Return The Gift

Gang of Four | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 11, 2005)
• Original Release Date: 2005
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: V2 North America
• ASIN: B000B5QWO2
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #242,708 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. To Hell with Poverty

2. Damaged Goods

3. Natural's Not in It

4. Not Great Men

5. Why Theory?

6. Anthrax

7. Paralysed

8. What We All Want

9. Ether

10. He'd Send the Army

11. Capital

12. I Love a Man in Uniform

13. At Home He's a Tourist

14. We Live as We Dream, Alone

Editorial Reviews

Import only version features a bonus 12-track disc of remixes by contempary artists and producers such as the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Ladytron, The Rakes, The Dandy Warhols, producer du jour Paul Epworth, The Rakes, Amusment Parks on Fire, The Others, Faultline and more! Gang of Four are best described as being ''ahead of their time''. Usually it means nothing; mere hack hyperbole employed to describe the latest fledgling bunch of chancers. In Gang Of Four's case, it's a stone-cold empirical fact. So the time is right for a return of the great men themselves with a (sort of) new album. Return The Gift is a album that finds Go4 re-recording seminal tracks from 'Entertainment!', 'Solid Gold' and 'Songs Of The Free'. 25 tracks in all. V2. 2005. --This text refers to an alternate Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic, October 20, 2005

By 

sleep no more (Royal Oak, Michigan United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Return The Gift (Audio CD)

Remember the days of hunting for "Peel Session" albums of your favorite bands----the rare "B" side or unreleased versions of favorite songs? Gang Of Four did something brilliant- with so many new bands being more then heavilly influenced by their first two albums, they reformed with the original line-up and toured playing, with few exceptions, a near recreation of their 1981/82 set list. Old fans came out for nostalgia and new fans came out of curiosity and came out learning how it should be done.... This new album sounds, outside of a few embellishments, like a very well recorded live show....it captures all of the energy, and with modern recording technology, cleans it up without over polishing - Most of all, it puts the release date as 2005 and opens up a lot of doors to marketing for the younger generation that wants something that sounds a bit more "current" sound-wise (while Solid Gold's production still holds up, Entertainment can sound a bit 'dry'. The new recordings of songs featured on "Songs Of The Free" are the real stand-outs - GOF gets back to the basics and treated them as they should have years ago (no back-up singers, production that captures the energy without sounding over-produced)- More then worth the price - highly recommended

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Return of the Post-Punk Pioneers, October 21, 2005

By 

cagey - See all my reviews

This review is from: Return The Gift (Audio CD)

Just got this yesterday after hearing several songs on KCRW 89.9 FM in Santa Monica. While I've been a fan of the band since about 1989, after seeing their classic 1979 debut "Entertainment!" listed as one of the 100 best albums of all time, it's been a little difficult for me to get into their later work post 1982, as they gradually lost bassist Dave Allen, and then drummer Hugo Burnham. I think many fans will agree their best work came between 1979-1982, with a handful of gems here and there in their later works. So, fortunately, the bulk of the work on this record is from that early period. (By the way, serious fans should try to pick up a copy of their 2(?) disc "anthology" called "100 Broken Flowers" - lots of new and old album songs along with live tracks, etc. spanning their career through about 1995).

To me this recording almost resembles a live album. The sound is full, rich and clear. The version of "I Love A Man In Uniform" seems even more danceable and funky now. "To Hell With Poverty" gains a bit in its ferocity. "Damaged Goods" still sounds as good as ever especially when the drums first come in like machine gun fire and Dave Allen's bass seems even more potent. "Ether" still sounds like a final warning, so cool and urgent as frontman Jon King and guitarist Andy Gill sing about the "dirt behind the daydream" and "white noise in a white room".

The production (by Andy Gill), mixing and engineering are flawless. My only nitpick (and it's very slight) is that in a couple of spots the vocals by King sound a little tired, but they are very few and far between. Besides he's been doing it for over 25 years so I should cut him some slack.

I saw them in concert several months ago and they were phenomenal, one show, in recent memory, I was hoping would never end.

Rating? Please....it's Go4, *****. Absolutely essential. Enjoy.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars MEATY BEATY BIG AND BOUNCY, October 14, 2005

By 

Jeffrey S. Bender (Thecoma) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Return The Gift (Audio CD)

The great thing about this cd is that is has a cohesive sound throughout and it does not sound like a collection, which it is. The cd stands up on it's own even though it is all previously recorded material culled from G04's first three records. some new versions of songs are better than ever, like "I Love A Man In A Uniform" and others are no better or worse than the original recordings, but just "sound" different, bigger, fatter, more three dimensional due to modern recording technology and mixing. Andy Gill should now be recognized as the great guitar sculptor that he is, and he is all over these songs with his slashing, scratching guitar art. Nice to hear the previously mentioned "I Love A Man In A Uniform" given the classic G04 sound to enhance the wonderful, cheeky anti war/ military lyrics,lifting this song out of danceland past and into the modern nightmare world of blind patriotism and the George Bush agenda. All the lame Franz Feminine G04 rip off bands should be hanging up their hopes on this fine return to form. Given a chance, this one should really turn the smart kids on. Go see them live,"Anthrax" is fun!