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2009 two CD collection from the Scottish/Irish Pop rockers. Snow Patrol are one of the biggest and boldest bands of the past decade. Over 15 years and five studio albums, the part Irish, part Scottish five piece have sketched heart-bruised ballads and arm-around-your-best-mate festival anthems, radio hits and moments of painful introspection. All of these have been gathered together for Up To Now, a 30 track, double album of singles, cover versions, rarities, album tracks and a handful of new songs. From their formation in Scotland in 1994, the band's hard-earned rise has seen them become one of the world's biggest bands, culminating in them selling over 10 million copies of their last three albums!
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Reviews:
Excellent Compilation
Snow Patrol is a tremendous band and Up To Now will not disappoint. This album is essentially a collection of their best music to date. The track Signal Fire from the Spiderman soundtrack is also included as well as excellent live tracks. I highly recommend this album.
SP past & present
Didn't know most of these songs, but new that I loved the 2 newer CDs. Heard about this compilation coming out at their concert at NY's Beacon Theater & counted the days until I could order it. Well it didn't disappoint me and has prompted me to own everything they've recorded. I agree that these selections represent some of their best work, but Gary Lightbody's been so prolific that it truely is just a sample. Use this to wet your appetite and explore the earlier stuff. You can hear them experiment with sounds & styles and eventually figure out what works best for them.
Perfection
I had lost one of my other Snow Patrol albums and was on here to buy another copy of it. Lo and behold, I come across "Up to Now", not knowing SP even HAD a greatest hits album out. To make this suprise even more pleasant, I scroll down and see that it's a 2-disc collection! All my favorites on here [Crack the Shutters, Hands Open, Chocolate] plus other great songs that I'd never heard before [like Cartwheels].
This is by far the best greatest hits album since U2 released their 1980 - 1990 collection - a must have for any Snow Patrol fan.
Run
Snow Patrol's career compilation is a great introduction of their chiming melodic-but-melancholic Rock sound to new listeners as it contains their hits and then some, but is also a delight to fans as it contains live versions of a couple of recordings ("Run" - which some think Leona Lewis did first, and "Chasing cars"), but also some rarities like "Signal fire" from the Spider-man 3 soundtrack, B-sides like their interesting cover of Beyoncé's "Crazy in love" (with a spoken delivery from Gary Lightbody: Kind of tough imagining him shaking his tush like B though) and "PPP" (Post punk progression), and 3 new recordings; "Just Say Yes" (a UK top 20 hit), "Give Me Strength" and "Dark Roman Wine".
Not a greatest hits as such (though quite a number of their hits make the cut; "Chocolate", "Run", "Set the fire to the third bar" with Martha Wainwright and the Grammy-nominated "Chasing cars"), and spread over 2 discs, the 30 songs cover all 5 Snow Patrol albums - singles and album tracks included, as well as a couple of songs by Lightbody's side project Reindeer Section ("Cartwheels" and "You are my joy"). Also included is a Lightbody solo version of "An Olive Grove Facing the Sea".
The only tiny complaint one may have is that the songs are not chronologically arranged, allowing us to see the musical growth of the group, but still, this is a career retrospective with a difference. Essential!
Just Say Yes to Snow Patrol
I first discovered Snow Patrol in 2004 when "Spitting Games" became an alternative radio hit. That prompted me to buy its parent album, Final Straw, and I was enough of a fan to also buy the follow-up, Eyes Open, which contains my favourite Snow Patrol song to date, "Hands Open." I decided to purchase Up to Now for a few reasons. Firstly, the lead single and one of three new tracks, "Just Say Yes," is great. Secondly, it allowed me to hear some of the material from their albums prior to Final Straw. Thirdly, it collected some cool non-album tracks, including the soundtrack single "Signal Fire" and such b-sides as "Post Punk Progression" (listed as "PPP" here) and "Crazy in Love."
I say all of this to explain why Up to Now is a five-star compilation. It isn't just because the music contained on these two discs is great, but also because it serves its purpose very well. For the curious who may only have heard a few songs and not own any albums, this set acts as an excellent overview. For casual fans like me, who own some of their prior releases, this collection acts as a good supplement. For big fans, the three new tracks are of such a high caliber that they will not disappoint, standing up well against some of the other highlights of Snow Patrol's catalogue featured here. Therefore, whether this would be your first Snow Patrol album, one of a few, or one of many, I can safely say it is a worthwhile purchase.
