B-Sides & Rarities

by

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

Edit

Twenty-one years in the making and totaling fifty-six tracks spread over three cds, "B-Sides and Rarities" sounds nothing like many other uneven career overviews. To Cave's credit it sounds more like one REALLY long album. A similar collection from a lesser artist would likely have all the hallmarks that a set like this would usually entail, the raw primordial early tunes leading up to the more refined but often overproduced later material. But with an artist of Cave's caliber, no such problem arises. As his egalitarian concept was formed early on, there is no obvious sea change to be found on the album. Despite its chronological order, it is still difficult to distinguish the earliest recordings from the more recent material.

Whether delivering gutter punk tirades, gospel hymns, folk blues, classic covers, torch songs or orchestrated pop ballads, The Bad Seeds acquit themselves without irony, despite the seemingly incongruous mix of genres. Cave's tendency to extol both the dark and light side of human existence is well documented and rarely so cohesively as it is presented here.

Almost all of the tracks are, as the title indicates, B-sides and are excellent studio recordings, with only a multi-part suite of Radio Broadcasts on "O'Malley's Bar" falling somewhere below the line audio quality wise. An added bonus is the inclusion of numerous compilation and soundtrack pieces that one would have to drop a fortune on to collect in their entirety. An orchestral version of "Red Right Hand," an acoustic version of "Deanna," and a duet with The Pogues' Shane McGowan on "What a Wonderful World" are highlights. Other than a few one off studio improvisations that go nowhere, the bulk of the collection are fully realized songs that sit comfortably along side their respective album counterparts.

Despite its three hour plus running time, one can actually listen to the entire collection straight through as the diversity of material is strong enough to hold ones interest. Newcomers may want to start investigating with something less daunting, but even the casual fan of Cave's work will find this collection indispensable.