ECHOES - THE BEST OF PINK FLOYD

I'm not a big fan of greatest hit albums when in comes to prog bands. After all, most of their best songs are far too long to be presented in a commercialized compilation designed to appeal to the mainstream. They are useful to attract new fans, but who hasn't heard of Pink Floyd? Such is the case with this album. First off, it's called Echoes, but you don't even get the full version of Echoes. Also, you get half of Shine On You Crazy Diamond. Blasphemy!

To be honest, I was surprised at how nice some of the inclusions were. "Arnold Layne" and "Bike" might not have been my first choices, so props to whoever submitted those. It's the best compilation Floyd has ever put out, but there is no way to condense such an illustrious career into two discs. Atom Heart Mother, and the FULL versions of Shine on and Echoes are necessary. Also, Animals doesn't get represented at all, which is atrocious. This is the chief flaw of compilations; they sacrifice the best material for space.

If you're new to Floyd, then I'd suggest getting this, but quickly moving on to their real albums. Get Dark Side, Wish You Were Here, Piper at the Gates of Dawn, and Animals. It's one of the better hits albums for prog bands, but it's still decent at best.

Grade: C-