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Editorial Reviews

Wow. England's Beggars Banquet imprint and the Cult have been in full stride in 2009. One has to wonder if it's merely to celebrate the release of what is considered to be a classic and influential album, or if they are trying to convince the rest of the world that this is so. For starters, in North America, where the band actually cracked it, the album has achieved platinum status, and world-wide totals make it at least twice that. The band was a turning point for songwriter/vocalist Ian Astbury and songwriter/guitarist Billy Duffy, and Love was one of the first albums of the period from England to move outside of the entire post-punk/positive punk realm and instead look back to the big-name hard rock bands of the '70s (Led Zeppelin being the primary one), and it created a sound that influenced many acts in its wake. Love has become a classic album. But here is the amazing thing: in March, punters saw a killer 180-gram, limited-edition vinyl reissue of the single "Love" b/w "She Sells Sanctuary." September saw an expanded edition of Love released; it included the original album in remastered form with a bonus disc totaling 11 cuts that included all the tracks that appeared on the band's singles from the period, A- and B-sides, as well as a full-length mix of "Revolution," the long version of "She Sells Sanctuary," and the "Howling Mix" of the same track. Then, to top it off, October, 2009 saw the "Omnibus" edition of Love. This box contains four CDs: the original album in a gatefold sleeve, as well as a separate disc for the singles just as in the previous package. In addition, it includes a full-length disc of demos. The demos include not only the sketched versions of the songs themselves but instrumental versions of "Nirvana," "Revolution," "Waltz," and the original rough mix of "She Sells Sanctuary." (Fans who bought 2000s limited-edition Rare Cult box have this stuff already). As if this weren't enough, there is a very solid live disc from 1985 included as well, recorded at the Hammersmith Odeon in October of 1985. The book inside this package contains all of the contents form the expanded edition, plus photos and additional text with snippets from reviews by British rock journalists at the time. In all., it is the ultimate fetish package for a classic album. Neither Beggars nor the Cult have to convince anyone that this recording belongs in the rock pantheon. Thom Jurek, All Music Guide

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