1. My Head Is My Only House Unless It Rains
2. Rollercoaster
3. Corcovado
4. Each And Every One
5. Before Today (Chicane Remix)
6. Mine
7. Protection
8. Single (Photek Remix)
9. Tracey In My Room
10. Missing (Todd Terry Remix)
11. Almost Blue
12. No Difference
13. Cross My Heart
14. Mirrorball
15. A Piece Of My Mind
16. Walking Wounded
This self-proclaimed "Definitive Best Of EBTG"
is the third compilation of
Ben Watt and Tracey Thorn's work to date, following Home Movies in 1993 and
the regrettable cash-in by Warner Brothers in 1996. The latter, issued after
Everything But The Girl had moved on to Virgin and found a new level of
creative and commercial success, was a particularly horrid affair, with its
sickly yellow sleeve and unsolicited, opportunistic remixes of material
patently unsuitable for the dancefloor.
Six years later, the duo's stock has fallen somewhat, with 1999's underrated
Temperamental failing to emulate Walking Wounded's popularity, but in
artistic terms the album was a resounding triumph. Immersing himself ever
deeper into club culture and mellow, intoxicating rhythms, Ben Watt
established his Lazy Dog DJ-ing venture with a fortnightly West London
residency and a brace of well-received mix albums.
It's no coincidence that the clumsily-titled Like The Deserts Miss The Rain
flows like a dream, intelligently and sympathetically sequenced in a way few
official artist compilations ever do, since Watt's mixing duties showcase his
intuitive knack for creating and then maintaining a particular vibe with
successive tracks. This compilation plays more like a personal, private EBTG
tape, made with the care and considerations of a longtime fan.
Kicking off with the little-known (but highly regarded) My Head Is My Only
House Unless It Rains makes this collection's intentions clear, placing the
music itself before the more mundane necessities of a hits-oriented approach.
As such, Like The Deserts.. may give the Virgin accountants a few headaches,
but the key Todd Terry remix of Missing is included - albeit two-thirds of
the way through the album.
Most of their other chart singles are present - from initial 80s bossanova
breakthrough Each And Every One through to pre-reinvention Rollercoaster and
the Walking Wounded releases (Before Today and Single, both in original remix
form... no posthumous fiddling here, thankfully). The lack of selections from
Temperamental is something of a shame; only a non-single standout - No
Difference - makes the cut, so the likes of Five Fathoms, Blame, Lullaby Of
Clubland and The Future Of The Future are sadly overlooked. Other non-single
90s highlights, including Corcovado and Mirrorball, make a welcome appearance
however, and it's likely the 16 tracks here were chosen for their
compatibility with Like The Deserts Miss The Rain's overall style.
The definitive EBTG Best Of then? Well, not exactly - their career has been
too lengthy and diverse to simply condense into 70-odd minutes, but it makes
a pretty good companion-piece to Home Movies. But remember, you'll need
Temperamental as well.
As of April 2009, Blu-rays and DVDs reviewed by the editor are watched on a Panasonic TH-37PX80B
37" Plasma TV with a Sony BDP-1500 Blu-ray player and played through a Yamaha DSP-AX820 amplifier.
PC games reviewed by the editor are on:
Since Jan 2011: Intel Quad Core Dell XPS 8100, i7 CPU 860 @ 2.80Ghz, 8Gb RAM, nVidia GeForce GTS 240, Windows 7
Since Nov 2005: Intel Pentium D 830 3.0Ghz, 1Gb RAM, 128Mb nVidia GeForce 6700XL, Windows XP
Since Aug 2003: Intel Pentium 4 2.66Ghz, 512Mb RAM, 128Mb GeForce4 MX440 graphics, Windows XP
Since May 2003: Intel Pentium 4 2.6Ghz, 512Mb RAM, 128Mb ATI Radeon 9600TX graphics, Windows XP
Since Jun 2002: Intel Pentium III 600Mhz, 384Mb RAM, Windows 98 SE, 64Mb ATI Radeon 8500LE
Since May 2000: Intel Pentium III 600Mhz, 384Mb RAM, Windows 98 SE, Voodoo 3 3000 AGP
