Customer Reviews

Eurythmics - Greatest Hits

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

An image burns in my mind: Annie Lennox aggressivlely placing a toothbrush into a cup and taking a step back, glaring. There's a brilliance in that moment from "Beethoven" and at a running time of 1 hr 35 mins. this DVD is brimming with those kind of moments and musical genius.

As the sticker on the cover's shrinkwrap says, Eurythmics is "The Definitive New Wave Band" and doesn't break that promise. What more could a fan ask for than a compilation of their conceptual videos? If only it could be updated to include the ones from the album "Peace" it couldn't be more perfect.

Annie Lennox's voice is pure, soulful and instantly recognized. No matter what the hair, she is undeniably the most beautiful woman in rock! Dave Stewart is a gifted musician and filmmaker (he directed many of their videos) and is downright seductive with one close-up of his face looking right at the camera. They prove they have the talent in every aspect of music and visuals.

Those with a keen eye will enjoy the gender-bending appearances (look for singer Marilyn in "Who's That Girl") and special touches (the leather-clad Hell's Angels in "Thorn In My Side"--dig the guy with the rose tattoo!). All of the clips hold up extremely well today, showing that in the 1980s there was a very creative edge that completely puts today's MTV cookie cutter videos to shame. This is particularly notable in the songs "It's Alright" with astounding animation and the cinematic beauty of "Angel." I really appreciated the trilogy of "Beethoven," "I Need A Man," and "You Have Placed A Chill In My Heart," with Annie reprising characters. It's really hard to top the biting satire of "King And Queen Of America"--when I saw Tammy Faye in a McDonald's in Palm Desert I immediately thought of Annie Lennox's wonderful portrayal in that video! Gives me giggles of delight!

Those who appreciate the music of the 80s and Eurythmics will be so pleased with this compilation! We need more collections like this and those younger folk who thing today's "bands" are so great should take a look at this one and they would surely learn a thing or two about what is truly GREAT music and what it takes to make flawless music videos! As the song goes, WOULD I LIE TO YOU........?

One of the best things I find intriguing about Eurythmics, is their ability to make incredible music videos without employing a dozen directors and producers, just simplistic artistic pieces of work. There is plenty of unforgettable videos notably "Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This), which Annie Lennox reveals her androgynous image, "Love Is A Stranger" with Annie discuised as a first-class call girl going undercover, and later dresses in various other discuises, "Would I Lie To You" where Annie totally ditches her boyfriend in an attempt to declare independence, "Beethoven (I Love To Listen To)" is the most interesting on the video, here Annie appears to be an ordinary house wife but goes out of her mind and reveals her sexual side (she pulls of her wig, to reveal her blonde hair and wears a very revealing outfit), and last but not least "Don't Ask Me Why" where Annie & Dave Stewart are dressed in high fashion avoiding eye contact to let the viewer know that it's over between them. If your for high-class and good quality music videos, or if your a fan of Eurythmics, this is definitely the tape to buy!

An excellent collection of videos for every album track. Why it hasn't been released on DVD I don't know! I would buy one for every one of my friends!

A previous review goes into details about the poor transfer and the compression problems with this release. I fully agree. I'd also like to add that I had previously purchased the UK PAL version a couple of months ago and was disappointed that they used the same transfer for this US NTSC version. I was hoping the label would have cleaned it up before another release. So much for the "Rush" excuse.

The two stars I give this is only for the transfer problems. If you're hoping to upgrade your copy from VHS, don't. Believe me, if you buy this DVD you'll hold onto the videotape and feel all-around cheated.

As for the older material on this DVD, some of it is available on the Pioneer "Sweet Dreams" DVD. And while the sound quality on that edition is not the greatest, you won't be distracted by compression as much as "Greatest."

Maybe "Criterion" can rescue this failure.

Annie Lennix: On word---HOT! Her velvet voice sears in this DVD with The Eurythmics videos. Includes "Sweet Dreams", "Who's That Girl?", "Love is a Stranger", "Here Comes the Rain Again", "Right By Your Side", "It's Alright, Baby's Coming Back", "Sexcrime 1984", "Missionary Man", "Would I Lie To You?", "There Must Be an Angel" & many other great, great hits.

VERY recommended!

This tape includes videos for all of the songs from "Savage," and tells a visual story of a woman going off the rails (in "Beethoven") and trying on different personnas. It is uniformly excellent, and should certainly be released on DVD. If you are a Eurythmics fan, you really should have this, as it is a great example of their expertise at making music videos.

This is a great video, has 21 of their videos on it. I find the transition bits between the videos to be a tad annoying, but not enough to detract from the overall excellence of the video. And yes, it does have the song 'you have placed a chill in my heart' on it.

The Eurythmics clearly weren't given a big budget for every video, but that isn't a crime in itself, given how today's artists make million dollar videos for singles that don't even do that well (a certain Missy Elliott video comes to mind...).

Two themes that run through these videos fascinate me. One is how Annie Lennox plays up her androgynous looks. In videos like Who's That Girl, Love Is A Stranger, and I Need A Man, she looks like a total drag queen. She even acts like one!

Another intriguing theme is the feminist vibe of some of the videos. The most obvious example is I Love To (Listen To Beethoven). Here, she plays the bored housewife from hell who goes mad, and escapes. It's my favorite video of them all. Another feminist video is, of course, Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves, a duet with the legendary Aretha Franklin.

Not all of the videos are good, neither from a cinematic nor a content standpoint. In fact, the videos for some of the otherwise stellar songs like Here Comes The Rain Again really do them a disservice. But these are balanced by some great videos, like Don't Ask Me Why, which features a beautiful use of lighting.

I also like the video for Sexcrime, by the way...

I want to know if this song is on this video. Annie Lennox has one of the most amazing voices and she sings this song brillantlly

There are a handful of gems in this collection of videos that span the years of 1982-1989, with the talents of the great Annie Lennox, and producer/instrumentalist Dave Stewart.
All songs are credited to Lennox/Stewart, except for "When Tomorrow Comes", which is Lennox/Stewart/Seymour. Total running time is 1 hour and 35 minutes.
Even in the songs that are rather mediocre, Lennox is a fascinating performer to watch; with her androgynous beauty, a strange angular grace, and her diva's aura.
The song list is:
1: "Sweet Dreams". The first big hit, with a wonderful melody that keeps playing in your head, long after the song has ended.
2: "Love is a Stranger"
3: "Who's that Girl ?"
4: "Right by Your Side"
5: "Here Comes the Rain Again"
6: "Sex Crime (1984)"
7: "Julia". With chant-like simplicity, this focuses on closeups of Lennox's face. it's a marvelous song, and a stylish video.
8: "Would I Lie to You ?". Jazzy and brassy, this one is fun.
9: "There Must be an Angel". This is probably the one I find the least interesting.
10: "Sisters are Doin' it for Themselves". A superb duet with Aretha Franklin. Two terrific voices making a perfect blend, and they both look knock-out good. I think this is the best video of the lot.
11: "It's Alright (Baby's Coming Back)"
12: "When Tomorrow Comes"
13: "Thorn in My Side"
14: "Miracle of Love"
15: "Missionary Man"
16: "Beethoven (I Love to Listen to)"
17: "I Need a Man"
18: "You Have Placed a Chill in My Heart"
19: "Don't Ask Me Why"
20: "The King and Queen of America"
21: "Angel".