You know, it took some time, but Universal's ICON series is really coming into its own. What began as a limply-packaged, uber-budget-oriented series of single-artist compilations - not a patch on the label's previous 20th Century Masters and Gold series - is really emerging into something unique. It's just a shame it took this many tries to work out the kinks.
Ha ha ha! Who am I kidding? The newest batch of ICON titles, due for release next Tuesday, July 19, is boring. You have a compilation by John Lee Hooker that leaves off a major song ("Boom Boom"), two reissues of past ICON titles with bonus live discs (Cream and Rush), and inessential compilations from Limp Bizkit, The Velvet Underground and The Moody Blues (the latter of which is available as one or two discs).
But if you're curious, have at them after the jump.
John Lee Hooker, ICON (Geffen/UMe B0015652-02, 2o11)
- Sugar Mama
- Leave My Wife Alone
- Walkin' the Boogie
- Please Don't Go
- It Serves You Right to Suffer
- Shake It Baby
- I'm in the Mood
- One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer
- I'm Bad Like Jesse James
- The Motor City is Burning
- Backbiters and Syndicaters
Tracks 1-3 from The House of the Blues (Chess, 1959)
Track 4 from John Lee Hooker Plays and Sings the Blues (Chess, 1961)
Tracks 5-6 from It Serves You Right to Suffer (Impulse!, 1966)
Tracks 7-8 from The Real Folk Blues (Chess, 1966)
Track 9 from Live at Cafe-Au-Go-G0 (Bluesway, 1967)
Tracks 10-11 from Urban Blues (Bluesway, 1967)
Rush, ICON 2-CD (Island/UMe B0015674-02, 2011)
Disc 1 (originally released as Island/UMe B0014654-02, 2010)
- Working Man
- Fly by Night
- The Necromancer
- The Twilight Zone
- Closer to the Heart
- Circumstances
- Freewill
- Limelight
- The Analog Kid
- Red Sector A
- Marathon
- Force Ten
Disc 2
- Bastille Day (Live)
- 2112 (Live)
- The Spirit of Radio (Live)
- Tom Sawyer (Live)
- La Villa Strangiato (Live)
- Closer to the Heart (Live)
- New World Man (Live)
- Vital Signs (Live)
- The Big Money (Live)
- Mystic Rhythms (Live)
- Time Stand Still (Live)
Disc 1, Track 1 from Rush (Moon/Mercury, 1974)
Disc 1, Track 2 from Fly by Night (Anthem/Mercury, 1975)
Disc 1, Track 3 from Caress of Steel (Anthem/Mercury, 1975)
Disc 1, Track 4 from 2112 (Anthem/Mercury, 1976)
Disc 1, Track 5 from A Farewell to Kings (Anthem/Mercury, 1977)
Disc 1, Track 6 from Hemispheres (Anthem/Mercury, 1978)
Disc 1, Track 7 from Permanent Waves (Anthem/Mercury, 1980)
Disc 1, Track 8 from Moving Pictures (Anthem/Mercury, 1981)
Disc 1, Track 9 from Signals (Anthem/Mercury, 1982)
Disc 1, Track 10 from Grace Under Pressure (Anthem/Mercury, 1984)
Disc 1, Track 11 from Power Windows (Anthem/Mercury, 1985)
Disc 1, Track 12 from Hold Your Fire (Anthem/Mercury, 1987)
Disc 2, Tracks 1-2 from All the World's a Stage (Anthem/Mercury, 1976)
Disc 2, Tracks 3-6 from Exit...Stage Left (Anthem/Mercury, 1981)
Disc 2, Tracks 7-8 from Grace Under Pressure Tour (Anthem/Mercury, released 2006)
Disc 2, Tracks 9-11 from A Show of Hands (Anthem/Mercury, 1989)
Limp Bizkit, ICON (Interscope/UMe B0015676-02, 2011)
- Counterfeit
- Faith
- Nookie
- Break Stuff
- Re-Arranged
- Take a Look Around
- Rollin' (Air Raid Vehicle)
- My Way
- Eat You Alive
- Behind Blue Eyes
- The Truth
Tracks 1-2 from Three Dollar Bill, Yall$ (Flip/Interscope, 1997)
Tracks 3-5 from Significant Other (Flip/Interscope, 1999)
Tracks 6-8 from Chocolate Starfish and the Hot-Dog Flavored Water (Flip/Interscope, 2000)
Tracks 9-10 from Results May Vary (Flip/Interscope, 2003)
Track 11 from The Unquestionable Truth (Part 1) (Geffen, 2005)
The Velvet Underground, ICON (Polydor/UMe B0015696-02, 2011)
- I'm Waiting for the Man
- White Light/White Heat
- I Can't Stand It
- Heroin
- Sunday Morning
- Sweet Jane (Live)
- Here She Comes Now
- Pale Blue Eyes
- Stephanie Says
- Rock and Roll (Live)
- Venus in Furs
Tracks 1, 4-5 and 11 from The Velvet Underground & Nico (Verve, 1967)
Tracks 2 and 7 from White Light/White Heat (Verve, 1968)
Tracks 3 and 10 from 1969: The Velvet Underground Live (Mercury, 1974)
Track 8 from The Velvet Underground (Verve, 1969)
Track 9 from VU (Verve, 1985)
The Moody Blues, ICON (Polydor/UMe B0015797-02, 2011)
- Nights in White Satin (Edit)
- Tuesday Afternoon (Forever Afternoon) (Edit)
- Ride My See-Saw
- Question
- The Story in Your Eyes
- Isn't Life Strange
- I'm Just a Singer (in a Rock and Roll Band)
- Gemini Dream
- The Voice
- Your Wildest Dreams
- I Know You're Out There Somewhere
Original versions of Tracks 1-2 from Days of Future Passed (Deram, 1967)
Track 3 from In Search of the Lost Chord (Deram, 1968)
Track 4 from A Question of Balance (Threshold, 1970)
Track 5 from Every Good Boy Deserves Favour (Threshold, 1971)
Tracks 6-7 from Seventh Sojourn (Threshold, 1972)
Tracks 8-9 from Long Distance Voyager (Decca, 1981)
Track 10 from The Other Side of Life (Polydor, 1986)
Track 11 from Sur La Mer (Polydor, 1988)
The Moody Blues, ICON 2-CD (Polydor/UMe B0015798-02, 2011)
Disc 1
- Nights in White Satin (Edit)
- Tuesday Afternoon (Forever Afternoon) (Edit)
- Ride My See-Saw
- Legend of a Mind
- Voices in the Sky
- Watching and Waiting
- Question
- The Story in Your Eyes
- Lost in a Lost World
- Isn't Life Strange
- I'm Just a Singer (in a Rock and Roll Band)
Disc 2
- Steppin' in a Slide Zone
- Driftwood (Edit)
- The Voice
- Talking Out of Turn (Edit)
- Gemini Dream
- Blue World
- Sitting at the Wheel
- Your Wildest Dreams
- I Know You're Out There Somewhere
- Bless the Wings (That Bring You Back) (Orchestral Mix)
- Strange Times
- December Snow
Original versions of Disc 1, Tracks 1-2 from Days of Future Passed (Deram, 1967)
Disc 1, Tracks 3-5 from In Search of the Lost Chord (Deram, 1968)
Disc 1, Track 6 from To Our Children's Children's Children (Threshold, 1969)
Disc 1, Track 7 from A Question of Balance (Threshold, 1970)
Disc 1, Track 8 from Every Good Boy Deserves Favour (Threshold, 1971)
Disc 1, Tracks 9-11 from Seventh Sojourn (Threshold, 1972)
Disc 2, Track 1 and original version of Track 2 from Octave (Decca, 1978)
Disc 2, Tracks 2-5 from Long Distance Voyager (Decca, 1981)
Disc 2, Tracks 6-7 from The Present (Threhold, 1983)
Disc 2, Track 8 from The Other Side of Life (Polydor, 1986)
Disc 2, Track 9 from Sur La Mer (Polydor, 1988)
Original version of Disc 2, Track 10 from Keys to the Kingdom (Polydor, 1991)
Disc 2, Track 11 from Strange Times (Polydor, 1999)
Disc 2, Track 12 from December (Polydor, 2003)
Cream, ICON 2-CD (Polydor/UMe B0015816-o2, 2011)
Disc 1
- I'm So Glad
- White Room
- Strange Brew
- Tales of Brave Ulysses
- Born Under a Bad Sign
- Spoonful
- Politician
- Badge
- Doing That Scrapyard Thing
- Sunshine of Your Love
- I Feel Free
Disc 2
- Sweet Wine (Live @ Winterland, San Francisco - 3/10/1968)
- Rollin' and Tumblin' (Live @ The Fillmore, San Francisco - 3/7/1968)
- Crossroads (Live @ Winterland, San Francisco - 3/10/1968)
- Deserted Cities of the Heart (Live @ Oakland Coliseum - 10/4/1968)
- Sunshine of Your Love (Live @ Winterland, San Francisco - 3/9/1968)
- I'm So Glad (Live @ the Forum, Los Angeles - 10/19/1968)
- Sittin' on the Top of the World (Live @ the Forum, Los Angeles - 10/19/1968)
Disc 2, Tracks 1-2 from Live Cream (Polydor, 1970)
Disc 2, Tracks 4-5 from Live Cream Volume II (Polydor, 1972)
Mike says
Yikes. And by yikes, I mean "ugh".
Tom says
These ICON compilations look cheaply made. The design is tacky. At least the 20th Century Masters and Gold compilations were well made and nicely designed. The Gold series was particularly outstanding, especially the Olivia Newton John and Gladys Knight and the Pips collections.
Bill Janowski says
Even though there's a few versions on it that I don't have, I'll stick with Rush's 1990 compilation 'Chronicles.'
Adam Carrington says
Will Harry be doing Deluxe Editions of Mary J Blige Whats The 411? Or My Life
Megatof says
I'm really not into these kind of best of. I think artists (and buyers!) deserve more than these generic products, which don't even have a title of their own.
They often miss major songs and have poor artworks... and most of the time they come after a regular Best Of which IS a part of the "official" discography...
The only CD I have in this category is The Essential Sly & The Family Stone... But seriously how come you have an Essential Sly, an Essential Billy Joel, an Essential Michael Jackson, an Essential Bruce Springsteen... Record companies treat artists like jam! You just have to choose the flavour!
Eric Luecking says
Ha ha!!! Mike had me all roped into the ruse. Then boom... "boring." That's hilarious. I do concur, though. None of those interest me.
Don says
The 2CD Rush set is slightly interesting in that Disc 2 is a compilation of tracks from their Mercury-era live albums. Then again, so what?
I could see myself buying an ICON title for an artist that I'm only marginally interested in. But the problem with these sets is that there are SO MANY of them, and for some reason stores are stocking up on them big time and leaving no room in the racks for better compilations or, horror of horrors, actual ALBUMS.
Bill Janowski says
Yes, exactly - it's a vicious circle, especially the last part!!