They had a few great hits and this is a pretty goof reflection of ...
922132
They had a few great hits and this is a pretty goof reflection of their heyday. This album gives a nice retrospective of a good band that gets forgotten except for the efforts of PBS to keep them alive. If you are a fan of the sixties music then this is for you.
1855388
This is a great overview for the casual fan of Elvis. It cuts through to some of the biggest hits in his career which are quite good. However you feel cheated a bit by the lack of early tracks from my aim is and this years model. There are so many good songs on these early albums that you only scratch the surface here.

The problem with any great artist is that a greatest hits is usually mediocre in terms of a collection. Elvis is quite divergent from album to album. But this one is as good as any hits CD.
2708638
They could only come up with 8 songs for their Greatest Hits ... and they had to stretch to do that  . . . . . The majority of the ones that are there are pretty good.
3817094
The stuff from the "prime' years is a nice overview of the band, I'm really glad they included "It Doesn't Matter" a personal favorite.  The sound's great, it's a nice summary of a band I have well represented in vinyl.  Unfortunately, most of the newer songs are pedestrian at best.  This would've been a better disk if they'd've stuck with the good stuff.  Oh well, music companies have been using hits collections to try and sell duds for ages........
2501316
I've been a fan of Paula Abdul for a few years, even before American Idol fame, and this is a pretty good compilation of her hits. Not perfect, but it gives you a good impression of her body of work. Some may scoff at having a GREATEST HITS album after only 3 albums (not including the remix album), but she did have quite a few hits, and there's some bonuses here for fans. However, I could have done without the Megamix Medley. I think this would have served better purpose on a cd single than on this compilation. It takes up over 9 minutes which could have been used for other songs. There is also the bonus track "Crazy Love", which was a left over from the HEAD OVER HEELS album.
Paula does not have the best voice, in fact it sounds quite weak on some songs (she sounds very off key on "Promise of a New Day"). She has a nice tone but the vocals are not very strong. Nevertheless, the sound engineers obviously found a way to smooth out these imperfections and make her sound a little better. I really like the ballad "If I Were Your Girl", although it's a wonder why it's on here since it wasn't even a single. "My Love Is For Real" and "Crazy Cool" are great songs, that are underrated in my opinion.
From her early career we have "Cold Hearted", "The Way That You Love Me", "Straight Up", "Forever Your Girl", "Rush Rush", "Knocked Out", and many others. A lot of these songs are pretty memorable. Perhaps she will never record again, but I guess there is a resurgence in interest in Paula since American Idol has taken off. This is a pretty good collection if you want an introduction to her music.
3178097
Twelve volumes into their collection gathering stuff that would have played on AM radio back in the 70s, Rhino is starting to scrape here and there. Some of this is worth remembering and some you wish they'd left buried under the Nehru jacket.

HIGHLIGHTS:
I know I'm in the minority but "Seasons in the Sun" is simply far too catchy for me to consider it anything but a highlight. Rick Derringer crafted one of the all-time great hooks to "..Hoochie Koo" and even WITHOUT the "dancing baby" episodes of Ally McBeal in the 90s the Blue Swede cover of "Hooked without a Feeling" would be fondly remembered. Outside of those, two somewhat obscure tunes are also very nice, Jim Stafford novelty "Spiders & Snakes" (shame on the liners writer for trashing this one AND Jerry Reed's "Amos Moses") and the swamp pop of Redbone's "Come And Get Your Love".

MIDDLING:
I might listen to "Rock On" and "The Streak" on the radio but I don't know that I'd purposefully pay for the privelege. Ditto "The Entertainer" though I really like that song when I'm in the mood to hear it.

LOWS:
The Mocedades tune will probably appeal to you most if you actually speak Spanish. I realize that the Sister Janet Mead tune was historically important for Christian rock (a #4 hit about God in the middle of the decadence of disco?!? Far out!) but the vocals don't have any bite. Just can't get into it. "Star" from Stealers Wheel is probably the first (and last) time a Top Ten hit will feature the kazoo and the melody's decent but the hook isn't strong enough to make an impression.

BOTTOM LINE:
Pretty average in the series. Some good, some bad.
3683293
I mean it - they have grown so much from were they were some ten years ago with music. They have grown immensely, but it hasn't all been that terrible :) Some things deviate from their traditional stuff, but you can still play one of their songs and know who is on the other side of the speaker.

Some songs I fire up when I want to get pumped up for a workout (waterfall) while other songs I just play for background music when I need to chill. It's a good collection of songs - I'd say go for it.
4202962
A lot of the tracks here sound like they could have been hits at the time, but very few of them actually were hits. Some of the non-hits were hits for other singers, but most of the songs here were unfamiliar to me when I bought this compilation at the time of its original release in 2005.

Petula Clark performs two tracks here (Gotta tell the world, Life and soul of the party), either of which could have been hits for her if released as singles and properly marketed. I don't think they were released as singles, but they did appear as album tracks. One song that was a hit for her (Color my world) is here via a cover by Two of Each, a four-member group that included Mally Page, sister of Jackie Trent. Mally is represented via a solo recording (You can be wrong about boys) while her more famous sister is here on two tracks (Only one such as you, Such a small love). Another song first recorded by Petula (Have another dream on me) is here covered by Dilys Watling.

Of the other artists featured, the most famous among them are Helen Shapiro (Silly boy I love you, Take me for awhile), Anita Harris (London life), Billie Davis (Ev`ry day, Last one to be loved), Pickettywitch (You got me so I don`t know), the Paper Dolls (Something here in my heart keeps a-telling me no) and Jackie Lee (Everybody needs a little loving). With the exception of the Paper Dolls, who are surprisingly represented by their big hit, all these artists are represented by less obvious tracks, avoiding the big hits. Unless you're really into their music, you probably haven't heard these songs before.

Songs you might have heard before include Pay you back with interest (originally by the Hollies, here covered by Dana Gillespie), B-A-B-Y (originally by Carla Thomas, here covered by Ferris Wheel), Take away the emptiness too (also recorded by the Foundations, but here sung by Tina Tott) and L David Sloane (a top ten American hit for Michele Lee, then unknown in Britain but who later became famous as an actress, here covered by Kay Garner). You probably haven't heard Words written on water (here performed by the Baker Twins) as the original was also an obscure track - by the Avons. Actually, I love this song and it's one of my favorites here.

There are many other wonderful tracks here, by great singers such as Julie Grant, Barbara Ruskin, Sandra Barry, Nita Rossi and others. If you enjoy music by female singers of the sixties and you're not preoccupied with charts, you'll love this.
2768823
There are some really great songs on this disc... I enjoyed it plus I am a fan of Paul Laine's vocals
51640
I first became aware of the Ten Tenors maybe 10-15 years ago when I saw a feature about them on an airplane.  In those days there were the 3 Tenors and Three Mo Tenors and undoubtedly a few more combinations.  Today there are even more.  But these gentlemen from Australia are, in my opinion, the pick of the litter.

The songs on this CD are from a certain era.  A goodly portion of the population will not be nostalgic to hear them - in many cases they will be brand new musical experiences.  However, I remember many of the original versions, and I enjoy hearing them sung by these finely blended voices and unapologetically lush musical arrangements.  The Tenors occasionally go for the humor, but in this collection they are pretty much serious the whole time.  (However, they are not shy about going for all the gusto in Besame Mucho and Granada.)  These are great songs, the harmonies are great, and occasionally the music raised the hair on the back of my arms, it's that good.

I have heard Wonderful World a thousand times, but their version made me cry.

Last night, during a difficult commute, this CD made me feel a whole lot better.

I think the Ten Tenors are one of the great semi-undiscovered treasures in the world of music.  Tenors are typically thought to be temperamental, but these guys do not seem like divas at all.  They blend beautifully, they share the spotlight, and they look and sound like they are having a great time.  If I had one complaint about this CD, it would be that they don't have enough opportunity to show their versatility and their fun side.  But man, their music is great.  Highly recommended.
2982560
This is an enjoyable compilation. The Chi Lites were a second tiered group, they were a quality soul group yet they did not have as many hits as the Temptations, Four Tops or other more prominent groups.

What I like about them is that, out of completely nowhere, they would inject these psychodelic and fuzzed out guitar riffs, the phatest bass lines of the era and I love that guy with the deep, I mean DEEP voice. He was an instrument all by himself.

The ballads are nice, but the songs like "Have you Seen Her", with its crazy fuzzed out, introductory guitar tone, is what gets me going. "Power to the People" is another psychodelic song. Don't miss "Are you my woman" which is the song Beoyance sampled for her hit "Crazy in love"!

This group went a bit against the grain which I like.
3135187
I will admit that some reviewers are right that it all doesn't work, but there are some great tracks on these CD's and you can only listen and judge for yourself. I thought Stings two tracks worked well and fit his voice well(coming from Newcastle he sang Blood Red Roses with authenticity.) Bono's track was also good. and there are others that even have a Celtic Rock flavor.

Baby Gramps's tracks are just funny, I liked them. But I have never heard Drunken Sailor sung like this before and trust me I've spent enough time in Irish Pub's that I have heard it a thousand times.( Irish music is a hobby of mine)it is a strange track. These are still  good recordings to have just for their historical value. And we really don't know how they were sung in the past. This could be closer than we think. The album notes are very informative and educational, trying to give as much information as possible on each track. So don't let the naysayers scare you away it's still pretty darn good.
967828
I hazily remember my parents coming home one day in the late 60's and telling me about this record a friend of their's daughter had played for them.  The word that stands out in my mind from their review is  "bombastic."  As I turn more and more into my parents, I find that word ringing more and more in my head as I listen to the first 6 tracks on this 16 track (*74* minute) compilation. These first 6 tracks, taken from Blue Cheer's first two LP's ("Vincebus Eruptum" and  "Outsideinside") are lacking in subtlety and dynamics (unless you  consider "LOUD" to be dynamic), and mostly entertaining only as a  novelty (and then only for a few minutes).

Once past these initial two  LP's, and with the departure of guitarist/vocalist Leigh Stephens, and the  arrival of Randy Holden (and later Gary Yoder), Blue Cheer began to show a  lot more range and taste.  The single joke act of their first two LP's gave  way to a slightly more polished sound, arranged with a nice electric blues  edge.  Unlike the earlier aural assaults, the later tracks actually have  some dynamic range, and feature a more varied instrumental approach  (including harmonica, organ, piano, etc.).

It's really hard to see this  as one band, since the shift in sound is so radical after Stephens'  departure.  By the last three albums, only one of the three original  members remained.  The later tracks, feature some nice stretched out guitar  solos and instrumental passages. I'm left curious as to how this band was  received at the time, in both their original line-up, and the later, more  progressive sounding crew.
2221144
First my bias: I saw many of these bands perform live and always enjoyed the shows.  The music is fun and some of it is pretty good.  Greg Kihn and the Rubinoos could have easily been stars, and Psychotic Pineapple will always have a special place in my memory for their offer at concerts to "butcher any song for $1", which they often did with great satirical lyrics.  Beserkely music represents a bygone time in the Power Pop, New wave, Punk era that produced some good tunes.  Check out Jonathan Richman for some poetic tunes that may remind you of simpler times.
3701766
Perhaps not one of their bigger hits, I liked it and felt it should be on the Greatest Hits.
369283
Other artists have done it, but it bothers me when a band uses someone else's hit to introduce theirs.  Why?  The greatest hits album should reflect Cheap Trick's body of work, which does not need a boost from someone else.  Most of these hits are recognizable even to people who aren't big fans.
Cheap Trick introduces us to its work with the Beatles' classic "Magical Mystery Tour."  Robin Zander seems to be struggling to pull out the lyrics, almost as if he really doesn't want to sing the song.  I think," groovy, leave it off!"
If you don't know Cheap Trick, songs 2-10 will ring a bell if you have listened to the radio in the late 70s, 80s, and early 90s.  "I Want You To Want Me" and "Surrender" still see a bit of airplay today.  Once you hear the others, something will click and you'll say, "Yeah, I remember this!"
The last three songs are not as common.  I guess these songs were placed last since they are the least popular of the greatest hits.  To blend the album, I would have probably recommended mingling these with the others.
For a greatest hits, I would also like to see a bit more in the liner notes.  With this CD, all you get is the names of the songs, the songwriter(s), and the album it was taken from.  Nothing more than that.
I would recommend this just for the fans.
2624526
After you get familiar with the songs they start to grow on you and the melodies are outstanding!! however this is a depressing cd it's not filled with happy good times stuff, it will make you think but it does have a couple of really good rockin tunes... "inside of you" is probably the best up beat hoobastank song they've written i don't know why that song just faded like it did i could hear it on repeat, if you like hoobastank and your feeling bummed it'll help ya, pick it up