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The last word from The Beta Band

Nick Mason | England | 11/28/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Okay, I'm biased - the lead singer is my cousin - but this is a great collection of tunes that have influenced several bigger name UK bands - Oasis and Radiohead to name just two.



If you don't own any Beta Band cd's then this is the one to go for. If you already own some of their stuff, then get this one for the 2nd cd that has the live set from the farewell tour. At last, a recording of them playing live!



Top stuff."

Alpha Band...

Craig Beezley | Decatur, GA | 12/24/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"...should be their name: Top notch, truly 21st Century band that has broken hearts around the globe since their breakup. Alas, this disc is of course a best of hits/swan song production, and while I would change maybe a song or two here or there with a different "favorite" of mine, it's basically a flawless disc and a very good selection of their collective genius. This is hardly a matter or gripe seeing as how one of the greatest things about The Beta Band is their depth of writing/composition/emotion so as to render a new favorite almost weekly. Truly epic stuff here. The live disc only holds a couple of different songs than the first "best of" disc, but that hardly matters; the live versions are different enough from the studio versions(if you have been lucky enough to see them live you know what I speak of). The production quality of the live disc is top notch as well. Kudos.



God I wish they would come back. At least we have some more of Steve Mason's new solo stuff -King Biscuit Time- coming soon....



Long live The Beta Band!"

A great send-off for this great band...worth it for the 2nd

Sakos | United States | 10/23/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Beta Band were an experimental rock band from Scotland that disbanded in 2004 after about 10 years together. In that time, they released the excellent Three EPs album, the difficult self-titled album, and their two masterpieces, Hot Shots II and Heroes to Zeroes. So why the greatest hits? And why am I rating it 5 stars?



First of all, for the uninitiated, this would be a great start to try and get into the Beta Band's melodic, textured, swirling and downright unclassifiable brand of music. Tracks from all 4 albums are on here so this would be a great sampler. Then you should move on to buying all 4 of their albums.



For the already initiated fans (such as myself), besides being a nice send-off, the 2nd disc is a live set recorded on their farewell tour. And it's a revelation. As someone who has seen the Beta Band live, I can personally attest to the fact that the songs have completely different characters when performed on stage. Still great but they take on a life of their own. And this live set shows that off and is all the better for it. From a song like Dr. Baker, which sounds completely different here, to the dual drum kit duet/duel of Broke (seeing this done live is AWESOME), live Beta Band is a different beast...and one that will be sorely missed.



In all, this is a great set for the new fan or the established one. And a fitting send-off for a band that will be sorely missed, no matter how much out of the mainstream they were during their all to brief career."