XTC : FOSSIL FUEL - THE XTC SINGLES 1997-92

  1. Making Plans For Nigel
  2. Ten Feet Tall
  3. Generals And Majors
  4. Towers Of London
  5. Love At First Sight
  6. Senses Working Overtime
  7. Ball And Chain
  8. Great Fire
  9. Wonderland
  10. Love On A Farmboy's Wages
  11. All You Pretty Girls
  12. Grass
  13. The Meeting Place
  14. Dear God
  15. The Mayor Of Simpleton
  16. King For A Day
  17. The Loving
  18. The Disappointed
  19. The Ballad Of Peter Pumpkinhead
  20. Wrapped In Grey

Label : Virgin

Length : 77:32

Release Date : 1996

Review (AllMusic) : Fossil Fuel: The XTC Singles 1977-1992 is a splendid double-disc set that runs through every one of the group's 31 A-sides, from the nervy "Science Friction" to the lush, sighing "Wrapped in Grey." Between those two songs, XTC's craftsmanship grows remarkably fast -- based on the edgy pop of their new wave singles "Statue of Liberty," "This Is Pop," "Are You Receiving Me?," and "Life Begins at the Hop," it's hard to believe that they would later write the subtle, near-pastoral Beatles, Kinks, and Beach Boys pastiches of "Love on a Farmboy's Wages," "Great Fire," and "Grass." And those songs just scratch the surface of the terrific pop singles available on Fossil Fuel: "Making Plans for Nigel," "Ten Feet Tall," "Generals and Majors," "Towers of London," "Respectable Street," "Sense Working Overtime," "This World Over," "Dear God," "The Mayor of Simpleton," "King for a Day," and "The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead" are wonderful songs and forgotten classics. Although XTC continually made carefully constructed albums, they were a dynamite singles band, releasing songs that were tightly constructed and impossibly catchy. They never had hits, because their unabashed pop was never in fashion; plus, Andy Partridge's voice was too pinched and his lyrics frequently too cerebral. But XTC's music stands as some of the best and most influential pop of their era, and nowhere is that more evident than on Fossil Fuel.

Note : this is a personal selection of the double-disc set. 20 tracks from the 31 that were originally released on this compilation.