Track Listing

1. Blue Thunder
2. Flowers
3. When Will You Come Home
4. Listen, The Snow Is Falling
5. Sorry
6. Fourth of July
7. Don't Let Our Youth Go to Waste
8. Strange
9. Another Day
10. Snowstorm
11. Summertime [Live]
12. Tugboat
13. Blue Thunder [Video Track]

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #172501 in Music
• Released on: 1998-09-29
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Enhanced

Amazon.com
Recalling Boston bands, most will name the alt-rock clique that includes the Pixies, the Breeders, Blake Babies, and Throwing Muses. Classic-rock apostles will summon images of Aerosmith. But very few will name one of the most influential bands of the late '80s and early '90s. In the United States, Galaxie 500 remained nearly anonymous throughout their brief but brilliant career. Enjoying a broader admiration in the U.K., Galaxie 500 performed there frequently, enjoying an outpouring of critical acclaim with every tour. Their sound nods to the Velvet Underground with its uncomplicated yet provocative slo-mo melodies. But their distorted wash of guitars and reverbed-into-oblivion vocals make their contribution to the shoegazing movement of 1988-1992 essential. The Portable Galaxie 500 is a compilation of the best songs from their previous albums. With each listen, you'll regret more and more the brevity of this band's marvelous tenure. --Beth Bessmer

New Musical Express
Their quiet might still looms. Not simply in their own material ... but also--and this is a fine thing--in their cover versions. Galaxie 500 took Jonathan Richman's "Don't Let Our Youth Go To Waste", and Yoko Ono's "Listen, The Snow Is Falling" and filled them (frighteningly hollow, exultantly sad), simply, with their sound. If that sound has a name, it's an ache. And rarely does fragility feel so strong.

From the Label
The Portable Galaxie 500 is an enhanced "best of" album that showcases the brilliant four-year career of this Boston-based trio. Its twelve songs, collected from all of their albums (Today, On Fire, This is Our Music, Copenhagen and The Galaxie 500 box set), chronicles a short career which sparked a revolution in ambient rock and roll. Though their minimalist approach was too far ahead of its time to cash in on the popular heyday of "alternative rock," Galaxie 500's inventive sounds influenced a generation of bands who were liberated by their slow tempos, subtle melodies and songs that were simple but rich in their use of space and quiet.

Customer Reviews

Buy "On Fire" or "Today" Instead
The music of Galaxie 500, like the music of Nick Drake, lends itself well to compilations, because it all sounds so similar. It would be difficult to put together a collection of songs by either artist that did not hold together well. For that very same reason, however, compilations are unnecessary. You can get the same high quality listening experience by buying one of the original albums, and then if you like it you can buy the others. With Galaxie 500, the best place to start is "On Fire," and you won't go wrong with "Today" either. (Stay away from "This Is Our Music," however. That one only contains a few good songs.)

"The Portable Galaxie 500" is a nice selection, but like all other fans of the band, I do have my quibbles about some of the omissions, especially "Temperature's Rising," "It's Getting Late," and "Isn't It A Pity." The compilers also missed a golden opportunity by failing to include "The Other Side," a magnificent track with Naomi singing lead, which as far as I know is only available in the boxed set (a virtually impossible-to-find item right now--at a reasonable price, that is). Furthermore--and I may be completely alone in this opinion--I can't stand the saxophone version of "Blue Thunder" included here, while the "straight" version of that song (from "On Fire") is my favorite Galaxie 500 song.

So if you're looking to test the waters with this great band, go straight to the original releases. Other reviewers on this site have already provided some wonderful descriptions of the Galaxie 500 sound, so no need for a recap here.

Sure, this CD makes you fly...
...but this compilation is far from doing justice to the mindblowing talents of Dean, Damon and Naomi. There are so many injustices in the selection of songs considered "best of" G500 that this record should be illegal in 48 states. Please! Where's "King of Spain", "Oblivious", "Hearing Voices", "Melt Away" and, at least, half of the songs from "On Fire"? Please! Don't tell me they didn't fit the CD! Ask Robert Pollard how many songs he used to put in a compact disc! Nevertheless it's an amazing band performing amazing songs, all soulful, melodic and so simple it makes your heart ache and your head slip away for a few minutes. Just damn beautiful. "Blue Thunder" is something out of this world. Although, if you want some ALL THE GLORY of Galaxie 500, do yourself a big favour and buy all three albums (or the G500 Box-set). Newcomers can begin with "On Fire". But it's all good. You won't be making a mistake if it's your heart that's still beating in your chest. You got the idea, right? It's a great LP, I only gave it 3 stars for the many songs missing.

small, grey and quiet-- perfection
This "best-of" of the wonderful Galaxie 500 does them more than justice by wisely pulling off all of the high points from their three albums. the alternate version of "Blue Thunder" is especially affecting, what with the addition of devastating saxophone-- the broken-apart climax that Galaxie 500 always hinted around without ever tipping over that edge. Blue Thunder is worth your hard-earned money as it is. The somber "Flowers" follows, giving you that feeling of watching someone you're totally enamored with live their life apart from you-- all in the snow, of course. Other high points include the cover of Yoko Ono's "Listen..." and "Another Day," their best song, in my opinion, shich again nearly breaks down with it's trying-to-keep-it-together vocal harmonies. I get misty-eyed just thinking about it. "Tugboat" ends this set, centering around the line "there's a place I'd like to be." Thanks to Dean and crew, we're there with him.