Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Humble Songs Without Temptation, October 26, 2006
You have to wonder why it took so long for a good Primus retrospective to come along, especially because we live in a world where every two-bit postgrunge act that released two real albums is deemed by the biz to be eligible for a so-called greatest hits collection. Consider this Primus compilation to be a useful career-spanning summary for longtime cheeseheads, and also a pretty good introduction for newbies. But like any collection from a wide-ranging and challenging artist, that's really all it's good for, so just judge this collection for what it really is, rather than expecting a representative sample of the "best" songs. I for one am a bit dissatisfied with the poor representation from the underrated Antipop album (which was low on humor but high on chops), but I could always just go back and listen to the original albums, as could anyone who has issues with the track selection here. But rest assured that this is still a solid overview of the bizarre mutant jazzfunkmetal of Primus, and it gives a very good impression of what the band accomplished over the long term, and how they developed their weirdly unique (and uniquely weird) sound and vision. So tickle its chin and give it a pinch already! [~doomsdayer520~]
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
UNCONVENTIONAL...but one of a kind...not for everybody though..., October 18, 2006
I totally hand it to Primus...they don't sound like anybody else, and that's GOOD!! As much as I love pop/powerpop music, I hate FORMULA, and Primus, in the wrong hands, could have been an unlistenable mess. But there is a strange logic in their sound in that it all makes sense...in other words, what they do WORKS!!
Now, not everybody will GET Primus, and I don't go out of my way to recommend Primus to many people. Many would call Primus weird or annoying. They're not tunefully melodic in a conventional sense, their sound is dominated by Les Claypool's original bass playing, his vocals are kinda hick-like (perhaps a parody of white trash??), and Les' lyrics have a warped sense of humour & a sense of the surreal. If these things intrigue you and won't cause you to run the other way, try this collection of Primus' "Greatest Hits??!!??" by all means...they just might be the band for you!!!
Not many bands (if any??) combine musical wizardry with not taking themselves seriously...adding in their warped humour and jammy (but in an interesting way) tunes. In certain terms, I would call Primus an ACQUIRED taste. If I have to compare Primus with anybody, and one really can't, I would say they approach Frank Zappa, the Residents, Parliament/Funkadelic, early Chili Peppers, Pere Ubu, Captain Beefheart, Aquarium Rescue Unit, even Rush and early Talking Heads...wacky, unconventional artists & bands with musical ability and a vision they can only call their own. Live, they are one-of-a-kind, Les is possibly the best bass player alive today (but Ler and Tim are not-too-shabby on their respective instruments, guitar and drums, either), and they are a killer, unique live band.
Their songs are surreal, cool, fun and unique, and once they hit you or grow on you, you're a fan for life and will yell "Primus sucks!!" at their live shows. I like this "hits" collection, as they have at least 1 song from each of their albums...none from their 1989 "Suck On This" debut, their covers album, or Les' side projects like Sausage and Oysterhead. It's cool to have 16 tunes like "Too Many Puppies", "My Name Is Mud", "Jerry Was A Race Car Driver", "Wynona's Big Brown Beaver", "Tommy The Cat", and more all on one handy CD...perfect intro for the uninitiated...plus the BestBuy version has a bonus disc "Extra Cheese" with 4 live tunes from Woodstock 94.
Hey, it's not for nothing they landed Tom Waits in their corner for the voice of "Tommy The Cat" and producing "Coattails Of A Dead Man" from 1999's "Antipop", along with Les auditioning for Metallica!!!
Again, Primus are one of a kind...
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Defy The Laws While Sailing The Seas Of Cheese, November 10, 2006
I never claimed to be someone who "got" or even understood what Primus was all about, but despite this the level of technical prowess and musical drive was all too apparent to me even as a quasi-fan. This strange little combo of musicians formed by Les Claypool were a band that was given a chance by Interscope Records' Tom Whalley and his creative vision allowed the band to create their style as they were pretty much let loose to do as they would on an unsuspecting music buying public. It was a group that was up against the likes of Guns `N Roses and all the Seattle stuff that was a brewing at the time and with releases like "Sailing The Seas Of Cheese" and "Pork Soda" you could tell that Claypool was doing it with tongue firmly in cheek. Lyrically, they were quite absurd but musically it was sheer brilliance as Claypool laid down riffs on the bass that the most seasoned of Progressive and Experimental players would only hope to do night after night. "They Cant All Be Zingers" is a perfect way to enjoy some of their best material if you were an existing fan and it is also a great manner to find yourself educated on this very unique brand of music if you are among the unaware. The CD features music from across all the bands releases and features the talented technical wizardry of Claypool, Larry LaLonde (guitar) and Tim Alexander (drums). The tracks are all remastered for sonic clarity and there is bound to be more than a few tunes that intrigue you as the CD plays. Some additional drum parts of performed by Brian "Brain" Mantia as well and while no lyrics are included there are some great background notes on the group by Brian Fox. If you enjoy this the band has also released a DVD and has a collection of their videos on the release "Animals Should Not Try To Act Like People" which is worth looking into since the bands films are so out there. "To Defy The Laws Of Tradition"? That is indeed an understatement and I look forward to their continuing to do so.
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