Although Peter Gabriel received the greatest-hits treatment with 1990's SHAKING THE TREE, the 13 years following that collection made it clear that another, more comprehensive retrospective was needed. During this time, Gabriel recorded only two official solo albums, US and UP, but the avant-pop icon also pursued other audio/visual projects, such as OVO, his contribution to London's massive Millennium Dome exhibit. The two-disc compilation HIT pairs his post-2000 work with his pioneering songs from 1977-1992, and the result is a remarkable musical document.
While HIT features the majority of the classic songs from SHAKING THE TREE, it also includes two essential tracks excluded from that earlier compilation, "The Rhythm of the Heat," a slow-burning exercise in tribal beats, and "In Your Eyes," the gorgeous ballad made famous by the film SAY ANYTHING. Moving on to latter-day Gabriel, HIT offers up the wonderfully grimy stomp of "Digging in the Dirt," the yearning "More Than This," and the previously unreleased "Burn You Up, Burn You Down," which hearkens back to his gloriously quirky mid-'80s period. Other post-SO songs include "Love to Be Loved," "The Tower That Ate People" (from the OVO project), and a live rendition of "Downside Up," featuring Gabriel's daughter Melanie on vocals.
Personnel includes: Peter Gabriel (vocals, flute, recorder, Bosendorfer piano, keyboards); Kate Bush, Sinead O'Connor (vocals); Richard Evans (acoustic guitar); Robert Fripp (electric & classical guitar, banjo); David Rhodes (guitar, 12-string guitar); Peter Green (electric guitar); Steve Hunter (pedal steel guitar); Daniel Lanois (guitar); Tim Green (tenor saxophone); Dick Morrisey (saxophone); Wayne Jackson (trumpet); Jozef Chirowski, Brian Eno (keyboards); Larry Fast (synthesizer, programming); Tony Levin (bass); Dominic Greesmith, Jerry Marotta (drums); Ged Lynch, Will White, Stephen Hague, Phil Collins (percussion); Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan (background vocals).
Producers include: Bob Ezrin, David Lord, Peter Gabriel, Daniel Lanois, Steve Lillywhite.
Q (1/04, p.132) - 4 stars out of 5 - "Gabriel's discovery of world music and a growing mastery of atmosphere make his later work evermore compelling..."
Well chosen and a good bargain This is an excellent overview of Peter Gabriel's career, and with the "Hit-Miss" title of each CD Peter acknowledges that he has two groups of fans - those who know the radio and video hits, and those who have a more album centered appreciation. It is a good cross section of material spanning 27 years. In the first 6 years of his career, he put out 4 discs. In the remaining 21 years he has had only three studio discs, but many compilations, live discs, and especially soundtracks. I am not much of a fan of soundtracks, but I do appreciate "Lovetown" and "Cloudless" being included here, as they are soundtrack songs with vocals. It is also a plus to have two OVO songs with vocals, "Tower" and "Father, Son" included. It is these tracks which make it a bargain, along with the unreleased outtakes from the Growing Up disc and tour. Five songs from So, his best disc. Zero songs from PG2, his weakest. Its about exactly what I would have selected. Submitted by Michael (Canal Winchester, OH, USA) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo 1 of 1 found this helpful.
Eventually a "Best of" that really is a "Best of"! What can I say? If you haven't already bought any of Peters CD's and you like his sound these discs will definitely make your day. An unusually wise selection of tunes for a "Best of"! Submitted by johanloenn (Stockholm, Sweden) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo 1 of 1 found this helpful.
great calaboration Liked it gat just what I was looking for
Submitted by kevin.radke (Ft Campbell Ky) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
excellent if you are a fan of this musical genius and former frontman of THE REAL GENESIS then this cd is for you....sound quality is superb....early recordings such as humdrum should have been included though! Submitted by a reviewer (maywood nj) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
Buena compilación, pero... Faltan quizás temas como "Mercy Street", "Washing of The Water".Éste último, creo que infaltable en una recopilación de grandes éxitos de Peter Gabriel. Submitted by WWW.Impregabi2005 (Bs as) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
Eventually a "Best of" that really is a "Best of"!
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