Last night at the Bonnaroo Music Festival, the venerable rockers of the Dave Matthews Band did an excellent job of putting the outdoor concert series to bed while kicking off yet another behemoth summer tour - their last before taking a previously-unheard-of break from touring in 2011 after some two decades on the road. The band, though still strong as ever, will benefit from the battery charge; the death of founding member LeRoi Moore in 2008 could have stopped them in their tracks, but they released their strongest album in years with 2009's Big Whiskey and the Groogrux King.
It's a safe bet that DMB will keep a low profile after the tour ends in September, but one wonders if the band's longtime label, RCA, will work with Legacy Recordings to produce any catalogue output in the interim. There's a bit of catalogue work that would be most welcome - it would be nice to see a legal release of the oft-bootlegged material from 2000 that's famously known as The Lillywhite Sessions (which became the basis for a later album, 2003's Busted Stuff) - but perhaps most necessary to at least rein in newer fans while DMB takes a break would be a decent compilation of the band's output.Yes, there was a DMB compilation released in 2006. That set, The Best of What's Around, Vol. 1, felt largely like a contractual obligation, featuring two songs cherry-picked off each of the band's six studio LPs at the time. There was a version, seemingly harder-to-find nowadays, that included a bonus disc (or two, if you pre-ordered the set online) of unreleased live material - the band's obvious bread and butter - but would it be terrible to see a greatest-hits set that accurately captures the band's best studio/singles work? Hardcore fans may balk, sure, but a release under Legacy's Essential banner would probably grab newer fans by the time DMB rolls out a new tour.
Here's to another great summer for Dave Matthews and company, commemorated by a hypothetical look at what an Essential DMB title might look like.
Dave Matthews Band, The Essential Dave Matthews Band (RCA/Legacy)
- What Would You Say (Video Version) - 4:07
- Ants Marching - 4:31
- Satellite (Radio Edit) - 4:14
- Too Much (Edit) - 3:45
- So Much to Say (Edit) - 3:05
- Crash Into Me (Edit) - 4:15
- Don't Drink the Water (Edit) - 4:35
- Stay (Wasting Time) (Remix Edit) - 4:30
- Crush (Edit) - 4:12
- I Did It - 3:36
- The Space Between (Remix) - 3:34
- Everyday (Radio Edit) - 4:10
- Where Are You Going (Radio Edit) - 3:46
- Grace is Gone (Remix) - 4:37
- Grey Street (Rock Remix) - 4:28
- American Baby (Radio Edit) - 3:42
- Funny the Way It Is (Radio Edit) - 4:00
- Why I Am - 3:54
- You and Me (Radio Edit) - 4:20
Original versions of Tracks 1-3 from Under the Table and Dreaming (1994)
Original versions of Tracks 4-6 from Crash (1996)
Original versions of Tracks 7-9 from Before These Crowded Streets (1998)
Original versions of Tracks 10-12 from Everyday (2000)
Original versions of Tracks 13-15 from Busted Stuff (2003)
Original version of Track 16 from Stand Up (2005)
Original versions of Tracks 17-19 from Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King (2009)
I'd welcome a nice DMB collection, perhaps including some songs from his solo album (Some Devil) as well? I'd like to see "Gravedigger" on that compilation.
But what's with all the edits in your tracklist, Mike? Sorry, but I HATE when you buy a "best of" set and you get stuck with radio, single edits. Those hides cuts on both "My Life" and "Pressure" on the original pressing of Billy Joel's Greatest Hits Vol I & II come to mind immediately. Thankfully, Sony fixed that years later.
Honestly, why would anyone want shorter versions of a song? It's a great way to get me to NOT buy a collection. I don't want or need all of DMB's albums, but if I buy a collection I want the original, full versions of the songs they way they were originally released.
Sorry, I meant to say "Those hideous cuts..."
I like the full-length versions, too, but there's definitely a place for "edits." For one thing, the track list above wouldn't be possible if you included the full-length versions of every song... you'd have to eliminate 2 or 3 songs to make it fit on a single CD.
Plus, for people looking for the songs they've heard on the radio, the remixes and edits are likely the songs they're familiar with. Some DMB songs are over 5 and 6 minutes in their original form, and those never got played on commercial radio. For most people who know DMB from the radio, the single edits ARE the definitive versions.
All well put, guys! In fact, Shaun, your comment has inspired a whole new post, due up in a bit.
(Although, if I may meekly defend my choices, the video version "What Would You Say" is actually longer than the LP version. So I'm not totally crazy about edits.) 😛
I think if you wanted a truly good DMB compilation, it would have to be two discs. Here's my pick on what would be on an Essential Dave Matthews Band collection:
Disc 1:
1. What Would You Say
2. Jimi Thing
3. Typical Situation
4. Ants Marching
5. Satellite
6. Too Much
7. So Much to Say
8. Two Step
9. Crash into Me
10. Tripping Billies
11. Don't Drink the Water
12. Stay (Wasting Time)
13. Crush
14. Rapunzel
Disc 2:
1. I Did It
2. The Space Between
3. Everyday
4. Where Are You Going
5. Grace is Gone
6. Grey Street
7. American Baby
8. Dreamgirl
9. Everybody Wake Up (Our Finest Hour Arrives)
10. Smooth Rider
11. Funny the Way It Is
12. Why I Am
13. You and Me
Disc 1, Tracks 1-5 from Under the Table and Dreaming (1994)
Disc 1, Tracks 6-10 from Crash (1996)
Disc 1, Tracks 11-14 from Before These Crowded Streets (1998)
Disc 2, Tracks 1-3 from Everyday (2001)
Disc 2, Tracks 4-6 from Busted Stuff (2002)
Disc 2, Tracks 7-10 from Stand Up (2005)
Disc 2, Tracks 11-13 from Big Whiskey and the Groo Grux King (2009)