Customer Reviews

Excellent the Violent Years

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

 

 

Two years ago, the Draining the Glass collection culled the Butcher's best songs from several albums released on the now-defunct Glass label between 1982 and 1985. Now, Creation Records has done the same with !Excellent!, spotlighting a half-dozen Creation discs from 1988's Fishcotheque to 1993's Waiting For the Love Bus. While Draining... was a masterful distillation, this one suffers from poor song choices. Mediocre selections like "Chickentown" and "Sister Death" made the cut while gems like "The Good Ones" and "Keeping the Curtains Closed" didn't. Some of the original Creation stuff is now out of print, and !Excellent! was a great opportunity to reincarnate some fantastic music that is otherwise doomed to the annals of pop oblivion. In this respect it fails, shining only on tracks like the beautiful "Whaddya," and Cult of the Basement's "Mr. Odd." The last creation disc, Illuminate is ignored altogether, and perhaps the best of them all, Big Planet Scarey Planet, is represented only by the novelty "Bicycle Kid." For those unfamiliar with the Butcher's work, this is a lousy place to start.

Butcher fans are ready for the release of the old vintage albums that the set standard for European pop music. This latest piece of work is suitable for new listeners, but leaves the real fan thirsting for more.

Pat fish aka the butcher is famous for repackaging his stuff every coupla' years. This is no diffferent. If you already have all albums back to 1988 this is a rehash and a ripoff. I bought it hoping for different versions. But I was disappointed and irritated at still more duplication. Give us something totally new or something really early ie out of print. But PLEASE no more redundance...It is too expensive.

Great CD. Makes me wish even more the record company would release more of their stuff on CD.

I was hoping for some new songs when I saw the cover, but yes reading the song list let me know there was weren't any. I understand why these compilations are done without new material. His regular releases go out of print so fast you have to compile what is available and consumers have to buy it or never get them songs on CD. This is one of the weaker compilations, but still wothwhile if you don't have the original albums. Then again a random sampling of the albums used here could make a compilation just as good. From reading the reviews there seemed to be a couple people that purchased this to listen to the Butcher for the first time so it accomplished its goal. Of course if they had added only two new songs I would have bought it so maybe a considerate tactic could have gotten more sales. I also wanted to expose that even fans of obscure artists like the Butcher have different tastes. To me "Sister Death" is a favorite song of mine and a necessary choice. Even "Chickentown" was a good choice, a novelty song with an underlying merssage that is a fun song on Fishcoteque. To me "Waddya?" and "The Good Ones" are weaker tracks. "Waddya?" to me is one of the few weak tracks the Butcher has done. "The Good Ones" is excellent musically, but is sabotaged by religious lyrics. I really wish artists would write about subjects that are based in reality. This compilation also has nothing in common with either of the Bloody Nonsense releases I have. Those are early compilations, Excellent! is a compilation of later material. The Bloody Nonsense releases do overlap the Butchers first greatest hits compilation, The Gift Of Music, but contain a few differences that make them stronger. This compilation is the worst one available by the Butcher, but if it is the only Butcher you can get it is worth it to buy.

Not a bad album for those who never heard of the Jazz Butcher Conspiracy (JBC). But why buy an album of songs that you should still be able to get in thier original format on the original recordings? Most of these songs are on albums that are not yet out of print or are at least locateable.

"Draining the Glass" will give you an idea of the older, better stuff when Max Eider was still with the band.

Anyone out there who can provide me with a copy/tape of Sex & Travel + Scandal in Bohemia, would give me something to live for. Searched Los Angeles, San Diego, Philly, Baltimore, New York, And Washington D.c. to no avail (out of print). Will pay, or happily swap copies of other rare stuff in my collection (I'm talking 60's, 70's and some early 80's) e-mail me.

Gotta have it; this is going into my shopping cart now. :)

I couldn't find a space to review this incredible album, (yes, I said album), called "Bloody Nonsense", which came out 10-12 yrs. ago, so I thought I'd type it here. I have some Jazz Butcher from that era, and all I can say is "Bloody Nonsense" is incredible. Can't find it anywhere--album or CD, and don't ever hear anything about it, which is a shame, because people are missing a mighty great bunch 'o tunes!Just wondering if anyone is familiar w/it. Ciao---Audio