The Rest of the Best

The Rest Of The Best
Vol. 1 cover
Compilation album by
The Cardigans
ReleasedSeptember 6, 2024
LabelUniversal Music
ProducerTore Johansson, The Cardigans
The Cardigans chronology
Best Of
(2008) 		The Rest Of The Best
(2024)
Vol. 2 cover

The Rest of the Best is a two-volume compilation by Swedish rock band The Cardigans. It features 36 tracks, including B-sides, alternate versions, demos and soundtrack features spanning the entire career of the band. The Rest Of the Best is the third B-side compilation by The Cardigans, superseding The Other Side Of the Moon released in 1997 and the Best Of released in 2008.

Background

We are delighted to release these compilations. Songs that for various reasons were left out of our studio albums. Now our audience can listen through all B sides in chronological order and it’s a pure joy to reminisce all the way back to 1993. It’s almost like a forgotten record, or rather four. We hope you’ll enjoy the 13 year ride!

—The Cardigans[1]

In 2019, the six studio albums of the Cardigans were remastered and in February of that year UMG reissued them on vinyl. The remasters also appeared on streaming platforms.[2] In the following year, the band continued touring and enjoyed a resurgence in popularity due to their song "Step On Me" becoming viral on TikTok.[3]

In February 2024, test pressings of a compilation of the band with the working title The Rest of the Best started appearing on Discogs and were later posted by the band on social media.[4][5][6] In July, the compilation was officially announced and made available for pre-order.[1]

The volume was compiled by the Cardigans and remastered by Ryan Smith at Sterling Sound in New York City. The artwork is a collage of photographs of the band taken by Martin Bogren.[1]

Content

The compilation includes B-sides, alternate versions, demos and soundtrack features, for a total of 36 tracks. The first volume includes 20 tracks recorded during 1993-1996, whilst the second volume includes 16 tracks recorded during 1997-2005.[1]

It supersedes the band's previous two B-side compilations, The Other Side Of the Moon released in 1997 and the Best Of released in 2008, containing the tracks "The Boys Are Back In Town", "Mr. Crowley", and "Cocktail Party Bloody Cocktail Party", previously only released on the former. The tracks "Das Model (’00)", "For What It's Worth (Polar Session '01)", "Communication (Polar Session '01)", and "You're The Storm (Sandkvie Session)", "You're The Storm (First Demo)" were previously only available on CD singles or promo vinyls, whilst the track "Great Divide ('96 Demo)" was previously unreleased.

Track list

The Rest Of The Best - Vol. 1
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Pooh Song"Bengt Lagerberg, Magnus Sveningsson, Mattias Alfheim, Nina Persson, Peter Svensson3:13
2."I Figured Out (Demo '93)"Sveningsson, Svensson2:04
3."After All... (Demo '93)"Sveningsson, Svensson2:37
4."Plain Parade"Sveningsson, Svensson3:38
5."Laika"Svensson1:19
6."The Boys Are Back In Town"Phil Lynott4:01
7."Mr. Crowley"Robert Daisley, Ozzy Osbourne, Randy Rhoads2:37
8."Rise & Shine"Sveningsson, Svensson3:32
9."Carnival (Puck Version)"Sveningsson, Persson, Svensson2:51
10."Happy Meal I"Lynette Koyana, Sveningsson, Svensson2:37
11."Nasty Sunny Beam"Persson, Svensson2:56
12."Iron Man (First Try)"William Ward, Terence Butler, Osbourne, Frank Iommi3:39
13."Emmerdale"Svensson2:26
14."Blah Blah Blah"Persson, Svensson3:02
15."Losers (First Try)"Persson, Svensson3:19
16."Lovefool (Puck Version)"Persson, Svensson3:15
17."Country Hell"Sveningsson, Svensson2:47
18."Great Divide (Demo '96)"Svensson2:45
19."War (First Try)"Persson, Svensson4:08
20."Cocktail Party Bloody Cocktail Party"Svensson15:46
Total length:01:12:32
The Rest Of The Best – Vol. 2
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."War"Persson, Svensson3:56
2."Deuce"Lagerberg, Lars-Olof Johansson, Persson, Svensson3:33
3."Das Model ('00)" 2:55
4."For What It's Worth (Polar Session '01)"Persson, Svensson4:14
5."Communication (Polar Session '01)"Persson, Svensson4:20
6."If There Is A Chance"Persson, Svensson4:13
7."Hold Me (Mini Version)"Persson, Svensson0:34
8."Hold Me"Persson, Svensson3:40
9."The Road"Persson, Svensson6:51
10."You're the Storm (Sandkvie Session)"Persson, Svensson4:32
11."You're The Storm (First Demo)"Persson, Svensson3:27
12."For The Boys"Persson, Svensson3:37
13."(If You Were) Less Like Me"Nathan Larson, Persson, Svensson4:06
14."Slowdown Town"Persson, Svensson4:06
15."Give Me Your Eyes"Persson, Svensson3:22
16."Slow"Larson, Persson, Svensson4:04
Total length:01:01:30

References

  1. ^ a b c d Schube, Will (2024-07-17). "The Cardigans Announce Two-Part Compilation, 'The Rest Of The Best'". uDiscover Music. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
  2. ^ Peacock, Tim (2019-01-17). "The Cardigans Entire Studio Album Repertoire Set For Vinyl Reissue". uDiscover Music. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
  3. ^ Daly, Rhian (2023-04-02). "The Cardigans Release Sped-Up Version Of 'Step On Me'". uDiscover Music. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
  4. ^ "The Rest Of the Best Vol. 1". Discogs. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
  5. ^ "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
  6. ^ "The Cardigans are prepping a B-sides compilation – SuperDeluxeEdition". 2024-04-23. Retrieved 2024-08-05.