....ahhh...their human...just like the rest of us..

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keefriffhard4life
can anyone confirm this is the correct tracklisting for the new hits compilation?

Thats the one I saw elsewhere as well. The three songs at the end are all new.

One song from 'Monster' and 'Up' is a bit of a surprise.

I suppose they reckon that this plus 'In Time' should cover all bases for greatest hits sets.

Hard to do a career-defining collection of 40 songs for a major act who have been around for decades, as we all know.

After all, we follow a band whose 'definitive' compilation managed to omit a number 1 single (Little Red Rooster).

I saw the tracklisting for the new greatest hits. It's SOO close to being a perfect career portrait, but there's a handful of curious inclusions and baffling omissions (as Gazza pointed out) that leave it flawed. All the same it is an excellent intro to the band for new fans, and the 3 news songs will (hopefully) make it worthwhile for us old fans.

oh well. i guess its left flawed on purpose to make you go buy the other releases. they have released 2 greatest hits albums now that leave off the top 40 hits "bang and blame" and "drive" and 2 singles that just missed the top 40 "strange currencies" and "bittersweet me" along with the minor hits "lotus" and "crush with eyeliner". this new one is even worse cutting the number of songs from new adventure in hi-fi down to 1 and leaving off the bands biggest hit from UP "daysleeper". how is this a career portrait including just 1 track from MONSTER, NEW ADVENTURES IN HI-FI and UP? R.E.M. really messed up with this had they included all of the songs i mentioned earlier it would be perfect but leaving off 8 big hits/well known tunes is pretty ridiculous.

keefriff, they actually have 2 Hi-Fi selections: Electolite and New test Leper. I think Leper made the cut because it's a personal favorite of Michael and Peter's. But they really dropped the ball this time I agree by not giving "Bittersweet Me" and "Strange Currencies" - 2 of their most underrated singles - another chance to shine.

As far as leaving off "Daysleeper" - I simply cannot make ANY sense of that. Also, no "Perfect Circle" representing the IRS era alone keeps this collection from being "definitive".

A bigger loss than Nirvana - which was no loss at all. Open to your interpretation.

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theimposter
keefriff, they actually have 2 Hi-Fi selections: Electolite and New test Leper. I think Leper made the cut because it's a personal favorite of Michael and Peter's. But they really dropped the ball this time I agree by not giving "Bittersweet Me" and "Strange Currencies" - 2 of their most underrated singles - another chance to shine.

As far as leaving off "Daysleeper" - I simply cannot make ANY sense of that. Also, no "Perfect Circle" representing the IRS era alone keeps this collection from being "definitive".

yeah "daysleeper" being left off is the oddest, since it was the bands last big hit, other than only having 1 tune from monster. you are right about "new test leper" i seem to keep overlooking it because its not a single. over all they really let me down with this "definitive collection" with some pretty sketchy choices.

Yeah, I remember the same disaapointment w/40 Licks. I thought the 4 new songs didn't add much and was baffled at some of the choices, such as Anybody Seen My Baby. I remember the Ramones put out a "definitive" 2 cd anthology after they called it quits that came pretty darn close to being perfet save for 2 or 3 choices.

But back to "Monster" - how in the hell they represent a 4 million-selling album that had multiple singles w/only 1 song I do not know. And the new album is poorly misrepresented too. I understand "Uberlin", but where's "Discoverer" and "Mine Smell Like Honey"?

yeah monster was just that. a huge monster of a hit with multiple hit singles yet the band picks just 1 tune. i think i have that ramones anthology. only tune missing is "we're a happy family" imo.

anyways not sure i even want to give r.e.m. my money for this new set thats obviously picked to make you still buy other albums if you don't already own them.

yep keefriff, "We're a Happy Family" was pretty much the only notable omission from the Ramones set. It was sooo close to perfect too! And how in the world they could have left that song off I will never understand.

I am gonna put my frustrations aside and buy the REM mainly for the new songs and the liner notes (written by the band including Bill Berry). The cover art is cool too. I just hope it's decently priced.

If you're not in the studio recording or on stage playing a live show you're basically a band that has "broken up". What's the big deal. The Stones are just as "broken-up" as R.E.M. until they actually do something together.

Maybe the correct headline is.... "R.E.M. currently don't have a record company" ??



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2011-09-27 23:39 by Duane in Houston.

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Duane in Houston
If you're not in the studio recording or on stage playing a live show you're basically a band that has "broken up". What's the big deal. The Stones are just as "broken-up" as R.E.M. until they actually do something together.

Maybe the correct headline is.... "R.E.M. currently don't have a record company" ??

REM officially announced their break-up. The Stones have done no such thing.

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vudicus

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Duane in Houston
If you're not in the studio recording or on stage playing a live show you're basically a band that has "broken up". What's the big deal. The Stones are just as "broken-up" as R.E.M. until they actually do something together.

Maybe the correct headline is.... "R.E.M. currently don't have a record company" ??

REM officially announced their break-up. The Stones have done no such thing.

agreed

Exactly. R.E.M. said no more tours, no more album, the end is the end. Stones have not done that. Personally I wish they had/would. That sense of closure helps the band and the fans to move on to the next phase.

There is no such thing as closure when you're talking about living people. R.E.M. will, I am quite sure, have some sort of reunion in a few years.

>i've bolded the odd choices

"Get Up" was a single (b-side: "Funtime"). I remember MTV showing the video when it was new.

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Glam Descendant
>i've bolded the odd choices

"Get Up" was a single (b-side: "Funtime"). I remember MTV showing the video when it was new.

it was a single but a non charting single. really though it was odd because 4 tunes from GREEN but MONSTER and NEW ADVENTURES IN HI-FI have 3 combined. thats just wrong

>4 tunes from GREEN but MONSTER and NEW ADVENTURES IN HI-FI have 3 combined. thats just wrong

I agree but the inclusion of "Get Up" in & of itself is not odd -- aside from being a single, Stipe has frequently mentioned it's one of his favorites.

Had the internet existed in the early 70s no doubt some would have questioned the inclusion on HOT ROCKS of non-singles (e.g., "Midnight Rambler", "Gimme Shelter", "Sympathy For The Devil", "Under My Thumb") over, say, "We Love You", "She's A Rainbow", "Have You Seen Your Mother..." et. al. Just a touch, er, thought.

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After Monster...