The Greatest Hits, So Far | ||||
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Greatest hits album by | ||||
Released | 24 September 1990 (USA), 9 October 1990 (UK) | |||
Recorded | 1978–1990 | |||
Genre | Post-punk, alternative rock | |||
Length | 65:17 | |||
Label | Virgin | |||
Producer | Dan Hersch | |||
Public Image Ltd chronology | ||||
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Singles from The Greatest Hits, So Far | ||||
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The Greatest Hits, So Far is a greatest hits album by English post-punk band Public Image Ltd, released in 1990 by record label Virgin. It compiles all of the band's singles from 1978 to 1990 and features a new track, "Don't Ask Me", which was released as a single, reaching number 22 the UK and number 2 on the US Modern Rock chart. "This Is Not a Love Song" is not represented in its original single form, but as the remake from This Is What You Want... This Is What You Get . The album's artwork is by notable New Zealand-born artist and musician Reg Mombassa.
"I wanted 28 tracks", John Lydon told Select , "but you have to be reasonable, I suppose. Virgin only wanted eight – 'Ooh, that's all we can get on one album' – and I thought, 'Hold on, I've been on your label twelve years and you only want eight songs? Fuck off!' I refused to deal with them until they came round to my way of thinking. I relished the chance to see what things like 'Warrior' would sound like next to 'Death Disco' and 'Memories', to see if there was any vein running through them. And I was very pleased: there is. They sound like a solid piece of work. They could all have been done at the same time. All musically different, but the attitude is predominant. So I'm pleased with myself." [1]
The Greatest Hits, So Far was released on 24 September 1990 by Virgin in the US [2] and 9 October in the UK.[ citation needed ]
The title suggests there would be more to come —and there was— but PIL released only one more studio album (1992's That What Is Not ) before taking a twenty-year hiatus, after which they released two more studio albums (2012's This is PiL and 2015's What the world needs now ). A more comprehensive PIL compilation, the four-disc Plastic Box , was released in 1999.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [3] |
Q | [4] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [5] |
"Side one provides a chilling testimony to the boy Lydon's vengeful slaying of his own two-chord punk-monster creation", noted Charlie Dick in Q . "The big commercial hits [...] take up side two while the second disc exorcises the older and wiser Antichrist's assault on stadium rock." [4]
Public Image Ltd are an English post-punk band formed by singer John Lydon, guitarist Keith Levene, bassist Jah Wobble, and drummer Jim Walker in May 1978. The group's personnel has changed frequently over the years; Lydon has been the sole constant member.
Stock Aitken Waterman are an English songwriting and record production trio consisting of Mike Stock, Matt Aitken, and Pete Waterman. The trio had great success from the mid-1980s through the early 1990s. SAW is considered one of the most successful songwriting and producing partnerships of all time, scoring more than 100 UK top-40 hits, selling 40 million records and earning an estimated £60 million.
Julian Keith Levene was an English musician who was a founding member of both the Clash and Public Image Ltd (PiL). While Levene was in PiL, their 1978 debut album Public Image: First Issue reached No 22 in the UK album charts, and its lead track "Public Image" broke the top 10 UK singles chart.
Metal Box is the second studio album by Public Image Ltd, released by Virgin Records on 23 November 1979. The album takes its name from the round metal canister which contained the initial pressings of the record. It was later reissued in standard vinyl packaging as Second Edition in February 1980 by Virgin Records in the United Kingdom, and by Warner Bros. Records and Island Records in the United States.
The Flowers of Romance is the third studio album by English experimental rock band Public Image Ltd, released on 10 April 1981 by record label Virgin.
Public Image: First Issue is the debut studio album by English rock band Public Image Ltd, released in 1978 by record label Virgin.
Happy? is the sixth studio album by English rock band Public Image Ltd, released in 1987.
"Death Disco" is a song by Public Image Ltd. The record was released in both 7" and 12" single formats with a "½ Mix" of the song and "Megga mix" on the 12" version. It reached number twenty on the UK Singles Chart. The song was released in an alternative shorter version as "Swan Lake" on the group's second album, Metal Box, with slight changes at the end. The title change reflects the quote from Tchaikovsky's ballet score that surfaces in Keith Levene's guitar part.
Album is the fifth album by the English rock band Public Image Ltd, released on 27 January 1986. In a departure from their previous releases, John Lydon was advised by trusted music producer Bill Laswell to take on an all-star cast of session and trusted musicians, including Steve Vai, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Tony Williams and Ginger Baker. The resulting album gave PiL one of its highest-charting songs, "Rise".
9 is the seventh studio album by Public Image Ltd, but their ninth full-length release including the live albums Paris au Printemps and Live in Tokyo. It was released in May 1989 on the Virgin Records label.
Commercial Zone is an album of studio recordings by Public Image Ltd., recorded in 1982 and 1983, and released in 1984 by PiL founding guitarist Keith Levene. Commercial Zone includes five songs that were later re-recorded for PiL's fourth official studio album, This Is What You Want... This Is What You Get (1984) – for this reason, Commercial Zone is often considered to be an earlier/alternative version of that album.
"Open Up" is a song recorded by British electronic duo Leftfield featuring John Lydon. It was released as a single on 1 November 1993. The single reached number 13 on the UK Singles Chart, number one on the UK Dance Singles Chart and number 39 in both Australia and New Zealand. NME reported in their 18 September 1993 issue, "This is the record that people have always wanted Lydon to do." In 2014, the same publication ranked "Open Up" at number 444 on their list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".
This Is What You Want... This Is What You Get is a 1984 album by Public Image Ltd. It is the band's fourth official studio album and includes the single "Bad Life" and a re-recorded version of a "This Is Not a Love Song", which had been a No. 5 UK and international hit when released as a single in 1983.
That What Is Not is the eighth studio album by Public Image Ltd, released in 1992. It was the band's final album before a 20-year hiatus, and the final recordings with longtime members Allan Dias (bass) and John McGeoch.
John Joseph Lydon, also known by his former stage name Johnny Rotten, is a British singer-songwriter. He was the lead singer of the punk band the Sex Pistols, which was active from 1975 to 1978, and again for various revivals during the 1990s and 2000s. He is also the lead singer of post-punk band Public Image Ltd (PiL), which he founded and fronted from 1978 until 1993, and again since 2009.
Paris au Printemps is a live album recorded by Public Image Ltd in 1980 on two consecutive dates in January in Paris, and released in November the same year. The title of the album is French for 'Paris in the Spring', with French names also given to the band itself and songs in the track listing. It is notable as the band's last full-length release featuring founding bass player Jah Wobble, as well as the Paris concerts being drummer Martin Atkins' first gigs with Public Image Ltd. The album reached number 61 on the UK album charts.
Plastic Box is a compilation box set by the post-punk band Public Image Ltd released in 1999 as a limited edition, but re-released for a standard release on 14 December 2009. It comprises four discs covering the band's activity from their debut in 1978 until their hiatus beginning in 1992.
The Legend Lives On... Jah Wobble in "Betrayal" is the debut studio album by English bass guitarist Jah Wobble. Produced by musician Eddie Jobson, it was released in May 1980 through Virgin Records. A dispute over the use of rhythm tracks from his then band Public Image Ltd. on the album led to his departure from the band.
"Disappointed" is a 1989 song by post-punk group Public Image Ltd. It was the first single from 9, their seventh studio album. Lyrically, the song was inspired by John Lydon's experiences with friends within the band throughout its history, who he commented often let him down. Musically, guitarist John McGeoch used an alternate tuning courtesy of Who guitarist Pete Townshend to begin composing the song.