The Best of Anime cd review

There was anime music before we you were born. Yes, really and from the start it was surprisingly good. This CD, released in the US is a selection from various anime ranging from the very most ancient to just beyond the mid-90s. Looking at the show titles, I find that I did not watch any of them (except for Sailor Moon), but that wasn't a barrier for me to enjoy the goodies collected here, even more because the general style we all know and love is carried backwards in time so to speak. 

The first three titles come from the 60s and are presented with their English vocals. They show their age, but their quaintness is all the more lovable. Then comes the first transition with with the quirky theme to Urusei Yatsura switching to all Japanese. Then comes the main course, a jaw-dropping series of themes, all extended and all jewels in their own right.  These people from Rhino, the ones who released the CD, were not kidding when they offered the best of anime up to the time. I'll say it: I've watched anime for decades now, and the opening to Oh My Goddess! is the best I've listened to followed by that of Devil Hunter Yohko. Both of these can be found here. Including the rest, I sincerely cannot come with any changes that would make the CD better.  All the vocals are lovely to boot.

The accompanying booklet gives a good synopsis for each show and includes a cel on the front cover (mine was Cutey Honey).

I bought my copy back when it was new and had not listened to it in maybe the last 10 years. When I dusted it off just a couple of weeks ago, I was struck by how fresh the songs still sound when compared to the present offerings. 

Nowadays, vaporwave, future funk and related subgenres are trending. Some of it is good, some not. It amazes me why these have become a thing when the original works are out there in full glory; no need to resort to washed-out bastardizations. Go back to the sample sources, I'm sure you'll love them.

The anime songs from the CD are probably ones that you have not heard before, but they richly deserve to be brought back from obscurity. This is a really late review, but not late enough for you to avail yourself to the music. You can still find copies on Discogs for a few bucks and probably also on eBay.

5 stars

Anime covered:

1. Astro Boy
2. Gigantor
3. Speed Racer
4. Urusei Yatsura
5. Megazone 23
6. Windaria
7. Gunbuster
8. Record of Lodoss War
9. Devil Hunter Yohko
10. Silent Möbius
11. Cat Girl Nuku Nuku
12. New Dominion Tank Police
13. Oh My Goddess
14. New Cutey Honey
15. Macross Plus
16. Sailor Moon