5 comments about Weird Tales of the Ramones.

1. There's little doubt that if it were not for the Ramones, we'd probably be listening to a very different form of rock music today. The Ramones emerged in the mid-'70's with the force of an atomic-powered freight train; bringing with them short, simple songs that put loud guitars out front and a fast rhythm section to work. They took elements of Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry, and the Beach Boys and defined a new genre of music in their own fashion. Many will argue who was the first punk band, but no one will argue that the Ramones defined the term punk rock.
   This set is a 3 cd, 1 dvd compilation of many of the band's greatest pieces. From early tracks like "Sheena is a Punk Rocker" to some of the group's last offerings like "R.A.M.O.N.E.S.", this set provides more than enough material to keep ANY Ramones fan thoroughly satisfied. The dvd is a spectacular collection of the band's videos with interviews from a number of notable personalities tied to the band's long career.
   This set is highly worth getting if you are any kind of punk fan!



2. First off I will let it be known that I am not a die hard Ramones fan, but I am a die hard music fan. Anyone who loves different types of music would love this product. I am very happy with this. Of course if you already have every Ramones album then I would guess that this is not for you. If you are fairly new to the Ramones then this is a great collection to have.



3. Great value!! Fantastic product and super fast shipping from this merchant! Perfect condition! My husband LOVED this b-day gift!



4. Rhino puts out records no one else will, and though other people have put out great Ramones compilations before, not with 85 songs, comic books, CD glasses and a DVD. In other words, this is the best Ramones collection ever put together. And I can't agree with anyone who accused them of being greedy when they offer this much for the price of under 50 cents a song, with tons of freebies.
   
   Great song choice, great remastering. This was a work of love. Johnny made the choices, but Rhino didn't try to cut corners or run up the price. This is the ultimate Ramones collection, no holds barred.



5. ...because it's not remastered. The picture and sound are both horrible. There's interview clips of Joey that are also in "End of The Century" that are crisp and clear in EOTC and fuzzy and washed out here. Not surprising since Johnny Ramone had a lot to do with this project. The packaging is top notch, though, and of course the music is wonderful.

5 comments about We Have Come for Your Children.

1. If you love good old skool punk you'll love this one. I can listen to the cd over and over again, Ain't it fun is one of my favorite's.



2. Despite the fact that Cleveland's The Dead Boys' "Young Loud & Snotty" is considered a punk rock classic and "We Have Come For Your Children" a lesser effort, you shouldn't sell this CD short. It's even reflected by the fact that Sire has yet to release this CD stateside. Ignore the naysayers. If "Snotty" never existed, "We Have Come For Your Children" would be placed on the pedestal it deserves.
   
   Attempting to channel all their nihilism and violence under producer Felix Pappalardi's over-slick production, this album is still loud, fast and chaotic. Stiv lets loose with his Iggy Pop idolization on the classic "3rd Generation Nation," and "Son Of Sam" is an exercise in Alice Cooper worship (circa "Killer"). "Son Of Sam" is harrowingly theatrical, complete with screams, gunshots and dog barks punctuated by Bators' snarl.
   
   Bators had the full support of his bandmates. Cheetah Chrome and Jimmy Zero may be two of Punk's most under-rated guitarists. They could pull off the Ramones Roar on "3rd Generation Nation" and "I Won't Look Back" but also had a rarely mentioned sophistication that underpins "Son Of Sam" and "Ain't It Fun." There is also a great deal of irony of Stiv Bators singing "Ain't it fun when you know that you're gonna die young" (since he really did) and the haunting voice of co-writer Peter Laughner moaning "I'm dead" as the song fades. (He died from pancreatitis brought on by drug and alcohol abuse before the song was released.) "Ain't It Fun" is a classic moment where the irony and punk-theater matched up perfectly, stellar enough for Guns and Roses to have recorded it.
   
   So forget all the bad stuff you heard about this album. With only two studio albums in their library and (with the exception of Bators solo and Lords Of The New Church albums) none of the other band members having a career to speak of afterwards, "We Have Come For Your Children" remains a memorable document of the CBGB's scene.



3. As you've read from numerous reviews, this album doesn't exactly capture the DBs in their brutal element.
   Sire attempted to market them as some kind of Post-Glam, New Wave act in the hopes they could have a hit like so many British acts of the day. Add to this the fact that Felix Pappalardi literally had it in for them and you get a production that wants to bleach out any traces of life.
   So it's a tribute to the fire and invention of the Dead Boys that this album succeeds despite it all. Think about how Bowie's nearly inept production of "Raw Power" still managed to yield a classic.
   The DBs always stressed a muscular guitar sound. Here the guitars are pared back to hollow squeals. The bass is pushed way up in the mix. The drums sound like mechanical clicks. Stiv's voice sounds oh so brittle and there's a strange reverb spread over everything. A definite New Wave/Power Pop tone results.
   Rather than sabotage, the songs come off ironically more modern and timeless. Regardless of what the band themselves say about this, it seems to make perfect sense when you compare it to Stiv's later work. Don't pass it up.



4. Felix P. screwed this LP from the get go. Way to 'radio friendly' as other reviewers have noted. On 'Young, loud..', Genya Raven captured their sound. Great bass, guitars in front (and LOUD) and Cheetah Chrome's lead even louder!
   '..Children' production is just too homoginized--too slick. The tunes are DB classics though, Tell Me, Ain't it Fun, Catholic Boy, and of course Son Of Sam.
   After Stiv's death, the scope of unreleased studio/live/rehearsal material of the Dead Boys became a fact.
   Some good---most barely tolerable
   get the 2 DB studio LP's to start and then get the Live @ CBGB.
   Although video of the DB is semi-rare, try to find it and then match up the live versions with the studio versions and you can see that they were a GREAT live R & R band



5. While I agree with most of the reviewers that the Dead Boys first LP is the better of the two. This, their 2nd LP, is not without it's moments. Son of Sam and Ain't It Fun are two great songs. If you have the first LP and still want more Dead Boys, give this one a try.

5 comments about No Thanks! The '70s Punk Rebellion.

1. I'll keep this short.
   
   PROS:
   - Great packaging and booklet
   - A lot of great songs
   - Some not so obvious selections (both bands and songs)
   - Wire's "Mannequin"
   - The large box has the four CDs in their own individual cases, so you won't have to lug around a cumbersome box.
   
   
   CONS:
   - $65.00? Are you joking?
   - It would have been better if each band only got one song.
   - The Dils are on it. The Dils suck. You just try to listen to "Mr. Big" and not feel stupid.
   - A lot of the songs are very obvious choices.
   
   
   At the moment I'm typing this, the used price is just under $35. That's a good price for this compilation. Keep in mind though, that this is best for people who are getting into the music and not those of us who are familiar. I know that I own, or did at one point, own a large portion of this.



2. The one thing Rhino Records did get from the Sex Pistols (Johnny Rotten/Lydon) was the name of this box set. The way I heard it (from a music insider) is that Rhino wanted to include the Sex Pistols but when Johnny Rotten/Lydon was asked about the inclusion of a song, His reply was simply "NO THANKS!" So don't blame Rhino, they did a great job! On the other hand, Johnny, you are just rotten!!!!!!!!!



3. Bit of controversy about the worth of this box set, which seems about right given the subject matter. But I think it's okay for a 4CD overview, which can only be fairly shallow and a bit random, no matter how thoughtfully compiled. If you got really serious, for example, you'd need a full CD, or at least a solid half of one, just devoted to Australian bands. I mean, for starters, no Birthday Party? Huh? In fact The Saints are the only inclusion, with their most routinely anthologised track and all. But of course by then you're looking at ten or twelve CDs in a box costing several hundred dollars, which might be overkill.
   
   And what is punk music anyway? If you mean what "punks" actually listened to at home, which Rhino sort of seems to (e.g. Devo, Cure), then including no ska-dub-reggae seriously misrepresents the era, too. But hey, Cherry Bomb and Another Girl Another Planet and Roadrunner and Chinese Rocks all made the cut, so I'm happy. What's there is pretty good. It's a decent blast from the past, and it certainly brings back the time for me, weird though it was. Even the bad and pointless stuff is acceptably representative.
   
   It would also, I think, make an excellent one-stop-shop introduction for someone born in the 1980s or 90s, because of rather than despite it's scattershot and sometimes unsatisfactory nature. Punk was a glorious, disjointed, and genuinely absurd mess from go to whoa, and no one really knew what it was about even while it was happening, so in a sense this collection is VERY faithful. (Ending the set with Love Will Tear Us Apart is perfect in so many ways.)
   
   But then I'm probably in one of Rhino's target demographics, i.e. middle-aged baldheads with ruined livers who miss hearing some of the songs, but don't particularly want to devote what's left of their lives (no future really starting to kick in at this point) to collecting them all over again.
   
   (But ignoring the Pistols and PIL must just be a legal issue, surely? Or else, yeah, too insane.)



4. Lets get one thing out of the way, the music is timeless.
   
   Last I heard "punk" was not a style.
   It's obviously a cash-in aimed towards hot-topic punks that enjoy name-dropping obscure bands as if it meant something. These songs are great yes, but the albums they came off of are even better. To dillute the whole life of these bands to just one or two tracks is an absolute shame. If you don't care about history or music feel free to get this.



5. This boxed set has many great and classic punk songs. I would recommend it particularly to young people today who didn't live in the late '70's. Back in '78 or so, some of this type of music is what really got me interested in rock'n'roll to begin with. I think it's a great collection, but Elvis Costello, Joe Jackson, and some others who were really not true punk rock, don't really belong on this set. However, it's good to see many of the New York (CBGB) bands here. This is the true rebellious music of the 1970's, just like rockabilly was in the 1950's, even though the genres and styles are completely different.

1 comments about Live 1977-1978.

1. Now this is a quite unique document. Suicide were a very unique group, situating themselves at the borders of punk and electronica. when it comes to electronic music, they may be only second to Kraftwerk in global influence. This is an astonishing box of live recordings from around the time of thier first album. While their first album is the most intense and most influential it is not in my opinion thier masterpiece: this is their second, Ric Ocasek produced second opus. However the importance of the recordings from the first album can not be disputed. What one gets here is of course a series of live recordings fo Ghost rider, frankie teardop and rocket usa (take or give one or two more). Real fans already have in one form or another the live Brussels recording which is one of the greatest live electronic (or simply live) recordings if all time This may be somewhat tiring since the recordings are of very varied quality, some OK and some not so OK. However the intensty of the songs really comes over in an incredible way and really demonstrates whs Suicide was such a different band. It was able to mix the repetitious nature of electronica with a real violent attitude brought on by Alan Vega. Some of this would be translated into his later solo work. The only other down-side is the rather hefty price for such a lo-fi collection that tends to repeat itself. It does contain a very nice booklet about the group with some historical writings. If you like them, you have to have this, also ebcause it seems to be somewhat of a limited edition item.

5 comments about Hit Me with Your 80's Box!.

1. Good stuff, especially for those of us nostalgic for 80's music. It's a nice three CD collection of some of the best mainstream stuff from the 80's, including some music I had trouble finding elsewhere.



2. I mix 80s dance music and the number of times when mixing that I find myself reaching for either this compilation or its companion, "I Want My 80s Box," is extraordinary. These are two outstanding collections. They are pricey, but worth every penny. For many people, owning these two will be all the 80s music you'll ever need.
   
   Fidelity is outstanding, the tracks are well organized more or less chronologically, and the sequences in which tracks are placed is excellent. The "box" itself in which the 3 CDs come is sturdy, it is easily folded out in part or in whole to access any of the CDs quickly and easily (unlike many multi-CD offerings). Liner notes are extensive and interesting.
   
   This offering is a class act all the way. Highly, highly recommended. 7 stars.



3. This is a great collection of awesome 80's music, but I feel that each disc should have had about three more songs on them. Also, I think the title refers to Pat Benatar's HIT ME WITH YOUR BEST SHOT. Strangely enough, the song is nowhere to be found on this set???



4. ...Why does this box set not contain the very song its title is a reference to? If it were to be truly complete, it would contain: HIT ME WITH YOUR RHYTHM STICK, by Ian Dury & The Blockheads.



5. Hit me with your 80's box is great box set for anyone who likes eighties music. While it not as good as "Like, Omigod:The 80's pop culture box" It still will take the listener back to a great time in the music industry.

3 comments about Clash on Broadway.

1. Clash on Broadway is the definitive collection of Clash songs - nearly everything is here and the sound quality is great from the remastering. It's a little discouraging that not all of the best songs are here. I was disappointed that "Remote Control", "Last Gang in Town" and "All The Young Punks" were left off of this set.
   
   That said, it's hard to go wrong with Clash on Broadway. It's easy to dismiss the Clash until you play a box set like this. For a time, they were the best band in rock. Not many punk bands from the late 70s could evolve as the Clash did, incorporating elements of reggae and rockabilly into the music without losing their identity. "Groovy Times" and "Stay Free" also show that the Clash could play looser material and still sound good. They had much more musical range than people give them credit for.
   
   Bottom line: If you are new to the Clash, pick up the box set because you'll wind up buying all the individual albums. Even if you have the original LPs or CDs, the remastered version is enough of an improvement to buy a new copy.
   
   RIP Joe.



2. Last time I checked this box set had 3 CDs with about 10-15 tracks each as opposed to this set of like 6 songs per disc, what happened?
   If you know the answer please email me at admills@ucsc.edu, thanks.



3. 5 stars for a box set? Yeah: this box set covers all the bases and, with the exception of London Calling, virtually makes the individual albums obsolete. The highlights of the band's studio albums are presented here (including around 90% of The Clash's awesome debut album), so you get all the good stuff. Sandinista! in particular sounds much better when the very best cuts are lined up back-to-back; skipping isn't necessary here. The box set also includes singles and B-sides, making it a valuable set even for collectors. And if that's not enough, this long box includes a cool book stuffed full of photos and quotes. Unless you are a die-hard fan of the band this box set, along with London Calling, are the only two purchases you need to make. And if you own all the albums, get this box set anyway. The outtakes and singles are worth it.

5 comments about United States Live.

1. A vast and sweeping recording, more cohesive than her other albums. The music is challenging and beautifully done and the stories are poinient and at times hilarious. My favorites include "Language Is A Virus" and "Mach 20". Contains versions of her big hits, "O Superman" and "Big Science". Strongly recommended for fans of alternative music.



2. Would have loved to see this live, Can't start it without devoting hours to it , in order to finish it. A truly unique and special recording from one of modern music's finest



3. On this beautifull live recording Mrs Anderson shows her brilliant understanding of storytelling and musical basics in her own invented mix of sci-fi, absurdism, folk, modern technology nightmares, andsoforth. You have to hear it, to understand it.



4. I attended the performances of this at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, in 1983, over two nights, in excellent seats, well placed to see the visuals. (If you were up in the nosebleed seats at BAM it would not have been ideal.) This was quite a riveting series of performances, and I bought the recordings on 4 cassettes when they appeared. (Note that the original performances were around eight hours, so this is just more than half of the total.)
   
   Laurie Anderson was part avant-garde, part carnival huckster, and you could watch and listen to her and never know exactly which side she was leaning toward. It's easy to dismiss her clichés and simplifications, some of which would almost be stand-up comedy; on the other hand, some of her comments and ideas are much deeper and more complex than they seem.
   
   United States was more of a compilation than a thematic performance. She had been riffing about these ideas for several years, and after the success of O, Superman, managed to tie everything together in this longish performance that took place over two nights. Looking back more than twenty years, some of it still stands up, but much of her music and ideas seems sophmoric. Nevertheless, they are a good reflection of an era: when the Cold War was still alive, when music had just shifted from rock to disco to new wave, when a variety of currents had started becoming mainstream (the music of Philip Glass and Steve Reich made it big in those years, notably with a huge Reich retrospective at BAM and a revival of Einstein on the Beach). So there was, even then, a tinge of nostalgia in United States.
   
   I'll agree with what one reviewer says: the visuals were an integral part of this performance. I seem to recall cameras, but I guess there was never enough demand for a video back then. (If it were performed today, there would be a DVD immediately.)
   
   In spite of any negatives, Laurie Andersond had stage presence, had the courage to present some pretty quirky ideas (her style, however, has become mainstream, as can be seen in many movies these days), and was, for a brief period, unique. Unfortunately, after United States, she started repeating the same stuff over and over.
   
   If you lived through the period, and, especially, if you were fortunate enough to see the performances, this would be a good bit of nostalgia. If not, you'll probably be perplexed. It would be interesting, though, to listen to this closely and see just how much the world has changed since then.



5. ALL THE BEST SONGS ARE ON OTHER ALBUMS.
   
   This is an audio recording from multi-media presentations. Much of the material is geared around visuals and Anderson's stage personnae. This is like listening to a television broadcast of a football game without the picture. You get the general idea what is going on, but you miss a lot. It is not like listening to a football game over the radio, where the broadcasters explain what you aren't seeing.
   
   Without the visuals to go with this CD, many of the stories and jokes come up flat.
   
   This CD set is about 4 and a half hours long. It was taken from several years of Anderson's live shows that eventually became the United States. Each CD more or less covers a specific "tour". Her back up band changes from CD to CD. You can tell that as time goes on, she gets more famous (and maybe has more money) she is able to add more to the shows (and her backup band gets bigger).
   
   The sound quality is amazingly good. It is sharp and crystal clear. There is almost no audience noise, which does help create a good atmosphere for her stories.
   
   About 80% of the material is spoken word. There is some music. It is probably less than 45 minutes of the total 4 and a half hour production.
   
   The recordings come from early in her career. She later redid most of the best material and put in on other albums.
   
   I would suggest getting her other CD's. Or if you want to see her performance art work, I would suggest searching out the Home Of the Brave VHS tape (I don't think it has been released on DVD). Don't get the Home of the Brave CD.

No comments about Chrome Box.

5 comments about Bootleg Series, Vol. 1: The Quine Tapes.

1. I can't even imagine would it be like at these concerts or any of the VU shows from the 60's. All we have in terms of visual is the warhol films and 1993 which doesnt even come close. I can't imagine what cool Lou must of looked flippin out with his voice and guitar of that period. As a matter of fact it's hard for me to imagine this music was even created.



2. The ONLY problem with the Quine Tapes is that it says, "Vol. 1" and many years later there still is no Vol. 2. I know it probably didn't make any money and so Vol. 2 was scrapped, but it still breaks my heart. It is such a lovely collection, and the other reviewers are right that after a few listens, one hardly notices the poor sound quality. One of the magical things about the Velvet Underground is that they don't need thousands of dollars of stereo equipment to sound good. They sound great on a car tape-deck with the windows open, or even through the terrible ear-buds that come with portable music players.



3. Overall, worse than "Live, 1969"--the best live rock band record alive. Much better though than "Max's Kansas City", which is ruined with Billy Yule's monster drums (where one can hear how soon Lou's solo career would sound). Certainly, the quality of this is worse than Max's, it's however, the VU at the top of their game, similar to "Live, 1969." This collection includes estimable versions of "Sister Ray" which is preferable to early bootleg versions with John Cale (the 38:00 minute version is otherworldly)--and, it positively must be true they were a much better live band during this period. All said and done, the linchpin is the 17:00 minute version of "Follow the Leader," an extended rhythm guitar marathon w/ a mighty band pumpin' in unison. The 10:00 version of "White Light/White Heat" comes a close second...And if you want to really know how good this is, dig up how it influenced Robert Quine's guitar playing. "You know his life was changed by rock-n-roll."



4. More raw and experimental than "69 Live." Better (and warmer) sound, to my ears, than Max's. Never mind the tape hiss and lo-fi--the music gets through. As others here have said, this is not the best place to begin listening to the Velvets, but if you already are a fan, you will love it. The sprawling stretches of "Sister Ray" and other extended versions of VU songs are a revelation. There is nothing like the shock of hearing a band you revere live for the first time. This set can bring you quite close to that experience.



5. IS THE Velvets, who went Underground "a thousand Years ago",resurfaced and are proof positive that being underground and the "Consequence" for returning is as enigmatic,pure,solid, like Stonehenge. Do not worry if this is your first Velvet Cd. You are now solidified into the master's of the Dark. Now my people, go buy this CD and find out why such a progressive group in the mid 60's are just as exhilirating, provocative and even so they remain such. Buy this Cd, like 3 cd's for $30.00 and forget about seeking out "The Man".There's alwys "Tomorrrow's parties!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No comments about Yerself Is Steam/Lego My Ego +DVD.