Best Album Reissues of 2008 (CD Edition)

Besides staying away from anthologies and boxed sets and such, I really had no methodology here. Even the order is not airtight, and could be subject to change. But I’m not going to stress out about it — at least not as much as I am going to about the forthcoming Best Vinyl Reissues of 2008, which are numerous, and choice, and tough to narrow down. Watch this space, then, for my Top 127 LPs of the Year.

1. The Replacements - Tim
Expanded / Remastered / Bonus Tracks

With Tim — which gets a makeover and added tracks — the 1985 major label debut that sported enough throwback indie attitude and rough-around-the edges raucousness of its own, the Replacements didn't go the traditional route when it came to showcasing their new material. Indeed, the group expands upon the versatility and promise of its previous release, Let It Be, and solidifies that power and passion with a more cohesive and coherent end result. Tim spotlights songwriter Paul Westerberg's ever-emergent development as a craftsman — musically and lyrically rowdy and romantic, melodic and madcap — on this newer production by former Ramone Tommy Erdelyi — who cleans up the sound without sacrificing too much of the sonic slapdash immediacy of previous Replacements albums. Westerberg's artistic growth is evident throughout, so, for example, an aptly intentional and barely articulated "why don't you all f-f-fade away"-style frustration at the heart of 1984’s "Unsatisfied" finds clearer, more articulate expression in Tim's "Bastards Of Young": "The ones who love us least are the ones we'll die to please…" Westerberg has that healthy sense of cynicism to complement his affecting sensitivity, while Tim remains the all-purpose album of no muss no fuss brilliance from the Replacements. Accept no substitutes.

2. Creedence Clearwater Revival - Green River [40th Anniversary Bonus Tracks]
Remastered / Bonus Tracks / Digi-Pak 

“Well, take me back down where cool water flows, yeah / Let me remember things I love…” It’s that kind of celebratory spirit that makes CCR in general, and Green River in particular, among the best road trip music ever. But what’re those deeper currents about finding “the world is smolderin’”? Or about a “Bad Moon Rising,” or a “Sinister Purpose”? Keep your eyes on the road, son…

Article Author: Gordon Hauptfleisch

Gordon Hauptfleisch is a Blogcritics Books Editor, freelance writer, and book reviewer for the San Diego Union Tribune. For many years he worked in and managed bookstores and record stores. Email him and he'll stop talking in the third-person.
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