That’s My Jam is a weekly feature where one person from the Selective Hearing staff goes to wax poetic about music that is pivotal to their musical tastes. Whether that would be an album, a song, or anything in-between. We all had to start somewhere. This week: SPEED The Memorial Best 1335days.
Released March 29, 2000
Track Listing:
Dear Friends 1
- Body & Soul
- Steady (Atlanta Mix)
- Happy Together
- I Remember
- Go! Go! Heaven
- Kiwi Love (“Dear Friends” House Remix)
- Coquettish Dreamin’
- Wake Me Up! (RISE Mix)
- White Love
- My Lonely Habit
- Lovely Friendship
- My Graduation (Album Version)
- Oyasumi…..(Good Night Kiss Version)
Dear Friends 2
- Back to the Sreet -Little World e no Omoi-
- All My True Love
- Alive
- Secret Eyes
- Up To You!
- Precious Time
- Too Young -Millennium Remix-
- Breakin’ out to the Morning
- Kisetsu ga Iku Toki
- Long Way Home -Single Version-
- Starting Over
- Starting Over (reprise) – Walk This Way
- April ~ Theme of “Dear Friends”
Review
Dear Friends 1 & 2, together, is known as SPEED The Memorial Best 1335days. This 2-part, best of album was released commemorating Speed’s disbandment in March of 2000. The 1335 days is the number of days the group was together. Both albums are a collection of singles and some B-sides, along with remixes and original material such as April.
As selected as the theme song for the collection, the production is simple. Just some piano keys and a few other instruments playing nothing complicated. The result is a song that conveys both the journey’s conclusion and an optimistic view of the future. A marker for disbandment makes this collection more notable to me than the music itself. It’s ultimately why I chose to write about Speed for this installment of the feature.
Matter of fact, I didn’t quite believe they were disbanding in the first place. I denied it.
“They’ll be back. They have to,” I kept telling myself.
It wasn’t until I saw the 2 albums arrive in the mail for my brother that I accepted it. The album covers alone told the whole story. Going from the Dear Friends 1 cover when they were still young and truly into the idea of being a group. Look at the Dear Friends 2 cover; they grew up so fast. Now young adults ready for whatever is next.
So when I look back at Speed, Dear Friends 1 & 2 doesn’t carry that negative connotation of disbandment. Rather, I view the disbandment as one of the best things that could happen to the four. Sure they stayed in the public eye in some capacity, but they could finally breathe. Speed has the chance to grow up and become more well-rounded people. As much as I and other Speed fans wished they had kept their run going, self-preservation takes precedence over potentially burning out producing more material.
I could never be mad at them for doing something for themselves. They left a great body of work that I still visit to this day. It worked out for everyone. Also, they did reform eventually and return. I always had a feeling.
