Maybe putting Peter Gabriel's first two solo albums together on one disk wasn't such a terrible idea--but why scramble the songs together, with alternating tracks from alternating albums? Those records had quite different sounds, themes, even production values--it's almost like intercutting songs from Diamond Dogs with songs from Young Americans.

Either of the first two albums is worth buying on its own--together, they are not the bargain they seem to be. This is one album that should go out of print.

This is a compilation of his first two solo albums, his third album (melted face) is not covered here. If you've only heard his popular songs on the radio you should be prepared to spend some time listening to this album, as it is more challenging, though not necessarily better. I think this collection of early tracks is more for hardcore Gabriel fans, and since those fans would already own his first two albums they probably would not want this bastardized collection. If your a casual fan just looking for a greatest hits collection you may want to stick with Tree, but i recommend Revisited if you are more adventurous.

I don't understand the scorn with which this little collection is greeted. It combines most of the songs from the first two Peter Gabriel albums, the two that preceded his sometimes rewarding but often tedious excursions into what's often called "world music," by which I gather is meant grafting African rhythms onto exceedingly white-oriented lyrics and melodies (see Paul Simon, David Byrne...). As with Byrne and Simon, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, but it's almost always highly presumptous (i.e. why is African music the sina qua non of "world"? What about Irish? Hawaiian? Chinese? Russian? Sicilian? etc. The idea that a single, overeducated, overpraised white man from America or England can somehow embrace all the varied musics of the world is preposterous and insulting to true ethno-music scholars... butIdigress...)

This album documents the best (with one terrible omission) from the two albums Gabriel put out when he was content to bring his surreal theatricality and quasi-symphonic tendencies, carried over from the "progressive" group Genesis, into the era of power pop. Not to be confused with Elvis Costello or Marshall Crenshaw, to be sure, but on those albums, Gabriel delivers relatively short, punchy, highly melodic, sometimes dissonant, occaisionally bizarre songs that are extremely entertaining, and seldom take themselves too seriously. For those who are accustomed to Gabriel taking the entire weight of all the world's suffering on his shoulders, it's very refreshing to hear the humor and whimsy that run through much of this music, especially stuff from his first solo album. There's also a lot of fabulous musicianship on this record--especially from Robert Fripp, but also Roy Bittan, Jerry Marotta, Larry Fast and Dick Wagner. These albums are no less thoughtful than Gabriel's subsequent, politically correct tomes, but they are far more enjoyable.

So, what's wrong with this album? Nothing, except they left off the second album's most wonderful song, "White Shadow." To solve that, I guess you could buy both PG albums and dispense with this one. But those two albums are too short for the CD era; this one plays for over an hour and get can you farther. That's all. It's useful for people like me who like a lot of their favorite music packed onto one disc. It's economical. Go with it!

For a PG compilation album, stick with "Shaking the Tree" by far the better album. The serious Gabriel fan will already have all of the cuts contained on Revisited. Any of Gabriel's solo works is individually a better album than this compilation.

"Revisited" combines the best of Peter Gabriel's first two albums into one package. It hits all of the best songs, including "Solisbury Hill," "Here Comes the Flood," "Modern Love," "Humdrum," "D.I.Y." and "On the Air." Unfortunately, it also includes the awful "Moribund the Burgemeister." Overall, it is a good way for all but the most ardent Gabriel fans to save a few bucks.