That said, the music inside is glorious. Of the 19 tracks, only five are what would be considered as Band standards: we get the ever-ubiquitous (yet never tiresome) The Weight , King Harvest (Has Surely Come) , featuring pianist Richard Manuel s impassioned vocal delivery, the achingly beautiful Stage Fright , the Dixieland-tinged Life Is a Carnival , and the legendary take on Dylan s I Shall Be Released . However, with no Up on Cripple Creek , The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down , The Shape I m In , or Ophelia (to name just a few), this aspect of the Band s catalog is woefully incomplete.
The real treats, though, are the other odds and sods that pepper the album. The 1963 Ronnie Hawkins and the Hawks single Who Do You Love is scorching, and hints at the fiery greatness of the Hawks stint with Dylan in 1965-66. Manuel channels Ray Charles on the endearing, R B-infused He Don t Love You (And He ll Break Your Heart) , while the great 1965 Dylan single Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window shows just how tight the band had become in such a short time span.
The much-loved rarities Orange Juice Blues (Blues For Beakfast) and Don t Do It are present, as are previously-unreleased nuggets such as an alternate version of All La Glory and the fabulous Van Morrison collaboration 4% Pantomime . Recorded in Calgary, Alberta during the infamous Festival Express Train Tour, Slippin and Slidin showcases the Band at its most ferocious; conversely, the CD closes with glimpses at the quintet s more tender side, first with Robertson s solo piano tune Twilight (song sketch) , and then with bassist Rick Danko s drop-dead gorgeous performance on the dreary-eyed Home Cookin . Compared to the wealth of rarities on the nearly seven-hour box set, however, this is merely the tip of one mighty iceberg.
Had this CD been comprised entirely of the set s rare material, then Robertson might have been on to something. Appended with a DVD containing five of the nine video clips found on the original box set, The Best of A Musical History makes for a nice little mix CD, filled with idiosyncratic little touches, but it s difficult to think of any reason for anyone, even the completists, to spend money on this release. Those eager to hear A Musical History would be better off avoiding this CD and saving up for the pricy box instead (besides, it s ridiculously easy to, erm, sample such a release online these days); the folks who want the popular songs would be better off buying 2002 s Greatest Hits, and as for the longtime fans, well, this release is a complete waste of time.
The music gets an A-plus, but the execution gets a woeful D-minus.
News RSS