Saturday, June 21, 2014

Review Big Hits (High Tide and Green Grass) [UK]

Big Hits (High Tide and Green Grass) [UK]

Released

November 4, 1966

This album pisses me off a little bit. It’s the UK version of the Greatest Hits album Big Hits, and it’s very different. Why not make it a different album all together? There are two extra songs compared to the US version, bring the total count from 12 to 14, and also three songs were removed from the US version for the UK version. Because of the large gap of time between the US and UK versions, they decided to put in Paint It Black and Have You Seen Your Mother Baby, which were songs released after the US Big Hits. When there’s that big of a gap, just make a new album.

Here’s the track list and the numbers I gave it before.

· Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby, Standing in the Shadow? – 8 / 10

· Paint It Black – 10 / 10

· It’s All Over Now – 7.8 / 10

· The Last Time – 8.5 / 10

· Heart of Stone – 8.5 / 10

· Not Fade Away – 7 / 10

· Come On – 8 / 10

· (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction – 10 / 10

· Get Off of My Cloud – 9.5 / 10

· As Tears Go By – 10 / 10

· 19^th Nervous Breakdown – 10 / 10

· Lady Jane – 9 / 10

· Time Is on My Side – 8 / 10

· Little Red Rooster – 3 / 10

Total: 117.3 / 140

4.5 / 5 stars. (Look, stars!)

Same complains from the US version. Because of the time gap, you can include things like Paint it Black and remove things like Good Times, Bad Times, which wasn't much of a hit. If you were going to choose a version, US or UK, go with the UK.
And why isn't You Better Move On on this.

Also, I boosted Lady Jane up from an 8 to a 9, because I like it more since it's grown on me. It seems to be a common theme with Rolling Stones songs, you have to melt it into your brain.

Saturday, March 29, 2014

Review Big Hits (High Tide and Green Grass) [US]

Big Hits (High Tide and Green Grass) [US]

Released
March 28, 1966

Here’s where things start to get interesting. A compilation album: now how would I even start to review this? I won’t do this song by song, but instead talk about it as a whole because that, in my mind, works a lot better. And if you don’t like that, hunt for the songs: I’ve reviewed every song on here before.

One thing I’ll just say is that I have the 2006 remastered version, so I have stereo mixes of (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction, Time Is on My Side, It's All Over Now, and Heart of Stone. At any other time that would be fantastic, but I’m supposed to pretend I’m a little Stones fan from the 60’s and there was no stereo mixes. Oh well.

Also I find it funny the US got this first.

· (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction – 10 / 10

· The Last Time – 8.5 / 10

· As Tears Go By – 10 / 10

· Time is On My Side – 8 / 10

· It’s All Over Now – 7.8 / 10

· Tell Me – 8 / 10

· 19^th Nervous Breakdown – 10 / 10

· Heart of Stone – 8.5 / 10

· Get Off of My Cloud – 9 / 10

· Not Fade Away – 7 / 10

· Good Times, Bad Times – 7.8 / 10

· Play with Fire – 8 / 10

Three out of the twelve songs are covers, and one song was by Jagger / Richards and Andrew Oldham. That backs up my feelings on the Stones own songs vs. the Stones covers. They seemed to ignore EPs, because You Better Move On isn’t here and that disappoints me, because Good Times, Bad Times made it. Not to say it’s a bad song, but it’s not as good as quite a few songs that were glossed over. If You Need Me would’ve been a good song, and Route 66 if they were trying to include older pieces as well. Other than that, you have the standard songs you’d expect; Satisfaction, As Tears Go By, Time is On My Side, songs we still know today that haven’t been pushed to obscurity by the bigger songs.

The album contains the majority of what is needed on a Stones Greatest Hits album at this time, and while it’s definitely missing some songs that would’ve made it better, it’s still a great album.

102.6 / 120

I think that brings this to be the highest rated 12-song album from the Stones, but we’re not going to count it. But we’ll keep it in mind in case things get ugly, which I don’t expect it to do.