38 Special - Anthology 2 CD 2001

This compilation has everything and then some of their material. Every band should be as consistant when packaging an Anthology. These two discs cover all the different line-ups from original, before LJ joined on bass to the current line-up with Danny Chauncey and Don Barnes on guitar.

There's little question that Hip-O's 2001 double-disc set, Anthology, is a thorough, definitive overview of .38 Special's career, spanning from their hit-laden A&M albums, through their '90s albums for Charisma and Razor & Tie, and wrapping up with a studio cut from the CMC International release, Live at Sturgis. This is a good thing, if you're just judging an album in terms of comprehensiveness, which just may be what the dedicated are looking for, but if you're not dedicated, this collection is awfully long. That's not to say it doesn't do a good job of summarizing the group's career, since it does, but the hits -- "Rockin' in to the Night," "Hold on Loosely," "Caught Up in You," "If I'd Been the One," "Back Where You Belong" -- are so good, that the rest of the material is shown as the good, but generic, material that it is. So, for the casual fans, it might be better to seek out a more concise collection, including the 20th Century Masters disc, since they're almost all there. Yes, this collection contains a few gems not readily available on that disc or other collections, the teachers theme, "Teacher, Teacher," and the hit ballad "Second Chance", but this still remains the province of the converted, not the casual.

Don Barnes - Vocals, Guitar, Piano
Donnie Van Zant - Vocals, Guitar
Jeff Carlisi, Danny Chauncey - Guitar, Fretless Bass, Background Vocals
Jim Barnes - Harmonica
Michael Hoskin - Tenor & Baritone Saxophones
Larry Jackson - Tenor Saxophone, Trumpet
Gordon Vernick - Trumpet
Terry Emery, Billy Powell - Piano
Bobby Capps, Max Carl - Keyboards, Background Vocals
Steve Mcray - Keyboards
Larry Junstrom, Ken Lyons - Bass
Jack Grondin, Steve Brookins - Drums, Percussion
Gary Moffatt, Greg Morrow, Jim Vallance, Denny Carmassi - Drums
Scott Meeder - Cymbals, Percussion, Programming
Jack Blades, Jim Peterik, Brian Howe, Robert White Johnson, Bob Beckwith, Tom Kelly, Carl Hall, Carol Veto, Louise Bethune, Dalel Krantz - Background Vocals

CD 1
1. Rockin' Into The Night
2. Stone Cold Believer
3. Money Honey
4. Hold On Loosely
5. Long Time Gone
6. Take Me Back
7. Wild-Eyed Southern Boys
8. Fantasy Girl
9. Hittin' And Runnin'
10.Caught Up In You
11. Chain Lightnin'
12. Rough-Housin'
13. You Keep Runnin' Away
14. Prisoner Of Rock & Roll
15. Twentieth Century Fox
16. Long Distance Affair
17. One Time For Old Times
18. Take 'Em Out - - live

CD 2
1. If I'd Been The One
2. Back Where You Belong
3. Teacher, Teacher - from "Teachers"
4. Somebody Like You
5. Like No Other Night
6. Back To Paradise - from "Revenge Of The Nerds II"
7. Rock & Roll Strategy
8. Second Chance
9. Sound Of Your Voice, The
10. Last Thing I Ever Do
11. Rebel To Rebel
12. Fade To Blue
13. Deja Voodoo
14. Homeless Guitar
15. Saving Grace
16. Just One Girl