Customer Reviews

Rare & Remixed

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

 

 

I bought part 1 and part 2 of this collection plus the Old School Nation cds and they were all incredible to hear the older songs again. This collection- Retro :Active- Rare & Remixed is from the Hi Bias Canadian label. Most of these songs would be considered modern rock/ college radio classics. There are sone huge hits but the majority are not mainstream.
1- A-Ha- Take On Me (Extended Version) 4:48- hit number one on the pop charts but never for I don't know what reason hit the club chart- the beginning is radically different and then the song kicks in. Classic.
2- Camouflage- The Great Commandment (Extended Dance Remix) 5:58- massive club single at the end of 1988- number one for 3 weeks on the club chart in December. The video is great with it's Metropolis theme is great to see.
3- Erasure- Blue Savannah (Out Of The Blue Mix) 6:43- only got to number 44 on the dance charts but was a huge college hit. This mix was not on the cd single.
4- Vis-A-Vis- Shadowplay (Shadow Mix) 5:48- not a big club track but the single is very Depeche Mode like. Moody!
5- The Screaming Blue Messiahs- I Wanna Be A Flintstone(Extended Mix) 5:22- huge college hit in 1987- features samples from the cartoon classic. Fun song.
6- The Spoons- Symmetry (Extended Mix) 6:48- don't know too much about this song but it is very Euro in sound. Great song.
7- Inxs- Burn For You (12" Extended Remix)6:09- great early song from Inxs. Black background vocals- slower groove. Got to number 33 on the dance chart in 1984.
8- The Dream Academy- Life In A Northern Town (Extended Mix) 5:19- I never knew there was a dance mix. It is a great extended mix with extra chants thrown in.
9- The Other Two-Tasty Fish (Pascal Mix 12") 5:17- from the remaining two New Order members. House style mix.
10- Echo & The Bunnymen- Bring On The Dancing Horses (Extended Mix) 5:49 Ian McCulloch at his moody and depressing best. HUGE modern rock classic from 1985. Great mix.
11- The Cure- Boys Don't Cry (Resung & Club Mix 86) 5:32- a newer mid 80's version of the 1980 classic . Not that different vocally from the 3 versions out from 1980 and 1991 remixes. Just a more 80's style remix with overdubs that wouldn't be put on remixes now. Still a great song.
12- The Beloved- Your Love Takes me Higher(The Pod Went Pop Mix) 8:13- a house mix for the great UK act. Hit number 9 on the Club Chart in 1989 and is very very rare.
13- Book Of Love- I Touch Roses (Full Bloom Version)5:33- Hit number 8 on the Club Chart in 1985 and was a massive college radio hit. Weird video though. Great dead pan vocals.
This is a great collection of rare dance mixes. Great modern rock classics.A++++++

Let me preface this review by saying I'm a nite club DJ. That said, this is one of those rare CDs that comes a long once in a lifetime. Chock full of 12 inch extended mixes and never before released versions of classic 80's artists like The Cure, A-Ha, Echo & The Bunnymen makes this a gem for any CD collection, DJ or not.
Let me break it down for you: Bring On The "Dancing Horses" (Extended) was only made available on vinyl along with Camoflage's "Great Commandment." Now, you can play them without fear or crackles and pops or worse, the dreaded scratch!

Also present is a never before released version of "I Touch Roses." Sure Book of Love's self-titled CD has a remix of its own but this one was done by Daniel Miller (who's done remixes for erasure and Depeche Mode). Top it off with Dream Academy's "Life In a Northern Town", 12" extended mix of course and a super rare remix of the Cure's "Boys Don't Cry" made me cry when I played it on my CD player.

If you are a true fan of the 80's ,then do yourself a favor, drop the extra cash and add this one to your collection. You will NOT be sorry.
Vol. 2 will be out soon :
A-HA 'THE SUN ALWAYS SHINES ON T.V.' (Extended Version) +
FIGURES ON A BEACH 'NO STARS' (Unreleased Club Mix) **
BLANCMANGE 'DON'T TELL ME' (Dance Remix) **
HOWARD JONES 'LOOK MAMA' (Megamamamix) **
TEARS FOR FEARS 'SHOUT' (Dub Mix) **
OMD 'SO IN LOVE' (Brand New Extended Mix) **
FUZZBOX 'INTERNATIONAL RESCUE' (The Orgasmatron Mix) **
Q LAZZARUS 'GOODBYE HORSES' (Extended Version) **
THE HUMAN LEAGUE 'HUMAN' (Extended Version) **
ALPHAVILLE 'JET SET' (Jellybean Mix) **
THE DREAM ACADEMY 'THE LOVE PARADE' (12" Mix) **
YAZ 'STATE FARM' (Madhouse Mix)

I've been a DJ for over 10 years and frankly I'm real tired of the same old versions of the great 80's tunes we're so used to. These remixes are familiar enough to satisfy your clients AND YOU!
The extra bonus of course are the abundance of rare remixes never before seen on CD. If you're a collector, you better get this series while you can and get every one! This is a killer collection and if you look at the price you can see that they are already getting premium dollar and they are not even out of print yet! Buy as many as you can afford!

DJ B-Rad

That's right! You won't find any vinyl hiss, pops, and clicks here! All tracks have been mastered from the original master tapes using the "Aural Submission" process @ Hi-Bias in Canada. The same holds true for the rest of the 'Retro:Active' volumes. Get all the volumes! Definitely worth getting for the sound alone.

I just picked up this cd and all I can say is WOW! Talk about a cd that delivers on what it promises - Rare & Remixed is what this delivers. Never before available on cd mixes from Erasure, The Cure, INXS, Book Of Love and more. Excellent purchase!!!
Nice to see that not all labels have given up on giving the fans what they want. PLEASE make a Volume 2 :)

If you're a fan of the music of the '80s (and who isn't?!?!?!), then you'll love this CD! I bought it for the extended mix of A-Ha's "Take On Me," but there isn't a bad song on this disk. Unlike some 'remix' recordings, which don't use either original artists or their music to re-make great songs, this collection features the original artists, their lyrics, their music, with superbly blended additional riffs and music. I highly recommend Retro-Active, Rare & Remixed!

Why is that song not included in any of these remixes? It was an AWESOME dance/club song! You can hear it on youtube.

there are some remixes that can't be found anywhere, so buy IT!!
go KROQ 106.7 los angeles

..if you're a fan of any of these bands then you've already got these remixes (or heard them at any 80's nite).