The work of the late musical polymath Karl Wallinger will be revisited this year with a worldwide expanded release of the sole compilation credited to his project World Party.

Originally released in certain territories (and not his native United Kingdom) to promote a tour in 2007, Best in Show was rather cynically designed in sequence with World Party's most popular tracks on digital music shops, thus kicking off with debut single "Ship of Fools" and originally featuring no less than seven tracks from their successful sophomore album Goodbye Jumbo (1990). This new release, available March 14 on CD and (for the first time) yellow and red double vinyl, balances things out somewhat with three additional tracks: one each from mid-'90s efforts Bang! (1993) and Egyptology (1997), plus the favorite "Everybody's Falling in Love," released on the 2012 rarities box set Arkeology. The track list has also been re-ordered, with all audio newly remastered and artwork slightly reorganized.

Wallinger, a preternaturally-talented Welsh songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, rose to prominence as keyboardist in Mike Scott's rock collective The Waterboys from 1983 to 1985. While there, he helped shape the sound of one of the band's best-known singles, "The Whole of the Moon" - but there was little room for his own compositions in Scott's sprawling fiefdom, and he would soon depart. World Party's debut album Private Revolution, released in 1986, was almost entirely performed by Wallinger himself (a noted Prince fan), who devised pseudonyms in the sleeve notes to make things seem more like a band. Though a modest seller at home, Private Revolution enjoyed some success in America when single "Ship of Fools" became a surprise Top 40 hit.

While Wallinger was the primary force behind World Party in the studio, he would assemble a successful live version for touring purposes, including for many years keyboardist Guy Chambers, his replacement in The Waterboys. Sophomore album Goodbye Jumbo, released in 1990, was a modest but consistent seller and picked up a Grammy nomination for Best Alternative Music Album, while being crowned the year's best LP by British music magazine Q. Spurred by this, U.K. audiences took 1993 follow-up Bang! to No. 2, with the philosophical "Is It Like Today?" becoming World Party's biggest single over there, peaking at No. 19. Wallinger would only release two more World Party albums in 1997 and 2000 before being sidelined for part of the 2000s after a brain aneurysm required he regain most of his musical motor skills. (During this time, he was bolstered by World Party's Ivor Novello Award-winning "She's the One," released on Egyptology in 1997 and covered by Robbie Williams two years later, who took the track to No. 1 in England.) World Party's last release was a 70-track anthology of mostly unreleased material, 2012's Arkeology; Wallinger died of a stroke in 2024, at 64 years old.

Best in Show will save you from tomorrow, whether you're a seasoned fan or just discovering their charms. The full track list and pre-order links are below; as an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases.

Best in Show (originally released as Seaview WP001CD, 2007 - reissued 2025)

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada

* additional tracks

1. Ship of Fools
2. Way Down Now
3. Put the Message in the Box
4. Is It Like Today?
5. She's the One
6. All Come True
7. Sweet Soul Dream
8. Thank You World
9. Sunshine *
10. Is It Too Late?
11. What Does It Mean Now?
12. When the Rainbow Comes
13. Everybody's Falling in Love *
14. God on My Side
15. Private Revolution
16. Always *

Tracks 1, 6 and 15 from Private Revolution - Ensign/Chrysalis CHEN 4, 1986
Tracks 2-3, 7-8, 10, 12 and 14 from Goodbye Jumbo - Ensign/Chrysalis CHEN 10, 1990
Tracks 4 and 9 from Bang! - Ensign/Chrysalis CHEN 33, 1993
Tracks 5 and 16 from Egyptology - Chrysalis CHR 6124, 1997
Track 11 from Dumbing Up - Seaview/Papillon BTFLYCD0006, 2000
Track 13 from Arkeology - Seaview 025, 2012