Music : Somewhere Back In Time: The Best Of: 1980-1989

Rating: - For New Fans Rather than Old
As stated in Maiden's own release info this album is to introduce their new young (U25) fans (mainly from India / Far East) to their older music. Most of these fans have been hooked on the newer material so this album is realesed to coincide with the Back in Time tour and create new interets in the 80's music. If your an older fan who has all the old albums then don't bother (unless you want the art work). If your a newer fan and don't have the old albums this a great place to start.

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Rating: - DAVE THINKS IT'S GREAT!!!!
If, like me, you have this band's back catalogue already then there isn't any point in this (especially if you have a CD burner!) as it offers no new material and is simply a nicely packaged compilation!
HOWEVER, I have a mate at work, a couple of years younger than myself, who after several years in the wilderness (marriage, mortgage etc) has returned to the metal fold, and absoluteley LOVES this CD! It's a really good starting block or as a refresher!
I can endorse the 5 stars, as the material here is taken from what were by far the best years of Maiden's career - they still make some decent music today but there is less fire in the belly, now they are the wrong side of 50.
The songs here though are all strong, and heavy - It's easy to see the influence that this era of Iron Maiden played in the birth of Thrash & Speed Metal back in the mid '80s!
Basically, full on Metal, with perhaps the finest Heavy Metal Bass Guitar lines ever from the legendary Steve Harris!!
It's great to see that the Paul Dianno (original singer) years are included here - Dianno, while not having Dickinson's range, is actually my favourite, and his gruff vocals really suited Maidens early, proto-thrash music.(I really rate 1981's Killers).
Incidentally, my mate really rated Maiden's recent Twickenham gig - let us
hope it was filmed......
All I need to do now is convert him to Metallica, then Dimmu Borgir!

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Rating: - A record of a great night
I know some people will say "not another compilation" but a lot of us at Twickenham have not been avid buyers of the Maiden, for us late converts this is a great disc and a reminder of a great night with a band that played fantastic rock and showed genuine respect to their fans.
Okay so it's a money making venture but it's still good value.

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Rating: - Classic Iron Maiden
Ok so this is another "best of..." album. Ok so it only covers the '80s and misses all of the recent hits. The comments in reviews below seem to cover these points a lot! REALLY, read the title!! Maiden aren't hiding this, if you don't need another best of album don't buy it. You're all big boys aren't you with a mind of you're own? If you're going to post a review, review the music. This album includes some of the very best IRON MAIDEN around. These are classic tracks from the best British metal band. If you are an old Maiden fan like me you can not help but enjoy this...it's playing in my car every morning on the way to work and if "Can I play with madness" doesn't put you in a good mood I don't know what will. If you're a newbe, then sit back, enjoy and be amazed at some of the best metal tracks around!

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Rating: - It's all about the music.
This CD earns a five star review from me because, simply put, there is not a bad song on it.
Other reviewers have chosen to criticize because they feel that it's a cash in - designed to exploit the die hard fans into shelling out yet again for "another" best of. Not so. This set is aimed at the casual listener and the curious newcomer. Maiden have said that they don't expect their fans to buy everything they release, so guess what people...If you've already got these songs - don't buy them again. For those that think previous "best of" collections should be enough, remember this CD is all about making Maiden's music as accessible as possible for those who are only just discovering the band. People who aren't going to spend time exploring what may or may not have been released previously.
If you are a newcomer - You could do a lot worse than to pick up a copy of this disk. The quality of songs on offer is second to none. This release is a great springboard towards a band that play some of the most life affirming music on offer today.