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Average: 4.5 (202 ratings)
- Date Released: November 13, 2007
- Genre: Alternative/Punk
- Style: Alternative, Indie Rock
- Label: Upbeat Records / IODA
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We Say...
It's just like Cake to eschew the typical compilation route, instead opting for a collection of "b-sides of rarities." The group has consistently gone against the grain of popular opinion and won each and every time throughout their career. Here, the group tackles a number of covers that would seem to be impossible for one band to perform (Barry White's "Never, Never Gonna Give You Up," Buck Owens' "Excuse Me, I Think I've Got a Heartache," Frank Sinatra's "Strangers in the Night"?!?!?) and pull them off without a hitch. It's a testament to their versatility — and their resilience in the face of trends that have come and gone many times over — that Cake is still standing. And excelling.
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They Say...
After five mostly successful studio albums, the time seemed ripe in 2007 for a cash-in "Best Of" from irony-heavy pop/rockers Cake. But instead of a typical romp through the band's catalog highlights, frontman John McCrea and company gathered this set of "rarities." While there are some interesting and hard to find sides here, this is a far too brief 12-track, 40-minute compilation. There are virtually no liner notes nor any indication of what year the songs were recorded, or in the case of the B-sides, what the A-side was, which is an unforgivable omission for a historical overview of this type. Everything screams quickie, from the haphazard track sequencing, to the lack of information in the pamphlet and the lackluster graphics. If this is indeed made for die-hard Cake fans, and who else would even pick it up? It's a shoddy, short set that doesn't show respect for the group's dedicated followers, of whom there are many. A full ten minutes of the album's already meager running time is dedicated to two versions of Black Sabbath's "War Pigs," with the opening one a studio recording, and the unlisted final cut a live performance. While both are interesting angles on a song that appears to be outside even Cake's eclectic scope, they are similar enough that the repetition only pads the disc's slim contents. McCrea exposes his love of country with respectful run-throughs of Kenny Rogers & the First Edition's hit arrangement of "Ruby Don't Take Your Love to Town" and Buck Owens' "Excuse Me, I Think I've Got a Heartache" that don't add anything interesting to the classic versions. Much better is Cake's take on Barry White's "Never Gonna Give You Up," which twists the tune through McCrea's built-in sarcasm resulting in the album's most attention-grabbing performance. The spoken word "Thrills" is a cool and strange oddity that gives trumpet player Vince DiFore a chance to solo. Live recordings, although ones without any crowd sounds including applause, of "Short Skirt, Long Jacket" and "It's Coming Down" aren't substantially different than the originals. A smarmy, unfunny "Strangers in the Night" sounds like it was done as a goof in rehearsals, and the short instrumental "Conroy" appears to be cooked up in McCrea's home studio in a few minutes when he was bored. There isn't much of interest for devoted Cake followers and nothing for newcomers, who are advised to avoid this in lieu of the band's first few releases. The better selections would have made logical additions to a hits assemblage, but this is a disappointing odds and sods product for the longtime fans it is clearly geared to attract.
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You Say...
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| 01. |  |
War Pigs |
3:54 |  |
| 02. | |
Ruby, Don't Take Your Love to Town |
2:55 | |
| 03. | |
Mahna, Mahna |
2:54 | |
| 04. | |
Excuse Me, I Think I've Got a Heartache |
2:21 | |
| 05. | |
Conroy |
3:01 | |
| 06. | |
Strangers in the Night |
2:51 | |
| 07. | |
Multiply the Heartaches |
2:47 | |
| 08. | |
Never, Never Gonna Give You Up |
3:50 | |
| 09. | |
Thrills |
2:58 | |
| 10. | |
Short Skirt, Long Jacket |
3:16 | |
| 11. | |
It's Coming Down |
4:12 | |
| 12. | |
War Pigs (Featuring Steven Drozd of the Flaming Lips) |
5:20 | |
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12 Total Tracks, 40:19 Total Length
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Credits
- Cake - Arranger // Cake - Producer // Cake - Mixing // Xan McCurdy - Guitar (Electric) // Xan McCurdy - Vocals (Background) // Xan McCurdy - Group Member // Victor Damiani - Bass // Victor Damiani - Guest Appearance // Vince Di Fiore - Trumpet // Vince Di Fiore - Keyboards // Vince Di Fiore - Harmony Vocals // Vince Di Fiore - Group Member // John McCrea - Guitar (Acoustic) // John McCrea - Vocals // John McCrea - Group Member // Todd Roper - Drums // Todd Roper - Guest Appearance // Paulo Baldi - Drums // Paulo Baldi - Guest Appearance // Tom Sarig - Management // Tyler Pope - Guitar // Tyler Pope - Keyboards // Tyler Pope - Guest Appearance // Pete McNeal - Drums // Pete McNeal - Guest Appearance // Gabriel Nelson - Guitar (Bass) // Gabriel Nelson - Keyboards // Gabriel Nelson - Vocals (Background) // Gabriel Nelson - Group Member // Patrick Olguin - Mastering // Patrick Olguin - Mixing // Tommy Manzi - Management
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