Then: The Earlier Years | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Compilation album by | ||||
Released | March 25, 1997 | |||
Recorded | 1985–1991 | |||
Genre | Alternative rock | |||
Label | Restless (U.S., UK) Rykodisc (UK) | |||
Producer | Bill Krauss, Matthew Hill, They Might Be Giants | |||
They Might Be Giants chronology | ||||
|
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Allmusic | [1] |
The A.V. Club | (average) [2] |
Entertainment Weekly | B+ [3] |
Pitchfork Media | 9.5/10 [4] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [5] |
Then: The Earlier Years is a double album compilation by the band They Might Be Giants, released in 1997 (see 1997 in music). Then contains the album Lincoln in its entirety, the albums They Might Be Giants and Miscellaneous T which are each missing one track, a few otherwise unreleased songs from their 1985 Demo Tape and other songs previously unreleased. The song missing from Miscellaneous T is "(She Was a) Hotel Detective (Single Mix)" and the song missing from They Might Be Giants is the album version of "Don't Let's Start", as it was replaced in its appropriate place in the track listing by the single version of the same song from Miscellaneous T.
The They Might Be Giants Online Store also sells the non They Might Be Giants and Lincoln tracks separately, in two parts titled Giants Jubilee and Mightathon. These albums were once sold separately, but the full album is typically available for sale digitally.
The compilation Best of the Early Years is effectively a heavily condensed version of this release (a single disc and only 10 tracks).
The two discs of this compilation were released separately in 2013 by Australian indie label Breakaway Recordings, with the TMBG disc having the original "Don't Let's Start" mix and the single mix of "(She Was A) Hotel Detective" added, as well as having "Untitled" moved from track 23 to track 38 and "'85 Radio Special Thank You" having 20 seconds of silence appended.
The cover art is by Tony Millionaire.
All songs are by They Might Be Giants unless otherwise noted.
They Might Be Giants, sometimes called The Pink Album, is the debut studio album from Brooklyn-based band They Might Be Giants. It was released by Bar/None in 1986. The album generated two singles, "Don't Let's Start" and "(She Was A) Hotel Detective". It is included on Then: The Earlier Years, a compilation of the band's early material, in its entirety, with the exception of "Don't Let's Start", which is replaced with the single mix for the compilation.
"Ana Ng" is a song by alternative rock band They Might Be Giants. It was released as the lead single from the band's 1988 album Lincoln. Although the song was their first US chart appearance, hitting #11 on the US Modern Rock chart, the single was never officially released in the US. It was only released for promotional purposes in the US, and saw official releases in 1989 in the United Kingdom, Australia, and later, in 1991, in Europe.
Dial-A-Song: 20 Years Of They Might Be Giants is a 2002 compilation album by American alternative rock band They Might Be Giants, issued by Rhino Records and compiled by the band's co-singer/songwriter and guitarist John Flansburgh. Despite its name, the compilation does not include tracks from the band's "Dial-A-Song" service. It is instead an anthology of various single, album and live tracks from the band's history, spanning their full career up to the time of its release. It includes tracks from every album starting with 1986's They Might Be Giants up through No!, their first children's album, which was released only three months before this compilation.
Miscellaneous T is a B-side and remix compilation album released by the alternative rock band They Might Be Giants in 1991. It is a US re-release of Don't Let's Start, with different cover art, track order, and the additional song "Hello Radio".
PopArt: The Hits is a greatest hits album by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys. It was released on 24 November 2003 by Parlophone. The album consists of Pet Shop Boys' top 20 UK singles along with two new tracks, "Miracles" and "Flamboyant", which were also released as singles.
"(She Was A) Hotel Detective" is a song and single by alternative rock band They Might Be Giants. It was released as a single on May 5, 1988, two years after the release of They Might Be Giants, the album on which it originally appeared. The "Hotel Detective" title has become a somewhat recurring theme for the band.
Best of Sweetbox 1995-2005 is a compilation album of Sweetbox with Jade Villalon as frontwoman. It was released in 2005 in three different editions. It contains the previously unreleased tracks Crown of Thorns and Don't Wanna Kill You, along with several remixes, demo versions, new versions of songs and Jade's brand-new, changed-lyric version of Everything's Gonna Be Alright, which was a song made famous by Sweetbox' previous vocalist Tina Harris.
A User's Guide to They Might Be Giants is a 2005 compilation album by the group They Might Be Giants.
The Monkees is the debut studio album by the band the Monkees. It was released in October 1966 by Colgems Records in the United States and RCA Victor in the rest of the world. It was the first of four consecutive U.S. number one albums for the group, taking the top spot on the Billboard 200 for 13 weeks, after which it was displaced by the band's second album. It also topped the UK charts in 1967. The Monkees has been certified quintuple platinum by the RIAA, with sales of over five million copies.
Just What I Needed: The Cars Anthology is a two-disc, career-spanning compilation album of songs by the American new wave rock band the Cars. It features most of the band's singles, as well as many album tracks, non-album B-sides and unreleased songs.
Once in a Lifetime is a three-CD box set by American post-punk/new wave band Talking Heads, released in the United States by Sire, Warner Bros, and Rhino in 2003. The set also includes a DVD containing an expanded version of the music video compilation Storytelling Giant. The discs are packaged in a wide horizontal book that recalls a CD longbox, featuring paintings by Russian artists Vladimir Dubossarsky and Alexander Vinogradov and with art direction by Stefan Sagmeister. Sagmeister would later work with David Byrne and Brian Eno on their 2008 collaborative album Everything That Happens Will Happen Today.
Don't Let's Start is a 1989 b-side and remix compilation album by the alternative rock band They Might Be Giants. It was only available in the UK and West Germany, and can be seen as the predecessor to Miscellaneous T, which includes all of the tracks from this release and an additional track, "Hello Radio". The tracks on here mostly originate as b-sides from various EPs released such as Don't Let's Start and (She Was A) Hotel Detective
A Piano: The Collection is a five-disc box set spanning the first 15 years of the solo career of American singer and song-writer Tori Amos. Released on September 26, 2006 by Rhino Records as part of the contract Amos negotiated with Warner Music Group, the set includes singles, album tracks, B-sides, rarities, demos, and unreleased songs from album sessions.
Small Feces is a two-part compilation album by the Norwegian rock band Turbonegro, released in 2005 on Bitzcore Records. It features 42 songs and documents the first steps from the beginning in 1989 until the Ass Cobra times ca. 1997. It contains a lot of unreleased/unheard material, 7-inches, compilation tracks and other gems. Most of the songs have never been available on CD format before, are re-mixed and re-mastered.
The House of Love is the eponymous debut album by the British alternative rock band the House of Love. Released in June 1988 by Creation Records, the album was a critical success. It appeared in many 1988 critics' lists in NME, Melody Maker and Sounds.
The Anthology is a 2-disc set that contains previously released and unreleased material of Bachman–Turner Overdrive studio and live recordings. In addition, the first two songs on Disc One are from BTO's precursor group, Brave Belt.
Rarities is a compilation album of rare and unreleased material by the British rock band Atomic Rooster.
Magic Hollow is a box set compilation by The Beau Brummels comprising 113 songs recorded between 1964-1968, including hit singles, demos, outtakes, rarities and previously unissued material. The set was released on June 21, 2005 by Rhino Handmade.
Complete Rarities: Warner Bros. 1988–2011 is a 2014 compilation album featuring live songs, singles' b-sides and non-album tracks recorded by alternative rock band R.E.M. during their tenure on Warner Bros. Records. All material has been previously released either physically or in digital-only formats.
Bag of Trix is the third box set compilation by Swedish pop duo Roxette. It was issued physically by Roxette Recordings and Parlophone on 11 December 2020, as a quadruple LP and triple CD set. The record consists of 47 tracks, 28 of which are previously unreleased, and features demos, alternate mixes, bonus tracks, live recordings and Spanish-language versions. Also included are several radio versions of singles, including Brian Malouf's CHR mix of "Joyride", which was the version predominantly played on US radio when the track peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in May 1991.
rolling stone they might be giants album guide.