Criminally overlooked in the US...This is great stuff!!!
Thomas Muckinhaupt | Erie, PA United States | 08/13/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"What a shame that Adam Ant is only known by many for his hit single "Goody Two Shoes". Adam and the Ants have a hard edge to their music that transcends the term "new wave". Fantastic melodies, the excellent hard rock guitar sounds from Marco, Adam's always excellent vocals make this CD more than just an interesting curiosity. I can't recommend any CD I've heard lately as much as this. This CD has a raw edge that enhances the already classic material included. The acoustic version of Adam's last hit "Wonderful" is just that."
Too bad the rating only goes to 5!
Thomas Muckinhaupt | 07/09/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I cant say enough about this cd. You MUST own this!!!!!!!! I recieved it a week ago and I've pretty much listened to it nonstop. I'll admit I am an Ant Freak. I love Adam Ant. I think Marco Pirroni is unreal. If you like early punk, you'll LOVE this. These are some of the Ants BEST songs on one cd. Something that is hard to come by for Americans. We weren't blessed with Antbox like the UK was. And these songs are live recordings so you can hear how talented the Ants really were. And a higlight is the acoustic versions of Wonderful, Antmusic (NO drums at all and it just sounds terrific...he recorded this version in 1996 and he sounded better then ever) and Gotta Be a Sin. You really HAVE to buy this cd!!!!!"
Early Ants Stand And Deliver!
Jason M. Carzon | bowie, maryland United States | 01/11/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Most of this disc was released as 'The Peel Sessions' about a decade ago, but this superior version also has two additional early tracks: 'Puerto Rican' and another version of 'Deutcher Girls', as well as three acoustic tracks from 1995. This is a must for anyone interested in Adam's punk roots or punk music in general. A lot of early Ants classics are here: '(You're So) Physical', 'Zerox', 'Never Trust A MAn With Egg On His Face', etc, just that they're different versions- some are slightly slowed down and some are slightly faster than the originals. Forgotten track 'Puerto Rican' finally makes it onto an Ants album, and then there's 'Lou' and 'Ligotage' as well which ended up on the UK Antbox box set from 2000. All classic punk/Ants material which you NEED! Great material, play loud. At the end of the disc is three acoustic cuts from 1995 which are slightly out of place amid these early John Peel sessions from the late 70's, but are a welcome addition. Of these, included is a gorgeous 'Wonderful' as well as a drum-free acoustic version of 'Antmusic' which is stripped down almost into a campfire singalong. These were just Adam and Marco, i believe. The rest of the disc is the original Ants. Get it!"
Classic Early Ants ranks right up there with Dirk...
Bill Wikstrom | Long Island, NY | 04/21/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Finally the BBC has properly issued the complete BBC sessions by Adam and The Ants. Tracks four through twelve were previously with cool artwork issued in 1991 but ommitted the pseudo-offensive "Deutscher Girls" (containing the line "why did you have to be so Natzi?" - hardly promoting Natzis) and "Puerto-Rican" a great song with tounge-in cheek lyrics (irony is seemingly often misunderstood by Americans). The versions of these songs are interesting early versions of songs that were later released either on Dirk Wears White Sox or as A-Sides or B-Sides (or sometimes not at all).
The version of "Zerox" here is incredible (although the single/album version remains the definitive version). It sounds like Kraftwerk playing an angular punk rock song. Terrific!
The versions of "Tabletalk" (with its great "love love love" guitar line), "Animals And Men" (played here twice as fast as the Dirk version) and "Ligotage" (which is French for "Bondage") are all fantastic slices of brooding angular Dirk-era atonal punk.
"It Doesn't Matter" is a fun little song that the band re-recorded during the Vive Le Rock sessions (but in that version they left out the "you smell" punchline). "Lou" -a song about Lou Reed - is pretty much ruined by Jordan's screaming throughout it.
"Cleopatra" is done a tad too slow here and the version of "You're So Physical" here is pretty similar to the Do-It version.
Jumping from '79 to '95 the acoustic versions of "Wonderful" and "Gotta Be A Sin" are pretty ace. The version of "Antmusic" is pretty funny Ant sounds like he's having fun.
A worthwhile and necessary purchase for any Ant fan."