Search - The Allman Brothers Band :: 20th Century Masters: The Best of the Allman Brothers Band

Beware: You will buy more

Matt | 02/05/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"At first, I loved these 20th Century Masters series CDs. They are so cheap ($6.99 at Best Buy when they are on sale, which is frequently) that you can introduce yourself to 5 new essential bands for a measly $30. With some bands, like Lynyrd Skynyrd, I have never felt compelled to buy anything else by them. "Sweet Home Alabama" and "Free Bird" are all I really need, the fact that there are 9 other songs on there is just a bonus. Same goes for Bo Diddley, Buddy Holly and Chuck Berry--the quality of those 50's and early-60's recordings are so bad that I don't want to spend too much on them, good as the songs themselves may be.



But some bands, like the Allman Brothers, deserve a whole lot more. I am about to upgrade my Allman Brothers compilation for the third time--first I got this 20th Cen. best of; then I got the longer "A Decade of Hits," which certainly did not disappoint; and now I have just ordered the two-disc anthology "Stand Back," in order to have every single song from my two current best-ofs, plus some late-career material and a few lost gems, all in one package. Anyway, I'm just warning you: these 20th Century Masters things may do justice to some artists, but they do NOT do justice to the Allman Brothers. You may only be spending $7 on it, but it will have been a wasted $7, because if you have properly functioning ears you WILL be buying more."