As for this CD, this a simple and nice start to their music. Its has a collection of their better known hits plus two new tracks. Collective Soul has built a carreer on singles and this CD cover all the bases in this regard. As for the booklet, its has lyrics, track information and tells you from what record each track was taken from. If you do not have any of their records and are a casual fan you will probably need no more. If you have their work already you have to decide if two new tracks are worth the expense.


Great Sound! Very Cohesive Track Selections and Arrangements!   September 17, 2005
 20 out of 20 found this review helpful

This is a very good best of compilation because the sound quality is excellent, the track selections are great and the way that they are arranged makes for very cohesive and flowing listening as if this was a normal album and not the collection of hits that it is. Collective Soul may not have received the due recognition it deserves as a great band of musicians and songwriters in this current climate of rap and pop drivel but something tells me they will be back when the next wave comes around. Very good representation of what CS was all about and you can't go wrong if you are looking to discover them with this disc. Highly recommended.


Good music, good project, some bad choices   September 21, 2001
 17 out of 33 found this review helpful

Collective Soul's greatest hits effort marks a major point in their career: it is evidence that they have had enough hits to warrant such a project. Just because Collective Soul doesn't get the airplay they deserve on Top-40 stations or because the band isn't always placing singles in the Hot 100 doesn't mean that they aren't popular or deserving of a greatest-hits disk. In fact, Collective Soul continues to "Shine" above other contemporary acts based on sales alone. The two new songs "Energy" and "Next Homecoming" are typical guitar-laden and guitar-driven songs, and if I had to choose one of them, I would say that I prefer "Energy." However, I was disappointed in the track selection for this CD. I did not expect "Heavy" to make this CD, especially considering that I never have heard it on the radio except on stations that play album tracks; I would have preferred (and expected) either or both of "Needs" and "No More, No Less," partly based on the fact that these DID get airplay on mainstream radio. I also was disappointed in the selection of "Forgiveness"; to me it is not a particular good song, at least not compared to other Collective Soul tracks. I think that "Maybe" or "Link" would have been a better choice if they wanted a third track from Disciplined Breakdown. However, I think that an overall better choice for inclusion is Perfect Day, even if it had been the version without Elton John.
I commend Collective Soul, their recording company, and their agency for embarking on a greatest hits project. It must have been difficult to decide which songs to include given the groups tremendous success; however, as a devoted fan, I feel that some bad choices were made. In the end, that is the reason why I rate this CD only at 4 stars.


Not the definitive collection of hits.....   June 12, 2004
 7 out of 14 found this review helpful

Released September 18, 2001, this is Collective Soul's only compilation available to this date.(June 12th)

Without a doubt, one of the most sucessful and well-received bands of the 90's had to be Collective Soul, with their unbelieveable 8 #1 hits, which still stand the test of time to this day. Even around other Post-Grunge and Modern Rock bands, Collective Soul stands as one of the best or maybe THE BEST, so it's not surprising a compilation has recently been made for Collective Soul. So how does 7even Year Itch measure up? Read on to find out!

PROS-
-CHEAP!-Since this is the only Collective Soul compilation available today, it is a good thing it's cheap and affordable to the casual fans!
-"SHINE" AND "HEAVY"- Since "Shine" off Hints, Allegations, and Things Left Unsaid... is The ONLY good song on that album, and "Heavy" off Dosage is the ONLY good track off that album, these two tracks are on 7even Year Itch that makes getting the less-than stellar albums that contain them unnecessary, and is the MAIN reason to get this album.
-7EVEN YEAR ITCH HAS SOME OF THE BIGGEST COLLECTIVE SOUL HITS-7even Year Itch contains such smash hits as "Shine","The World I Know", "December", and "Heavy". All these songs are instantly recognizeable among anybody, and are some of the biggest hits to emerge out of the mid 90's.
-"She Said" IS A VERY HARD SONG TO FIND- Although not that great of a song, "She Said" was originally released as a soundtrack single and it was very hard to find, but thankfully it was helpfully included on 7even Year Itch.
-THERE ARE SONGS OFF EVERY SINGLE COLLECTIVE SOUL ALBUM- This compilation manages to cover every single album this band ever made, which many compilations fail to do. You get songs off the albums Hints, Allegations, and Things Left Unsaid...,Collective Soul, Dosage, Disciplined Breakdown, Blender, and two new bonus tracks.
-MANY UNDERRATED SONGS GET A PLACE ON 7EVEN YEAR ITCH-Songs that aren't as popular yet still were Modern Rock hits like "Gel", "Precious Declaration", and many others get their rightful place on this compilation.
(That's about all I have to say good about this album)

CONS-
-WHERE IS "WHERE THE RIVER FLOWS"?! WTF!- "Where The River Flows", One of Collective Soul's most famous songs, and in my opinion their second best song behind "Shine", is CASUALLY LEFT OFF HERE! What were they thinking? This song ommision takes off one star all by itself!
-NUMEROUS OTHER SONGS SHOULD HAVE BEEN PUT ON HERE!-Did the people who made this album even think about the Major Modern Rock hits "No More No Less," "Where the River Flows," "Smashing Young Man," "Untitled," and "Maybe," when they made this compilation? OBVIOUSLY NOT!These obvious ommisions knock off One Star too!
-THE TWO NEW SONGS SUCK!-"Energy" and "New Homecoming" are two of the least inspired songs Collective Soul has ever made, and sound even worse than the "Boy-Band" crap songs off Blender.
-"FORGIVENESS"?-OK, whoever made this compilation is an idiot! This song, off Disciplined Breakdown, wasn't a hit or even a fan-favorite, in fact, IT'S ONE OF THE WEAKEST TRACKS OFF DISCIPLINED BREAKDOWN! WTF! They add this song instead of actual hits!
-ALTHOUGH IT'S ABOUT 14 DOLLARS, THIS CD SHOULD BE MUCH CHEAPER!-Come on, this album has been out for 3 years, and the price has not been dropped once! Amazon's price is actually not the usual store price, as this album at Best Buy goes for 14.99$!
-THIS ALBUM IS ONLY 52 MINUTES LONG!-The makers of 7even Year Itch could have easily used the maximum time of 80 minutes up by adding all the songs I listed above!

Overall, this is not a very good compilation for Collective Soul, and I only recommend this for the very casual fan. The only reason to get this would be for "Shine" and "Heavy".

RECOMMENDED ONLY IF YOU ARE A "VERY" CASUAL FAN! INSTEAD, DOWNLOAD "SHINE" AND "HEAVY" AND BUY THE ALBUMS COLLECTIVE SOUL AND DISCIPLINED BREAKDOWN! WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T BUY THE BOY-BAND JUNK THAT IS BLENDER! Thanks for reading!


One Word: AMAZING   October 9, 2001
 6 out of 6 found this review helpful

Just a great CD. If you don't know who Collective Soul is, I HIGHLY suggest you go out and buy this CD anyways. There are many recognizable songs that you may have heard on the radio at one point in the last 7 years. The CD starts out with the incredible, highly-charged rock anthem "Heavy" that really gets you pumped for the rest of the CD. Other popular songs include "Gel," December," and "The World I Know" from CS's second album (and in my opinion, their best album yet), Collective Soul. Popular songs from other albums include "Why Pt 2," "Precious Declaration," "Shine," and "Run" among others. The only real disappointing thing about 7even Year Itch is that their two new songs ("Energy" and "Next Homecoming") featured are not too great. But this is an overall great album and I haven't stopped listening to it since I got it. I only wish they would have put a few more songs on it---it just seems a little unfinished. "Skin" or "Untitled" or "To Where the River Flows" or "Vent" would have been great contributions I would think. Or just some more songs from their first and fifth albums that are barely featured on 7even Year Itch. I was surprised to see that "Perfect Day" was not on this CD. It is the first song I have seen CS record while featuring another artist---Elton John for that matter! But, it is still great with out it. BTW---Collective Soul in concert is a MUST-SEE! I saw them in May 2001 and they became my favorite band and I now have all of their CD's. They are an incredible band who deserve to be seen and deserve more than what they are getting. They are quietly famous which is both good and bad, but I still find them popular and just good all around.