Customer Reviews

Greatest Hits & Remixes (W/Dvd) (Dlx)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Fans of Oakie in his prime are in for yet another disappointment- this isn't electronica, just rock. Oakie's been on a downhill slide since "Bunkka" and "A Lively Mind". There is so much better stuff on his releases of "Travelling", "Great Wall", "Ibiza" and the now relatively rare & costly "Resident: Two Years at Cream". Even with a teaser dvd, this just isn't worth it. If you're a true electronica fan, the new John Digweed's "Transitions 3" (with cd-rom),part of his ongoing series of ambient electronica is far superior to this mishmash.

Perfecto Records and Ultra Recrods present a compilation from one of the biggest dj's ever, with "Paul Oakenfold- Greatest Hits and Remixes." The compilation is a collection of the dj/producer/remixer's biggest hits, spanning from the early nineties to the present. It includes his productions from his solo efforts of "Bunkka" and "A Lively Mind" (including the hit singles "Ready, Steady, Go," "Starry Eyed Surprise," and "Faster Kill Pussycat") to a handful of Paul's remixed work (which is a majority of the album). The mix also includes some additional work to soundtracks, such as "Dread Rock" from the Matrix Revolutions, "James Bond Theme Remix" from Die Another Day, and "Jack Theme Suite" from the Pirates of the Carribean. In my honest opinion, these previous three tracks are far from greatest hits. Yes, they are remixes, but far from greatest hit standards- they are just medicore on Paul's production credentials. I would have much rather heard some of Paul's other remixes, such as Moby's "Natural Blues" or Dave Matthew's Band "As the World Ends" from the Matrix Revolution soundtrack. As for the album itself, it seems to be trying to approach a more mainstream audiance, which is sort of the direction Paul has been giving as of lately, by showcasing pop acts such as Justin Timberlake, Madonna, and Mark Ronson. Nevertheless, these remixes do have their moments. A few of the newer remixes includes acts Radiohead, Mark Ronson, Everyting but the Girl, and the reworked "Southern Sun", which showcases a more upbeat, club tune. The only complaint is that the song is too short for a club mix, only having the first verse and chorus, leaving me wanting more. The album is also mixed as a dj set (I would imagine by Oakenfold himself). Sort of like his 2005 project "The Club", the mixing is decent, but the tracklisting of songs is sort of inconsistant. But Paul does as good as he can with the tracks that were to be used. Overall, this is a good piece for those getting introduced to Oakenfold or die hard fans (such as myself). The album I have been yearning for from Paul is a dj mixed album with current dancefloor hits and trance (maybe a sequal to 2004's "Creamfields"). Hopefully next year.

All the classic cliche tracks that Oakenfold beat to death over the last 15 years on one CD. Actually the import is a little more interesting because it has 3 CD's instead of the one lame disc they decide to release in the United States. The import is a little more interesting but not by much. I bought it to hear the 2 or 3 updated remixes and it was a waste of money in the end. I think there was only one song on the entire package that made it worth while.

There isn't much new here. I bought this albumn on the good faith of Paul's previous work. Boy was I wrong to give him the benifit of the doubt. To my starry eyed suprise, I didn't like any of the songs on this albumn that I had never heard before. On top of that, the original versions of the songs were better than any versions of songs on this albumn. Paul has done some good work. Look back a few years to find it...


**UPDATE: I would move this rating from one star to two if I could. I was upset about buying a full priced CD and not liking one or two of the new songs (beautiful day). Also, some people may not have heard the older songs on this album.

Let me preface this review by saying that I don't hate Paul Oakenfold. I don't have a personal vendetta to pursue against him, and in fact I absolutely love Bunkka and Tranceport. That said, this album is very poor.

Oakenfold is one of the main reasons I began to love trance, electronica, and even dance. When I first heard Tranceport, I was amazed with what I was hearing, and began to dig into a whole new world of music I had never known about before. I owe Mr. Oakenfold a debt for turning me on to music I now love and listen to on a daily basis.

Unfortunately, Oakenfold has stumbled quite a bit in this collection. This is not a trance album. It is a collection of pop-happy fluff, filler, and unremarkable songs that simply don't appeal to me at all. I realize that opinions vary, and I'm sure I'll get lit up for writing a negative review, but I really felt obligated to let people know to save their money.

Most of the songs in this collection sound like club anthems that would be more at home on a Ministry of Sound collection of euro pop. Paul used to know how to mix soaring vocals with a killer beat so that both complimented one another perfectly (Southern Sun from Bunkka is a great example of this). Now it seems that many of the vocals are too heavy for the music, and the beat gets lost in the background. Even the remix of Southern Sun found in this collection is inferior to the original.

Also, many of these tracks are just filler or fluff, such as the James Bond Theme remix which is listed on the Amazon track list as:

"9. James Bone Theme - Paul Oakenfold, Norman, Monty"

James Bone Theme is about right. I honestly can't think of a time when I want to listen to trance and I think to myself "You know what would be great? Listening to some movie soundtrack remixes!"

If this is a collection of Oakenfold's 'greatest' hits, then were are tracks like 'Gamemaster,' from Tranceport or 'Ready Steady Go,' from Bunkka? Where is 'Zoo York,' and 'Get em up' also from Bunkka?

This is not a collection of his greatest work. It is a collection of meaningless, passionless remixes or pop dance tunes. If you loved Tranceport, don't spend your money on this CD. If you loved Bunkka, don't spend your money either. If you love movie sound tracks, pop remixes, or soft edged dance music, you might enjoy this CD.

I am an Oakenfold fan and like the spins that he has put on several WELL KNOWN songs. That is where the beauty of this CD is at. Most songs you will actually RECOGNIZE and how he puts his spin on the original version of the song is notable. I felt the originals were better in some cases but I found it to be a great CD to listen to.

I've purchased tons of techno, trance, chill, etc. CDs over the years and this one ranks up there. If you want something that mainstream/ Top 40 listeners would relate to than this is a winner.

The days of Oakenfold being an early pioneer of trance and progression are over. As silly as it may be for us "trance heads", Oakenfold has made the switch into more mainstream music and mixes. The only thing that remains true are those distant memories of the club scene, where his mixes energized the crowd until the early hours of the morning. Thanks Paul!

Glad I ordered this CD, and it was in great condition. It sounds great in the car, where I listen to music most.

Some of the mixes on here are pretty dull, so for me I only listen to a few out of the bunch. I love Oakenfold though, and the songs that I do like are amazing. Great work out songs. If you are an Oakenfold fan, I think this might be your cup of tea. I would try to listen to the samples though first.

First, I really like a lot of Paul Oakenfold's stuff, but this album is mostly junk and not even worth glossing over. A great deal of songs you should never listen to.

Albums of his I recommend are Tranceport (great), Travelogue, Great Wall (particularly disk 2, it's superb). Creamfields is ok with some good tracks but not up to par with the others.

My favorite by him, in fact my favorite "album" in this entire genre, by a long shot, is Oakenfold's Live in China. See if you can find that, it's masterful from beginning to end, a remix done on Radio 1 or something.