Sam Phillips - Zero Zero Zero: The Best of Sam Phillips

A wrap-up of Sam Phillips's decade-long stint with Virgin Records that began in 1988 with the sublime Indescribable Wow, Zero Zero Zero offers marvels aplenty for anyone unfamiliar with the California singer/songwriter's sterling work. Moreover, there are enough nifty extras tossed in to make it a worthwhile purchase for widely scattered Phillips fanatics. Phillips and producer T-Bone Burnett (Phillips's husband) teamed on all the Virgin releases, lovingly sculpting magical variations on Magical Mystery Tour-style psychedelia. Phillips's helium-high vocals and intriguingly cryptic lyrics, however, are the essential elements in these dizzying pop concoctions. Zero distills new songs, remixes, alternate takes, and album favorites into an intoxicating label sign-off. In the end, one can't help pondering, What next?--Steven Stolder Amazon.com

Like A Fine Wine

Having just listened again to this album, I have to say that it has done nothing but improve to my ears over the years. Don't really think of it as a "best of" collection - it's just a very nice assortment of _some_ of her best songs, plus some very interesting remixes. (The remix of "Fighting With Fire" alone is worth the cost of a typical CD.) All-in-all, a very nice assortment of the work of the most underrated published songstress of our age. March 4, 2008

I really am new to Sam Phillips; for me a good intro

The only other Sam Phillips album I've heard previous was "A Boot & A Shoe". I bought "Zero Zero Zero" to get an idea of whether I'd like to buy more of the earlier Sam. It has happened so often that I've heard one album by an artist, only to buy more and find that I'd somehow picked the one anomolous album. (For instance Jules Shear--"Between Us" is altogether different from anything else he's done--I loved it, and read reviews from fans of his other work who hated it--something for everyone, I guess).

On the strength of "Zero Zero Zero", I will buy more Sam Phillips albums. I liked it well enough to want to hear more, even though it wasn't a cohesive album, like "A Boot and A Shoe" (which was excellent, by the way).

Particularly strong tracks--"I Need Love", "Black Sky", & "You Lost My Mind" January 25, 2005

This Could Have Been a Better Collection....

I bought this CD merely to complete my Sam Phillips collection - even though I already had most of these songs on other CDs of hers. I was initially excited that a 'collection' was made, but then I read the songs listed and felt disappointed. Making a Sam Phillips 'Collection' is an impossible task - how can you pick and choose just a few songs to represent Sam Phillips?!? If anything, they should have released a box set of all her recordings!! While there are good songs on this release, there are many gems missing from what a fan would consider her best collections: like "Go Down", "Standing Still", "I Don't Want to Fall in Love", "I Don't Know How to Say Goodbye to You", "Same Rain", "Baby I Can't Please You", "Same Changes", "Entertain-men", "Help Yourself", I guess I could go on and on. I was surprised to see "Black Sky" on here - which was one of my all-time favorite songs, but didn't think it would be appropriate for a collection disc. The new cuts on here are ok, but nothing spectacular. I still think Virgin Records could have done Sam Phillips more justice by releasing a box set of all her recordings. Now, that would have been a great collection!! August 12, 2003

Doesn't do her justice.

This "Best of" collection doesn't do it's job.
Fans will bemoan essential missing tracks, which, if you are bluntly honest about these sort of things, is unavoidable.
Those wishing to sample this unique artist will be poorly served, as this is nowhere near as ear-grabbing as "Martinis & Bikinis". That record, or the "Indescribable Wow" may be a better jumping-on point.
Nice to hear a few tunes I was not familiar with, but I think the album I'll return to most, of hers. will be "Martinis" March 17, 2003

A Singer/Songwriter Ahead of Her Time

"Zero Zero Zero" is an extraordinary retrospective by an extremely gifted singer/songwriter who has always been ahead of her time.

Phillips' powerful and pointed lyrics paint a world that is superficial, harsh, and illogical.. In "I Need Love" she sings, "I need love, not some sentimental prison; I need God, not the political church; I need fire to melt the frozen sea inside me..." In "Signposts" she longs for a world where "beauty and the truth I could breathe like air." In "Animals on Wheels", a song that pretty much sums up much of human history, she cries, " The famous...don't have to be talented or do good work or be smart....."

It's NOT bitter irony, then, that fame has eluded this multi-talented musician! June 4, 2002

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