's a very similar compilation to this one.
An All-Time Classic
I've got over 3000 albums, CDs etc and this one is in the top 50 for sure. This record is as good as anything by Dylan, Chuck Berry, The Beatles, Bob Marley, Zeppelin, Ray Charles, the Stones, Who, Miles Davis, Zappa, Floyd, Louis Armstrong... you name it...ANYTHING by ANYBODY.
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Subjects:  1. Alternative Pop/Rock    2. College Rock    3. England    4. Indie Pop    5. Jangle Pop    6. Pop    7. Rock    8. Rock/Pop