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INXS - Greatest Hits

INXS - INXS - Greatest Hits Audio CD

A fair review of the INXS "INXS - Greatest Hits" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all INXS reviews here, or go back to the INXS tabs.

Band: INXS
Title: INXS - Greatest Hits
Rating:

Release Date: 1994-11-01
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: One Thing 2: Original Sin 3: What You Need 4: Listen Like Thieves 5: Shine Like It Does 6: Need You Tonight 7: Devil Inside 8: New Sensation 9: Never Tear Us Apart 10: Suicide Blonde 11: Disappear 12: Stairs 13: Heaven Sent 14: Beautiful Girl 15: Strangest Party (These Are the Times) 16: Deliver Me

Incomplete Greatest Hits
A great collection, but where are the two of their big hits "Don't Change" and "I Send a Message"? I know you can never appease all the fans, but, as a DJ in the 80's, those were two big hits that are too big to leave off what is supposed to be a greatest hits collection.

Great music, but doesn't quite hit the spot
INXS was (for me at least) one of those bands that didn't always fit neatly into a particular style or stereotype. When you're a teenager you tend to want to classify or stereotype everything in a black & white sort of way. Yeah, they were pop, but they had such a hard-driving beat that the label didn't seem to fit very well when compared to other pop acts at the time. Yet it wasn't like it was rock either, at least not like the hair bands of the mid 80s. They sometimes had a synth-pop sound, but didn't fit in with new wave. Dance, maybe? Not always. Maybe it was the saxophone that confused me. . . ?

But whatever it was or wherever you want to stereotype it, it was great music. I especially loved Kick and X, and saw them in concert on their X tour in 1994. It was a simple show - no pyrotechnics or overblown visuals - just the band and the music. It was great! The lights didn't even dim between the opening act and them. Everyone thought it was just the grunts tuning up the guitars when all of the sudden. . . that bunch of guys in t-shirts playing the songs were them! Way cool.

But I'm a little disappointed by The Greatest Hits. It probably meets my needs and expectations better than any of the other collections or compilations, but what were they thinking not including "Don't Change"? Also, "Mediate" MUST follow "Need You Tonight" just like it does on Kick - it's not even on here. And I wish they had included "Kiss The Dirt (Falling Down The Mountain)" from Listen Like Thieves. They could have eliminated 3 songs at the end - "Heaven Sent," "The Strangest Party (These Are The Times)" and "Deliver Me" - and I wouldn't have even missed them. But I was glad to see "The Stairs" which was one of my favorites, even though I don't recall it being much of a hit for them.

So, while it's a great collection from a great band (although that whole reality show thing was pretty sad) it just doesn't quite satisfy. But it probably comes closer (for me) than the others. And it may be a petty complaint, but I just don't care for the cover art.

Listen Like Thieves
Well, the WERE a respectable band. INXS is a respectable band. . . right up until the point they went on a reality show to replace their lead singer--the late, great Michael Hutchence.

But up until that point they were as respectable as a pop group could be. They weren't groundbreaking and probably weren't influential, but they made a lot of good songs that were enjoyed by a lot of people and they weren't forgotten three years later so many of their contemporaries.

As far as their songs go, you can probably get everything you need on a compilation--there's no need to go out and find the albums. And this compilation is pretty solid. The majority of their hits and well-known songs are here.

If you're a casual fan of INXS or this style of music, then you should probably own this album. I knocked it down to three stars (from four) for three reasons, and if none of these things concern you, then you can go ahead and consider this a great compilation album.

The three things:

a) There's are a lot of extra tracks here. Either they are songs off of later albums or they were new material--I've never bothered to figure it out. In any case, they make the last half of the album a complete dud.

b) The didn't include "Mediate. " It seems like they could have dumped one of the new tracks and inserted this right behind "Need You Tonight," just like it's done in the video.

c) This is the big one--they left off "Don't Change. " That makes absolutely no sense to me--it was one of their first hits and one of their greatest songs. I can't fathom how they would decide to leave it off in favor of new stuff and lesser songs.

That said, everything else of note seems to be here: Need You Tonight, Suicide Blonde, Original Sin, Disappear, Devil Inside. . . etc. . . you can read the track list for yourself--you don't need my help with that. .

Nothing Torn Apart
Nevertheless, there have been some noticible acceptions. There are foten times where a group isn't now what they were ack then. INXS recentsly has been one of them. Nearly a decade after the tragic death of Michael Hutchence, they struck back into the industry with J. D. Fortune on their comeback record Switch. While some are welcoming his arrival, others just sometimes look at the past and what INXS had back in the 80's and 90's, and what they had was a great mix of pop & rock that was just absolutely driven into the best in music, and that stays true on this greatest hits record.

INXS 1994 Greatest Hits record is a well-recognized reflection of the group during its heyday as one of the biggest rock backs of the world. The 16 track compilation delivers quite nnicely into what is really over the top. The songs here could've been remastered a little better, but deliver a lot of great tracks like their #1 smashes Need You Tonight, the haunting and soulful Never Tear Us Apart, Suicide Blonde, Dissapear and the upbeat and delightful New Sensation which was used recently for commercials for Bally Total Fitness health club, and What You Need to name a few. The songs still are great to listen to, but there just could've been a little more that should've been added.

So many INXS fans now might be torn between this collection and the 2001 Best OF INXS record which has more songs to match, but this collection of their music uis still alright. INXS Greatest Hits is a very nice reflection from a group of Australian Suicide Blondes.

Album Cover: B

Songs: B 1/2+

Price: B+

Remastering: B-

Overall: B.

Great album
All my favorite songs.

You can see a complete list of all INXS discography, or go back to the INXS tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.