The Jesus and Mary Chain: The Power of Negative Thinking: B-Sides & Rarities

Exhaustive collection a must for any JAMC fanatic

Across these 81 tracks, you get B-side demo versions of well-known Jesus and Mary Chain songs (“Just Like Honey”), excellent covers (Syd Barrett’s “Vegetable Man,” Leonard Cohen’s “Tower of Song”), acoustic renditions (“Taste of Cindy,” “Teenage Lust”), alternate mixes (“Surfin’ USA”) and more. It’s fascinating—not only because you get to see how the band evolved (and, eventually, dissolved), but also because it makes JAMC’s influence on many modern-day rockers such as Deerhunter and Liars all the more obvious. Rarely does a track on this set demand skipping, and even the scant missteps are worth at least a few listens—like any great band, the JAMC lived and learned. This set’s bonus materials include gatefold shell packaging, new interviews, rare photos and a ridiculously comprehensive, hand-drawn 18” x 24” family-tree poster that features 15 incarnations of the band. Maybe negative thinking ain’t so bad after all.