The Complete Beat

The Complete Beat is a 5-CD box set by British ska/new wave band The Beat (known as The English Beat in the US) released on 10 July 2012 only in the US and Canada.[1] The box set contains The Beat's three studio albums remastered and two CDs of bonus content: the first contains extended and dub versions, and the second contains all the tracks from their three Peel Sessions and several tracks live from the Boston Opera House.[2]

The Complete Beat
Box set by
The English Beat
Released10 July 2012 (2012-07-10)
Recorded1979–1982
Genre
Length294:14
LabelShout! Factory
The English Beat chronology
Keep The Beat: The Very Best of The English Beat
(2012)		 The Complete Beat
(2012)		 The Complete Studio Recordings
(2014)

The studio albums are the US release versions, as "Tears of a Clown", "Ranking Full Stop", "Too Nice to Talk To" and "Hit It" weren't included on the original UK releases of their respective albums. Also, both Wha'ppen and Special Beat Service CDs include bonus tracks.

On the same day of release, Shout! Factory also released the single-CD compilation album Keep The Beat: The Very Best of The English Beat and a live album, Live at the US Festival, '82 & '83.[3][4]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic90/100[5]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
The Austin Chronicle[6]
Blurt8/10[7]
Goldmine[8]
Los Angeles Times[9]
Paste9.1/10[10]
Punknews[11]
Rolling Stone[12]

AllMusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave the box set a rating of 4.5 out of 5 and said "as always, the extended mixes and dubs are something that appeals to a particular taste -- those who prefer the pop end of the Beat's equation won't find them compelling -- but their rangy, elastic reworkings underline the adventure and excitement at the core of the Beat. They grew up strong and they grew up fast, so fast that their recordings retain a visceral force that makes The Complete Beat something more than a dream come true for fans: it is a convincing argument for their greatness."[2]

The review aggregator Metacritic has it at a score of 90/100 based on 8 critic reviews.[5] Ray Sidman for Goldmine gave it a 4/5, saying that "there are a few songs in the bunch that are subpar or worse, as would be expected of any performer, but overall, The English Beat built a solid New Wave oeuvre". "The set’s packaging is simple but attractive and sturdy" with a "well-written, 24-page booklet by Alex Ogg that provides a history of band"and "though there are no previously unreleased songs here, many of the rarities are receiving a CD release for the first time with this set".[8]

Reviewing for Rolling Stone magazine, Jody Rosen gave the box set 4.5/5 and said that it "features the band's three great studio albums, plus terrific bonus tracks and dub versions, and a slew of live recordings in which the Beat unleash their dance-floor fury and their Thatcher-era protest politics."[12] Stephen Deusner for Paste magazine gave the box set 9.1/10 and concluded that the live tracks are the "most compelling, if only because it takes them out of the relatively hermetic environment of the studio and puts them in front of an audience. The Complete Beat argues that the band made solid albums as full statements, but this handful of tracks—especially “Tears of a Clown” and “Get-A-Job/Stand Down Margaret”—show them in their natural setting."[10]

Track listing

All tracks are written by The English Beat, except where noted.

Disc 1: I Just Can't Stop It
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Mirror in the Bathroom" 3:08
2."Hands Off...She's Mine" 2:59
3."Two Swords" 2:18
4."Twist & Crawl"The English Beat, Les Bradsell2:34
5."Tears of a Clown"Hank Cosby, Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder2:39
6."Rough Rider"Eddy Grant, Patrick Grant, Dervan Gordon, Lincoln Gordon4:52
7."Click Click" 1:27
8."Ranking Full Stop" 2:47
9."Big Shot" 2:32
10."Whine & Grine/Stand Down Margaret"Prince Buster, The English Beat3:46
11."Noise in This World" 2:15
12."Can't Get Used to Losing You"Doc Pomus, Mort Shuman3:05
13."Best Friend" 3:03
14."Jackpot"George Agard, Sydney Crooks, Jackie Robinson4:17
Disc 2: Wha'ppen?
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Too Nice to Talk To" 3:07
2."Doors of Your Heart"The English Beat, Colin Osborne3:46
3."All Out to Get You" 2:45
4."Monkey Murders" 3:09
5."I Am Your Flag" 2:53
6."French Toast (Soleil Trop Chaud)"Joseph Jefferson3:28
7."Drowning" 3:52
8."Dream House in NZ" 3:11
9."Walk Away" 3:11
10."Over and Over" 2:40
11."Cheated" 3:28
12."Get-a-Job" 3:10
13."The Limits We Set" 4:15
14."Psychedelic Rockers" 3:52
15."Hit It" 3:02
16."Which Side of the Bed?" 4:11
Disc 3: Special Beat Service
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."I Confess" 4:30
2."Jeanette" 2:47
3."Sorry" 2:32
4."Sole Salvation" 3:05
5."Spar Wid Me" 4:30
6."Rotating Head" 3:24
7."Save It for Later" 3:33
8."She's Going" 2:09
9."Pato and Roger a Go Talk" (sung by Pato and Roger)The English Beat, Pato Benson3:19
10."Sugar & Stress" 2:55
11."End of the Party" 3:29
12."Ackee 1 2 3" 3:11
13."What's Your Best Thing" 3:47
14."March of the Swivel Heads" 3:31
15."Cool Entertainer" (sung by Roger Wakeling) 3:32
16."A Go Talk" (Tappy Luppy Dub) (sung by Pato and Roger)The English Beat, Pato Benson8:38
Disc 4: Bonus Beat – 12" & Dub Versions
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Hands Off...She's Mine" (Extended) 4:35
2."Twist & Crawl" (Extended)The English Beat, Les Bradsell5:00
3."Stand Down Margaret" (Dub) 3:32
4."Too Nice to Talk To" (Dubweiser) 4:58
5."Psychedelic Rockers" (Dubweiser) 5:30
6."Doors of Your Heart" (Extended)The English Beat, Colin Osborne5:50
7."Drowning" (Dub) 5:13
8."Hit It" (Extended) 6:29
9."Which Side of the Bed?" (Extended) 7:27
10."Save It for Later" (Extended) 4:53
11."What's Your Best Thing" (Dub) 3:49
12."Cool Entertainer" (Extended) (sung by Ranking Roger) 5:50
13."Jeanette" 4:08
14."March of the Swivel Heads" (Extended) 5:14
15."I Confess" (Dave Allen Remix) 5:45
Disc 5: Bonus Beat – Peel Sessions & Live in Boston
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Tears of a Clown" (Peel Session – November 5, 1979)Cosby, Robinson, Wonder2:53
2."Ranking Full Stop" (Peel Session – November 5, 1979) 3:02
3."Click Click" (Peel Session – November 5, 1979) 1:30
4."Mirror in the Bathroom" (Peel Session – November 5, 1979) 2:24
5."Big Shot" (Peel Session – November 5, 1979) 1:53
6."Too Nice to Talk To" (Peel Session – September 22, 1980) 4:10
7."Psychedelic Rockers" (Peel Session – September 22, 1980) 4:19
8."Monkey Murders" (Peel Session – September 22, 1980) 3:12
9."Walk Away" (Peel Session – September 22, 1980) 3:13
10."Spar Wid Me" (Peel Session – March 29, 1982) 3:47
11."End of the Party" (Peel Session – March 29, 1982) 3:01
12."She's Going" (Peel Session – March 29, 1982) 2:06
13."Save It for Later" (Peel Session – March 29, 1982) 3:09
14."Sole Salvation" (Peel Session – March 29, 1982) 2:43
15."Pato and Roger a Go Talk" (Peel Session – March 29, 1982)The English Beat, Pato Benson4:03
16."Best Friend" (Opera House, Boston – November 19, 1982) 2:59
17."Tears of a Clown" (Opera House, Boston – November 19, 1982)Cosby, Robinson, Wonder3:34
18."Twist & Crawl" (Opera House, Boston – November 19, 1982)The English Beat, Les Bradsell2:44
19."Get-a-Job/Stand Down Margaret" (Opera House, Boston – November 19, 1982) 6:45

References
  1. "The Complete Beat - The English Beat - CD | Shout! Factory". www.shoutfactory.com. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
  2. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "The Complete Beat - The English Beat". AllMusic. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
  3. "Keep The Beat: The Very Best Of The English Beat - CD | Shout! Factory". www.shoutfactory.com. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
  4. "Live At The US Festival, '82 & '83 - The English Beat - CD/DVD | Shout! Factory". www.shoutfactory.com. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
  5. "The Complete Beat by The English Beat". Metacritic. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
  6. Caligiuri, Jim (27 July 2012). "English Beat: The Complete Beat Album Review". www.austinchronicle.com. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
  7. Zimmerman, Lee (20 July 2012). "The Complete Beat + Keep the Beat: The Very Best of the English Beat". Blurt. Archived from the original on 21 August 2012. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
  8. Sidman, Ray (9 February 2013). "Box set review of The English Beat's 'The Complete Beat'". Goldmine. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
  9. Hardy, Ernest (2012-07-09). "Review: English Beat, "The Complete Beat" box set". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
  10. Deusner, Stephen (2012-07-12). "The English Beat: The Complete Beat/Keep the Beat". pastemagazine.com. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
  11. Pelone, Joe (10 July 2012). "The English Beat - The Complete Beat [box set]". www.punknews.org. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
  12. Rosen, Jody (2012-07-10). "The Complete Beat". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
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