John Hiatt - John Hiatt - Greatest Hits: The A&M Years '87-'94

Unlike Capitol's 1998 release, The Best of John Hiatt, which contained several inferior re-recordings of older tunes, this Hiatt best-of contains the original versions of most of his best-known tunes. The 18-track collection contains healthy dollops of 1987's Bring the Family (with Nick Lowe, Ry Cooder, and Jim Keltner) and 1988's Slow Turning, including "Memphis in the Meantime," "Thing Called Love," "Drive South," and "Tennessee Plates." It's filled out with material from the more recent Stolen Moments ("Real Fine Love") and Perfectly Good Guitar (the title track and "Buffalo River Home"). Mercifully, only one track ("Angel Eyes") is culled from his goofy live album, Hiatt Comes Alive at Budokan?. Hiatt's hound-dog voice and his ability to attract superior players adds luster, but it's the gems from his knockout songwriting run from the late '80s and early '90s that make this an essential disc, particularly for those who don't own the individual albums. --Robert Baird Amazon.com

john hiatt greatest hits

We love it!! My sis-in-law will be coming to visit and we will be dancing the night away...

Thanks so much!!
Mariapia June 7, 2007

HIATT RIOT

The title is a misnomer of sorts, since the only real hits this Hoosier minstrel of mirth and magic's ever had have been those he wrote for other artists (Bonnie Raitt's breakthrough THING CALLED LOVE, Jeff Healey's ANGEL EYES and B.B. King's comeback RIDIN' WITH THE KING among 'em). None of this matters a bit to the legions of fans who idolize his ragged but righteous howl of a voice, and his uncanny ability to pen insightful songs in any genre from rock and country to folk and blues. His slow but sure breakthrough, on undisputed classic albums BRING THE FAMILY and SLOW TURNING, hipped us common folk to what music royalty has known for ages---Hiatt is the "go to guy" for quality music---just ask Three Dog Night, Rosanne Cash, Jewel, or any number of admirers who've scored with his stuff. Speaking of "stuff", GREATEST HITS culls eighteen tracks of wry wit and wistful wisdom; some, like PERFECTLY GOOD GUITAR (seems John's gotta axe to grind 'bout guitar-smashing rock stars), SLOW TURNING (where he namechecks Charlie Watts), and the edgy PAPER THIN, seem to be BEGGING to be covered by some quality-hungry acts somewhere. In addition, you get sandpapery original versions of ANGEL EYES, THING CALLED LOVE, and DRIVE SOUTH, all equal, in a quirky way, to their better known covers. Fans of some of the best songwriting this side of Dylan should start with this retrospective and immediately work their way through John Hiatt's huge catalogue of high caliber work. RATING: FIVE TONGUES IN CHEEK

October 27, 2005

OF THE MANY HIATT "BEST OF'S", NOT THE BEST AUDIO

This compilation was released shortly after Capitol's "The Best Of" (1998). In 2001, the HIP-O label released a 2-disc "Anthology"

Only four tracks on this disc do not appear on the Capitol & HIP-O sets:

6. Through Your Hands
15. The Rest Of The Dream
17. Something Wild
18. Angel Eyes (live from the "Budokan" album)

The audio on the Capitol & HIP-O sets is superior to the mastering on this disc. If you are looking for the best sound, skip this disc and consider the other sets.

I have posted a detailed review on the Capitol disc which details the differences between that disc and this one: The Best Of John Hiatt
October 20, 2005

Great Collection Of John Hiatt's Best Work

GREATEST HITS: THE A&M YEARS '87-'94 is a terrific collection of John Hiatt's best recordings for A&M records, which was the most creatively fertile period of his musical career. Such great rockers as "Thing Called Love", "Perfectly Good Guitar", "Slow Turning", and "Child Of The Wild Blue Yonder", as well as the midtempo ballad "Through Your Hands", tell the story of someone whose beaten their demons and lived to tell about it. This album is a must-own for any fan of roots-rock or country-rock, and the fact that Hiatt believes that the young Australian tourist convicted in Indonesia on trumped-up drug-smuggling charges is innocent only makes this album more worth owning. July 26, 2005

FINALLY!!

I love this album and I especially -love- "Have a Little Faith in Me". I had been searching for it for forever after seeing Benny and Joon and when I saw this cd, I knew I had to have it. Wait'a'go, John Hiatt, for some of the most romantic music around! ^^ January 11, 2005

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