Eskimo Joe “The World Repeats Itself Somehow – The Best Of Eskimo Joe”
Alt-rockers Eskimo Joe have had quite the journey and have now released their greatest hits album spanning their multi-decade long career to date which is aptly titled The World Repeats Itself Somehow – The Best Of Eskimo Joe. Whether you buy the vinyl, the CD or stream it or do all of the above it is a fantastic offering and shows how this great band have evolved from humble beginnings to crafting some great songs that continue to stand the test of time.
What I love about this greatest hits compilation is that every song has taken me back to a certain point in time where I have seen the “Eskies” bringing back some awesome live memories when going to gigs was a regular thing particularly with lots of people right from supporting The Offspring in 1999, the many Big Day Outs, supporting the mighty You Am I and the many venues around Adelaide including the infamous Crown at Victor Harbour.
The single that started it all Sweater kicks things off and whilst that one is retired from the live set these days it is still great to hear it and sing it unashamedly loudly in the car. Their debut album Girl features prominently with singles Who Sold Her Out, Planet Earth, Who Sold Her Out and Wake Up getting the nod. The album for me that showed a band on the rise was A Song Is A City represented by stellar singles From The Sea and Older Than You. Fantastic album and it was a case of onwards and upwards for the Eskies.
The album that catapulted the band to even greater prominence was Black Fingernails, Red Wine and who could forget the tour that launched that album back in 2006 playing the iconic Thebarton Theatre. That album was loaded with great singles right, and could have been a greatest hits album in its own right, from the title track that rocketed up the singles charts to the likes of Sarah and New York. Inshalla produced plenty of great moments including Foreign Land and Don’t Let Me Down but arguably there’s justification for the title track to be added as well. No doubt there are also enough great songs that we have grown to love to fill a second disc as well with some rare B-side gems that have appeared on their recent anniversary editions.
Love Is The Drug from Ghosts Of The Past is a great addition and the anthemic Say Something from 2020 is a powerful album closer and we can only look forward to what’s to come for Eskimo Joe. It is quite a surreal listening experience being there from the beginning and riding the journey that has spanned more than twenty years.
Album Review By Rob Lyon
