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Critic's Review
Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
Neil Finn didn't really pull the plug on Crowded House at the peak of their powers, yet they were still quite popular, and, like any band, they had some unfinished business to take care of after they split. Namely, they had a number of very good songs that never appeared on an official album, including selections originally mooted for Woodface, a record that began as a Finn Brothers project. These weren't rejected songs, per se -- they were tunes that didn't fit an album or didn't have a home, so they popped up on B-sides, soundtracks -- and live shows, where Crowded House regularly aired unreleased and rare songs. Many of these deservedly became fan favorites and were part of the band's history. One problem -- they weren't readily available anywhere. Hence, the appearance of the rarities, B-sides, and "orphans" collection, Afterglow. Not every non-LP song made the cut, but everything here is quite strong, with several qualifying as truly exceptional. Impressively, the album gels very well, sounding a bit like a lost album, even if the tracks were recorded between 1985 and 1994. Is it an essential collection? Well, for hardcore fans -- the kind that know that with the existence of Afterglow they can now piece together the running order of the original Woodface -- it certainly is. But it's not just for them. Even casual fans will find several gems here. Maybe not Paul Hester's endearingly silly "My Telly's Gone Bung," but certainly such gems as the pre-Crowded House tune "Recurring Dream" and the gorgeous "I Love You Dawn." The fact that songs this good were orphans just proves what an exceptional songsmith Neil Finn became during the time he led Crowded House; and they, along with several other tunes here, are the reason why Afterglow isn't just for Crowded House diehards, but for anyone with a taste for fine, well-crafted pop. [Initial U.K. and U.S. pressing included a bonus interview disc with Neil Finn.]
