Excellent value - great songs

With the exception of two studio reworkings of "No-one is to blame" and "everlasting Love", all these songs were recorded live on the peaceful tour in 2001. Howard re-invents his hits here with the help of his stellar band including Robin Boult and Nick Beggs as well as using an erstwhile 'christian' dance duo DBA to provide a little dancefloor ambience. These songs receive a makeover for the 21st century and as with "perform01" his songs transfer well. "You know that I love you...Don't You?" benefits from the upgrade as does "all I want" and "new song". The rest of the bunch are fun but you may prefer other versions, from "perform" or the earlier Best of compilation. The great thing about this is you get a slice of what Howard is doing live plus you get it all at a bargain price. The only downside with this release is there is no sleeve note information. Yes these are His greatest hits but not as you might remember them. For all that though, if you enjoy an artist who is not content to just churn out the hits any old way, you will enjoy this!

GREATEST HITS!?

Howard Jones. Though a synth-pop superstar in the eighties, he has been forgotten by many in the modern age, due to the shifting of the music industry. Fortunately, with the release of this compilation, his work won't have to go forgotten much longer. Read on for my review of Howard Jones - Greatest Hits.

PROS:
Well, two of the tracks are studio versions of big hits. That's about all the good things I have to say about this compilation.

CONS:
This isn't a hits compilation at all! It's just a bunch of live stuff, with a few studio tracks thrown in! Obviously, this is just an attempt by the record company to make some quick cash off of Howard's work.

OVERALL:
Do you like Howard Jones? Get his official best of, not this disgraceful piece of junk.

Warning: Not Really a Greatest Hits but still worth every $

OK, this is the oldest trick in the book, label it "Greatest Hits" and then in really tiny type on the back put "live recordings." People pick it up thinking they are getting what they heard on the radio in the mid 80s. If that is what you want, please move along.

However this is a really interesting collection for fans. It does have two new "remixes" (really wholesale rerecordings) that are fine. But it is in the live tracks that Jones really shines. Instead of merely trying to reproduce his hits he offers extended versions, with plenty of riffs and wanderings, often even altogether different approaches. As a long time fan I found these new recordings refreshing and fun, and for very little money you can't go wrong!