This 1997 greatest hits album is a fairly good overview of the career of punk/thrash pioneers Suicidal Tendencies. Here we get classics like "Institutionalized", "You Can't Bring Me Down", "How Will I Laugh Tomorrow?", and "Lovely", along with some other great songs like "I Saw Your Mommy" and "Nobody Hears". We also get some re-recorded songs on here as well that longtime ST fans will either like or dislike (such as "I Saw Your Mommy"), but all in all, this is a good start if you want to get into Suicidal Tendencies, but if you are really looking into getting into the band, start with they're brilliant self titled debut album. Gotta love the album cover here though.
This is a good buy, especially as an introduction to the band.The music is a melting pot of thrash, hardcore, punk, funk and more. The lyrics are cool and really funny at times. Lots of great songs.
Well,what do you know?I was rummaging through some CD's I haven't heard in awhile and I came across this.'Prime Cuts' features tunes from five out of eight(at the time of this release,anyway)S.T. albums,plus two new songs "Beserk" and "Feed The Addiction".I've never been all THAT huge of a Suicidal fan,but I've always liked some of their better known material,here like "Institutionalized",their total ass kick-in-the-groin "Pledge Your Allegiance" and "How Will I Laugh Tomorrow".An added bonus to this disc is the art that appears on the back cover.Top of the line punk/thrash.Check it out.A should-have.
This CD has quite a bit to recommend if you're just getting into Suicidal Tendencies. It brings together some of Suicidal's better-known tracks (I wouldn't really call 'em hits), re-recordings of some early material, and a couple new songs with the band's then-current lineup (basically Infectious Grooves plus Mike Clark). Of the two new ones, "Berserk!" is a slightly goofy take on mosh-pit morons who jump into the pit just to beat the crap out of their fellow concert-goers, while "Feeding The Addiction" describes the hell that is... well, take a guess.
And as for the rest, "You Can't Bring Me Down," "Gotta Kill Captain Stupid" and "Send Me Your Money" kick major butt. "Nobody Hears" is okay, but I can live without "Asleep At The Wheel." On top of that, I don't think the world really needs a rap-metal remake of "Join The Army," and if they had to put "Institutionalized" and "I Saw Your Mommy" on here, why did they have to use the versions from Still Cyco After All These Years?
Then we've got "Go Skate!", a re-recording of "Possessed To Skate" which works just as well as the original. The album closes with "How Will I Laugh Tomorrow," which is still one of the best songs ST has ever done.
In short, if you want a little of everything Suicidal has done (at least from their major-label releases), get this record.
This compilation is fine to give you a glimpse into ST's world and to see how their music and approach changed all over the years. From thrash-punk to heavy-metal, ST delivered many albums of great music, especially the triad JOIN THE ARMY, HOW WILL I LAUGH TOMORROW? and LIGHTS, CAMERA, REVOLUTION, their second, third and fourth releases, that deserve a place into the greatest albums of thrash metal, next to METALLICA, SLAYER, ANTHRAX and many more. In addition to the regular songs, you have new 97' recordings of "Join the army" (called "JOIN THE NEW ARMY"), and "Possessed to skate" (called "GO SKATE!"), and two new brand songs, "BERSERK" and "FEEDING THE ADDICTION".
The problem with this compilation is that you have songs from every release up to 1997, but only 5 from the triad before mentioned. Due to contractual-label reasons, you don't have any song from their first album, except from the re-recorded "Institutionalized", taken from the album "Styll cyco after all these years", not from the original one. From the great "Join the army" album, you have only the new version of the song "Possessed to skate" and "Join the Army" that is more funky and groovy, emphasizing the bass with a more hardcore approach, like the new recordings done for this compilation, far from the old thrash and brutal Suicidal Tendencies that, personally, I like best. I would remove from this compilation the new songs and the new recording of "Join the army" and complete the rest with original material from JTA and HWILT albums. The rest is ok.
Let's go to the songs album by album:
- SUICIDAL TENDENCIES (1983) and STYLL CYCO AFTER ALL THESE YEARS(1993): From the first album, you'll find "Institutionalized" and "I saw your mommy", but no the original versions. The ones featured here are taken from the re-recordings album SCAATY, and of course are much better than the old versions, due to sound problems mainly.
- JOIN THE ARMY (1987): from this one you have only new versions, that really don't make any justice to the original ones, except "GO SKATE", that is more thrashier. I'd add "Suicidal maniac", "The prisioner" or the rarely forgotten "War Inside my head".
- HOW WILL I LAUGH TOMORROW (1988): you have "Pledge your allegiance" and "How will I laugh tomorrow?" taken from HWILT? Two great attitude-songs from an even better album. A classic such as "Trip at the brain" is missing.
- LIGHTS, CAMERA, REVOLUTION (1990): The album opens with "You can't bring me down", a very powerful song, along with "Send me your money" and "Lovely". For the first two ST made their respective videos.
- THE ART OF REBELLION (1992): "Nobody hears", "I wasn't meant to feel like this" and "Gotta kill captain Stupid". The album is different from the old stuff, that was thrashier, faster a more direct. THE ART... is a mid-paced album but good song writing. Of course, it never reaches the level of earlier releases. All proper choices.
- SUICIDAL FOR LIFE (1994): only the song "No fu+in problem", which I consider I good choice and decision to include it in this album.
- NEW RECORDINGS and NEW SONGS: "JOIN THE NEW ARMY" and "GO SKATE", and "BERSERK" and "FEEDING THE ADDICTION". More funky, groovy and less thrashier. I consider them fillers.
Anyways, and as I said before, is a good and decent compilation with some of ST's greatest moment if you want to check ST out. Don't get me wrong, the new songs are cool and well written, and maybe worth listening. But remember this. You have only 5 songs from ST's 3 best records out of 30+, but enough to give a look into one of the most original thrash bands ever.
Ps: you have another compilation entitled "FNG" (1992) that features material (25+ songs) from ST's first three releases if you think it's better.
