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Once In A Lifetime - Talking Heads
Once In A Lifetime Image
Metascore
83 out of 100

Universal acclaim - based on 10 Critics What's this?

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  • Summary: This 3-disc attractively-packaged retrospective on the groundbreaking New York band includes completely remastered tracks from each of their studio LPs as well as the same previously-unreleased-on-CD demos and new tracks included on the earlier 2-disc Sand In the Vaseline complilation. Also included are never-before-released alternate versions of five songs. The set also contains a DVD with an updated version of the Talking Heads music video compilation Storytelling Giant, with three additional videos not found on the original VHS release.… Expand

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
  1. Blender
    100
    Marred only by incredibly pompous liner notes and a lack of worthy rarities. [#23, p.122]
    All this publication's reviews
  2. Entertainment Weekly
    91
    Avoid the last disc, groove on the first two, and ruminate on the strange beauty of this sui generis body of work.
  3. The Guardian
    60
    Not that they didn't crank out a generous dollop of highlights - I Zimbra, Life During Wartime, Heaven, And She Was et al - but stuff from the debut album now sounds irritatingly thin and scratchy, while material from their last couple of albums, True Stories and Naked, is the sound of a band reaching the end of its tether.

See all 10 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

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Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 2
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 2
  3. Negative: 0 out of 2
  1. AshleyMonday
    8
    Very attractively packaged, but it falls short much like "Sand in the Vaseline". It has the same problems including no real rarities, very few album tracks, and the liner notes here are atrocious. The only thing that saves it is the genius of the Talking Heads pop hits.… Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  2. JayS
    8
    The music is top-notch - even the third CD, the weakest, is catchy and enjoyable, if not as memorable - but this is a seriously flawed collection. There's only a few rarities, none of which are essential or all that interesting. Some diss the packaging as unwieldy and pretentious, but I kind of like it - it's perverse and amusing. The liner notes could've been a lot better, and in terms of sound, you get more compression and a sharp, bright EQ boost. The fourth disc, a DVD, is actually pretty cool - their videos were pretty funny and inventive, and the presentation (interviews with anonymous people act as interesting segues) is cool. But, it's not worth buying just for one DVD. The two-disc SAND IN THE VASELINE is a cheaper and more concise compilation, and if you're looking for a good 'best of' or an introduction, it's much better than this box set. If you want more, get the albums, and let's hope Rhino releases the DVD separately.… Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes

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