A-Sides (Soundgarden Album)

''A-Sides'' is a compilation album by the American rock band Soundgarden with songs spanning the band's thirteen-year career. It was released on November 4, 1997, through A&M Records.

Overview

Guitarist Kim Thayil said the song list emerged out of list of what each member "thought would make a 'best of' and then we cross-referenced them", adding that while the typical compilation titles 'Best Of' and 'Greatest Hits' was thought by them to a subjective name - "that's something that an individual fan can make of his own collection, and these aren't necessarily our personal favourites" - they went with ''A-Sides'' to reflect that these were the A-side singles released on the band's original run. The opening track "Nothing to Say" was originally a B-side to the band's first single " Hunted Down" on Sub Pop in 1987, but Thayil said it took precedence for being their first song to draw a label's attention as part of a compilation titled ''Bands That Will Make Money''."Kim Thayil's A-Sides"
''Metal Hammer''. January 1998. It contains one song absent from previous albums (" Bleed Together") which appeared on import copies of the "Burden in My Hand" single. In addition, "Get on the Snake" from ''Louder Than Love'' was released as a promo-only single in 1989. Also, the 1990 Sub Pop single " Room a Thousand Years Wide" does not appear on ''A-Sides'', nor the 1994 single "My Wave" from ''Superunknown''.

The album was released in 1997 on A&M Records and was Soundgarden's last official release for 13 years, until 2010's ''Telephantasm''. It debuted at number 63 on the ''Billboard'' 200 album chart. It peaked at number 51 on the UK Albums Chart, number 39 on the Australian Albums Chart, and number 6 on the New Zealand Albums Chart.

AllMusic staff writer Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave the album four and a half out of five stars. He said, "For an act that was one of the definitive album artists of the late '80s and '90s, Soundgarden was a surprisingly effective singles band. Their singles effectively conveyed all of their best ideas, from their sludgy early Sub Pop recordings to the elaborate, post-metal psychedelia of their last two albums, ''Superunknown'' and ''Down on the Upside''. That's the reason why the 17-track compilation ''A-Sides'' is such a successful overview of the band's too-brief career." ''Entertainment Weekly'' reviewer David Browne gave the album an A. He said, "Pruning their best early songwriting ("Hands All Over", "Nothing to Say") and wisely highlighting chunks of their last two (and best) albums, ''A-Sides'' presents the band in all its evolving, bridling-horses glory and thunder. When all those Hanson fans grow up and want to educate themselves on the flannel era they missed, here's where they should turn."

Following Chris Cornell's death in May 2017, ''A-Sides'' re-entered the Australian albums chart at number 47. On Record Store Day 2018, ''A-Sides'' was released on double green translucent vinyl.Soundgarden - Australian charts
australian-charts.com. Retrieved May 31, 2017.

Track listing

All lyrics and music written by Chris Cornell, except where noted.

Personnel

Soundgarden
*Matt Cameron – drums
*Chris Cornell – lead vocals, rhythm guitar
*Ben Shepherd – bass on tracks 6–17
*Kim Thayil – lead guitar
*Hiro Yamamoto – bass on tracks 1–5

Production

*Nelson Ayres, John Jackson – mixing assistance
*Michael Barbiero, Brendan O'Brien, Ron Saint Germain, Steve Thompson – mixing
*Matt Bayles, Stuart Hallerman, Efren Herrera, Sam Hofstedt – assistant engineering
*Michael Beinhorn – production
*Larry Brewer – production assistance
*John Burton, Tom Smurdon – additional tracking assistance
*Drew Canulette – production, engineering
*Dave Collins, Howie Weinberg – mastering
*Jason Corsaro, Lance Limbocker – engineering
*Terry Date – production, engineering
*Jack Endino – production, engineering, assistant engineering
*Larimie Garcia, Steve Gilbert, Michael Lavine, Jan Van Oldenmark, Charles Peterson, Mark Seliger, Kevin Westenberg – photography
*Adam Kasper – assistant engineering, mixing assistance, co-production, engineering, mixing
*Oogie – art direction and design
*Soundgarden – production, mixing

Charts and certifications

Album

Singles

Certifications

References

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1997 greatest hits albums
Soundgarden compilation albums
A&M Records compilation albums
Albums produced by Adam Kasper
Albums produced by Michael Beinhorn
Albums produced by Terry Date
Alternative metal compilation albums
Albums produced by Chris Cornell
Albums produced by Matt Cameron
Albums produced by Jack Endino