Customer Reviews

Rupert Holmes - Greatest Hits

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Rupert Holmes is truly one of the most impressive songwriters of all time. This "Greatest Hits" CD offers an excellent sampling of songs from his first six albums which span the years 1974-1980--every track on here was written solely by Rupert. Track after track displays his sophisticated & awesomely melodic songwriting, & of course, there's his extremely well-crafted lyrics, often filled with humor, yet often heart-tuggingly sentimental as well. "Speechless", "Less Is More", "Terminal", "The People That You Never Get To Love", the epic "Town Square & The Old School", the regretful "Weekend Lover", & "Morning Man", with its luminous, richly-harmonized chorus, all demonstrate his incredible knack for sentimental balladry. Then, there's his "playful" side which is represented with such gems as "Let's Get Crazy Tonight", the hilarious denial song "I Don't Need You", & of course, that notorious, yet classic #1 hit "Escape" aka "The Pina Colada Song". His one other US Billboard Top Ten single, the dramatic infidelity song "Him", is yet another gem. Out of the 18 tracks on this 70+ minute disc, there's very little to complain about. The disc opens with the enjoyable 2000 track "Remember When", his theme song to the American Movie Classics series "Remember WENN", & it's followed by the nod to 1940's-style jazz on the largely splendid "Second Saxophone". I get the feeling Rupert liked the idea of starting this collection with these 2 uncharacteristic tracks, thinking that quite a few people would be buying this mainly to hear "The Pina Colada Song". On the other hand, to put it a certain way, nothing is uncharacteristic for Rupert--he has a great knack for incorporating various styles into his music. With the music here being so consistently excellent, there's really no need to gripe about the songs that DIDN'T get included here, because certainly you can't include all of Rupert's gems on a single CD. I will point out though that a couple of Rupert's albums--1981's "Full Circle" & his 1994 'comeback' album "Scenario"--aren't represented at all on this disc. Although he hasn't had an enormous stack of regular albums, there are still a huge number of gems to be found--he could easily pack a "Greatest Hits 2" with gems without having to repeat a single track from here. This CD also provides informative, typically humorous liner notes written by Rupert himself. Some of the discographical information included seems to have somehow gotten a tad messed up--"Studio Musician" is said to be from his 1976 album "Singles" AND his 1975 self-titled album--it's actually from the latter album--I don't think it was ever included on "Singles" (which is NOT a 'greatest hits' album as the title suggests). Also, his 1980 album "Adventure" is given the date 1981. Maybe there's a justifiable explanation though from someone who knows more than I do. It's a minor gripe in any case. Rupert did have a previous compilation, "The Epoch Collection", which draws from only his first 3 albums & gathers a number of excellent songs not on here--it's out of print in the US, as are the albums "Pursuit of Happiness", "Partners In Crime", & "Adventure". So, when you add to this the fact that this disc has excellent sound quality, this ends up being a collection that's great both for big Rupert fans and for new/ casual fans--it's obviously not the last word on him, but it's a great place to start--his genius is on display in a huge way on this CD.

It's almost impossible to find words adequate enough for Rupert. Genius seems a bit strong, talented doesn't seem strong enough, and The Most Powerful Man In The Universe is taken already. (I think.)

I'm one of these people that prefers songs where I get to use my brain. Brainpower is sadly lacking in today's top 40 music selections, which is why I wish the songwriters of today would enroll in Rupert 101, "How To Write A Good Song". Songs where you not only use your imagination, but you find yourself relating to/experiencing the song itself. If you only want this CD to play in the background, then buy it, (the more sales, the better!) but you'll get more out of it if you really sit and listen.

Some of my favorites include "Remember When" (Theme from Remember WENN), "Second Saxophone", "Him", and "The People That You Never Get To Love".

Now, take your mouse, move it to the "Buy It" key, click, and happily hand over your money. I promise, you won't be disappointed.

Ok, this is a good start...It's nice to see a collection of Rupert Holmes's music on CD, but he really needs a box set to do him justice... It was never about individual songs, it was about the albums... And, in addition to that, there are so many great songs that didn't make the cut... So, what I'm saying, is, by all means get this, but then work your way back and try to find some of those great albums he did; search them out even if you have to buy vinyl because there is some really great stuff that didn't make this cd... My favorite was his second album, just called Rupert Holmes with Rifles and Rum, The Man Behind the Woman, Brass Knuckles... This guy is a genius that happens to sing... I guess we should be happy that this came out and I am... Get it, but don't stop there...

It's a great album (excuse me, my age you know), CD. It's a throwback to when music was fun and romantic. Tell me after listening to the answering machine song you don't wake up in the middle of the night humming it. Enjoy.

I've loved the song "HIM" ever since I heard it years ago. Lines and melody from it have played in my head every now and then all these years so I finally got around to buy it and, ofcourse, "Escape". Now I have found the rest of the songs on this album very enjoyable also, especially "Terminal".

Great CD, great music and nice lyrics! The very best of Ruppert Holmes.

Great CD; it encompasses a number of his styles and ranges from the ubiquitous Pina Colada song to some smooth big band sounds. Lots of humor; great lyrics.

I haven't actually heard this CD but I do have four of Rupert's albums and he is one of the best lyricist I've ever heard. I'm just using this review to ask the question of the powers of record publishing, "When will we see Full Circle on CD?" It tracks a relationship from start to finish and I think it is his best work.

This cd came in a prompt & nicely packaged. I enjoyed listening to it. It brought back memories. It's better to listen to the "old school" music, since the music of today you can't understand the words to it!

This Rupert Holmes collection will not disappoint. Has both some of his biggest hits as well as some of the more beautiful, but lesser known wonders. Mr. Holmes is a true master story-teller, and his lyrics as well as his haunting music can make you both laugh and cry. You will truly treasure this collection ... Buy it!