release date: Mar. 12, 1988
format: cd
[album rate: 4 / 5]
producer: various
label: Virgin Records - nationality: England, UK
First official best of compilation album by OMD. The vinyl issue contains fourteen tracks, whereas the cassette and cd issues contain eighteen all spanning the band's career from 1980-88.
The album was issued as the band struggled in finding the right form - something the band members always seemed to have disagreed on. The critically acclaimed first four albums were all experimental in some ways, and they all contained simple pop-shaped songs, which brought them radio play and a growing crowd, but after a more direct shift towards a mainstream pop universe the band also experienced a decline in sales numbers in its studio albums, although, several single releases fared quite well.
The album was more than well-received as it reached #2 on the national albums chart list, and OMD subsequently launched on a US tour promoting the album as supporting act for Depeche Mode.
The album is a fine collection, although, I find it focusing way too heavy on the band's later career with only 8 tracks from the band's first classic 4 albums, whereas the remaining 10 tracks are taken from 3 [minor] studio albums, one soundtrack and with one previously unreleased song.
By the end of the tour the two Weir brothers left the band, and also unsatisfied with the musical direction of the band it also had co-founder Paul Humphreys calling it a day, basically leaving OMD as an Andy McCluskey solo project.
[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5 stars ]
