Rude Boy captures the Clash right on the cusp of stardom. Most of the live footage is from 1978 and there is also footage from the recording of Give 'Em Enough Rope.

Word of warning to those in other countries...even though Amazon mentions this is a "Region 0" (playable worldwide) DVD, unless you have a PAL DVD player, it won't work. Until the NTSC version comes out, I'm stuck with my old worn out video tape.

While many Ride "purists" reject this album as an Andy Bell solo album, it remains a very strong album and one of my favorite Ride albums. For those that enjoy classic rock, played by a blindingly good band, this is a good album to check out.

The album opens with the blistering "Black Nite Crash", which sounds like "Raw Power-era" Stooges with better vocals and production! BNC is undoubtedly one of the best lyrics Andy Bell ever penned. To a hyped-up beat he sings..."Walk around like I'm lookin' for an upgrade/Slippin' through town like a penny in the arcade." It's a pity that Ride didn't recognize that their music could *grow* in this direction. Tarantula should have been a new launching pad, not a swan song.

"Sunshine/Nowhere To Run" is another standout track which shows a band finding maturity in restraint. Years earlier, Ride would have overdone such a pretty song with elaborate production. Here, the success lies in the understatement. Other standouts include the Byrdsy "Walk On Water", "Castle On The Hill", "Dead Man" and "Burnin'". All of these songs demonstrate that by 1995, Ride had become a band capable of much more than guitar noise. Unfortunately, critics and many fans ripped Tarantula, disappointed that Ride had not gone back to the early wall-of-sound guitars that were the hallmark of Nowhere and Going Blank Again.

As Ride releases their career-retrospective box set, it is worth noting that the band is more popular now than during their active years. Perhaps the time is right for a new Ride, one where the band can build on the strengths of this album.

Let me first say that Ride was an incredible band that deserves a box set. (Actually, make that 2-3 box sets.) The first 'new' release from the band in more than five years is a good overview of the band's career and has something for everyone - from those new to Ride to even the most hardcore collectors.

OX4, the greatest hits disc, captures most of Ride's best moments. From 'Like A Daydream' to 'Black Nite Crash', it's all here including all the singles. Unfortunately, some of Ride's best songs were not singles and were left off the compilation. 'Cool Your Boots' is the best example, sadly ignored in favor of the monotone Creation cover 'How Does It Feel To Feel?'.

Firing Blanks, the disc of unreleased material, serves up a quite a few gems. 'Blue' and 'Everybody Knows', written by drummer Loz Colbert are excellent songs, the former even featuring Loz on vocals! 'She's So Fine', which later appeared in different form on Tarantula as Sunshine/Nowhere To Run, is an outstanding track that should've made the cut on Carnival of Light. Velvet Underground's 'New Age' is also covered here and Ride turns in a solid performance but Andy Bell's vocal suffers from the near absence of backing vocals. 'Tongue Tied' is the standout track here, and was dropped from Going Blank Again because record execs thought the album was too long. Overall, there is some outstanding material here and it is an excellent addition to the Ride library, but I'm sure there is some very strong material that remains unreleased.

The live disc, recorded at the 1992 Reading Festival is a good document of Ride as a live band. Ride were nothing short of lethal on stage and quite possibly the best live rock band, bar none, from 1991-1993. Many of the classic live songs show well here. 'Leave Them All Behind', 'Taste' and 'Seagull' in particular are excellent versions. As a collector of live music from Ride, I think the band could've chosen a better live set, perhaps from the 1993 Daytripper shows, which had Ride truly at peak form. Two songs were dropped from the Reading performance; John Lennon's 'I Don't Want To Be A Soldier' and 'Making Judy Smile'. The former was released on a Sire Records compilation in the mid-90s, but it is curious that 'Making Judy Smile' didn't make the cut. Overall, this collection is one that no music fan should be without. One of the best bands of their era, Ride deserves more recognition as an important and innovative band. Hopefully, the interest surrounding the release of this box set will lead to a second, live box set or possibly a new Ride collaboration. There is certainly enough material to put together an incredible album of covers. 'Eight Miles High', 'European Son', 'The Model', 'Sight Of You', and 'That Man' are all worthy of release.

Let's hope this is not the last Ride.