Man, they were a great, great band
Ewen McEwen | Somerville, MA | 04/07/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"All I can say is that in the mid-1980's there was no better live act around (except maybe the Replacements on a hot night). When they were on, which was more often than not, they were ferocious. Dave was the most dynamic and entertaining front man of that era, except maybe Henry Rollins. Of course, Henry didn't play the guitar. Listening to these songs, after 20 years, at first I was not sure they had aged all that well (Juke Box Hero might have been fun live...). But, geezer that I now am, once I got warmed up, I was right back in the groove: loving Dave's delivery and vocal talents, the pummeling dual guitar attack (howitzers is how I think I used to describe them) and the harmonizing (Dan and Dave, right on).
I still love Soul Asylum, after all these years, and although some of their later stuff was whatever it was (not all bad, come on), it's these early tracks that make me feel good, and old. And heck, young."
Never too late, Never too soon
Rob Shouts | Pittsburgh, PA | 05/03/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is a collection of balls to the wall garage rock. Twelve of these tracks fall from the albums, While You Were Out and Made to Be Broken. What separates Soul Asylum from the rest of their counterparts is the lyrical stitching that makes every song interesting and everything but cliche' (despite the titles- you have to have catchy titles) Boring repetition and rehashed four-chord progressions NEED NOT APPLY. Over the years this band has captured every quality rock and roll ever had to offer. Each song has at least one surprising change and takes you somewhere unexpected. Aside from reverb, these guys have no noticible production enhancement on their first 6 albums. Minus the ringing ears, this is what they sound like live. Ship of fools, Miracle Mile, and Carry On are high points. Buy their entire collection. Aside from Zeppelin and the Beatles, I can think of no other band with so many albums I could listen to straight through. It's never to late to discover Soul Asylum and there's no better way to start than with this collection. If you're looking for the songs you heard on the radio in the early 90's, buy Grave Dancer's Union and Let Your Dim Light Shine - they're well produced and rock just as well."
A great album from their early years, more for fans, not nes
Wiseguy 945 | Cedar Rapids, IA | 12/04/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"This is a great release of Soul asylum that goes good with their greatest hits from their columbia years, BLack Gold. For Fans that like Grave Dancers Union, this is probably not your Soul Asylum album. During the Twin tone years, the band had a much different sound, same line up but much edgyer and faster rock, more of a punk edge, especially with the tempo of the music. If you are use to the acoustic/electric rock blend that grave dancers and beyond years of Soul Asylum are, then this album will alienate you, but any collector of early fan of Soul Asylum has been waiting for this one for a while. A fun compilation of the early years, definitely for the collector."
Track Listings (16) - Disc #1