David Sylvian Everything And Nothing CD

Out-of-print in the U.S.! Import pressing of this two CD set, a "best of" collection of tracks from David Sylvian's long musical career (including some with former band Japan), previously unreleased recordings, and re-recorded or otherwise alternate versions of other tracks. Most collections spanning such a length of time (20 years!) are spotty at best, but Sylvian's career has been unusually consistent, both in terms of direction and quality. Everything & Nothing is guided by a clarity of vision absent from most compilations. Listening to it is more like hearing a new David Sylvian record than a random sampling from his catalogue. Highlights include the usual suspects; "Blackwater", "Ghosts", and "Godman", all standouts on the albums from which they were culled. Alongside those tracks, though, is the true meat of the collection. Among the best are the breathtaking "The Scent of Magnolia", "Some Kind of Fool" (recorded for Japan's seminal Gentlemen Take Polaroids album but unfinished at the time) and an alternate version of "Weathered Wall" that far and away outstrips the original.

Personnel includes: David Sylvian (vocals, acoustic & electric guitars, electric piano, organ, keyboards, synthesizer, programming, loops, sound effects); Ingrid Chavez (vocals); Ryuichi Sakamoto (arranger, piano, Fender Rhodes piano, Hammond B-3 organ, synthesizer, marimba, programming, samples); Steve Tibbetts, Mark Ribot (acoustic & electric guitars); Phil Palmer (acoustic guitar & slide guitars); David Torn (electric guitar); Bill Frisell (guitar, dobro); Bill Nelson, Rob Dean, Robert Fripp (guitar); Arturo Stalteri (bouzouki); Damiano Puliti (cello); Lawrence Feldman (flute); Nicola Alesini (clarinet, soprano saxophone, keyboards, programming); Mel Collins (soprano saxophone); Mick Karn (alto & tenor saxophones, keyboards, bass, background vocals).
Producers include: David Sylvian, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Rain Tree Crow, Steve Nye, David Bottrill.
Compilation producer: David Sylvian.
Engineers include: Dave Kent, Lolly Gardner, Pat McCarthy.
Recorded between 1980 and 2000.
Singer/songwriter David Sylvian's career spans a long and enigmatic scene of experimental rock and emotional restylings. Not one to fully absorb the conventional ways of a certain circuit, Sylvian is a realist musician. He is ambitious in molding his own catharses within layers of woodwinds, horns, and homegrown synth beats, and 1999's Dead Bees on a Cake was only a small cue to Sylvian's forthcoming work. The new millennium brought the release of the double-disc Everything and Nothing, a reflection of Sylvian's previously unreleased older material. Sonically gorgeous with vocals comparable to Bryan Ferry, Everything and Nothing is a vastly expressive record of 29 tracks lost in the vaults of remixes, time, and creative changes; it is certainly a moving package of lush elevations and underrated wordplay. The two-disc set hums with eclectic instrumental constructions and tinges of Middle Eastern material, especially on tracks such as "Ride." "Pop Song" is more attractive with its abstract guitar riffs and whimsical synth loops, and "Some Kind of Fool," a long-lost Japan song intended to be on 1980's Gentleman Take Polaroids, is electronically driven. It's naturally abrasive in lyrical poetry, and Sylvian's atmospheric nature to float over the initial song composition is classic. "Jean the Birdman" echoes the sultriness of Peter Murphy, but Sylvian is shiftless at the same time with his funkadelic mood. The textural differences among the cuts make Everything and Nothing particularly inviting, reflecting the wholehearted desire that continues to make David Sylvian a fresh contributor. He is surprising, professional, and unattached to what's common. Everything and Nothing is undoubtedly a firm recognition of Sylvian's musical wizardry. ~ MacKenzie Wilson
EVERYTHING AND NOTHING is a two-disc set of "best of" tracks from David Sylvian's career (including some with formRolling Stone (2/15/01, pp.75,78) - 3.5 out of 5 stars - "...Illuminating....previously unreleased gems should satiate devotees and even evoke wistful memories of the [eighties]..."
Q (12/00, p.152) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...At its best the music has a haunting melancholy all of its own....This compilation pretty much renders any other Sylvain back catalog purchase redundant..."
The Wire (10/00, p.68) - "...What emerges so strongly is evidence of gradual development over time...ultimately leading to a stage of maturity....a major-minor miracle..."