Only for the most casual fans (and, ironically, completists)

Review Score: (6/10)
Though the songs on "Shaking the Tree" are undeniably strong, it is a woefully inadequate compilation. The material recorded by Peter Gabriel between 1977 (the debut album) until 1989 ("Passion") is too rich and diverse to be well-served by a single-disc compilation. One studio album (the second), isn't even represented, and neither is the live album, "Plays Live." And "In Your Eyes" is a gross omission. Gabriel's other hits are all here (except those from 1992's "Us") so those with only a lukewarm interest may be satisfied. But Peter Gabriel is not a singles artist. Anyone with a stronger interest is better off buying the individual records.

In short, Peter Gabriel is an artist whose material should be slowly explored, not summed up in a brief greatest hits collection. Morever, the hits sound better in the artistic context of the original albums.

Ironically, Peter Gabriel completists will have to buy "Shaking the Tree" anyway in order to obtain the title track, co-written and co-performed with Youssou N'Dour. Also, "Here Comes the Flood" is a new version with just piano and voice.

More Reviews:

• Pumped to Please
• Good in the car
• For the passing fan, get 'Hit' instead
• better than the new greatest hits
• Almost as good as his 2-disc collection.
• Nice compilation
• Great Gabriel Collection
• Turn Up The Voice
• Flaws are Noticable, But Still an Entertaining Retrospecitve
• A portrait of Gabriel's solo career
• True audiophile sound.
• Missing an important song
• a must have
• Only sixteen greats?
• Why no "In Your Eyes"? Well...
• Unbelievably great CD!
• a solid heads up to you, the consumer
• Sounds much better remastered
• Lots of treasures grow on this tree
• Great Place to Start
• Has Some Minor Flaws But It's Still Magnificent!
• This Is The Picture.
• Shaking The Tree / A great ethnic piece...
• One track short of 5 stars
• Where the HELL is 'In Your Eyes'
• Not bad.
• A Great Retrospective -- well worth it.
• Gabriel's Best on one CD
• Fairly Accurate Solo Career Representation
• A Nice Starting Place
• Essential Listening
• Sixteen of Peter Gabriels's Seventeen Golden Greats
• Peter Gabriel on a Budget
• Good, but not the best way to sum up Gabriel's career
• Good anthology album
• I like about half the songs on this one.
• Not a "Greatest Hits" Compilation
• INCREDIBLE
• Only if you already know you love Peter Gabriel!
• Absolutely essential listening
• It sure was a good decision to buy this one!
• Too Many Unlistenable Songs
• Better than So
• Shaking The Tree: Sixteen Golden Greats
• This album is a satisfactory.
• Start With This One
• Almost perfect..
• Very Good Collection
• Good Stuff!
• Peter Gabriel is a musical god
• Great Collection, but why leave out "In Your Eyes"?
• Good representation of Peter's albums
• If you're looking for an overview of Gabriel, start here.
• A great compilation from a long career.
• A summation of greatness
• Excellent Peter Gabriel
• Great, all the good ones
• Great CD