The Best Of Extreme: An Accidental Collocation Of Atoms

Extreme | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 15, 2000)
• Original Release Date: February 15, 2000
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Interscope Records
• ASIN: B00004D3C0
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #84,953 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great material, but it's not enough., February 29, 2000

By 

Karl John Krumrey IV (Detroit area, Mi) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Best Of Extreme: An Accidental Collocation Of Atoms (Audio CD)

Extreme was one hell of a band, make no mistake. Gary Cherone (Van Halen III aside) was and still is one of the most talented singers ever to grace a record, Nuno Bettencourt's guitar work rivaled, and at times exceeded that of his idols, Eddie Van Halen and Brian May, Pat Badger was a phenom on bass, doubling Nuno's parts with ease, and Paul Geary... well, I'll leave him alone but their second drummer, Mike Mangini, is simply one of the greatest skin-pounders today.

So why was this band almost completley overlooked, save for two songs (More than Words and Hole Hearted) that barely showcased their real talent? Who knows, the music industry works that way. This CD is a nice introduction to the REAL Extreme, but it's simply not enough, for the casual fan or the dedicated one. There's no new or unreleased material at all, save a much-needed remix of Cupid's Dead, so people who already own the original albums (and most extreme fans already do) have no use for this collection.

As for new fans, they'd be better off buying either Pornograffitti or III Sides for an introduction. Yes, both these albums had mainstream hits that are on this collection, but the fact is Extreme made ALBUMS, not SINGLES. Extreme's songs were designed with an entire concept in mind, as opposed to just one or two hits surrounded by filler. Each album was a completley different work, and this 'Best of' collection is very incoherent, as the original song contexts are lost.

Not to say there isn't a lot of great material on here. These songs are fantastic, because the band was fantastic. But this compilation is unneccesary. If you want a better intro to Extreme, buy either Pornograffitti or III Sides to Every Story, then move on to their remaining two albums.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Some great highlights, but still just the tip of the iceberg, March 2, 2000

By 

John S. Harris "The Voice of Reason" (Memphis, TN) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Best Of Extreme: An Accidental Collocation Of Atoms (Audio CD)

Murphy's 1st Law of Rock and Roll: The best bands with the best records will languish in relative obscurity to the general public. In the case of EXTREME, this "Best of..." compilation only makes us miss them even more. This is a GREAT band that never got the recognition it deserved, save for the brisk sales of their second album, driven by the ballad "More than Words". Ironically, they were dismissed bysome critics as pop-metal balladeers because of that song, which was a grave injustice. This CD is a good introduction to this band for the otherwise uninformed (or misinformed). But to truly appreciate the breadth of the songwriting and performing skills of EXTREME you need to buy the entire catalog of 4 studio CD's. Many of the Van Halen fans who booed at Gary Cherone getting the Lead Singer job were only familiar with Cherone through "More Than Words" and "Hole Hearted". But those of us more familiar with his range as a singer ("Get the Funk Out") and songwriter/lyricist saw some potential in his selection. As a live act, the Cherone-led Van Halen was the best live Van Halen concert I've seen/heard in the 12 times I've seen that band, in all its incarnations.

I already own every song on this "Best Of..." disc, so a few bonus unreleased tracks would have been nice. But the song selection on this CD provides a pretty good overview to introduce new fans. This band can rock/funk as good as any band out there, past and present.

And Extreme guitarist god Nuno Bettencourt is married to Suze DeMarchi, former lead singer of the now-defunct Australian band Baby Animals. Check out the two discs by that band, and grab Suze's solo disc "Telelove", which features the songwriting and producing hand of her hubby Nuno. Some if not all of those 3 discs are available through Amazon.com

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "one of the greatest rock bands of the last decade", July 15, 2000

By 

J. Lovins "Mr. Jim" (Missouri-USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Best Of Extreme: An Accidental Collocation Of Atoms (Audio CD)

This "Best of Extreme" is simply awesome from Hard Rock to some Classical touches here and there. Members of this group Patrick Badger (bass guitar, vocals), Nuno Bettencourt (guitar, piano, keyboards, percussion and vocals), Gary Cherone (lead vocals), Paul Geary (drums, percussion and vocals) and Mike Mancini (drums) were way ahead of their time. A style that is distinctly their own, hard to soft sounds come from this phenomenal rock band.

Some stand outs need to be mentioned - "MORE THAN WORDS" classic tune with great lyrics - "CUPID'S DEAD" non-stop rhythm with a beat - "PLAY WITH ME" with a heads-up classical touch - "HOLE HEARTED" cause' there's a hole in my heart that can only be filled by you!

Music junkies, don't miss the most overlooked band of the '90s. After the first track you will be convinced this is one of the greatest rock bands of the last decade.

Total Time: 67:38 on 13 Tracks/ A&M Records Inc - 069 490 556 2 (2000)