Customer Reviews

Wild Birds 1985-1995: Best Of Beggars Banquet Years

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have been a huge fan of Peter Murphy for some time now. His albums have always managed to tap into different sources of inspiration, and all have had their own "feel" to it. If you are new to Peter Murphy, or have never really listened to him before, this is good introductory cd. If you are a diehard fan like myself, this cd is more of a way to round out your collection. The man is obviously brilliant and has such a mesmerizing voice, but the tracks included here do not showcase his range. I don't understand why some songs were included on this retrospective, like "Hit Song" and "Subway." While both of these songs are good, they are not necessarily the best tracks chosen from his previous work. Where is "Our Secret Garden"? Where is "Cascade"? And where is "Marlene Dietrich's Favorite Poem"?

Again, this is a great intro cd for someone who isn't familiar with Peter Murphy's work. If you end up liking his stuff, I would highly recommend you see him perform live. He puts on a phenomenal show.

As far as greatest hits albums, this one delivers just because Peter's hits are just masterful. If I was going to be nitpicky, I'd complain that this compilation does not capture all of his best work, but the collection clearly captures some of Peter's own favorites -- such as 'Deep Ocean Vast Sea', 'Dragnet Drag' and 'Jemal'. While all good songs, they probably mean more to Peter than some of his most devout fans. I would have liked to have seen 'Marlene Dietrich's Favorite Poem', 'Blind Sublime', or 'Crystal Wrists' myself.

But again, this is a really good greatest hits album, and well worth the money for either collector or newly minted fan.

I think this is a great showcase. Peter Murphy has one of those voices that is both frightening and beautiful, and this compilation presents the best that ten years has to offer. I agree that it would be a waste of money for anyone with three or more past recordings--there aren't any "lost" tracks or unreleased, cassete-tape-in-the-bedroom demos. What this CD provides is the perfect collection for the casual fan, who likes Murphy but just can't seem to muster the obsession required to collect all his albums.

When I first saw a new Peter Murphy release my heart lept with anticipation, but having seen the track listing it sank. I have to agree with the previous reviewer and am upset about no alternative versions, save for "Jemal", no non-album tracks or previously unreleased material. It all rather seems more like a callous attempt by Beggars Banquet to cash in on the re-release of Peter Murphy's back catalog. Don't get me wrong, this is the perfect starting point for a new fan or intrigued passer-by, and ever Peter Murphy's worst is far better than most other's best material. It's disappointing in that it focuses too much on the weaker "Cascade"-era material (five tracks! ) and too little on his really sterling work. This would have been the perfect venue for including "Tale of the Tongue" on CD. And why not include "Blue Heart", "All Night Long", "Blind Sublime" and countless other stronger material from "Deep" or "Holy Smoke"? For an alleged decade summary of his career it's pretty skimpy pickings. This is one obsessed Peter Murphy fan who will have to bide his time for something more interesting.

Since I hear for the first time "All night long", in a brazilian radio, in the 80's, I've never been the same to hear music. He surprises anyone at every time, in every song, with his powerful voice, and his gothic atmosphere. Yes, atmospheric, this is the best definition to a singer that creates with real feeling, making something that is really deep, and at the same time, cool. It's impossible to hear "Subway" and don't hear it again and again...passing the tracks, "I'll Fall With You Knife" is there, beatiful...and so many other songs, all beatiful. So,I think that "Wild Birds" is a good choice.

this is the album to buy if you are a hardcore peter murphy fan or even remotely curious about the work of this goth king. here we find some of the greatest solo work ever recorded by ex-frontman for the famous goth band bauhaus and it should come as no surprise his work has been highly underrated or overlooked. at times, his voice reminded me of neil diamond perhaps or perhaps even david bowie at times. here we have every song which in my opinion could've or should've received massive play on mtv or radio for that matter and even the oddities which may not garner much attention but nevertheless are extremely beautiful and deep. only slight disappointment i have here is the absence of great songs like strange kind of love or perhaps marlene dietrich's favorite poem. having said that, i do love this cd and would recommend it to anyone.

I saw Peter Murphy live earlier this year and he sang, to the best of my memory, every song on this cd. I think that the compilation of songs on this cd is nigh perfect. Songs like Disappearing, Final Solution and Roll Call being some of what I consider to be the best of his darker or hard songs, as well as The Sweetest Drop, Subway, The Scarlet Thing In You and the ever popular Cuts You Up. This cd is a must-have for any Peter Murphy fan.

This album might be a redundant buy for those of you who have followed Peter Murphy since Bauhaus and Dali's Car days... although it does have a nice mix of well-known Murphy favorites that would be great for a road trip without having to lug all of the albums along with you.

I find myself suggesting this ablum as a first buy for my friends who are just getting into Peter's work... after this one I tend to draw them in further with "Deep" or "Dust".

After a point, it's very easy to become completely absorbed by Peter's music, and this album touches on many of his different musical ventures with fairness to many years of very fine work.

Well, I have listened to Peter Murphy's music from the beginnings with Bauhaus, thru Dali's Car, and his solo work... This "Best Of" compilation, is some of his best work as a solo artist, but as another reviewer noticed, it is heavily weighted to the later part of his career (especially Cascade). Don't get me wrong, some of the selections are rare gems if you do not already own them on the original albums. One of my favorite, yet often overlooked tracks, Final Solution, makes it onto this compilation, as to the expected Indigo Eyes and Cuts You Up, two songs that are still played both in clubs and on the radio, true classics...

Songs I wish made it on the album but didnt, "Line between the Devil's Teeth", His Box (Dali's Car), and (not-so)surprisingly, nothing from Bauhaus.

I saw the tour that coincided with this release, and it was quite good, all accoustic, intimate, and as always, the "dark god's" voice was perfect.

I do think this is a bad choice by Beggar's Banquet as far as the songs go, nothing new, no alternative cuts, but for someone new to Peter Murphy, this is a great starting point to a long and wonderfull career.

Had to give this 5 stars because every song is wonderful. Been listening to PM for a long time and was a bit surprised to see so many songs missing...especially SEVEN VEILS. This is a great CD for new PM fans, but, I'll be burning my own PM Greatest Hits with ALL the right songs.