Melting Pot: The Best of The Charlatans - The Charlatans

Saving the Soul of Britpop

I have a distant recollection that this album was a collection of tracks as chosen by the band. I don't know where I read this, but it explains the addition of a few of the tracks on this essential album. This is a chronological guide through what you could loosely call now the early years of Charlatans music, and opening tracks don't get much better than "The Only One I know", which takes you (if you are of a certain age) back into baggy trousers, floppy fringes and indie clubs in an instant. Through the less familiar tracks (to me at least), to the floor filler "Weirdo", the big tunes get bigger, and I love the inclusion of the fabulously titled "I Never Want An Easy Life If Me And He Were Ever To Get There."

For a Britpop fan as myself, this goes next to all the other greatest hits albums from Ash, Dodgy, Shed 7, Space, and all the others that got left behind by Oasis and Blur.

The heart and soul of indie

The boys are legends in their own life times and they keep getting better. This album shows you what proper indie music sounds like from start to finish - with a bit of rock for good measure. Would have like to have seen How High creep in somewhere but it wasn`t to be. Pure Magic. Long Live Mr Burgess (Even if you are in L.A.)

A masterclass of indie/rock

What can I say, great great songs, from the classic "Only One I Know" to the wonderfull hit from 96 "North Country Boy" theres not a duffer in site. Buy this,The Best Of Blur, The Stone Rose debut, Oasis 1st two releases and Verves Urban Hymns.........and never leave the house again!

Absolutely brilliant!

I bought this album in 2000 after getting really into The Stone Roses the year before, previously not being especially into indie. As everyone knows "The Stone Roses" album is outstanding, so it would take some album to grab my attention from that. The Melting Pot has done that with ease. I knew and loved How High, One to Another and The Only One I Know before I got this album so had a some idea of how The Charlatans sounded. Great tune that it is How High isn't on this album but it doesn't need to be. As you do when you know a few tunes on an album you play those ones all the time and ignore the others, but after playing this through a few times the tunes I didn't previously know became my favourites. Then, the trippy Opportunity Three, Over Rising, Sproston Green, Theme from the Wish, Crashin' in, Just Lookin' and North Country Boy are incredible songs which just get better with every listen. I could list every tune as my favourite which shows how good it is. As this is a "Best Of" album spanning nearly a decade you can hear the way the band's sound changes, which gives the album variety. They keep with the organ throughout though and it sounds incredible right the way through, creating tunes you can dance and rock to. Now I've got most of their albums including Us and Us Only which again is class, with a more slower, bluesy feel to it. Buy it now, you won't be disappointed. Definately 5 star, Burgess sounds better than Brown and in my opinion this album beats The Complete Stone Roses. Praise indeed.