Customer Reviews

Greatest Hits and Videos

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is definitely a "must buy" for any Peppers fan or casual listener alike. The Peppers novice will get a great selection of songs that will keep them rocking to funky beats for years to come. The fans will get a great compilation of video hits localized on one disk. The special treat on the disks is "Soul to Squeeze." This song has previously been only available the "Coneheads" movie soundtrack. The inclusion of this song and video is worth the price of the disk alone for any true fan. Unfortunately there are flaws. Like everybody has mentioned, the "play all" function does NOT work. That is annoying. The "My Friends" video is not the regular release, but is instead a studio recording production. Also some great songs are missing on both the CD and DVD. Where is "Knock Me Down" and "Warped"? In the end, the power of the music and performances over comes these flaws.

CD:
3/5
Under The Bridge
Give it Away
Californication
Scar Tissue
Soul to Squeeze
Otherside
Suck My Kiss
By The Way
Parallel Universe
Breaking the Girl
My Friends
Higher Ground
Universally Speaking
Road Trippin'
Fortune Faded
Save the population
DVD:
4.5/5
Higher Ground
Suck My Kiss
Give it Away
Under the Bridge
Soul to Squeeze
Aeroplane
My Friends
Around the World
Scar Tissue
Otherside
Californication
Road Trippin'
By The Way
The Zephyr Song
Can't Stop

Universally Speaking

First off, I'm huge Chili Peppers fan, and love all there cd's, and do think this is a good cd, but it is just sadly lacking where it could have been a perfect cd, if it had been complete. Most the songs that were picked were hits that most people have heard, however the cd is missing some big songs, most notably, Zephyr Song, Around the World, and Aeroplane. plus, on a lesser note, Knock Me Down, Magic Johnson, and Love Rollercoaster, plus it would have been cool to have had the Ramones cover of Havana Affair on a Peppers CD. Since the cd is only 66 minutes at least three more songs would have fit, or if anything, why include Parallel Universe or Road Trippin, they were great songs, but not 'hits' like the others.... However, on a good note, all the songs sound great, and it is great having all of them on one cd. ...the new songs are great too.

As forthe DVD, this makes up for the incomplete feeling of the cd. Since it includes the videos to almost all there videos, but not all, it is a great collection, nonetheless. Two are missing one is probably due to Legal Issues and Copyright, that being Love Rollercoaster, the other is the first version to My Friends, though the other version is on the DVD, I always liked the first version, and it would have been nice to have had both, however, if you listen to the commentary on the track, they explain why it was excluded, unfortunately. However, my DVD did seem to have some type of looping problem that didn't let me play all through, and I had to keep hitting the menu to get to the next song, and after any song not on Blood Sugar Sex Magic, it would go back to the video listing for BSSM, I'm assuming it is some pressing mistake, because I traded it in for another and same problem on two DVD players, however, each song has a commentary which is quite insightful, and a couple of behind the scenes, and on tour footage, and other footage. Overall, it is a great album to add to your collection, just to have most the videos on one DVD, and most the songs on one cd.

This collection is worth buying for the awesome DVD alone. It has most of the Pepper's awesome videos (14 of them) on it, plus some other cool stuff. It's awesome. And the CD rocks too. Even if it is missing some good songs. The Peppers are just too good of a band to have a definitive collection. Still, they did a great job putting this collection together. A wide range of material is present- everything from their biggest hits (Under the Bridge, Give it Away, Scar Tissue) to more under rated songs like Road Trippin'. If you're just a casual fan of the Peppers this set is perfect for you. The hardcore fans will want this for the sweet DVD and new tracks (Fortune Faded, Save the Population).

I have the same problem as the reviewer from San Antonio -- the DVD does not "Play All". Perhaps it is a bad pressing, since we are in the same state. I also returned mine for a replacement, and still had the same problem. After one video plays, you must return to the main menu, select the album, select the video, select your video options, and select your audio options to see another video. Once that video ends, repeat the process. It's a pain.

I won't doubt the Red Hot Chili Peppers as one of the greatest bands of the last 20 years, but this compilation seems to refute this claim. I'm not going to complain that the band's early material is not covered (What Hits?! does that) nor am I going to complain that the album is too superficial. The purpose of this compilation is to represent the band's work in the '90s and the By The Way album, but those expecting a trip back to the heyday of alternative rock will be sorely disappointed.

The CD fails to document some of their well-known hits, such as "Aeroplane" and "Can't Stop," yet includes lesser-known singles like "Suck My Kiss" and "Parallel Universe." It also seems to dismiss the fact that the Chili Peppers were ever a rock band, dropping some of the heavier numbers like "Around The World" in favor of more mellow songs like "Road Trippin'." They likely did this to appeal to newer fans who are familiar with the more recent, "poppy" material (e.g. "Universally Speaking," though strangely enough "The Zephyr Song" is not here), but again this is folly, as it barely represents the diversity of the Chili Peppers' sound. Also worthy of note is the fact that only one song from the One Hot Minute era ("My Friends") appears on the disc. The band has basically disowned that album but many fans believe it to be one of their strongest, and expect it to be documented alongside their other work as deserved. Another low point is the CD's awkward running order. "Under The Bridge" is hardly an album-opener and "Higher Ground" does not fit between "My Friends" and "Universally Speaking." The final two songs, "Fortune Faded" and "Save The Population," are okay songs but dilute the impact of the true hits. If I had compiled this album, I would've kicked "Suck My Kiss," "Parallel Universe," "Higher Ground," "Universally Speaking," "Road Trippin'," and "Save The Population" and would've included "Warped," "Aeroplane," "Love Rollercoaster," "Around The World," "Can't Stop," and "The Zephyr Song," and all tracks would've been arranged in chronological order, the natural choice for charting a band's musical evolution.

The DVD is better. I've actually had no problem with the "play all" feature on my DVD. The Greatest Videos disc misses little. It includes videos for many songs that were not included on the CD: "Aeroplane," "Around The World," "The Zephyr Song," and "Can't Stop," not to mention it's in chronological order. It still misses the videos for "Breaking The Girl," "Warped," "Coffee Shop," "Love Rollercoaster," and an alternate (and perhaps better) video for "My Friends." I also see no reason why the "Fortune Faded" video is absent. If making a video compilation, why not include everything? There's enough extra footage on the DVD to make you scream, though one might find it a bit extraneous at times--footage of the band taking a cab around Japan is not necessary for the record. Commentary on the songs would have been a better choice; they could've even done that for the liner notes.

All in all, this package is lackluster and could've had better documentation and could've included more than just a look-back on the old with the perspective of the new, which seemed to be the theme of this compilation. The parts missing from the CD basically render it useless. If you're a new fan and thoroughly enjoy the band's more recent material, then, by all means, buy this set. If you're an old fan, though, and find the Blood Sugar Sex Magik, One Hot Minute, and Californication tracks the most listenable, don't waste your money--keep your '90s albums and buy the DVD alone.

Sorry, my last review sucked. I hadn't even bought the cd yet. Now I have. Well, for one thing Amazon's track list is WRONG. The actual track list is:
1.Under The Bridge
2.Give It Away
3.Californication
4.Scar Tissue
5.Soul To Squeeze
6.Otherside
7.Suck My Kiss
8.By The Way
9.Parallel Universe
10.Breaking The Girl
11.My Friends
12.Higher Ground
13.Universally Speaking
14.Road Trippin'
15.Fortune Faded
16.Save The Population

Yeah, so if you have already ordered it your in for a big surprise, because unless mine was a defect (Which I'm positive it's not) the tracklist is completely different.

At first I was dissapointed that Aeroplane, The Zephyr Song, and Can't Stop werent on here, but then I realised it is still a great cd! I mean have you ever heard a bad Chili Peppers song? The DVD is great as well. It DOES feature videos for Aeroplane, The Zephyr Song, and Can't Stop. This collection is well worth your money.

Peace out.

I have only recently becime interested in RHCP. Since then I have heard many of their albums. I had only heard 2 of their songs before buying this album: Californication and Scare Tissue. Sure some good songs are not on this album, most notably around the world and can't stop, but they are on the DVD, so I can Live with that.

Unlike some others, I believe that there is a good mix of songs on the album.
Also unlike other fans I prefer the later music. I believe the latter period has songs with more meaningful lyrics, not just hard heavy music.

My favourite songs from the CD/DVD in order are:

1. Otherside (CD)
2. Universally Speaking (CD)
3. Californicaltion (CD)
4. Can't Stop (DVD)
5. Soul to Squeze (CD)
6. By the Way (CD)
7. Paralled Universe (CD)
8. Under the Bridge (CD)
9. Give it Away (CD)
10. Around the World (DVD)
11. Scare Tissue (CD)

I don't really like the rest but they are still quite good.

The DVD portion of the Album has some great videos. The commentaries, behind the scenes and the By the Way featurette extras are good extras.

In conclusion If you are a looking at this album and don't own any other RHCP CD's (meaning a new fan) This is a good Album. For long time fans, buy this only if you are interested in the videos, as you probabilly already own all the songs on the CD already. If you are a obsessed fan, you will already own the album. For you, you can thank your lucky stars for the 2 new songs and DVD part. In my opinion, buying the same songs over again in new packageing is no fun and a waste of your hard earned green ones (or different colured ones if you are from Australia).

Comparing the album to greatest hits albums from other artists, all the songs are hits, and have been heard by a wide audience.

In short, I recommend this album for purchase. The 5 stars is for the fact that I will probabilly not buy a second pre 2003 RHCP, This has everything.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers(in my opinion)were one of the best figures of rock in the 90's.I however have one complaint. I wish the CD&DVD had the same tracks. The CD is missing the zephyr song, can't stop, aeroplane,and around the world. The DVD is only missing Fortune Faded.Other wise, it is a very good package. I would advise all pepper fans to buy this CD+DVD combo. Non - pepper fans,stick to the CD only.

Tough choice between four and five stars. As others have pointed out, songs like The Zephyr Song and Around the World are missing, but the videos fill some of those holes. The two new songs at the end of the album are superb. This is a good compilation that would suffice for anyone who is just getting into RCHP or wants 'the hits' consolidated on one cd. I was glad to see Soul to Squeeze was included on this album. I would have given this five stars, but the missing tracks are some of the best more-recent singles from the band and should not be ignored.

Who knew when the Red Hot Chili Peppers first started that their style would have influenced so many of today's bands? While some may attribute the birth of the rap/rock fusion to Rage Against the Machine(another GREAT band), the Red Hot Chili Peppers were the originators. And who would have ever thought that the band would get progressively better with each release. It's a true delight listening to the maturity that the band has gone through. Anthony's voice is stronger, Chad's drumming is more confident, Flea's bass is still as crazy as ever, and John Frusciante is on another level with his guitar and harmonies. The DVD, a collection of music videos, is interesting to watch. Although they've gotten older with time, their music still remains as youthful and inspired as ever. I am anxiously awaiting their new music. If you get an opportunity, you MUST see the band in person. It's an amazing experience. If you can't, check out their recent DVD concert release, "Live at Slane Castle".