Mudhoney

For a band that’s broken up, Mudhoney still manages to put out some great frickin’ records. After last year’s amazing “best of” and “rarities” double CD comes The Best of the BBC Recordings. Culled from two separate John Peel sessions that were five years apart, we get a lot of early hits like “By Her Own Hand,” “You Got It” and “Hate The Police.” Of this earlier, more “classic” period, the true jewel in the crown has to be an absolutely pummelling version of Billy Childish’s “You Make Me Die,” a version so superior to the officially released one that it’s ridiculous. The second session must have been cut during the My Brother the Cow period, as a lot of the songs, such as “Into Yer Schtik,” “1995” and ‘What Moves The Heart,” originally appeared on this, arguably the weakest of their albums. What a relief it is to hear that these tracks have a lot more of that old Mudhoney rough and ready charisma than the album renditions. A lot of the material here seems to be recorded live, and this is an exciting testament to how tight and wild Mudhoney could throw it down, as the ripping versions of “Fuzzgun ’91” and “When Tomorrow Hits” shows. Yet another vital addition to any true rock fan’s collection.