Bt - 10 Years in the Life (28 tracks) +Album Reviews

A solid, diverse greatest hits of originals and remixes

Erica Anderson | Minneapolis, MN | 09/22/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Personally I thought it was a bit early in BT's career to release a greatest hits album however looking at the tracklist, I thought it was compelling enough to buy. I'm a big fan of BT's music, especially his first two albums ("ESCM" in particular). I pleasantly surprised to see that my personal favorite BT song "Lullaby For Gaia" was included on the compilation since it was never released as a single. That alone scored major points from me. On the first disc, the cd consists of original material of BT's more familiar singles like "Dreaming" (Libra Mix) and "Blue Skies" (w/Tori Amos). I absolutely loved the single mix of "Remeber". I think it sounds a lot better than the album version of that same song. On disc 2, the cd consists of remixes BT did for various artists that ranges from The Crystal Method to Billie Ray Martin. This greatest hits compilation is quite thorough and diverse unlike a lot of greatest hits compilations which consists mostly of the more familiar and popular tracks by the artist. It is a bit pricey for a greatest hits comp but it is well worth the cash."

Give me a 10!

Dogville | Sunny Island | 09/05/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This has to be a very exclusive release to the US since it was released by Rhino Records and not BT's parent records in the US, Nettwerk. You won't even find this listed on BT's official website discography.
Nontheless, you'll find the various songs from Bt's 10-year career in a 2-CD set. CD1 featues his own compositions and CD2 are the remixes he was commissioned to do for other great artists.
I first got myself aquainted to his music on the deliciously penned Tori Amos collaboration Blue Skies. Tori's cold haunting voice matched Bt's self-styled techo-electronic sounds almost perfectly. You'll find it here on CD1, no doubt, for it represents one of BT's best triumphs. You also find such gems like his earliest works Moment of Truth and Relativity. You would realize how progressive BT has gotten on his later albums especially when he tried experimenting with electronic fusion with hip-hop/rap on Movement in Still Life. Dreaming, Giving Up The Ghost and Never Gonna Come Back Down truly represents this great leap forward. What's best, you'll get all the radio edits and remix single that were otherwise only available on vinyls or promo CDs.
On CD2, BT showcases his skills as a remixer which, by far, is his most accomplished work done. Remixing for The Crystal Method to Billy Ray Martin and Madonna, the remix of Drowned World for the latter is one of his best remixes for the 90's. It simply added a multi-dimension to a song that was dark and brooding. A great ommission here would have to be his splendid remix of Sarah McLachlan's I Love You which literally transformed the broadway style ballad to a stomping dancefloor cut.If you just got on BT, this is is the best $20 to spend on without getting his whole collection. I recommend his new CD Emotional Technology too."

Thank you brian transeau

Erica Anderson | 10/19/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"disregard the negative rewards, hating brings it's own reward to those who do it.i already love the music of bt - i got hooked when i used it for running. overall impression from this cd - he's touched on that vibe of altruism, love, truth - the music is so clear, structured and fun. i enjoyed the extras - how he grew up in rural maryland learning suzuki method piano (which i have also!), how he plotted around in his parent's house creating singles. his story of screwing up madonna's sample, then madonna calling some repair guy is funny...in the liner notes are accounts of every song's genesis. His immersion in classical music and love for rachmaninoff and familiarity with chopin spoke to me. the musical variety explored and replay value in these two cd's is very much justified."

Very good, though dated at some points

Manny Hernandez | Bay Area, CA | 12/02/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"As opposed to the case with most greatest hits compilations, this one sadly shows how the early sound of the electronica/dance genre (which was influenced heavily by BT's contributions) sounds dated when we are about to enter 2004. On the flip side, much in the same way as those of us born in the seventies now look back at the eighties with a sense of "that was the music we went through High School with" I can see a lot of younger people enjoying this music in 10-15 years time, as a retrospective into their middle school years.This album presents a compilation of hits spanning from 1993 until 2002 (when it was issued) of Brian Transeau (a.k.a. BT), one of the masterminds behind the electronica/dance movement of the past decade, considered by many to be "bigger" than the very own Paul Oakenfold (I subscribe to that view, by the way...) '10 Years in the Life' gives a clear idea of how the sound of BT evolved through time, with a more techno/dance type of sound in the first half of the first disc (and in general in the first five years covered by the compilation), morphing into a more ambient/trancey sound toward the end of it (which closely match the most recent five years), when he takes a plunge into some originals and some remixes extracted from the great ESCM album. As the first disc closes, we get a feel for BT's scoring abilities, with "Believer" (from the movie "Go") and "The Revolution" (from "Tomb Raider" part I).Disc 2, for a change, presents a continuous mix bundled with remixes that BT did of other artists' work (and a couple of his own crop) between 1995 and 1999, with Madonna's "Drowned World/Substitute For Love" and an almost unrecognizable (though very powerful) remix of Crystal Method's "Keep Hope Alive" as the high points. In general, I prefer the first disc by far, since it sounds less dated and sticks more with the more trancey music/remixes by BT that I learned to love.As for me, though I didn't grow up to this music (not in the sense of going to school listening to it), I found more than one spot in the compilation that made me feel more alive than ever, as if being reborn. Hope it gives you the same feeling when you spin it... keep a young spirit!"

Opinion of a French fan : I love BT :-)

Christophe | Rouen, France | 09/26/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have been a french fan of BT for several years and I'm delighted by this compilation even if titles like "Mercury And Solace" and "Satellite" does not appear there.
The cover is beautiful and i'm so excited to discover the next album #4.
France greets you :-)
Tchao ;-)"

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