Pearl Jam - Lost Dogs
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Free Music Notes for Lost Dogs
Free Music Review: Superb material deserving of wider audience.
Hit: 5 Stars
This isn't a review I'm going to approach like I would a normal one-- "Lost Dogs" is a collection of 30 b-sides, tracks from benefit albums, and unreleased material. This is not likely the place to look for the casual fan, but it really is a fantastic set.
One of the things about Pearl Jam's first album was there was a wealth of material that didn't make it on the album that was superb-- b-sides like "Yellow Ledbetter" (concert and radio staple, likely left off because of its resemblance to Hendrix's "Little Wing"), "Footsteps" (a haunting piece left off because it was already released with Cornell's lyrics as Temple of the Dog's "Times of Trouble") and fan favorite "Wash" are all as powerful as the material on "Ten".
But "Ten" wasn't the only album that great material was left off of-- "Down" and "U" from "Riot Act" and "Yield" respectively are superb, exciting and ecstatic in a way nothing on the album was. And certainly there are few Pearl Jam pieces as superb as "Dead Man" (originally written for the "Dead Man Walking" soundtrack but left off in favor of a Bruce Springsteen track), with its haunting, throbbing bass and downright frightening lyrics.
The other thing you get here is a lot of fun and silly songs-- "Don't Gimme No Lip", featuring a Stone Gossard vocal and the bizarre "Dirty Frank" (about a psychotic bus driver and done in a funky Chili Peppers style) are good examples of this. The band never put stuff like this on their albums, but they're really a trip.
Noticable absences from this set are "Breath" and "State of Love and Trust" from the "Singles" soundtrack, "I Got ID" and "Long Road" from the "Merkinball" single, "Yield" era b-side "Leatherman", and from the "Sweet Relief" benefit album, "Crazy Mary". But even without this material, this is a superb collection. Recommended for all Pearl Jam fans.
Free Music Review: Some notable ommissions
Hit: 5 Stars
(BTW, it would help if Amazon.com would provide a track listing) I haven't gotten Lost Dogs yet, so no comment on the previously unreleased songs. I will list some notable ommissions (that I can think of): the first and foremost, in my opinion, is "Leatherman" - why the hell have they not included "Leatherman"???; ("Just a) Girl" - not sure if that's the correct title of the song, but that's how it's listed on various bootlegs, etc.; the songs from the Singles sdtrk "Breath" and "State of Love and Trust" - not sure if these NEED to be included since they've already appeared on a major release but it would've been nice; Merkin Ball tracks "I Got Id" and "Long Road" - would've been nice to have these on there too; "Angel," a fan club X-Mas ('93) single that was slated to be included but pulled at the last moment, apparently (something to do with "Angel" co-writer and former PJ drummer Dave Abbruzzeze (sp), I hear); "Happy When I'm Crying" - another X-Mas single (written by Jack Irons) that's kind of interesting but nobody's really missing anything by its ommission here. That's about all I can think of. Hopefully there'll be a Lost Dogs V.2 in future.
The track listing for Lost Dogs is:
DISC ONE
All Night
Sad
Down
In The Moonlight
Hitchhiker
Don't Gimme No Lip
Alone
Education
"U"
Black, Red, Yellow
Leaving Here
Gremmie Out Of Control
Whale Song
Undone
Hold On
Yellow Ledbetter
DISC TWO
Fatal
Other Side
Hard to Imagine
Footsteps
Wash
Dead Man
Strangest Tribe
Drifting
Let Me Sleep
Last Kiss
Sweet Lew
Dirty Frank
Brother Instrumental
Bee Girl
Free Music Review: There's never been a b-sides album this good
Hit: 5 Stars
I have to agree with the majority of reviewers here: Lost Dogs is indeed an amazing double album that easily rivals any other Pearl Jam album. How many bands out there have b-sides that are just as good as (and oftentimes, even better than) their a-sides? Not many. Say what you will about Pearl Jam, but the mark they have made in the music world is tremendous.Many PJ fans will already know many of these b-sides such as "Yellow Ledbetter," "Black Red Yellow," "Other Side" and "You," which have previously been available on PJ's singles. But it's great to see so many new b-sides which I'm sure even the most die hard PJ song collector doesn't have all of. I agree that there are some b-sides missing like "Leatherman" and "Angel" but should we really expect it to be perfect? Lost Dogs offers more than enough rarities, and that should be the main focus here. So pick this album up even if you're a casual PJ fan. The majority seem to be in agreement about its worth. And so far the only bad reviews here are the typical immature rants that put down the band itself rather than focusing on their music, written by people who have to say something but have nothing to say, if you get my drift. And no, I'm not just saying this because those people gave it one star. I've read many one star reviews for other albums, movies, etc. that reflect well-written, thought-out honest opinions. I can respect those even if I may strongly disagree with them. But people who only give these types of bashing one star reviews just can't seem to realize that the joke is really on them. Ok, off my soapbox!
Free Music Review: Other bands should be really embarrassed
Hit: 5 Stars
This is an amazing collection of unreleased material.There are songs here from every era and line-up of the band. These are songs that were not put onto the studio albums, were put on benefit albums, or were just somehow lost in the mix. I won't go into a song by song analysis, because that would be useless and annoying. Everyone will have a different favorite, and deep down I know that you don't care what mine is.
We live in a time where it is scary to spend hard-earned money on a CD because they so often contain a couple of good songs and a bunch of filler. But here comes Pearl Jam. They release a double disc set of songs that they just had lying around, and it is an incredible collection from start to finish. The evolution of the band is easily traced through these songs also. It is easy to follow the maturing of the band in this collection of songs. They just keep getting better and better.
What an embarrassing collection this should be to other bands. Pearl Jam has 30 songs of this quality just lying around. There are more good "extra" songs here than some bands ever manage to write.
There is only one thing that I would change about this collection. I would include the song "Crazy Mary" from the Sweet Relief Disc. This is a cover of a Victoria Williams song and is just incredible. The Sweet Relief disc is worth buying just for the Pearl Jam song, although there are other gems on it also, such as covers by Lou Reed, Soul Asylum, Michelle Shocked, Michael Penn, and others.
In conclusion, I would like to say, BUY THIS DISC. You will not be disappointed.
Free Music Review: can PJ release a bad CD? I think not...
Hit: 5 Stars
Pearl Jam cannot release a bad album because they don't know how to play bad music. 'Lost Dogs', a great collection of bsides, rarities and songs from compliations is completely mind blowing. Ed shines on 'Footsteps' and 'Hitchhiker' and McCready guides us into guitar heaven with his amazing riffs in 'Yellow Ledbetter'. This 2 disc album features amazing songs from every era, the only downside to this album are the songs that aren't sang by Ed.'Sweet Lew', though a good chorus just doesn't cut it. Ament should stick to bass guitar if he knows what's good for him.
'Whale Song' is kind of boring
'Don't Gimme No Lip' sounds a lot like 'Mankind' off No Code but there shouldn't be any doubt why. Stone. Probably would be better if Ed had lead vocals.
But seriously, the unreleased tracks that are featured on here such as 'All Night' and 'In The Moonlight' are brilliant.
Though all the songs are each in their own way amazing, I am a little disappointed with some songs not making it on here. For instance, where is Leatherman? Long Road? I Got ID?
But songs like 'Fatal', 'Sad', 'Down', 'Hold On' and 'Hitchhiker' make up for it. 'Fatal' is probably one of the best Pearl Jam songs ever written.
'Gremmie Out Of Control' is Pearl Jam with a California twist on it. I love the background yelling (thanks Stone). It's always a fun song.
In all, any Pearl Jam fan would definitely enjoy this collection and I'd recommend it to any alt/rock fan. It's truly a masterpiece in its own.