Foreigner Album: “Very Best...And Beyond”

This is a great cd for many reasons. It has just about any kind of rock 'n roll that you're looking for. Whether you want good ballads, ("Waiting For A Girl Like You" and "I Want To Know What Love Is"), upbeat tempos, ("Say You Will" and "Double Vision"), or just some great classic rock, ("Hot Blooded" and "Urgent"), plus some rockin' unreleased songs like "Soul Doctor," it's all here for you in one album. I collect all the good music that I heard while I was growing up in the 80's, and Foreigner was one of my favorite groups and still are. Foreigner was one of the most underrated bands by the critics, but if you like classic rock then you should like this album.

This compilation is close to being perfect with two major problems though. The first problem is the addition of 3 new songs, all of which are stinkers. Luckily those songs are the first songs on the CD so one could simply start on track 4. I know one could go on and on about such and such tracks should be included but releasing a Foreigner compilation without Long, Long Way from Home as this compilation does can't be justified. This was one of their biggest hits on Rock stations, basically a staple on such stations and also a top 20 hit. Omitting that song is similar to deleting Let the Good Times Roll on a Cars compilation, not a huge hit but a staple at Rock stations. It also omitted Blue Morning, Blue Day but that is not the same travesty.

Sound quality is decent; recent re-mastered compilations provide a slight improvement but the difference is nothing to write home about.

If you only want a single Foreigner CD compilation with full length versions, this is a decent buy, provided you could live without the above mentioned tracks. If you can live with edited versions for radio airplay, get the single

which is a definite greatest hits compilation but falls short on being complete due to shortened versions of some of the songs. My choice is The

, a 2cd with all the songs plus the main album tracks in full length versions. Oddly, Rhino has discontinued that album and released (yet) another compilation, decent but not as good as the Definite Collection.

I love Foreigner, they are superb. They are just as enjoyable along with Metallica, Dire Straits, Green Day, Nirvana, and GNR.

This is a fine collection by Foreigner and has my favorite song by them, Waiting for a Girl Like You which is the nicest, loveliest, sweetest and most gorgious songs I have ever heard

which I love. The only song it's missing on here is Girl On The Moon. It could be complete if that song was included. I'm fine with a lot of these songs but never listened to the 3 new songs.

If you could do yourself a favor, and buy this great album along

with Ride The Lightning from Metallica today...

Overall this is a good collection of Foreigner's hits but it's missing two songs that I wanted, Long Long Way From Home and Blue Morning Blue Day, and a couple of others like Break it Up (which entered the Top 30 charts in 1982) and Women (which nearly missed the Top 40 in early 1980). I wouldn't recommend this CD unless if you want the 3 new Foreigner songs like Soul Doctor, Prisoner of Love and With Heaven on our Side, fortunately the songs are unedited unlike the other compilations which is the reason why this CD gets 4 stars, where else would you find unedited versions of Double Vision, Waiting For a Girl Like You, Feels Like the First Time, Urgent and I Don't Want to Live Without You?

Foreigner was popular when I was still in diapers, but I love a lot of their songs from listening to classic rock radio. The major hits are the only ones that are played anymore, so those are the only ones I can really relate with, but this is still a good greatest hits package. There are some new songs on this album, so don't be suprised. They aren't bad, but I still prefer the major tracks.