Even though this post has now been updated with all new scans, I have kept a couple of the photos that I originally posted here so that people could see how everything looks in the CD case.
This 2 CD promotional set was released in Japan back in 1993. Allegedly there were only 50 pressed copies of this set, but I have my doubts about that due to how often I see it turning up for sale. If there were only 50 copies in existence, you would rarely see this at all.
The thing about this is that there really isn't anything super special about it. Yes it's a promo, and a very difficult one to come by these days, but there really isn't anything particularly great about the song selections on either of the discs. I only picked it up at the time because it was a Japanese release and it was unique, but there really isn't anything on this thing that you can't easily find elsewhere. In fact, if you take a look at the track listing on the back of the CD case, you almost get the impression that someone randomly took chunks of albums and haphazardly slapped them onto these discs without much thought or consideration. Disc One contains nearly every track from The Red Shoes album. That may have been done to coincide with the release of The Red Shoes at that time, but some of those tracks can hardly be considered 'The Best Works'. And I won't even mention how better songs like 'Night of the Swallow' or 'Suspended in Gaffa' were overlooked completely for this compilation. I always thought the addition of the remixes was another stupid waste. I absolutely hate remixes of any kind. I don't mind the Hounds of Love era ones at all because they aren't typical remixes, but any remixes from The Red Shoes era were utter crap... and we all know it.
The CDs come inside a standard jewel case, which is fitted with a double-sided swing tray. The booklet cover features some nice artwork, which is a little reminiscent of The Red Shoes album design, including the same lettering. However, the front cover is the only area that features any sort of artwork at all. The eight page booklet has a sort of timeline on Kate, but all in Japanese text. The back of the booklet is fairly plain with only a Toshiba-EMI logo on it.
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The CDs themselves are pretty basic and plain. One is a solid black colour, and the other is a solid red colour. The inside of the back insert also features Japanese text, but I have absolutely no clue what any of it says. Interestingly enough, or not, both sides of the CD spine are printed in English. Usually with Japanese CD releases one side will be printed in full English, but the other side will be in Japanese.
So what's my overall opinion on this? It's a fairly unexciting promo CD. When I got it back in the late '90s it was exciting enough, but only because it was something a little different. Eventually, this became another one of those items where I questioned even buying it to begin with. Apparently it's become quite rare through the years, highly sought after and fetches more money than it's worth. All I can say is... Skip it.
