Search - Queen :: Absolute Greatest

How many more Queen collections will they make?

Johnny Boy | Hockessin, DE | 04/04/2010

(1 out of 5 stars)

"I LOVE Queen. They are one of my favorite bands. That's why I'm painfully giving this new Queen collection 'Absolute Greatest' one star. Read on for further details.



In 2009, Queen released their umpteenth compilation, 'Absolute Greatest.' A career-spanning retrospective, the record spans many classic tracks of theirs, including a track from their incredibly underrated 1995 record, 'Made in Heaven.'



This record is a cash cow. That's the bottom line. If you have 'The Platinum Collection: Greatest Hits I, II & III' and 'Classic Queen,' plus the studio records, you have this already. It's a massive ripoff from Queen and the folks at Hollywood Records. How disappointing -- it seems Queen has to release a compilation rehashing all of their classic tracks every several years or so.



If you thought 'Stone Cold Classics' was bad, you'll probably flinch at the sight of this. 'One Vision' is horrendously edited, chopped down to 3:59 as opposed to the classic 5:11 studio version. That's one of my favorite Queen songs -- and what a shame that this collection offers it edited. 'Greatest Hits II' and 'Classic Queen' suffer the same problem -- 'Queen Rocks,' it seems is the only collection that offers this song in it's full-length album version.



Overall, don't buy this record. It's Hollywood Records once again trying to deprive you of your hard-earned dollar by making you pay for another useless Queen compilation. If you are new to Queen's legendary catalogue, start with 'Greatest Hits I & II' or perhaps if you want to take it a step further 'The Platinum Collection: Greatest Hits I, II & III.' And, better yet, you could buy all of the studio records, which is definitely the best way to listen to Queen.



But don't buy this record. By buying this, you're simply encouraging Hollywood Records to rehash the same material AGAIN and AGAIN and AGAIN. I can almost guarantee you this set will be out of print, by, say 2013.



NOT RECOMMENDED."