New wave was the last great singles era, when the heavy hitters were balanced by a flurry of one-hit wonders that delivered one or two terrific songs and then faded away. Rhino's extensive 15-volume set Just Can't Get Enough: New Wave Hits of the '80s (available as individual discs) frequently captures the essence of the era, which saw equal measures of the sublime and the silly. It wisely avoids arty post-punk for the most part, and due to contractual reasons, it also doesn't include any material from such stars as Elvis ...
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New wave was the last great singles era, when the heavy hitters were balanced by a flurry of one-hit wonders that delivered one or two terrific songs and then faded away. Rhino's extensive 15-volume set Just Can't Get Enough: New Wave Hits of the '80s (available as individual discs) frequently captures the essence of the era, which saw equal measures of the sublime and the silly. It wisely avoids arty post-punk for the most part, and due to contractual reasons, it also doesn't include any material from such stars as Elvis Costello, the Clash and the Pretenders, yet they aren't missed since Blondie, the Jam, Duran Duran, ABC and Nick Lowe are here, among many others. Besides, various-artists compilations are primarily useful for gathering songs from artists you don't want a full album of, and by that criteria Just Can't Get Enough excels, since it contains nearly every one-hit wonder of note. Unfortunately, it contains way too many novelties, which should be expected from Rhino, but there simply are so many smarmy, smutty and unworthy obscurities here that they prevent some discs from getting off the ground. Still, there are some terrific novelties and obscurities scattered among the familiar items, making this perfect for the hardcore new wave collector. Casual listeners should pick according to the track listings -- the first volumes lean heavily on power-pop, the middle volumes capture the height of synth-pop and new romantic, as well as selected guitar-pop hits, while the latter volumes showcase MTV stars. Since most discs are equally entertaining, the curious should start with either Vol. 1 or Vol. 5, the most consistent offerings. And, despite their flaws, the set is essential to any comprehensive modern rock collection. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi
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