Greatest Hits 1977-1990
	previously released material
	Released on November 1990
	UK CHART POSITION #4
	Find it at GEMM
EK 47081 cover [high resolution scan]

W here’s the Nuclear Device? Where are the men in black? Bah, you weenies! Greatest Hits is a choking of Epic proportions, an easy-listening disc from a band who tried its damnedest to be difficult (in the beginning anyway). Epic picked up the band in the soft middle of their manhood when they were making flaccid, continental pop music (“European Female”), so maybe the point here was to push their own product. I can’t complain about the earliest selections (greatestits indeed), though I would have passed on the Doorsy version of “Walk On By.” And, as I knoweth The Raven, I can tell you that “Duchess” isn’t the best thing on there by a long shot. But the real disappointment begins with “Skin Deep.” From there, it doesn’t get any deeper, just superficial pop songs saved by the occasional killer chorus (“Nice In Nice,” “Always The Sun”). Also, including three covers on here, none of which are “White Room,” is lame. Normally I don’t get this worked up over any greatest hits collection, but The Stranglers are a band who never got a fair shake in the US. Even the catch-all compilation Stranglers IV does a better job of selling them. Pick up Rattus Norvegicus, No More Heroes, The Raven. Those are their greatest works. What Epic assembled are their grievous hits: “96 Tears,” “Big In America,” “All Day And All of the Night.” I bought this disc hoping to recapture some of the magic I remembered from my old Stranglers records. Aside from a few stragglers, this is gloss-dross from a jaded middle age, bound to baffle anyone who sought out The Stranglers for perverse pleasure.

TRACK LISTING

1. PEACHES
2. SOMETHING BETTER CHANGE
3. NO MORE HEROES
4. WALK ON BY    (Burt Bacharach/Hal David)
5. DUCHESS
6. GOLDEN BROWN
7. STRANGE LITTLE GIRL    (The Stranglers/Hans Warmling)
8. EUROPEAN FEMALE
9. SKIN DEEP
10. NICE IN NICE
11. ALWAYS THE SUN
12. BIG IN AMERICA
13. ALL DAY AND ALL OF THE NIGHT    (Ray Davies)
14. 96 TEARS    (Rudy Martinez)
15. (CD bonus track:) NO MERCY
    
    All songs written by The Stranglers unless noted

CREDITS

JET BLACK -- drums & percussion
J.J. BURNEL -- bass & vocals
HUGH CORNWELL -- guitars & vocals
DAVE GREENFIELD -- keyboards & backing vocals
J.L. & G.L. (Graphyk) -- sleeve engineers
Mike Prior -- photography

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