The Greatest Hits, So Far

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The Greatest Hits, So Far
Public Image Ltd. - Greatest Hits So Far album cover.jpg
Greatest hits album by
Released24 September 1990 (USA), 9 October 1990 (UK)
Recorded1978–1990
Genre Post-punk, alternative rock
Length65:17
Label Virgin
Producer Dan Hersch
Public Image Ltd chronology
9
(1989)
The Greatest Hits, So Far
(1990)
That What Is Not
(1992)
Singles from The Greatest Hits, So Far
  1. "Don't Ask Me"
    Released: 1990

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.

Contents

Content

"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]

Release

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.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [3]
Q Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [4]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [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]

Track listing

  1. "Public Image" (from Public Image: First Issue )
  2. "Death Disco" (7" edit of the track from Metal Box )
  3. "Memories" (from Metal Box)
  4. "Careering" (from Metal Box)
  5. "Flowers of Romance" (from The Flowers of Romance )
  6. "This Is Not a Love Song" (from This Is What You Want... This Is What You Get )
  7. "Rise" (Bob Clearmountain remix of the track from Album )
  8. "Home" (from Album)
  9. "Seattle" (from Happy? )
  10. "The Body" (UK 12" extended remix of the track from Happy?)
  11. "Rules and Regulations" (from Happy?)
  12. "Disappointed" (12" extended version of the track from 9 )
  13. "Warrior" (Dave Dorrell remix of the track from 9)
  14. "Don't Ask Me" (new track, also released as a single)

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References

  1. "[John Lydon interview]". Select . December 1990.
  2. Cocatalog.loc.uk United States Copyright Office website
  3. Kellman, Andy. "The Greatest Hits, So Far – Public Image Ltd. AllMusic". AllMusic . Retrieved 28 March 2015.
  4. 1 2 "[''The Greatest Hits, So Far'' review]". Q . November 1990.
  5. Coleman, Mark; Matos, Michaelangelo (2004). "Public Image Ltd.". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp.  662–63. ISBN   0-7432-0169-8.