Greatest Hits - Kool & The Gang

Advantages: Bangers throughout
Disadvantages: Nothing specific

...=The Act= Kool & The Gang a New Jersey-based Funk and Disco band, who often went into Soul and Jazz at times. The band found fame from the point when they dropped their debut in 1970, but it wasn?t really until later (by about their sixth album in 1973) when they really made an impact as the Funk sound had really formed itself and they were able to come up with material to act as anthems of the time. The height of success for them was in fact once they had watered-down the Funk later on as Kool led the band to more Disco-sounding by the eighties. Their last album came as recently as 2007. =The Album= This is a 1993 compilation release for Kool & The Gang. It was one of many which they brought, but in this case they chose to break down their material and rather than picking a few from over 20 years of music, they brought... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: All the best songs in one place
Disadvantages: Not worthwhile for the aged-old fan

...channels and maybe it does get the odd bit of 'extra' airtime. (E.g. "Close To Me" being on a BBC Three programme...it's name escapes me, but it may have been the 'Smoking Room'? Answers on a postcard...) Their 'greatest hits' album, released in 2001 through Fiction Records and only done so on the basis that Smith could choose the tracks himself is 19 tracks that show a chronological tale of the band and their music through the years. (Although two of the tracks are brand new!) Opening track "Boys Don't Cry" was released in June 1979, eight years before I was born. Yet with it's instantly recognisable guitar riff it's something that the countless bands since then that have idolised and 'taken influence' from the Cure could take the rest of time to improve on. I believe the saying is along the lines of put some monkeys in a room... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Great Live recording and excellent tracks
Disadvantages: Final song fades out too soon

...I have a somewhat eclectic taste in music and it's not unusual to find Guns N Roses in my CD player at the same time as boy band music and cheesy 80's pop. I'm particularly fond of Soul, Motown & Funk with a healthy dollop of Disco thrown in. My latest addition to my CD collection, in the disco/funk feel at least, is The Kool & The Gang Collection and it was an absolute bargain at £2 from my local Somerfield store, it can also be found on Amazon for £5.99 new or from 59p Used. The Kool & The Gang Collection is a 13 track CD featuring all the bands biggest hits, recorded live in concert. It's a wonderful collection bought to life by the fact that it is recorded live, you get a real concert sound with none of the over produced instrument sound and no tweaked vocals that you would find on studio produced work, you are also treated to... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful