Definitive Collection

If you remember listening to Men at Work back in the day and would like to catch all their hits on one album this compilation will do it. If you are a stronger fan with even one of their albums (especially Business As Usual) then it's a harder call. This compilation is not layed out equally among Men At Work's three albums so your mileage may vary depending on what you like best.Here is the breakdown:Business as Usual represents nine songs on this compilation, and the original album only had ten tracks. You are essentially getting the entire first album with the exception of Helpless Automation. What sucks for me is I really like that song! If they made room that one song I could get rid of my album. If you have Business As Usual please be advised you are pretty much getting the album all over again.Cargo has six tracks on this greatest hits album which is more than half the original record. I think this compilation hits the mark on the most notable songs from that album so not as many worries on my end. If you have Cargo... well you're getting the better half of Cargo again.Two Hearts has four tracks and this is the album I know least about. I am assuming that goes for most fans out there as it was released after their popularity waned. I couldn't tell you if these are the best from that album or not but to me these tracks don't hold the same magic as their hits from the previous albums.So in conclusion if you have no albums from Men At Work then this is a great grab, although I cry for you for not getting Helpless Automation. If you have one of the first two albums it's a tough call... easier for you if you have Cargo as you get all of the first album and a bit of the third. Probably the best compromise other than if you have Two Hearts only, which gets you the most bang for the buck. If you ask me if you already have one of the first two albums just get the other. Personally I don't see enough on the third album's representation to factor it in.

Listening to this collection I got a new joy and respect for this group that I though had "a couple of good songs". They are talented and creative with a variety of sounds and moods; these words also describe what I think of this collection. I'm so glad I got the collection with "Down Under"....I got so much more!

These men from down under made quite a splash in early 80"s.You couldn't watch MTV without seeing "Who Can It Be Now" or "Down Under",needless to say,I learned the words to those songs very quickly.Too bad the pressures of great success torn the band apart after 2nd album.I think they may have been some more hits in the band."Cargo" was a nice follow-up."Overkill" and "It's A Mistake" still sound good today.

i have all there great hits ! but this 1 is very cool so if u like men at work ! u need this 1 t u Peter Vasky

Hard to get a good “best of”, this is as good as it gets

That’s all that counts. It was one of those thiscwoukd be a good Christmas gift hints. I find that if I miss too many of those hints I’m in trouble.

I've only have heard a hand full of Men At Work hits. I must say I enjoyed this collection from the group from down under. I have so much more appreciation for their music now.

Nice cd men at work cool songs

I owned Men at Work's first two albums, `Business as Usual' (`BAU') and `Cargo', back in the 80s. After going on a long musical journey over the last 20-odd years, I was curious to hear their stuff again, and remembering the song titles, settled on this collection.It's still difficult to be out and about much without hearing `Down Under' somewhere, but this band were far from one-hit wonders.It's easy to dismiss them, and to be honest I felt slightly worried about writing a positive review alongside my usual praise for way-out psychedelia and world music, but in the case of MAW, their good all-round-musicianship took in styles not just from rock, but also reggae, jazz, and calypso (and more regrettably, when hearing the results, country). Colin Hay's characterful vocals and wide-ranging songwriting add genuine quality and emotion to the better material.In addition an unfussy, clear production means their first two albums stand the test of time.True, the band always trod a fine line between originality and duffness, and this means that their songs are either very good or pretty dire.But there're still 11 good tracks on here, which makes for one very good quality album.Note that when it arrived my version only contained one disc, with all the tracks listed here on `Disc 1'. But it doesn't matter as, with the exception of `Helpless Automaton', which I recall was terrible but wanted to hear again for a laugh, there's nothing on the reported 2nd disc to be bothered about.Here, in the order they appeared on the original first two albums, are my selection. After `Cargo' the band's material lost its depth and the production took on a more polished US-rock type feel - it's telling that there's only 4 tracks (none of which I'd recommend) on this 19-track compilation that fall outside those first two albums - there are a full 9 from `BAU'. Talking of which...`Who Can it be Now''s saxophone riff and low-key backing underpin this portrait of a paranoid recluse.`Down Under' still had the power to make me laugh - greater exposure to travelling Aussies has given me a greater insight as to why it works so well.The upbeat `Be Good Johnny' is about a creative young boy being pressured to be normal in a sports-mad society and whilst repetitive it stays the right side of annoying - for me anyway.`Touching the Untouchables', after a rousing intro, settles into a gritty number about a tramp overlooked by society`Catch a Star''s middle-eight was a major reason I bought this compilation. The sparse production and lilting guitar create a wide expanse across which Hay provides one of his best vocal performances.`Down by the Sea' is a 6-minute atmospheric number which is hard to pull off even by a band that hasn't become famous via a `comedy' song, but again the production, saxophone playing and well-worked arrangements, along with Hay's other best vocal performance, managed to make it a fitting way to close the original album.As for the songs from `Cargo':`Overkill', finds Hay worrying about Armageddon, and creates a suitably tense feeling with its plaintive saxophone work and gritty underlying rhythm.After a wonderfully ambient opening, `Upstairs in my House' bounces into your ears and provides one of the band's most uplifting moments. Though less cynical, it reminds me of `Pleasant Valley Sunday' in its depiction of everyday life.`No Sign of Yesterday' is `Cargo's shorter version of `Down by the Sea', and although it doesn't reach the heights of that track, it's still atmospheric and thoughtful.`It's a Mistake' is another war-themed number, though more mocking in tone in comparison with `Overkill'.`Blue for You' - despite the lyrics' flirtations with depression and suicide, musically this is an uplifting calypso/reggae style number. From the way it goes straight into the vocals, to its literally off-beat ending, this track is a really nice piece of work.

Recently there was an episode of the US hospital-com called Scrubs that featured Colin Hay singing a very soulful acoustic version of "Overkill", which if anything, was better than the album version. The song took me back to the art lesson days of high school where I remember playing the vinyl "Business As Usual" LP on the classroom record player. Fond memories.So, some thirty years later (where did all that time go in the blink of an eye?), I wanted to revisit some of the songs again and opted to buy this CD from Amazon. My favourites from this band were and still are "Down Under, Who Can It Be Now, Down By The Sea, Underground, Touching The Untouchables, Catch A Star, Overkill, It's A Mistake, Dr Heckyll..." and "No Sign Of Yesterday." I never really cared for the somewhat cheesy "Be Good Johnny" or the rest of the last songs on this CD which is why I can't quite give it five stars. Nevertheless, I'm glad to have it in my collection. The quality of the sound is great.

3 star rating only. Sent in an old broken case. For what it would have cost a new case could have been found. Hence only 3* seller please note comments.

Heard "Overkill" in a favourite restaurant in South Belfast.....and said to myself "I must learn that one" so I bought the album and learnt it over Xmas!Brilliant! Edrop Ddrop repeat x4 Dbm, B, Dbm, B, Abm - A, B then repeat the lot easy! :-)

Only bought it for one track, Down under.5 stars for that alone