Customer Reviews

Secret History

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I have always been drawn to Neil Hannon's James Bond swagger and Fred Astaire style. He writes some really witty and smart lyrics that bounce along to some great melodies. That said, his particular cup of tea is definitely not for everyone, and for me, this fact is a wonderful thing.

Having the majority of The Divine Comedy's catalog, I wasn't totally sold on the idea of a collection but then this limited edition came out! First off the packaging is fabulous! It comes in a hardback book form measuring about 7 inches square. It is packed with wonderful photos from all the releases - very nice. But by far the real treat is the 18 track bonus disc full of rarites, covers, demo tracks and awesome live recordings! Neil's version of "Life On Mars" is really grand, and so is the cover of Talk Talk's, "Life's What You Make It". With both discs the collection expands to a whopping 35 songs and for me, is a great representaion of a very clever artist. As for the first "hits" disc itself, just about everything I could see popping up on it - did. (apart from the wonderful "A Woman of the World") I really liked the fact that "I've Been to A Marvelous Party" made it - a often overlooked gem from the Noel Coward tribute disc. Other obvious highlights include "Something For the Weekend", "Gin Soaked Boy", "Songs of Love", "National Express", and the killer "Becoming More Like Alfie".

This is just a super collection, whether you go for the domestic, one disc version, or this super cool limited one, you'll be very pleased. Pour the drinks and stoke the fire dear!

Over the years a host of performers have decided to perform under aliases. Just as Sam Bean has performed under the name Iron and Wine, so Neil Hannon has chosen to perform under the name The Divine Comedy. Many people won't like this. You have to enjoy grand, dramatic, theatrical pop rock to find this to your taste. If you like people like Cardinal (and therefore Richard Davies and Eric Matthews), Rufus Wainwright, the Decemberists, and Tindersticks, you will certainly this, though the performer he most reminds me of is Scott Walker in his earlier incarnation. Like Walker, Hannon specializes in ornate, literate, and deeply mannered pop songs, almost all of them dealing with love and romance, usually in heartbreaking mode. If Morrisey were straight and liked himself a bit more, he might sound more like Neil Hannon.

I think that anyone stopping at only this album would be making a terrible mistake. It makes a splendid introduction, pulling fine songs from Hannon's various albums, but it really should serve only as an introduction. I would strongly recommend at least four other albums to anyone wishing to explore his music: CASANOVA (which contains some of his biggest hits), A SHORT ALBUM ABOUT LOVE, REGENERATION, and ABSENT FRIENDS. But all of his songs have at least a few good songs. If you are pretty certain you want to go pretty deeply into Hanson's music, then get CASANOVA and ABSENT FRIENDS first. If you aren't so confident, try this anthology instead. Even for those owning most of the other Divine Comedy albums, this has many rareties that more than justify the purchase price. Either way, if you don't know Neil Hannon's work (and I find far too few Americans do not), be prepared for a treat.

There is no better band. There is no better album. See them live. What more can I say? Buy this album