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[Music] Best compilation album?
- Thread starter Icy Gull
- Start date
studio150
Well-known member
Savage Records USA 1966 cash in, with Pete Best in the Beatles, and one of the worst Beatles unofficial cash ins
We're the Stripes
Well-known member
Not sure I overly agree with them in hindsight, but I grew up listening to a lot of "best of" albums as my first introduction to a number of bands, couple of favourites being:
sams dad
I hate Palarse
Motown Chartbusters volume 4
Stato
Well-known member
- Dec 21, 2011
- 7,367
Compilation albums get bad press from album snobs, but they are brilliant for exploring genres where the single was more important.
As I mentioned on the Punk thread, Lenny Kaye's Nuggets album is a classic introduction to sixties garage, there are quite a few compilations of doowop and girl group songs that are dirt cheap and absolutely brilliant. You just have to avoid the dreaded 'Some of these songs have been re-recorded by the original artists for your listening pleasure' warning. This means that you will end up with the 1993 line up of The Drifters with peoples cousins and grandsons failing to sound like Ben E King in front of bored session players stumbling their way through 'There Goes My Baby'.
I have bought loads of good ones by old soul, jazz and blues artists: O.V. Wright, Irma Thomas, Bobbie Bland, Billy Ward & His Dominoes, Sonny Boy Williamson, Gloria Lynne, Camille Howard, Spike Jones etc. There are a few seminal artists where compilation albums are a cheap and easy way in Hank Williams, Robert Johnson, Howling Wolf, Sam Cooke, Chuck Berry etc.
I absolutely love Country Got Soul Vols 1 & 2 and they have inspired me to buy really good compilations of Jim Ford, Wayne Carson, Bobbie Gentry and Tony Joe White.
Compiliations are great for people like me who have Spotify, but don't really think its the same as owning stuff.
As I mentioned on the Punk thread, Lenny Kaye's Nuggets album is a classic introduction to sixties garage, there are quite a few compilations of doowop and girl group songs that are dirt cheap and absolutely brilliant. You just have to avoid the dreaded 'Some of these songs have been re-recorded by the original artists for your listening pleasure' warning. This means that you will end up with the 1993 line up of The Drifters with peoples cousins and grandsons failing to sound like Ben E King in front of bored session players stumbling their way through 'There Goes My Baby'.
I have bought loads of good ones by old soul, jazz and blues artists: O.V. Wright, Irma Thomas, Bobbie Bland, Billy Ward & His Dominoes, Sonny Boy Williamson, Gloria Lynne, Camille Howard, Spike Jones etc. There are a few seminal artists where compilation albums are a cheap and easy way in Hank Williams, Robert Johnson, Howling Wolf, Sam Cooke, Chuck Berry etc.
I absolutely love Country Got Soul Vols 1 & 2 and they have inspired me to buy really good compilations of Jim Ford, Wayne Carson, Bobbie Gentry and Tony Joe White.
Compiliations are great for people like me who have Spotify, but don't really think its the same as owning stuff.
Ooh, I forgot the Street Sounds albums - have a few of them,
My faves though are the four volumes of Dave Godin's Deep Soul Treasures
and the nine-volume set of complete Stax singles - soul-tastic
maffew
Well-known member
Agreed.
Some of my favourite 'albums' were compilations generally about music I know nothing about but know I like it if that makes sense. EG I love classical music but wouldnt have clue who is who, so bought a compilation of 5 cds from the WHSmiths bargain bin got 16 quid years ago.. Over 100 tracks, I and most of you would have known them all (from a tv ad, footy terrace song, or from school/the choir.) Beautiful it was and the only classical music I needed in my CD collection
I did the same with a "Best of Ska" compilation, same as above. Fair but if crap on there but loads of classics
And DJing the best was I found when starting to mix a new genre was with a compliation with a tune or 2 you may know on, then you have loads of filler tracks round that and can start building round that
I started with CarlCox FACT when I was getting into old technoey electro trancy stuff, then some mix CDs from REACT (but on vinyl) and a couple of drum and bass albums/LPs by Ganga Cru, DJ Marky, SS, whoever. Before you know if you've got a playable set in no time at all
Heck I've bought a few NOW compilations here and there, easy one for the kids parties
Stato
Well-known member
- Dec 21, 2011
- 7,367
It's very good, but because of 'This Old Heart Of Mine (Is Weak For You) and 'I Heard It Through The Grapevine', I'd prefer Volume 3. (Or Motown Gold, but then we're probably into best box sets)
I was literally just listening to this. It's by far my favourite "best of" album. Every song is absolutely top drawer.
Stato
Well-known member
- Dec 21, 2011
- 7,367
I did exactly the same, but for two quid in a charity shop earlier this year. (Why is everyone getting rid of their cds? Have they not learnt their lesson from the 90s when I bought all of the cast off vinyl that they are now forking out to replace?). I've always been a bit wary of starting to buy classical music as there is hundreds of years of it and my obsession with the popular side is already out of hand. The compilation has allowed me to get a bit of a handle on it and I can now start to look out for more of the stuff that has caught my interest; (Debussy, Stravinsky, Satie at the moment, but I know it will snowball as I listen to more).
We're the Stripes
Well-known member
It's got Handsome Devil on it (John Peel session) which is almost enough by itself to make it my favourite Smiths album.
PFJ
Not the JPF ..splitters !
In the days before spotify, any decent punk bands that you had not yet discovered could be found on the excellent Punk and Disorderly trio of compilations, and the four main Oi albums. I thought Strength Through Oi was particularly good.
And then a total departure with The Judgement Night Album, crossing rap and metal bands. Highlights are Slayer and Ice -T covering an Exploited medley and Biohazard and Onyx.
pearl
Well-known member
Legend - Bob Marley
Standing On A Beach - The Cure
Best of Suede - Suede
The Best of Siouxsie and the Banshees
Standing On A Beach - The Cure
Best of Suede - Suede
The Best of Siouxsie and the Banshees
