electronic :: albums :: get the message: the best of

uk cd (3 71405 2) and limited edition cd/dvd (3 71404 2) released by emi on 18 september 2006. us cd (r2 77621) released by warner bros/rhino on 19 september 2006.

forbidden city
getting away with it
get the message (single remix)
feel every beat
disappointed (single mix)
vivid (radio edit)
second nature
all that i need
prodigal son
for you
imitation of life (new edit)
out of my league
like no other
twisted tenderness
late at night (radio edit)

getting away with it
get the message
feel every beat
disappointed
forbidden city
for you
vivid

us poster.

compilation produced by craig degraff & electronic
remastering: dave schultz & bill inglot at digiprep
co-ordination for emi: nigel reeve

product manager: matt abels
editorial supervision: cory frye
design & art direction: gavin taylor
videos grabs by chris peyton
discographical annotation: steve woolard
project assistance: ginger dettman, sharon
finnie, greg marsh, david ponak and robin hurley

special thanks: rachael bickerton, joe moss, rebecca
boulton, andrew booth & andy robinson

uk 13-track cdr, 13-track cdr with dvd and press release (3714049) and 15-track cdr released by emi in august 2006. us 13-track cd in jewel case released by rhino. the uk cdr promos came in a pvc sleeve with a plain folded insert and an abbey road manufactured disc. the dvd came in a stickered slimline jewel case with no insert. the music on the audio cds is not remastered, while imitation of life is the standard single version.

us cd and uk 15-track cd.

bbc.co.uk, 18 september 2006
mojo, november 2006
q, november 2006
uncut, october 2006

amazon.co.uk
amazon.com
the ideal copy
rhino records

seven years after their last lp—and seven months after rumours of a best of began—electronic finally reunited to present their own view of the cream of their output. co-compiled by marr and sumner themselves, it’s a substantial yet stubborn collection, hitting many of the right notes—every a-side, twisted tenderness, radio mixes and a punchy edit of imitation of life—with some notably singular decisions: the inclusion of like no other and prodigal son (evidently two of their favourites), and opening up with forbidden city instead of getting away with it. that song dominates the collection, with images from its video used on the cover and inside the booklet.

clocking in at over seventy minutes, the main gripe fans will have is its relative lack of b-sides—the most notable omissions being second to none and i feel alright—yet somehow it’s hard to imagine other songs fitting into this almost album-like collection. the one real mistake is the inclusion of the lp cut of feel every beat; it temporarily ruins the momentum of the record with its 45 second fade-in, and the us promo edit would have been just right (the 7" mix by stephen hague is featured on the dvd). still, the dynamic coupling of imitation of life with out of my league just about compensates for this; it’s an inspired piece of tracklisting.

the dvd is similarly lean: the american version of getting away with it followed by the standard edits of the next six promos. colourful and imaginative, get the message and disappointed in particular shine again, both undoubtedly high points of the music video medium. oddly, late at night is not included—a brief shot of bernard sumner in the shadows on the dvd menu suggests a last-minute copyright problem—but this bonus disc will still give people a lot of pleasure. the british limited edition set is the one to go for.

concise liner notes by both band members clarify the story of the band and their current attitude to the music they made. sumner: “electronic was a revitalising experience.” marr: “we had our own sound. you can hear it.” this is pretty much a compilation whose only critics will be people who will never buy it (and perhaps those who already own every track…) yet most of the songs here are not only highlights of electronic’s catalogue, but highlights in the entire history of popular music. omissions aside it’s simply a great collection of worldclass ’90s tuneage; get this and the first album and you’re pretty much sorted.