I've had a fever and tonsilitis and I am a Kerry-supporter in Boston watching the election results, so needless to say I haven't been having a good week... THEN I received this parcel on Wednesday and my spirits were lifted.
SOOO wonderful! I'll have to write the people at hiposelect a thank you note. The liner notes are really nice, the packaging is really nice, the clarity is also really nice.
A lot of this stuff I only have on vinyl. A few songs or renditions I've never even heard before. Disc 5 the "hitmaker" album has noted sonic flaws, namely oversaturation of the tape, but to me it really rocks. It starts to distort a little which just pummels you on those big choruses.
The version of "my little red book" is a lot more R&B than the versions i've heard before. The singer lets out this wild-man yell in the middle of it. It's awesome!
What does everyone else think?
Reviews of the "Something Big" Box Set
Moderator: mark
Reviews of the "Something Big" Box Set
I (heart) burt!
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mark
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You got yours already? I'm still waiting.
Guest, you're so right about the website being inadequate. The copy seems geared toward casual fans despite the fact that casual fans aren't likely to shell out $100 for a set of non-hit recordings. The Hip-O Select site should really include more information about what's included, who did the remastering, how many pages the booklet includes, etc.
Guest, you're so right about the website being inadequate. The copy seems geared toward casual fans despite the fact that casual fans aren't likely to shell out $100 for a set of non-hit recordings. The Hip-O Select site should really include more information about what's included, who did the remastering, how many pages the booklet includes, etc.
My review
I posted my review on the A&M Corner site, which I'll repeat here:
So, there in the mail on November 4th, one day before the official release date, was my copy of the new box set, BURT BACHARACH: SOMETHING BIG, THE COMPLETE A&M YEARS...AND MORE!
Packaging: Housed in a lovely, though somewhat awkwardly-sized, hardbound book-like case, the five disc set is pretty much all that could be hoped for, especially for those of us inclined toward the maestro's A&M output. Yes there are full A&M logos on the back and inside the liner notes, along with Hip-O Select's of course, and each time the title of the set is printed ("...THE COMPLETE A&M YEARS..."), the "A&M" part is printed in the logo style (minus the outline, trumpet, and "RECORDS").
The longest section of the lengthy liner notes were written by Lauren Oliver. I've not yet read through them in their entirety, but it seems like a more compact version of Burt's history - certainly more concise than the Rhino box set's epic notes. In addition to these, one page of notes each from Phil Ramone and Richard Carpenter are included, along with a two-page producers' notes from Mike Ragogna and Jim Pierson.
Next up are the track listings for the five discs, with pictures of the album covers heading up the appropriate pages. With each song, there's a credit for songwriters, producers, and the source album or single with catalog number.
Then there's an American discography of singles and albums, followed by some producers' notes about the inclusions in the set and the mastering problems encountered. That's all followed up with the box set's credits.
Next comes the actual discs, housed in thicker cardboard pages with slide-in pockets for each disc. Each set of pages (track list on left, disc on right) is themed to its own color, dark purple, green, brown, dark red, and an ochre-like color. (Ironically, the ochre-colored disc, #5, contains almost no A&M stuff, save for one track.)
How does it sound?: With my limited free-time lately, I haven't had much of a chance to listen to all of this material, but I sampled some of it. Initial comparisons are favorable with the older A&M discs, with these sounding at least as good if not better. Quite a few of Burt's recordings start with a solo instrument, allowing tape hiss to be clearly heard. It seems to me that no attempt to remove that hiss has been made here - a wise choice by masterer Erick Labson, ensuring a natural analog-sounding musical experience. The discs were 96k/24-bit mastered from the original master tapes.
Yes, the HAECO-CSG system is still there on the BUTCH CASSIDY tracks, as one would expect.
The live album sounds well-mastered to me and should be a treat for any who haven't heard that particular album.
If I have any criticisms at all it would be the lack of rear-cover artwork for the albums, and as mentioned earlier, the size of the set is awkward for storage. These are minor nit-picks though. All-in-all, it's a really classy set and well done. Kudos to Hip-O Select, Mike Ragogna, and Jim Pierson for their efforts in making this one a reality.
Harry
NP: BURT BACHARACH: SOMETHING BIG, THE COMPLETE A&M YEARS...AND MORE!
So, there in the mail on November 4th, one day before the official release date, was my copy of the new box set, BURT BACHARACH: SOMETHING BIG, THE COMPLETE A&M YEARS...AND MORE!
Packaging: Housed in a lovely, though somewhat awkwardly-sized, hardbound book-like case, the five disc set is pretty much all that could be hoped for, especially for those of us inclined toward the maestro's A&M output. Yes there are full A&M logos on the back and inside the liner notes, along with Hip-O Select's of course, and each time the title of the set is printed ("...THE COMPLETE A&M YEARS..."), the "A&M" part is printed in the logo style (minus the outline, trumpet, and "RECORDS").
The longest section of the lengthy liner notes were written by Lauren Oliver. I've not yet read through them in their entirety, but it seems like a more compact version of Burt's history - certainly more concise than the Rhino box set's epic notes. In addition to these, one page of notes each from Phil Ramone and Richard Carpenter are included, along with a two-page producers' notes from Mike Ragogna and Jim Pierson.
Next up are the track listings for the five discs, with pictures of the album covers heading up the appropriate pages. With each song, there's a credit for songwriters, producers, and the source album or single with catalog number.
Then there's an American discography of singles and albums, followed by some producers' notes about the inclusions in the set and the mastering problems encountered. That's all followed up with the box set's credits.
Next comes the actual discs, housed in thicker cardboard pages with slide-in pockets for each disc. Each set of pages (track list on left, disc on right) is themed to its own color, dark purple, green, brown, dark red, and an ochre-like color. (Ironically, the ochre-colored disc, #5, contains almost no A&M stuff, save for one track.)
How does it sound?: With my limited free-time lately, I haven't had much of a chance to listen to all of this material, but I sampled some of it. Initial comparisons are favorable with the older A&M discs, with these sounding at least as good if not better. Quite a few of Burt's recordings start with a solo instrument, allowing tape hiss to be clearly heard. It seems to me that no attempt to remove that hiss has been made here - a wise choice by masterer Erick Labson, ensuring a natural analog-sounding musical experience. The discs were 96k/24-bit mastered from the original master tapes.
Yes, the HAECO-CSG system is still there on the BUTCH CASSIDY tracks, as one would expect.
The live album sounds well-mastered to me and should be a treat for any who haven't heard that particular album.
If I have any criticisms at all it would be the lack of rear-cover artwork for the albums, and as mentioned earlier, the size of the set is awkward for storage. These are minor nit-picks though. All-in-all, it's a really classy set and well done. Kudos to Hip-O Select, Mike Ragogna, and Jim Pierson for their efforts in making this one a reality.
Harry
NP: BURT BACHARACH: SOMETHING BIG, THE COMPLETE A&M YEARS...AND MORE!
Harry from A&M Corner
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Blair N. Cummings
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Hip-O compilation
It enabled me to test for the first time in a quarter century two long-held biases.
#1. WOMAN is his best album and an unmatched creative peak.
#2. Given only the two collaborations with Libby Titus that I`m aware of, it would have been a creatively more rewarding partnership than that with Carole Bayer-Sager.
Both biases have withstood the test of time and this collection.
#1. WOMAN is his best album and an unmatched creative peak.
#2. Given only the two collaborations with Libby Titus that I`m aware of, it would have been a creatively more rewarding partnership than that with Carole Bayer-Sager.
Both biases have withstood the test of time and this collection.
Well, I paid the extra $ for second day air. LOL!
YES i got mine. I'm a sucker and paid the extra money for second day air. I think it shipped from NYC, so I actually got it a day after I was billed for it and received a confirmation email.
The packaging is decent, I don't think I could describe it any better that other guy did.
but as I said before, I have been in bed all week with a wicked bad cold, so I have been listening to this non-stop for several days. What a treat! Oh, and if anyone cares, the antibiotics have kicked in and my poor tonsils are (almost) back to normal! (thanks also to my roommate tammy for getting me all that juice and sorbet!)
Back to the box set: I also mentioned I only have this stuff on vinyl, except for Reach Out and Butch Cassidy, and the remastering is MUCH better on this set than on those single discs.
I'm so in love with this "and so goodbye my love" song that I never heard before. SOOO lovely, I could cry. Just for added sappiness, the other melody that is so beautiful I cry is that trumpet on Dionne's "If I ever make you cry." That is gut-wrenching.
Bye!
The packaging is decent, I don't think I could describe it any better that other guy did.
but as I said before, I have been in bed all week with a wicked bad cold, so I have been listening to this non-stop for several days. What a treat! Oh, and if anyone cares, the antibiotics have kicked in and my poor tonsils are (almost) back to normal! (thanks also to my roommate tammy for getting me all that juice and sorbet!)
Back to the box set: I also mentioned I only have this stuff on vinyl, except for Reach Out and Butch Cassidy, and the remastering is MUCH better on this set than on those single discs.
I'm so in love with this "and so goodbye my love" song that I never heard before. SOOO lovely, I could cry. Just for added sappiness, the other melody that is so beautiful I cry is that trumpet on Dionne's "If I ever make you cry." That is gut-wrenching.
Bye!
I (heart) burt!
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vincent.cole
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