Customer Reviews

20th Century Masters: The Best of The Commodores - The Millennium Collection

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The problem with this collection, as with most of the 20th Century Masters series, is that there is so little music on it. What there is, is of a high quality, but there tends to be too much emphasis on Pop Chart status, and too little on what was essential in paving the way to Pop stardom. It seems criminal to me, to leave off "Slippery When Wet" "Fancy Dancer" and "Too Hot To Trot" in a Commodores retrospective. Without the success that those singles contributed to their career, The Commodores wouldn't have been in a position to release ballads like "Easy" "Three Times A Lady" and "Still"! And other ballads ("This Is Your Life" "Just To Be Close To You") would have been nice to have, to illustrate how The Commodores made the gradual change from funkateers to Lionel Richie-dominated balladeers. If you want a more complete picture of the band, I suggest you pick up "Ultimate Collection." For a few dollars more, you'll get a lot more music, and you'll be reminded that "Brick House" was not the only funk classic The Commodores recorded. There is one classic, under-rated cut on this album that is not on the "Ultimate Collection": Lionel's last shining tender ballad ("Oh, No"), before he stepped off for solo stardom.

Some are grading this collection down because it contains relatively few tracks in comparison to other "hits" compilations. Frankly, the kitchen sink approach in chronicling a band's progression can be overkill. Unless one is absolutely smitten with a particular artist, eleven tracks is probably plenty. The selections here are appropriate, with some of the pre-Lionel-as-sensitive-frontman gems like "Brick House", as well as the accomplished balladry that followed. Whomever arranged the sequencing on this CD was a bit of a jokester: "Three Times a Lady", the baroque and beautiful wedding-reception standard, is followed by "Sail On", an overt kiss-off. Regardless, the remastering is top-notch; listen to this with headphones on and you can sometimes hear the band members breathing. Casual Commodores fans will probably find eleven solid songs to be quite enough, although they might choose to skip back to "Brick House" a few times; it may be the tightest 70s anthem to booty ever recorded.

This collection includes the hits "Sail On" and "Oh No," which were left out of The Ultimate Collection (1997) but should have been on there. The recording quality of the songs shared with The Ultimate Collection is better in all aspects. But, for those who are looking for all the songs on one collection, look at "Anthology."

This CD is a good single disc compilation of the Commodores' greatest hits, as well as Lionel Richie's best songwriting. From the laid back feel of "Easy" to the wedding ballad "Three Times a Lady," to the driving funk of "Brick House," this disc has all of them. And it does what greatest hits albums should do when you're done listening to them; make you want to hear more of their music. The disc closes with the instrumental that helped to get them signed by Motown, "Machine Gun." One side note about this disc: it includes the full length versions of the songs, i.e. a 6+ minute version of "Three Times a Lady." In my opinion, the radio-friendly version of this song is much better, as one can only take "You're once...twice...three times a lady..." so many times. This might be of interest to people who think they're buying the versions they hear on the radio. The Commodores' "Anthology" has the radio-friendly versions you're used to hearing. Still, this is a great place to (re)discover the Commodores.

This CD contains some of the best Commodores music ever recorded. As a child of '76, I heard this music during my weaning years, and over twenty years later it's still fabulous. Lionel Richie is at his best in this collection, and so many styles of music are represented..."Machine Gun" and "Sail On" are polar opposites, but the Commodores were masters of variety. And who isn't moved to tears when hearing "Still"? This CD rocks...from "Lady (You Bring Me Up)" to "Easy," a back-in-the-day classic, this CD will make you dance and cry. Lionel Richie, Thomas McClary, Ronald LaPread, William, King, Walter Orange, Lionel Richie, Milan Williams, William King, Walter Orange & J.D. Nicolas--you are FANTASTIC musicians. Thanks for giving us wonderful balads and tight dance tracks. : ) Even after almost 3 decades, your music lives on..."Still."

All I wanted from this CD were the hits, nothing more and that is exactly what is on here. All my favorites-"Brick House", "Three Times a Lady", "Sail On", "Easy", etc. I was pleasantly surprised to find their mid-eighties, post-Lionel hit "Night Shift" on here too. For the casual fan who just wants the major radio hits, this is all you'll ever need.

Lionel Richie left the Commodores in 1983 for a wildly successful but abbreviated solo career. The remaining members mentioned early and often (and probably correctly) they, not only he, built the warm, Southern baked funk ballads the band hit with through the end of the disco-dazed 1970s. Richie's gentle melodies and sentimental lyrics would be supported by everyone from Kenny Rogers to Joe Walsh to tennis star Jimmy Connors. This short, filler-free Commodores collection shows his songs were never better served then with his Tuskeegee-based bandmates and college friends.

This set includes 1975's still-exciting debut hit "Machine Gun," 1977's "Brick House" (with Walter Orange's funky, witty vocal), and 1985's touching Top 5 tribute "Nightshift." But Richie's songs (including two #1 pop hits) are what's still heard on "lite" and "jammin' oldies" stations and take most of this set. The CD is short at 11 songs but, to be fair, all but "Sail On" are restored to LP length after editing on other collections.

Richie's spoken passages and gorgeous harmonic break over nearly seven minutes of "Just To Be Close To You" ease into the karaoke favorite "Easy," Richie's liberating shout leading into Thomas McClary's fuzzy, funky guitar solo. (In Faith No More's 90s rock version, vocalist Mike Patton mocked that shout as if he'd stepped in a cowpie.) But as this slides into 1978's mushy wedding classic "Three Times A Lady," and 1979's somber "Still," you hear the Commodores' trademark Southern soul slowly leak from its sound. The group's final hits with Richie, "Oh No," and "Lady," could as easily have fit on his first LP.

For such an important, beloved group, the CD's packaging fall short. Not as short, though, as the liner notes hinting at an original Commodore reunion nowhere in sight for now. Those wanting more of the Commodores' tight, intelligent, organic funk sound should aim for "The Ultimate Collection" or any of the group's original LPs ("Commodores," "Live," "Hot On The Tracks") in print. Nonetheless, this entry in Universal Music's 20th Century Collection is near-perfect for those wanting the Commodores' crossover hits.

The Commodores are A Really Talented Band.they covered so many styles of music.the two disc-ANthology covers more songs.but this is a good start.Great Songs,Production&Musicianship.

There are just so many times when it comes to making a good hits package, they can be either good or bad, but the cases with the 20th Century Masters Millenium Collection has been either a considered hit or miss when it comes to showcasing a artist definitively. That has been the case with so many acts like Joe Cocker and Rod Stewart and classic Motown legends like Diana Ross and The Temptations. For The Commodores, the group hasn't been around in years, but there is always the possibility of finding a good hits package all theirs, following the R&B legends from Alabama.

The Commodores 20th Century Masters Millenuim Collection is a simple and convient reflection behind one of the most unique R&B groups of the 70's and 80's. The collection does a really good job at highlighting Lionel Richie and company. The songs here are arguably as simple and definitive as you could expect. The compilation includes some great party anthems like Brick House and Machine Gun, as well as classic ballads like their tribute to Marvin Gaye and Jackie Wilson on Nightshift, Sweet Love to even simple ballads like Three Times A Lady and Easy. While there are a lot of great tracks here, there are a couple of disadvantages to the record. One of them is that the album overhadows tracks like the Funk track Girl, I Think The World About You and Zoom. Not only that, but the tracks on the collection weren't remastered as well as well as other collections like the 1997 Ultimate Collection of The Commodores.

Despite a few flaws, The Commodores 20th Century Masters Millenium Collection is a very simple and straight forward reflection of one of the best 70's groups of all time. This is a very inexpensive, but mostly well-thought out reflection of Lionel Richie & Company. If you are on a budget and really want to get your groove on, I absolutely suggest this great album.

Album Cover: B+

Songs: B

Price: A-

Remastering: C+

Overall: B 1/2-

This 20th Century Masters is the best I've heard in the whole "20th century" series, but doesn't do too good a job at spanning the Commodores lifespan. Before Lionel Richie became a household name, The Commodores were mostly funk, as can be seen in "Brick House," the group's biggest hit, but beyond that song, the disc doesn't cover that side of the group very well at all.
But, I still give the compilation a perfect 5 star rating, because even though it covers a pretty narrow portion of the band, it covers the BEST portion. Lionel's ballads aren't nearly at the same level of genius as some of Marvin Gaye's or Stevie Wonder's greatest work, but I think they're just as enjoyable. Songs like "Sail On" and "Just To Be Close To You" will simply never get old.
I absolutely love this CD, it's one of the most played in my collection, but if you're looking for a true Commodores overview, you might want to look elsewhere.