 |  | Nobody can touch Winger's musicianship....Legendary Band |  |
Every member of this band was a trained musician of the highest calliber...they actualy had to tone things waaaay down for Winger to not overwhelm the music buying public. One of the heaviest of the 80's bands, along with Dokken, these guys are at the top of my list. Kip is an excellent songwriter, and as a fellow musician is somehone whom I greatly admire. I recomend buying each Winger Cd, as due to space of course this collection is missing allot of great material.
Fozzy All That Remains Reloaded is another great CD from a newer band that you need to check out.All That Remains Reloaded (W/Dvd)
April 18, 2008| | | Great mix from the often scorned Winger | |
THE BAND: Kip Winger (lead vocals, bass), Reb Beach (guitars), Rod Morgenstein (drums & percussion), Paul Taylor (keyboards - 1st and 2nd albums only), John Roth (guitars on track 1 only).
THE DISC: (2001) 16 tracks clocking in at approximately 73 minutes. Included with the disc is a 14-page booklet containing song titles/credits, several band photos, 9-pages of band history from writer Doug Ling (Classic Rock Magazine), studio album cover artwork, what songs came from which albums and year released. This compilation follows the band from 1988-1993 (with the new song - track 1 - being recorded in 2001). Elements from each of the band's studio album artwork appear on this 'Best Of' cover. Label - Atlantic Recording Corp & Rhino.
COMMENTS: I know I'm not alone here... but to this day, when Winger comes to mind, I still think of Beavis and Butthead making fun of the geeky kid Stewart next door (while Beavis and Butthead wore their Metallica and AC/DC t-shirts, Stewart was often found wearing a Winger t-shirt). It's too bad - because Kip Winger & Company had some great tunes. The musicians were extremely talented - all the guys can play. As much as this was Kip Winger's band, listen to Reb Beach tear it up on guitar - the guy could shred with the best of them. Ever since I heard his guitar work on "Seventeen" (beginning, middle solo and ending) I was a fan - including his albums with Dokken. Drummer Morgenstein is an accomplished lefty behind the kit - honing his chops in the 70's with the Dixie Dregs and several side projects, including teaming up with Dream Theater's Jordan Rudess in 1997. Kip Winger is no slouch on bass - he's put in his time too with the likes of Alice Cooper, Kix, Jordan Rudess, Bob Dylan, Twisted Sister, Fiona, and several solo projects. For all intensive purposes, Winger had 3 studio albums in their prime (though they'd get together on and off in the years to come, release some solo material, join other bands, put a live album out in 2007, and reunite with Winger's "IV" in 2006). The tracks are presented in reverse order - starting with the new unreleased tune, then to the underrated "Pull", followed by songs from "In The Heart Of The Young" and Winger's debut. THE GOOD: The Winger staples are all here in glorious remastered sound - "Madalaine", "Hungry", "Seventeen", "Headed For A Heartbreak", "Miles Away", "Easy Come Easy Go", "Can't Get Enuff", "Junkyard Dog (Tears On Stone)", "Down Incognito", "Blind Revolution Mad", etc. The unreleased song "On The Inside" is classic Winger - trademark vocals, a funky heavy beat with an ultra crunchy rhythm guitar. Another bonus is "Hell To Pay" - previously only available on the Japanese edition of "Pull"... fits right in with the other songs from the time. The remastered sound is deep and crisp. THE NOT SO GOOD: As far as compilations go, this "Very Best Of Winger" is outstanding. To me, only one thing sticks out - Five tracks each from "Pull" and "In The Heart Of The Young"... and only four tracks from Winger's debut. There was room at the end of the disc - why not throw the only glaring omission - "Hangin' On" - at the end to make it complete. "Miles Away" is the band's sappiest power ballad, but it's the band's highest charting single (#12)... so of course I understand it's inclusion here. OVERALL: If you were into the other hair bands of the 80's and early 90's (Poison, Motley Crue, Dokken, Bon Jovi, White Lion, Ratt, Slaughter, etc), you probably liked some Winger too... even if you still refuse to admit it. All being said, this is a great introduction to the band (5 stars).
April 14, 2008Winger are one of the greatest rock bands of all time. They are all musicians of the highest calibre and together they made some very high quality albums. This best of CD has all the hits and a great new song too! The production is outstanding and the whole album just rocks. If you love high quality melodic rock then check this out. Highly recommended to fans of Giant, Radioactive, and Extreme.
January 24, 2008Before I bought this CD the only Winger I knew of were Seventeen, Madalaine, Easy Come Easy Go, and Headed for a Heartbreak....but let me tell you that the slower tracks Under One Condition and Who's the One have exceeded my expectations on Kip Winger's musicianship as well as his lyrics. New songs to me, especially Down Incognito and Blind Revolution Mad are automatic favorites!!! I'm really diggin the new track On the Inside too!! Keep rockin Kip!!!
March 16, 2007| | | Excellent Collection of Songs From One of the More Underrated Rock Bands | |
I was never a huge Winger fan in the late 80s when I was in college, but did dig "Seventeen" and Reb Beach's incredible melancholic guitar solos on "Headed for a Heartbreak." And I never listened to Winger's two albums following their initial album. So when I heard Winger was touring in 2007, I decided to buy this "best of" compilation so I would know most of the songs at the concert I was going to attend. I've probably listened to this CD 40 times in the last month -- I had no idea how many cool songs this band had, and what a great song-writer Kip Winger really is. There is no filler on this compilation, and I highly recommend it to anyone who likes high quality, hard rock. The sleeper song in here is "Hell to Pay," which is an outtake from the third album "Pull." Absolutely hard rocking.
March 8, 2007More reviews at Amazon.com ...
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