The Best of P.M. Dawn

1	Set Adrift on Memory Bliss Radio Edit 3:59
2	Paper Doll 4:53
3	I'd Die Without You 4:12
4	Looking Through Patient Eyes 4:09
5	The Ways of the Wind 4:33
6	Downtown Venus 3:35
7	Sometimes I Miss You So Much 4:44
8	Gotta Be...Movin' on Up / Ky-Mani 3:40
9	Being So Not for You (I Had No Right) 5:03
10	Faith in You 4:32
11	A Watcher's Point of View (Don't 'Cha Think) [Todd Terry's Hard House Mix 5:42
12	The Ways of the Wind Main 7" 3:55
13	Reality Used to Be a Friend of Mine CJ Macintosh 7" Edit 4:08
14	Gotta Be...Movin' on Up / Ky-Mani Morales Radio Edit 4:06

Barnes & Noble

In the early '90s, rays of sunshine were beginning to peak through hip-hop's grimy urban landscape -- the Beastie Boys' tireless rebel-without-a-pause party anthems, De La Soul's abstract flower-power rhymes, Queen Latifah's danceable feminism -- but no rap group had as feel-good a vibe as P.M. Dawn. Before Puff Daddy was even a blip on the hip-hop Richter scale, brothers Prince B and DJ Minute Mix were weaving pilfered bits of pop hits into uplifting songs that had more to do with Stevie Wonder than Vanilla Ice. On their 1991 debut Of the Heart, Of the Soul and of the Cross: The Utopian Experience, P.M. Dawn shamelessly lifted the precious guitar hook from Spandau Ballet's '80s classic "True" on their trippy breakout single "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss." That song and 13 others -- including "Looking Through Patient Eyes," which draws on the cinematic strings from George Michael's "Father Figure," and "Gotta Keep...Movin On Up," which bounces to the bubbling bass-line of Imagination's "Just an Illusion" -- show why Dawn's mellow mix of infectious samples, meditative raps, and hippy-dippy sentiments struck such a chord -- a note that's traceable in pop/hip-hop groups from Arrested Development to the Fugees. Even though P.M. Dawn were largely dissed by the rap community, this best-of package offers listeners a new appreciation for their irrepressible pop sensibility and prophetic musical vision. Tracy E. Hopkins

All Music Guide

Compiled from P.M. Dawn's four albums and the Senseless soundtrack The Best of P.M. Dawn not only plays like an audio time capsule of slick, tuneful, '90s urban pop, it's a remarkably coherent listening experience. The New Jersey duo's sweet combination of classic silky soul, trip-hop, psychedelia, and pop was one of the most groundbreaking sounds of the decade and influenced countless bands tremendously. All the usual suspects are present and accounted for, beginning with the band's first number one single "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss," an amazingly mature debut tune, and moves forward with two tracks from 1998's relatively obscure I'm So Very Sorry for Bringing You Here, Love Dad. A remix of "A Watcher's Point of View" and the rare 7" versions of "Reality Used to Be a Friend of Mine" as well as "The Ways of the Wind" are also here. The latter track's single and album versions are included; though they're significantly different, it's a bit redundant. The edgy hip-hop of "A Watcher's...," "Reality...," and "Gotta' Be... Movin' on Up," a track from the Senseless soundtrack, break up P.M. Dawn's otherwise lush, glossy sound on this hourlong, 14-track disc. Any band that samples Deep Purple, George Michael, and Joni Mitchell has an astonishingly diverse set of influences, but what made P.M. Dawn special is how they incorporated them into music that was uniquely their own. Despite non-existent liner notes and a few omissions, what is here flows smoothly, especially considering the songs were recorded from 1991 to 1999. Like most timeless music, The Best of P.M. Dawn's songs remain fresh, innovative, and enduring. Hal Horowitz