Customer Reviews

Best of Me

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This recent release from Bryan Adams is noticably skimpy on the hits, of yesterday. Although I am a big fan of Adams, I have to say that this compilation seems to be focusing more on Adams' ingenious output from the '90s and, therefore, is missing many of the songs - which brought him fame - from the turbulent '80s. His break out hit from '82, Cuts Like A Knife, isn't here! The tender ballad, Straight From The Heart, is absent, also. This Time, Heaven(how could they omit that), It's Only Love(with Tina Turner), Somebody, Kids Wanna Rock, Heat Of The Night, and Do I Have To Say The Words? should have all been included, as well! A 2 disc collection, with all of these songs included, would have been more deserving to Bryan Adams fans, worldwide. I would recommend the So Far, So Good album, for a more '80s based hit collection. We might have to wait another 10 years for a more stellar and complete collection, from the great Bryan Adams! Best Of Me is very disappointing, in the meantime.

Whether you're a Badfan or not (a fan-based reference to "Bryan ADams fan"), this is a great collection of tunes - plus a stellar new one! Basically a "Best of Bryan" part 2 album, with part 1 being "So Far So Good." The bulk of the album is music from his 90's work, as opposed to the primarily 80s-driven "So Far So Good." Three of Bryan's four #1 hits are here, including the timeless "Everything I Do (I Do It For You)" ballad from Robin Hood, the hot latin ballad "Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman," and the spectacular collaborative piece by Bryan, Sting, and Rod Stewart "All For Love" from the Three Musketeers Soundtrack (his other #1 hit was "Heaven," which you can find on the "So Far So Good" CD!). Other top hits and well-known tunes are "Can't Stop This Thing We Started," "Let's Make A Night To Remember," and "Please Forgive Me." The classic and always-popular "Summer of 69" is here, too, although it's a little out of place given the 'second half' angle of Bryan's career on this CD. The lead-off track, "Best of Me" is a brand new single and a solid turn-out from Bryan, letting his fans know he's still got what it takes to write, sing, and play great music. If you're a fan, you've clearly got to own this - I believe it's the first time the hard-to-find "All For Love" has appeared on a Bryan Adams CD; "I'm Ready" is a live recording, and the little-known "Back to You" is also a lively live rendition. All in all, a thoroughly solid album and worthy companion piece to "So Far So Good" - if you're new to Bryan's music, pick up both of them today... you'll get no better introduction to one of the legends of the genre, and one of my personal favorites to boot.

This collection is the most glaring example of record companies using greatest-hits compilations strictly as marketing tools rather than comprehensive retrospectives. Leery about damaging sales of the artist's original records, these compilations omit some glaringly important tracks so that, theoretically speaking, you'd have to get the original records on top of the compilations to get the missing tracks.

Let's see...what are we missing? Adams' first #1 hit "Heaven" (are you *kidding*!?); "Cuts Like a Knife", one of his early hits; "Straight from the Heart"; and the underrated, sweeping "Thought I'd Died and Gone to Heaven".

For its hit status, "Can't Stop This Thing We Started" was a no-brainer; unfortunately, the adjective also applies to the songwriting and performance. This song remains one of the penultimate annoying Canadian rock songs, alongside "Enid", "You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet" and "Life Is a Highway". And for song selection, The Best of Me pales in comparison with the earlier Adams compilation, So Far So Good, thanks to the addition of those heinous mid-to-late-'90s Adams compositions: "Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?", with all those repetitive "reallys", gets on one's nerves fast, especially with the faux-Spanish arrangement; "Please Forgive Me" is melodic and nice, but also covered in syrup; and the worst of the bunch, "All for Love" from The Three Musketeers, where Adams, Sting and Rod Stewart combine to make the most unharmonious, mismatched, and plain grating singing partners of all time. Adams and Stewart's raspy voices already conflict mightily, but add that to Sting's self-conscious faux-reggae phrasing, and you got an aural cacophony. The songwriting is well below par, as well.

I still like the guilty pleasures that form the stronger song choices: Early album-rock track "Run to You", the jam-band favourite "Summer of '69", and the mega-hit "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You". Cheesy? Yes. But also tuneful and a time capsule for 1991. This little song sold three million copies and touched a chord (the world's best-selling single since "We Are the World", a record Adams held until Whitney Houston's remake of "I Will Always Love You").

So Far, So Good would definitely have been a better purchase. I bought The Best of Me from a bargain bin, and even then, it was a waste, given the weak latter-day material and the omissions.

It's another collection of Bryan Adams tunes. Are we happy? Are we rejoicing?

You bet!!!!

This is BA at his best. Though a longtime country fan, I just got into Bryan Adams recently. I must tell you that I enjoy his work immensely, as he is a talented singer/songwriter/instrumentalist. His voice is unique, and you know it's Bryan Adams whenver he comes on the radio!

Back to this album. I won't go song-for-song, but I will tell you the "best of the Best", so to speak. There are the acoustical "I'm Ready" and "Back To You," of course. "Summer of '69," "Can't Stop This Thing We Started", and "Please Forgive Me" are still good. There is a re-vamped version of "Cloud Number Nine," as well as the sexy "Let's Make a Night To Remember." "When You're Gone" features Melanie C., and "All For Love"--tied for the best Adams song ever--sports two other well-known artists; get ready...Rod Stewart and Sting! "Inside Out" is much better than Trisha Yearwood's country version, and "The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You" is still hip. The other best Adams song is, of course, "(Everything I Do) I Do It For You."

I could go on and on, but then I might bore you so much you'd take this pitiful review to heart and not buy the CD. Please don't judge Bryan Adams' talent by my way with words. He deserves much more than this review gives him. I can only say one more thing, really, without being too tacky: How can you not by the BEST? Buy it! But it! Buy it! (You really won't regret it, honestly).

It just surprises me when it really comes to hits collections. They really don't seem to hit the nail on the head. It really isn't anything new here, especially when a better hits collection by the same artist was issued earlier. Bryan Adams truly knows about making great songs, but not always hits collections. During his beginnings in the 80's, he defied the feeling of Rock music and Pop combined. That still hasn't changed here. His music is still as universal, with a lot of strength that people think of a guilty pleasure. Well, he might seem like that right now, but there is more to this Canadian than guilty.

The Best Of Me, the second Bryan Adams Greatest Hits collection of his big songs from the 80's and 90's. All in all, the songs here include his biggest hits from the era, including his biggest movie ballads, Everything I Do (I Do It For You) from Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves, Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman? from Don Juan Demarco, as well as other great pop songs to his career. The album also includes other great songs that were also on his earlier hits collection such as Summer Of '69, Can Start This Thing We Started, and Run To You. The album also adds some other goodies such as Back To You from his appearance on MTV Unplugged, Cloud Number Nine, and Let's Make A Night To Remember.

There also are some downsides to this collection, the album does overlook some of Bryan's die hard hits from the 80's such as Heaven, This Time, Cuts Like A Knife, It's Only Love his duet with Tina Turner, and other good songs. Those songs were featured on his earlier hits collection, So Far So Good from 1993. All in all, fans might seem a whole lot uninterested in this collection, but is a strong welcome to any Bryan Adams and his strong feel in music. If this was combined with the other hits collection, than more people would've bought The Best Of Me. Still, Bryan Adams quality hasn't changed in the music, and people still appreciate his music today, straight from that heart.

How is it possible to give Bryan Adams' previous greatest hits package a 5 star perfect review and the follow up a 3 star average review ? Simple,the rocking guy next door who belted out 'Cuts Like A Knife' and 'It's Only Love' is nowhere to be found on this one (except on 'Summer Of '69')
instead,I'm reminded of Michael Bolton and that is not a good thing

Don't get me wrong,Bryan is still an expert at great songwriting but when you put this many ballads on a single CD you're just asking the listener to fall asleep. Not quite sure what the reasoning was here. All the songs on their own are fantastic but packaged together side by side it's just too much of one style.

'The Best Of Me' - ballad
'Can't Stop This Thing We Started' - extremely overplayed but good song
'I'm Ready' - painfully slow ballad
'Summer Of '69' - absolute perfection in songwriting,his best song ever!
'Let's Make A Night To Remember' - ballad but my favorite song on this CD
'All For Love' - (ballad)I would have bet this was Michael Bolton with friends
'Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman - yet another ballad,nice one though
'Run To You' - great rocking song,I love this one
'Cloud Number Nine' - pretty good song
'Everything I do ' - ummm another ballad
'Back To You - a pretty good song
'When You're Gone '- A nice duet with ex spice girl mel c
'Please Forgive Me' and yet another ballad
'The Only Thing That Looks Good On Me Is You - Great rocking tune
'Inside Out' - are you kidding me,end with yet one more ballad

I would recommend buying this if you are a fan or simply enjoy most of these songs and want to listen to them one at a time....but seriously run out and buy 'So Far So Good' that is MUCH MUCH Better...Bryan Adams is great and has a romantic soft side but also has a rocking side that you would just never know from this release

The Upside - packed full of great,well thought out songs,great production and great singing and performances,plus includes some gems that were not included on the previous greatest hits package

The Downside - (snooring) It literally puts me to sleep,never listen to this while driving a vehicle,far too many slow songs on one CD

The Bottom Line - As a huge Bryan Adams fan I had to buy this because I love every song,I just wish he would have either released a double album with more upbeat songs or left off some of these ballads...you should check this out because the songs really are good but definitely buy 'So Far So Good' from Bryan Adams first to really get a taste of what this songwriting genius is capable of....or if you have insomnia and need some helping getting to sleep this is a perfect prescription...donutman says so!!!

The Best of me indeed has a number of Bryan Adam Hits. Some of my favorites are here. Everything I do...., Have you ever really loved a woman, Please forgive me and Lets make a night to remember. There are other good songs as well like Summer of 69, Best of me, back to you. The only masterpiece that is missing in this album is the song I finally found someone a duet sung with the legendary Barbara Streisand. That would add another glitter to the best of collection. Not a bad collection after all.

This cd is not the true Bryan Adams greatest hits album. The true Bryan Adams greatest hits album remains "So Far So Good". This cd is missing several of his biggest hits, including "Heaven". The cd lags at times and just doesn't have the same fire as "So Far So Good". Pass on this cd, it just isn't worth it if you're a casual fan. This is only for hardcore Bryan Adams fans.

I had been looking for 4 specific songs and they are on this CD. The rest of the CD is also great....

Well, I'll admit that I'm not the BIGGEST Bryan Adams fan. I bought this cd solely for the "have you ever really loved a woman" song... but found that I like just about every song on this cd! Its great for cleaning the house! I highly recommend this cd!