_Retired Archive

Double CD greatest hits for Robert Plant. Well, the first CD is a Greatest Hits CD and the other is "oddball" Plant stuff - weird covers, and songs from pre and post Zep. If you're a casual Plant fan, I suspect you won't care for disc 2 at all. One glaring omission from the Greatest Hits CD, he did NOT include "In the Mood", which is one of his best songs - really shocked that's not there. Still, he did pick up one of the Honeydrippers songs which was a surprise.

Retired Notes: This was one of the CD's I got rid of the fastest. I listened to it a few times, and decided I didn't need this. Turned around and sold it on Amazon. I think I bought this at a time when I was shopping and sort of forced myself to buy something.

Leppard abandons their new found musical direction in 96's Slang with a quote saying "We might as well do what we've always done, and what people want". In other words "Slang didn't sell". This wasn't bad, but as I sit here and write this in 2003, I can't say I recall any of the tracks from this, so it can't have been that good. Their 2002 album "X" had a single I was interested in, but I'm probably done buying Def Leppard albums (although I might go pick up a more current greatest hits CD if one comes out.

Retired Notes: I replaced this (and a few other Leppard) CD's with the 2 CD Greatest Hits package that came out in 2005.

I bought this one based solely on the name Aerosmith, and I never really got into this one. It's OK, but I wish I had listened to it first. There's some really good stuff on here (title track, Taste of India), but the rest of it (including the single) didn't do much for me. Because of my experience with this one, I never bought their next one (Just Push Play), either.

Retired Comments: Got rid of this because I bought the updated 2002 Greatest Hits 2 CD package, and didn't want this one anymore.

I was a child of the 80's, and as such was really into Def Leppard. As the years and albums went by, however - they bored me, because they essentially didn't change their style. However, I was interested in Slang, because they said that it was a conscious effort to change their sound, making it more mature. It's not your standard Def Leppard album, and while I don't listen to it a lot, it does have some decent stuff on it.

Retired Notes: I replaced this (and a few other Leppard) CD's with the 2 CD Greatest Hits package that came out in 2005.

Not much to say here. Another Greatest Hits album. This covers the majority of the songs I really liked from the first few Def Leppard albums, so this was a no brainer pickup.

Retired Notes: I replaced this (and a few other Leppard) CD's with the 2 CD Greatest Hits package that came out in 2005. The newer Greatest Hits Package was much more comprehensive, obviously, since it was 10 years newer, and had two cd's.

What can I say? Another greatest hits album. This covers their best known hits of the 70's, and some of the 80's stuff, too. A natural pickup, since I'm not about to go buy all their early 70's stuff. I just wish we'd get another greatest hits album covering the albums that have come since (Talk, The Ladder, etc...)

Retired Comments: This was replaced with the 3CD package released in late 2003; that one is a better representative of the band's entire career, and included the things I wished for in my original comments.

Bought this mostly for the same reason I bought Pump - off the strength of the singles. There's a bunch of stuff on here that is forgettable to me, but there's some stuff that's quite good, too.

Retired Comments: Got rid of this because I bought the updated 2002 Greatest Hits 2 CD package, and didn't want this one anymore.

ZZ Top hit it big with the mainstream when I was in high school. The Eliminator album was out when I was graduating, so it got a lot of attention. I bought more albums past then, but I found over time that I was listening to them for the same few songs, so I ditched all of them in favor of this Greatest Hits album. I suppose the one from the old group I wouldn't mind having back would be Eliminator.

Retired Comments: The usual. Replaced with a 2 CD newer greatest hits package.

Twisted Sister is a band that I liked that broke up before I started buying CD's, so I never got any of their material there. When they came out with this Greatest Hits package, I bought it, but never really cared for it - mostly because there were 6 live tracks on here, which weren't very good either in performance or song selection. I always felt disappointed iwth this, because there were so many other trakcs of theirs I liked which weren't here.

Retired Comments: Got rid of this because I got a newer Greatest Hits CD that I liked every song on, and no crappy live versions.

Motley Crue was a band that I liked for a long time. I had all their albums, and really enjoyed them. However, a few years ago I realized that I didn't much care for their songs anymore. After much thought, I think I "outgrew" them. There's still a few that I really do love (Girls Girls Girls the song is by far my favorite Crue tune). This Greatest Hits album that came out in 1991 is perfect - as I like this collection. This album is no longer made, and was replaced by a different Greatest Hits album (which I'm linking to). That's OK, this one is fine for me. :)

Retired Notes: I replaced this with a 2005 2 CD Greatest Hits package that covers all of their albums, this one stopped 14 years ago, so something newer was in order.

A double CD package that covers just about every major, and quite a few minor hits by Rush over their career up until the time this was released in 1990. Unfortunately, there's a lot of songs on here that I don't personally care for, but the ones that are here are great!

Retired Comments: Got rid of this because I bought the updated 2003 Greatest Hits 74-87 CD, and I don't have to skip so many songs. I'm sure Rush purists will hate that, but I ended up skipping way too many songs on Chronicles.

Queensryche's follow-up to an album that I knew was going to be their best all time was a hard act to follow. They didn't give us Mindcrime II, which is probably a good idea. The album is not as hard edged as their previous albums, and it begins their slide into far more mellow music. This was really shown by the brilliant, and very highly successful track "Silent Lucidity". Several great tracks here, and my ambivalent feeling towards the album is probably because it's Mindcrime's immediate successor. It's also the last great Queensryche album (not counting live/Greatest Hits).

Retired notes: Replaced with a newer remaster. Also, this CD was very scratched up, which is unusal for me, as I keep good care of my CD's.

This GH album covers the Chicago that I knew the best, the Peter Cetera 80's material. I know a lot of Chicago traditionalists don't care for this era of the band, but this is what I grew up with, and while I like the early stuff too - I'm fond of the material here.

Retired Notes: I replaced this and one other Chicago Greatest Hits CD I had with the 2 CD version from 2002 that covers their entire career, not just small parts of it. Bonus is that the new one has every track that was on this version.

What can I say? Another Greatest Hits CD I picked up by a band I liked a few songs by. :)

Retired Comments: Got rid of this because I got a newer Greatest Hits CD (for free through my record label connections) from the Scorpions that had a higher ratio of songs I liked than this one.

An album I really liked when it was new. I don't find myself listening to it much anymore, but there are some good songs on here - some things that got a LOT of airplay, especially the videos. I used to own all the albums in-between Greatest Hits and this one (Done with Mirrors and Rock in a Hard Place I especially liked), but over the years have lost or misplaced them.

Retired Comments: Got rid of this because I bought the updated 2002 Greatest Hits 2 CD package, and didn't want this one anymore.

Well, this is it. Ryche's best album. I said it back in 1988 that this was the best album they'd ever record, and as I write this in 2003, that statement holds. Mindcrime is brilliant, a concept album that works, the music stands alone when it has to, and works as a story when listened all the way through. The lyrics are great, the music is spectacular, and every song is a 10 for me. This is one of my Top 5 albums of all time by any band - and is definitely what I consider to be a "Desert Island" disc. Get this. NOW! About the only thing I'd like is a remaster of the disc, so the sound could be made a bit clearer. While it's great still, and if it never is remastered, I'll still love it to death, but I'd love to hear one just the same. :)

Retired Comments: Well, this is here because there finally is a remaster. That's the only reason I'd ever "get rid of" this album - it's just too good. Even a billion times later, and 15 years later, it's still a head banging mashing, intelligent time!

I don't know why I still have this. I can't remember the last time I listened to it, and every time I try to get rid of it, I look at the track listing (65 songs!), and can never bring myself to dump it. I'd rather have their 70's/80's compilation, but I never got that.

Retired Notes (Oct 2, 2005): Finally dumped it. :)

Originally, this album was to be a soundtrack for the movie version of the Wall. Indeed I have a 45 (remember those?) of the Song "When The Tigers Broke Free", which says "From the forthcoming album The Final Cut", but that idea was scrapped in favor of what we got here, which was mostly leftovers from the Wall session (The Wall was originally going to be a triple album, not the double it was). Anyway, while most don't care for this album, I personally really loved it, and it was probably my most listened to album in the Summer of 1983 (when I graduated High School). The band itself was in disarray. Keyboardist Rick Wright was gone, Dave & Roger were at each other's throats, and Nick, well I don't know about Nick, but given the bad blood that I read about in the press at the time, I'm shocked we got anything.

Retired Comments: I moved this here because there was a new remaster of this album in 2004 which I really wanted.

Records is a Foreigner Greatest Hits album that covers only up until 1982, which basically is their first four studio albums. There's great stuff on here, but I need to update to a Greatest Hits album that covers their entire career one of these days.

Retired Comments: I finally found a replacement for this which covers Foreigner's ENTIRE career.

For quite awhile, the only Aerosmith album (although it was a tape in those days) I owned. Solid from start to finish. Can't go wrong here.

Retired Comments: Got rid of this because I bought the updated 2002 Greatest Hits 2 CD package, and didn't need this anymore.

Probably AC/DC's greatest album of all time. Fitting it's a tribute album (sort of) to the late Bon Scott. This was also my first rock and roll record I ever got (back in 1980). Before this, I was listening to mostly disco.

Retired Comments: I got rid of this because I managed to find the 2003 Remaster at a dirt cheap price brand new - plus I wanted a remastered version of this album anyway.

JACKPOT!! This is Billy's best album. The thing is solid from start to finish, and six of the 9 songs ended up on his 1985 Greatest Hits album, anyway. I don't know what more can be said about this album - it's just THAT GOOD. Stop reading this, and click on the cover art and order it. :)

This was the first Billy Joel album I ever owned.

Retired notes: I sold off this version of the album because I replaced it with the 30th anniversary edition that came out in July 2008.

The Chicago Transit Authority is one of those bands I always associated with AM radio. For years the idea of buying one of their albums really seemed weird to me, but then I took my tried and true method - a greatest hits album. This album covers their earlier years (25 to 6 to 4, Saturday in the Park, Colour my World, etc).

Retired Notes: I replaced this and one other Chicago Greatest Hits CD I had with the 2 CD version from 2002 that covers their entire career, not just small parts of it. Bonus is that the new one has every track that was on this version.

What more needs to be said about this album? This is Pink Floyd's most recognizable album (although the Wall is close behind it), and contains much of the band's greatest output. It is a landmark album in every way. I've always felt that this album is a required purchase by anyone who claims to like rock music. There are NO weak points on this album at all - it's absolutely brilliant from start to finish. If you don't have this, get it. NOW

Retired Comments: I got rid of this solely because I replaced it with the 30th anniversary edition. There should NEVER be a reason to get rid of Dark Side, unless you're replacing a worn out copy with a new one. :)

After listening to Brubeck's Time Out CD, I decided that I wanted to hear some more, so I went for a Greatest Hits album of his. If you like Jazz, especially the old school stuff, then this is something you should check out. I don't have a lot of Jazz, so I don't know how to describe it well, but all I can say is when I spun this for the first time, I liked it! You probably will too, if you like Jazz.

Retired Notes: I replaced this with the "Essential Dave Brubeck" package, which covered a wider range of his career. This one I'm replcaing came out in 1966, and the newer one in 2003.

I have no idea what the orginal release date of this recording is, all I know is that it was in 1966.