Big Country: Through a Big Country – Greatest Hits (1990)
A generous helping of all the band’s hits through their first four records.
Kronomyth 5.0: Pure dead brilliant.
I came here, not to bury Big Country, but to praise them. Striking an elegiac tone when talking about the band is a temptation: they had so much potential, wrote so many stirring songs, but struggled against internal demons (in the case of Stuart Adamson) and apathy (outside of Europe). The real temptation, however, lies in their music. In a Big Country, Chance, Look Away, Where the Rose Is Sown, East of Eden, Just a Shadow, Thirteen Valleys, those are timeless songs. It’s hard to believe that Through a Big Country’s seventeen tracks (a still-generous fourteen on the elpee) owe their existence to a mere four albums, the last of which (Peace in Our Time) wasn’t even very good. This may come as less of a surprise to longtime fans, who can attest that their first three albums were chock-a-block with burning rock anthems and the occasional knee-buckling ballad. Unavailable in the US, where audiences frankly didn’t deserve such a bountiful feast, Through a Big Country presents all the band’s hits in loose chronological order. Also included is a new song, Save Me, that points forward to the “American” sound of their next album, No Place Like Home. If the band’s energy seemed to wane a bit over the years, such a level was never sustainable. The Crossing, Steeltown and The Seer bristle with the energy of a hundred warriors. It could make their music exhilarating and exhausting at the same time. Through a Big Country is an exhilarating ride. Over the long and unforgiving years, it remains a beacon of what was and what might have been. You shouldn’t start here, because the story begins with The Crossing and you don’t want to miss a single chapter. But you should stop here, to admire the view of the countryside from the top of the hill.
Original elpee version
A1. Save Me (Stuart Adamson)
A2. In a Big Country (Big Country)
A3. Fields of Fire (Big Country)
A4. Chance (Big Country)
A5. Wonderland (Stuart Adamson/Bruce Watson/Mark Brzezicki/Tony Butler)
A6. Where the Rose Is Sown (Stuart Adamson/Mark Brzezicki/Tony Butler/Bruce Watson)
A7. Just a Shadow (Stuart Adamson/Bruce Watson/Mark Brzezicki/Tony Butler)
B1. Look Away (Stuart Adamson)
B2. King of Emotion (Stuart Adamson)
B3. East of Eden (Stuart Adamson/Bruce Watson/Mark Brzezicki/Tony Butler)
B4. One Great Thing (Stuart Adamson/Tony Butler)
B5. The Teacher (Stuart Adamson)
B6. Broken Heart (Thirteen Valleys) (Stuart Adamson)
B7. Peace in Our Time (Stuart Adamson)
CD/CS bonus tracks
15. Eiledon
16. The Seer
17. Harvest Home
The Plastic
Released on elpee, cassette and compact disc in May 1990 in the UK (Mercury, 846 022-1/4/2). Also available on VHS tape. Reached #2 on the UK charts.
