Search - Oingo Boingo :: Farewell: Live at Universal Amphitheater 1995

Who needs "greatest hits" with an album like this?

Tad Ramspott | Auburn, CA, USA | 09/29/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I used to listen exclusively to studio albums. A pre-recorded song, I argued, sounds more polished -- it can be redone to iron out the imperfections; the sound quality is more even; you don't have to deal with annoying band in-jokes or audience noise. This recording changed my mind almost single-handedly.I own a handful of other Boingo albums; I've got "the hit songs" in all their orchestral glory. All I can say is, thank goodness they didn't cover "the hits" in their farewell concert. Instead, what Danny Elfman & co. give us is *their* favorites. The popular songs, the B-sides, the hard-to-find classics from their very early days.What you very quickly notice when you listen to this album is this familiarity and love for the songs: how the band can wrap their voices and instruments around the tunes, and let them loose in an exuberant display of modern balladry. Boingo rocks with such intensity, the CD nearly jumps out of the player. This energy just wouldn't be there in a "greatest hits" album. There has to be a certain measure of self-indulgence in order to polish up songs until they shine.One of my former roommates has commented that the beauty of live albums is that songs which weren't very good in the original can gain new life. Take "Reptiles and Samurai." The original (over two decades old) had interesting lyrics, but was flat and sparse-sounding. Boingo's remake on "Farewell" is brilliant. I feel much more rewarded having heard such a song transformed than I would have been if they'd used the space for, say, "Just Another Day" -- a great song to start off with. Boingo also takes the opportunity to rein in some of their more experimental material: "Change" (originally from the album "Boingo") is shrunk from 13 minutes to 9, mostly by cutting 4 minutes of vague instrumental meandering and kicking the beat up a notch to danceability. The live version sounds in every way superior.I disagree with some of the band's selections, but how can you avoid that when condensing 17 years of songs into 140 minutes of concert? Ultimately, it doesn't affect the quality of the album, and "Farewell" remains two of the strongest CDs in my music rotation."

The album that started it all... Sort of.

Dubious Catalyst | Oceanside, CA | 02/01/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Greetings to fellow underground Oingo Boingo fanatics, the few and undying. Unfortunately I stumbled only lately upon the Treasure Chest Of Lust And Mortal Sin and Farewell was my first real exposure to Oingo Boingo. I knew they had a few catchy songs on the radio but I had no idea what I was in for when I ordered this CD from Columbia House. The first songs that hooked me were "Insanity" and "No One Lives Forever", and from there nearly all of the songs have found their own unique appeal for me. I've listened to other CD's since, and while I'm sorry many of my favorite songs (Flesh And Blood and Not My Slave to name just two) were left off of Farewell, I must still say that it's one of the best CDs I've ever heard. The roaring passion of Elfman and the entire musical cast stirs the embers of my soul into ecstatic madness every time I listen to it, and my life has never been the same since the obsession began. It really bugs me when I hear someone (no one in particular, of course) complain that it was a self-indulgent romp as opposed to some sort of homage to their fans. Popularity doesn't make a song good, and I happen to enjoy Water and No One Lives Forever far more than the songs you hear on the radio."

There should be a 10 star rating.

TheTerrorBeyond | McKinney, Texas USA | 10/17/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This set is great... but it is not actually all from their last show. They played five nights and recorded... If you watch the "Farewell" video, you will notice that the performances of some of the songs are different than on this set. I would have preferred a continuous recording of the last show, but this will do quite nicely.There is a lot more energy in this performance than on the album tracks. You should really buy the "Farewell" DVD as soon as possible... NOW!"