Customer Reviews

Chronicles

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

 

 

This is a compilation of songs from the three other Jon Anderson/Vangelis albums that had been recorded in the early 1980's. If you own those already, there isn't a need to get this one.

...but you'd think they could include the rare track "Song Is..." for we who don't even know where to find it. It's one of their best, very ambient. Probably never released on CD, so someone wasn't thinking here.
Also included should have been either "I'll Find My Way Home" or "State of Independence."

Same as the US Best Of, but with a different cover. Doesn't mean it's only worth 3 stars though. This is a brilliant selection of music and a superb place to begin for any one just starting with Jon and Vangelis. Buy this and if you like it, as you will, then you can go and buy the other 4 J&V albums.

This is a fantastic collection, well thought out, almost all the good ones from "Short Stories" are here.

I am a road warrior and this is a cd to go in the road with, it keeps you up and going.

If you are a newcomer to J&V, welcome! start here.

This compilation contains highlights from the first 3 J&V albums and ignores the 4th one, also issued earlier than this record (maybe because that belongs to a different label). So here we have a compilation which has 14 tracks out of the total 21 on the first three albums, inevitably including several second-class tracks. If I compiled this record, I would rather have ensured more reason for purchasing the source albums. At the same time, for some obscure reason this record omits "I'll find my way home" and "State of Independence", the very songs which are trademark J&V tracks and may come to anybody's mind from these artists. Just imagine a Morricone compilation without 'Once upon a time in the West' and 'Man with a harmonica'...

At least Chronicles should have included something for the experienced collector, like 'Song is', released only on vinyl, or 'Let's pretend', still unreleased officially. A pity, it fails to do that.

As a conclusion, what Chronicles provides is not satisfactory for either those who are just introduced to Jon & Vangelis' works, or for those looking for some rarities here. If you belong to the first camp, choose the other J&V compilation called 'Best of', a shorter but more balanced compilation with 'I'll find my way home'.

It's hard to know just how to rate this. There is already a "Best of" compilation; with a five-song overlap that lost the actual hits, this is like "Best of: The Second Edition" gone somewhat awry.

Since "Best of" came out, J&V recorded & released "Page of Life", but this newer collection strangely ignores that. So we have a compilation of material that

a) is all still available,

b) is already collected in a more compact and juicier edition

c) doesn't include anything that could not have been on the first collection

d) includes no rarities or material not from the three releases already mined.

Hmmm. At least it's evenly distributed: about half of each album. This particular grouping includes what (to my ears) are most of their lesser material while omitting two of their most essential ("Find My Way Home" and "State of Independence"). Not even "So Far, So Clear" (their first collaboration before they became Jon & Vangelis) is here; it's like someone was given the same three releases used before and chose the tracks at random.

All in all, a bigger sampling, but not a better one. If you heard "Best of" and want more, you're going to want the actual source releases ["Short Stories", "Friends of Mr Cairo" and "Private Collection"] more than this. Believe me, you'll be glad you did.

Once again, I've been lax in listening to my new purchases, so that's why this album only gets 4 stars from me. I need more time to really get into my CDs.... "Mr. Cairo" definitely takes getting used to, with its mobster setting and dialogue- not at all what I'd expect from Jon and Vangelis. So glad that "I Hear You Now" is on this disc- love it- and the songs I'm unfamiliar with are for the most part, beautiful. I wish these two magnificent artists would collaborate again!