Red Hot Chili Peppers - Greatest Hits and Videos (16 tracks) +Album Reviews

Quality of the music over comes the flaws

Mark May | Glendora, CA USA | 12/08/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is definitely a "must buy" for any Peppers fan or casual listener alike. The Peppers novice will get a great selection of songs that will keep them rocking to funky beats for years to come. The fans will get a great compilation of video hits localized on one disk. The special treat on the disks is "Soul to Squeeze." This song has previously been only available the "Coneheads" movie soundtrack. The inclusion of this song and video is worth the price of the disk alone for any true fan. Unfortunately there are flaws. Like everybody has mentioned, the "play all" function does NOT work. That is annoying. The "My Friends" video is not the regular release, but is instead a studio recording production. Also some great songs are missing on both the CD and DVD. Where is "Knock Me Down" and "Warped"? In the end, the power of the music and performances over comes these flaws."

Good, but unfortunately lacking

Jimmy Caudill | San Antonio, TX | 11/20/2003

(3 out of 5 stars)

"CD:
3/5
Under The Bridge
Give it Away
Californication
Scar Tissue
Soul to Squeeze
Otherside
Suck My Kiss
By The Way
Parallel Universe
Breaking the Girl
My Friends
Higher Ground
Universally Speaking
Road Trippin'
Fortune Faded
Save the population
DVD:
4.5/5
Higher Ground
Suck My Kiss
Give it Away
Under the Bridge
Soul to Squeeze
Aeroplane
My Friends
Around the World
Scar Tissue
Otherside
Californication
Road Trippin'
By The Way
The Zephyr Song
Can't StopUniversally SpeakingFirst off, I'm huge Chili Peppers fan, and love all there cd's, and do think this is a good cd, but it is just sadly lacking where it could have been a perfect cd, if it had been complete. Most the songs that were picked were hits that most people have heard, however the cd is missing some big songs, most notably, Zephyr Song, Around the World, and Aeroplane. plus, on a lesser note, Knock Me Down, Magic Johnson, and Love Rollercoaster, plus it would have been cool to have had the Ramones cover of Havana Affair on a Peppers CD. Since the cd is only 66 minutes at least three more songs would have fit, or if anything, why include Parallel Universe or Road Trippin, they were great songs, but not 'hits' like the others.... However, on a good note, all the songs sound great, and it is great having all of them on one cd. ...the new songs are great too. As forthe DVD, this makes up for the incomplete feeling of the cd. Since it includes the videos to almost all there videos, but not all, it is a great collection, nonetheless. Two are missing one is probably due to Legal Issues and Copyright, that being Love Rollercoaster, the other is the first version to My Friends, though the other version is on the DVD, I always liked the first version, and it would have been nice to have had both, however, if you listen to the commentary on the track, they explain why it was excluded, unfortunately. However, my DVD did seem to have some type of looping problem that didn't let me play all through, and I had to keep hitting the menu to get to the next song, and after any song not on Blood Sugar Sex Magic, it would go back to the video listing for BSSM, I'm assuming it is some pressing mistake, because I traded it in for another and same problem on two DVD players, however, each song has a commentary which is quite insightful, and a couple of behind the scenes, and on tour footage, and other footage. Overall, it is a great album to add to your collection, just to have most the videos on one DVD, and most the songs on one cd."

Great videos, but DVD does not "Play All"

kizarb | Dallas, TX United States | 11/27/2003

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I have the same problem as the reviewer from San Antonio -- the DVD does not "Play All". Perhaps it is a bad pressing, since we are in the same state. I also returned mine for a replacement, and still had the same problem. After one video plays, you must return to the main menu, select the album, select the video, select your video options, and select your audio options to see another video. Once that video ends, repeat the process. It's a pain."

Buy it for the DVD, if anything

Wesley R. Teets | Roanoke, VA USA | 05/14/2007

(2 out of 5 stars)

"I won't doubt the Red Hot Chili Peppers as one of the greatest bands of the last 20 years, but this compilation seems to refute this claim. I'm not going to complain that the band's early material is not covered (What Hits?! does that) nor am I going to complain that the album is too superficial. The purpose of this compilation is to represent the band's work in the '90s and the By The Way album, but those expecting a trip back to the heyday of alternative rock will be sorely disappointed.

The CD fails to document some of their well-known hits, such as "Aeroplane" and "Can't Stop," yet includes lesser-known singles like "Suck My Kiss" and "Parallel Universe." It also seems to dismiss the fact that the Chili Peppers were ever a rock band, dropping some of the heavier numbers like "Around The World" in favor of more mellow songs like "Road Trippin'." They likely did this to appeal to newer fans who are familiar with the more recent, "poppy" material (e.g. "Universally Speaking," though strangely enough "The Zephyr Song" is not here), but again this is folly, as it barely represents the diversity of the Chili Peppers' sound. Also worthy of note is the fact that only one song from the One Hot Minute era ("My Friends") appears on the disc. The band has basically disowned that album but many fans believe it to be one of their strongest, and expect it to be documented alongside their other work as deserved. Another low point is the CD's awkward running order. "Under The Bridge" is hardly an album-opener and "Higher Ground" does not fit between "My Friends" and "Universally Speaking." The final two songs, "Fortune Faded" and "Save The Population," are okay songs but dilute the impact of the true hits. If I had compiled this album, I would've kicked "Suck My Kiss," "Parallel Universe," "Higher Ground," "Universally Speaking," "Road Trippin'," and "Save The Population" and would've included "Warped," "Aeroplane," "Love Rollercoaster," "Around The World," "Can't Stop," and "The Zephyr Song," and all tracks would've been arranged in chronological order, the natural choice for charting a band's musical evolution.

The DVD is better. I've actually had no problem with the "play all" feature on my DVD. The Greatest Videos disc misses little. It includes videos for many songs that were not included on the CD: "Aeroplane," "Around The World," "The Zephyr Song," and "Can't Stop," not to mention it's in chronological order. It still misses the videos for "Breaking The Girl," "Warped," "Coffee Shop," "Love Rollercoaster," and an alternate (and perhaps better) video for "My Friends." I also see no reason why the "Fortune Faded" video is absent. If making a video compilation, why not include everything? There's enough extra footage on the DVD to make you scream, though one might find it a bit extraneous at times--footage of the band taking a cab around Japan is not necessary for the record. Commentary on the songs would have been a better choice; they could've even done that for the liner notes.

All in all, this package is lackluster and could've had better documentation and could've included more than just a look-back on the old with the perspective of the new, which seemed to be the theme of this compilation. The parts missing from the CD basically render it useless. If you're a new fan and thoroughly enjoy the band's more recent material, then, by all means, buy this set. If you're an old fan, though, and find the Blood Sugar Sex Magik, One Hot Minute, and Californication tracks the most listenable, don't waste your money--keep your '90s albums and buy the DVD alone."

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