High quality tribute to the 'Mats by some great Aussie bands
09/14/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Sure The Replacements are one of my favourite bands ever....but even I was'nt prepared for what a great record this turned out to be. Some of the biggest (and most obscure of) credible Australian bands have made a damn good fist of some of the best 'Mats songs. One of the most satisfying ways this CD pays tribute to the Mats is in it's scope. Some bands cover the sad and beautiful ballads, others scorch the speakers with the punker stuff from 'Sorry Ma...'and the others take up the middle ground. 23 tracks in all and there's barely a dud amongst them.Some bands you might have heard of include: You Am I, Celibate Rifles, Brad Shepherd (Hoodoo Gurus), The Onyas, Challenger 7 and DM3,"
Furter Proof of the 'Mats Great Songwriting . . . .
Robert S. Goheen | Seattle | 09/03/2000
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Rule of thumb: avoid all tribute albums. Essentially all are pointless and add nothing to the original versions. That being said, I'd still recommend this CD, even if you are a pretty hardcore Mats fan (like me), know all these songs, and cringe at the thought of someone making a mess of it. I can't say as I know any of the bands here (other than Brad Shepard of the Hoodoo Gurus), which I think actually helped me get into this disc faster, with a more open mind. Perhaps the biggest point of this disc is how well the Replacement's music holds up, especially their rave up songs like "On the Bus", "Alex Chilton", "I Will Dare", and "Color Me Impressed". Those songs are handled competently and'll have you bouncing around just like the originals. The punkier stuff, especially "Otto" and "Taking a Ride" still kick.One thing that I was surprised by was the fact that all the groups on the album played the songs by the book, with little reinterpretation. The one exception is "Here Comes a Regular", which is played as a slightly faster, electric stomping rock song rather than the slower acoustic original version. And the song translates just fine. It makes me wish some of the other songs were played with a bit more experimentation. I think some of the groups were afraid of being blasphemous.I especially wish that the groups who tackled some of the late songs, specifically "Sadly Beautiful" and "Aching To Be" had done some reinterpretation. I've always liked these two songs, but felt like they could be taken to a slightly higher level than the versions on the Mats' albums.There are, of course, a couple of weaker points. I just couldn't get into a "Sixteen Blue" that had been slowed down even further.There is one song on here, the only song I heard prior to buying the album (thank you KCMU, 90.3 in Seattle, www.kcmu.org), that I consider to be worth the price of admission. Erbs and Pisces (no, I've never heard of them either) plays the Mats' first single. Both sides. At once. And very well, to boot.Long live the Mats...."
Track Listings (23) - Disc #1