64. Shaking the Tree: Sixteen Golden Greats by Peter Gabriel (1990)
This is one of the most complete yet incomplete collections I've ever bought. It was basically a filler between Gabriel's two biggest albums, So and Us. So was already 4 years old at this point, and Us would not be released for another 2 years, so this collection was thrown out there to keep him on the scene, more or less. It starts off with "Solsbury Hill", one of P.G.'s biggest hits. "I Don't Remember" is next, a groovy, somewhat crazy track. "Sledgehammer" follows, Gabriel's biggest hit at the time, if not ever. Not the greatest song, but awesome video. "Family Snapshot" is a very pretty song about the Kennedy assassinations. Love it. "Mercy Street" is another really pretty song, but not really sure why it's here in place of "In Your Eyes", which the year before had been on the soundtrack of the film Say Anything... and became Gabriel's second biggest single behind "Sledgehammer", yet is nowhere to be seen on this album. Odd. "Shaking the Tree" is the only new song on this album, and while it's not great, it is pretty good, and has become a staple of Gabriel's live shows. "Don't Give Up" is a gorgeous duet with Kate Bush. One of my favorite Peter Gabriel songs. "San Jacinto" is yet another slow pretty song, this one being about a Native American man seeing his culture overrun by white Europeans. Good tune. "Here Comes the Flood" continues the slow trend. This was a new recording of an older song, making it more sparse, with just vocals and piano. Great great song. "Red Rain" finally picks the pace back up, an environmentally charged song, referring to either acid rain or nuclear fallout, depending on which interpretation you read. Good tune. "Games Without Frontiers" is next, one of the best songs of Gabriel's early solo career. It is very much a political song, comparing nationalism, diplomacy, and war to children's games. Great song. "Shock the Monkey" comes next, another pretty popular song that is pretty good. Gabriel has described it as a "love song that examines how jealousy can release one's baser instincts." Umm... Sure. I thought it was about electric shock therapy in a nut house, but, hey, that's obviously wrong. Ha ha. "I Have the Touch" is next, and is a really kick ass song that has been in quite a few movies. Kick ass. "Big Time" follows, yet another hit from So. Not as catchy as "Sledgehammer", but still a pretty good tune. The next song is "Zaar" from Passion: Music For The Last Temptation Of Christ. It was originally the soundtrack for the movie, then ended up becoming a full album on its own. It is mostly instrumental, and was the first album where Gabriel really leaned heavily on African music and musicians. This song seems out of place here, though, because it's such an obscure song. This one definitely should have been replaced with "In Your Eyes" because it would have given the album a phenomenal 1 - 2 punch to close the album. The final song is "Biko", a very political song about a man named Stephen Biko who was a political prisoner in South Africa in the '70s and killed in jail by guards. Awesome awesome song. This is a pretty good collection, but leaving "In Your Eyes" out, as well as not including anything from his second album, such as "On the Air" or "D.I.Y.", really hurts it overall and makes it incomplete. Other than those glaring omissions, it's a pretty good collection.
5 Best Songs:
5. "Solsbury Hill"
4. "Here Comes the Flood"
3. "Don't Give Up"
2. "Games Without Frontiers"
1. "Biko"
63. Every Breath You Take: The Singles by The Police (1986)
This album was released a few years after The Police broke up, and the original plan called for new versions of all their hit songs. In the end, they could only tolerate being around each other long enough to record one of the songs they were supposed to do, so this became a singles collection instead. It starts off with "Roxanne", unquestionably the most instantly recognizable Police song. "Can't Stand Losing You" comes next, one of their more overlooked songs, I think. Good tune. "Message In a Bottle" follows, and this song always drives my dad nuts because of the repetition at the end. Personally I think it's one of their best songs. "Walking On the Moon" is a slow song, kind of boring. "Don't Stand So Close To Me '86" is the one song the band was able to re-record, and damn I wish they hadn't. It is so shitty compared to the first one it's not even funny. Such a shit song. "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da" is next, one of the silliest titles in music. Bad ass song though. "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" is also kick ass, just a great song. "Invisible Sun" is another pretty under rated song. Never hear this one, but it is a really good song. "Spirits In the Material World" is probably the weakest song on here, at least, the weakest of the ones that are in their original forms. It's a decent song, just kind of boring. "Every Breath You Take" is probably the most beloved Police song, and for good reason. This song is just outstanding. Love it. "King Of Pain" is also outstanding, probably my personal favorite Police song ever. Great tune. The final song is "Wrapped Around Your Finger", yet another great song. I know, repeating myself, but can't help it. These three songs are just awesome. Overall, this is a really good record. The only things I would change would be to include the original version of "Don't Stand So Close To Me" instead of the shitty remake, and include "Synchronicity II" and "So Lonely", which are both missing for some absurd reason. Other than that, it's a very solid, very complete collection.
5 Best Songs:
5. "Invisible Sun"
4. "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da"
3. Wrapped Around Your Finger"
2. "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic"
1. "King Of Pain"
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