1 comments about Red Bird Story.

1. The best thing about hearing label collections such as this is in the discovery of tracks one had not been previously exposed to. A lot of material to digest , especially for those unfamiliar with the label's releases , but what an enjoyable time you will have ! Quantity AND Quality at 33 pennies a track!

5 comments about The Sun Records Collection.

1. The Sun Records Collection
   
   All in all, an enjoyable 3 disc set for those who like classic rockabilly, blues, country and early rock and roll. I will say that the remastering is not flawless, and a lot of the hissing, clicks and pops from the old tapes are still there. It adds character to the recording, yes, but it also sounds like ass on a good stereo. However, that is not true of every track and overall the remastered versions are cleaner. The breakdown disc by disc is as follows.
   
   Disc 1 is mostly a blues disc with some spirituals and boogie woogie piano numbers. Notable artists are Howlin Wolf, BB King and Rufus Thomas. Fairly enjoyable if you dig on that sound. The gospel songs really stand out, especially "There's a Man in Jerusalem" by the Southern Jubilee Singers. This a capella song has outstanding harmony and the remastering brings out the bass vocals nicely. Blues highlights are "I'm Gonna Murder My Baby" by Pat Hare mainly because it's a pretty disturbing tune. Also, "Rocket 88" by Jackie Brenston is a hot song, bridging the gap between blues and early rock and roll.
   
   The second disc kicks off the rock era, with Elvis' first song "That's All Right" starting things right. This disc is from the golden era of Sun, with songs from Elvis, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison and Carl Perkins. Some highlight tunes are "Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee" by Malcolm Yelvington, which I like because it is an odd rockabilly tune that reminds me of Screaming Jay Hawkins. Also, "Red Hot" by Billy "The Kid" Emerson is worth a mention because it's a decent little song that is covered by another Sun artist on the 3rd disc, and this version is about 8000% better than the cover by Billy Lee Riley. Other notable songs are Johnny Cash's first hit, "Cry Cry Cry," as well as his additional hits with the Tennessee Two "I Walk The Line" and Folsom Prison Blues." However, the show stopper on this album is the original "Blue Suede Shoes" by Carl Perkins.
   
   Three starts out with another Sun superstar, Jerry Lee Lewis. Honestly, Jerry owns this disc with 8 tracks out of 26. Notables are his hits "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On," "Breathless" and "Great Balls of Fire," the last being close to a theme song for Jerry. One of the more interesting tracks is the gospel song "Down By The Riverside" as it is performed by the "Million Dollar Quartet" of Carl Perkins, Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash. There are some interesting articles out there on the irony of that myth. Also interesting is Jerry Lee Lewis' cover of Hank Williams' "You Win Again." Its follows the lines of the original, but has some added vocals and such that make it a rock ballad. It also has the creepiest song in the world, "Right Behind You Baby" by Ray Smith, which is also apparently the first recorded song about stalking a woman.



2. This is Music that wasn't motivated by fame and fortune. This cd collection features your early Elvis Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins,Roy Orbison, Johnny Cash, Howlin Wolf BB King and many others. It features your first rock song Rocket 88. The songs on the collection would go on to influence bands like The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton as well as many others. I would recommend this collection to a true music fan.



3. This superb Rhino box set collects the best of the enormous treasure trove of music recorded during the heyday of Sam Phillips' Sun Record Studio in Memphis. There is a wealth of material to pick from, but this release by Rhino is by far the finest, most informative, and affordable representation of the Sun legacy released to date. There is little marginal material included here. The story begins with "Rocket 88," believed by many to be the first rock and roll recording, and segues into haunting sides recorded by BB King, Joe Hill Louis, and Howlin' Wolf. The best of Elvis Presley's early Sun sides are here (including "That's Allright, Mama," and "Mystery Train," perhaps the most exciting 2 minutes of music ever waxed), as are the best output of Jerry Lewis, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, and Charlie Rich. The legacy continues into the early 60's with the country-flavored sides of Warren Smith and Billy Lee Riley. An extremely informative, well-researched booklet and discography penned by reknowned expert Colin Escott accompanies this flawless 3-CD survey of the most important record company in the history of recorded music.



4. Elvis hadn't succumbed to Col. Tom Parker and stuck to this material ("That's All Right,'' "Mystery Train''). He wouldn't have made as much money, but he probably would have lived longer and produced more rewarding work.

   Beyond that, this is a wonderful set. Look at the material recorded in a relatively short period in 1954 and 1955 that still lives. From Johnny Cash ("Folsom Prison'' and "I Walk the Line"); Carl Perkins ("Blue Suede Shoes'') Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis and on and on through Howlin Wolf, B.B. King, et. al. An interesting note in the booklet _ "Blue Suede Shoes'' was No. 2 on the pop and R%B charts, No. 1 in country. That's something that's rarely happened since in a comparmentalized market.

   Interesting. Phillilps and Sun were clearly color blind before their time. So much so that they also produced "Ubangi Blues,'' a blatantly racist track that includes the "n'' word. It didn't offend me as much as it reflected how much society has changed in the last half-century.

   This is worth of for Elvis.
   But it's worth it for the others, too.




5. Great collection of music from many artists who went on to be legends. I am always partial to the early works of people who went on to be great stars - the days before their heads and their producer's bank accounts swelled.

No comments about Mastercuts: Funk Divas.

1 comments about Disco.

1. Although I checked to see what songs would be in this 3 cd box set before ordering it, I was disappointed none the less to realize that some songs were not as I thought they'd be. I find I listen and enjoy approximately one third of what's on the cd's rather than the majority of the songs. My time is spent skipping over more than half of the tracks to get to a song I really do like. Some of these songs are not all disco either, but I want to make it clear that I listen to and appreciate all kinds of music. For the amount of money spent on this box set, I would have liked there to have been more songs that I would have been interested in.

1 comments about The Curtom Story: We're a Winner.

1. As a fanatic of both Curtis Mayfield and obscure R&B, I eagerly anticipated this. It came last week and here's the verdict.
   
   Curtis Mayfield (1942-1999) was a grossly underrated genius of Soul who was not only to Soul what Bob Dylan was to folk rock, but also attemtpted to be Chicago's Berry Gordy with his Curtom label.
   
   Lots of good stuff here scattered among 3 Cds. The Five Stairteps (precursors to the J-5) have a number of their tunes here that are hard to find on CD, such as "I'm The One Who Loves You," "Stay Close to Me," and the lovely "Behind Curtains." A young Donny Hathaway is represented by a tune with the Mayfield singers and a 1969 duet with June Conquest (who alas didn't live up to her name when it came to the music industry). Baby Huey and the Babysitters really get things funked up with "Mighty Mighty Children." And Curtis and his Impressions are also well represented by the lovely and little known "Seven Years" as well as the bigger hits "Choice of Colors" and "This is My Country."
   
   Can't discuss this set without mentioning Mavis Staples' underrated PIECE OF THE ACTION. This song has a soft spot in the hearts of those who saw the Cosby/Poitier film of the same name and the dance sequence that this song energized.
   
   Of course in a set this vast, there are bound to be few clunkers, but since this is the CD age, you can easily skip over these and enjoy what's good here.
   
   This CD is a testament as to why corporate radio needs to go. There is TOO MUCH good stuff that is not exposed to the masses. Enjoy.

2 comments about The Specialty Story.

1. Maybe it's just me but I found the first three discs pretty
   dull.Too much 12 bar blues and very little of it particularly inspired.There ARE some gems on these first 3...and the 4th and 5th discs are wonderful and so is the booklet...but I would only recommend it with reservations.The Chess Story and The Atlantic
   Rythm & Blues Box Set are more interesting and varied overviews
   of this this fantastic time and music.



2. It is impossible to give a play by play of this fantastic box. The influence of New Orleans R and B is perhaps its deepest aspect. But then, it is also permeated by Gospel. All the manifestations of Black Music come into play. The fact that the Jazz side of R and B is perhaps the most "dumbed down" side has led to much misunderstanding: Jazz people love to compare their hard-won gains re: the world's having finally woken up to the fact that "Jazz is Art" to the "mere entertainment" value of R and B. Well, wake up folks - Little Richard singing "Heebie Jeebies" is art by any definition that I understand. Essential listening.

5 comments about Sam Cooke's Sar Records Story - 2 Pack Jewel Case.

1. Apart from containing a lot of fine music, this two CDs box gives great insight into the musical ideas of Sam Cooke and documents his invalueable influence on the transforming of gospel and blues into soul-music.
   
   Only a handful of these tracks has Sam Cooke himself as performer, but he is behind the whole things as the producer and in many cases also as the writer of the songs.
   
   A couple of years after his big break-through Sam Cooke started his own recording label SAR, and for five years he produced recordings for artists like the Soul Stirrers, The Womack Brothers, Billy Preston, Johnnie Taylor and a lot of other black artists.
   
   The music spans from pure pop, through gospel and soul to what we today recognise as soul-music. A nice surprise for me was the many great tracks with the Soul Stirrers, a group I only knew from their early recordings with Sam Cooke. I did not not know either that Sam Cooke wrote "Mary Don't You Weep" which was a big hit in my native Denmark - with silly new Danish lyrics.
   
   A favourite that has to be brought forward is the Simms Twins' version of "That's Where it's At" which Cooke himself also recorded.
   
   The included 88 pages book has a lot of interesting background information about Cooke's musical ideas and personality.



2. This 2 CD set collects highlights from the SAR Records vault. This record label was co-owned by Sam Cooke. In addition to being the owner, Sam also wrote and produced many of the records. Disc One features gospel songs and Disc Two features secular material. Some of the songs are preceded by bits of studio dialogue where Sam explains to the performers how he wants them to sing. Most of the songs are quite good, although not as good as Sam's own versions of the same songs, when they exist. This is a very nice collection, but some Sam Cooke fans may be disappointed that there are only a few songs performed by Cooke himself.



3. This is the type of Gospel music that lifts the soul. The vocals are stirring and awesome. Listening to them rehearse at times, is a lesson in how Gospel Music is performed. I wish we still had gospel quartets, or groups, who performed in this same style. Many try, but none will ever match groups like The Soul Stirrers, or the greatest gospel singer of all, Sam Cooke. They were, and still are, extraordinary, with such harmonious and melodic voices. They are very aptly named, because this 2-pack jewel case will truly stir your soul.



4. Sam Cooke was a genius. As brilliant and beautiful as his unparalled voice was, he still was able to write and produce some of the most remarkable music(particularly the gospel cd)in black history for other artists. Sam wanted to write, produce, and record other artists. He wanted to take gospel and the gospel sound mainstream. This is a wonderful body of work by an artist who is so sorely underrated and unknown, especially this side of his career. This set features some extremely powerful singing and gorgeous production. A particular artist who stands out here is Jimmie Outler. He became lead singer of The Soul Stirrers after Johnnie Taylor left, who replaced Sam. Jimmie's voice is so powerful and dynamic. He truly defines 'Soul Stirring.'His ability to interpret a lyric while keeping his intense gospel fervor is stunning. R.H. Harris, an inspiration to a young Sam Cooke, is here with a handful of tracks with his new backing team "The Gospel Paraders." I believe R.H. was in his forty's during this period and his falsetto is still earthshattering.(particularly on "Pass Me Not" with its beautiful and carefully arranged guitar intro)........



5. This album is incredible. Even though i'm not particularly religious, but this Gospel is amazing. The first disc, to me, is alot better, just because it is the gospel, and there are no duds. The "chatter" before the songs really add alot to the whole experience, and give you a deeper look into Sam Cookes producing style. My favorite soul album, and completely flawless.

4 comments about Old School Soul Party.

1. This CD set is o.k but it would have been 10 times better if it would have had the extended (disco) versions of songs like "Got to be real," "Ladies night," and "And the beat goes on."



2. Anyone who digs classic soul will love these discs! I grew up listening to these songs, and can sing and move and groove to each and every one. This is a must-have for your collection. Great party music too!



3. My oh my..... I love, love, love this set of CDs. I am singing the praises of this music to anyone who will listen. It is playing right now!



4. you can have a House Party with Blue Lights,Red Lights,Green Lights&just have a Good time off these Grooves feautred here.the Music on these Discs are timeless.you can Pop Lock or just get your Lean on with these Jams.Props,Daps,snaps&DoorBell Rings on this Awesome Collection!!!!!! it's funky,feel Good&on point.

5 comments about The Monterey International Pop Festival, June 16-17-18, 1967.

1. Apart from the historical context of this festival, which had a
   seminal effect on outdoor festival organizing (facilities for
   musicians, the public, vendors, etc.) here is a pleasing
   Summer grab bag of musicians, bag in the day that is still
   every bit as relevant today, as back when the musicians played.
   
   In fact, I have to say quite a bit of the material is simply
   extremely current, such as the blues numbers played by
   The Butterfield Blues Band - competently, I would say,
   but not exceptional. However, they're consistent, and deserve
   the attention and place they had in the lineup to the festival,
   packing a strong punch.
   
   Next, The Byrds are incredible, and extremely energized,
   with amazing covers of Bobby Dylan favorites He Was A Friend Of
   Mine, or Chimes Of Freedom or Hendrix's own Hey Joe....highly
   entertaining and original.....very live feeling to this,
   even 30 years later and counting.
   
   From my view, the Canned Heat is really a high point in
   the lineup, with numbers such as Elmore James' Dust my Broom,
   or even Bullfrog Blues ....these blues numbers are truely
   timeless, sounding every bit as fresh, relevant as when
   they were originally composed - which is the case for truely
   exceptional music, never mind when from the Mississipi Delta,
   or in other genres, such as music composed by 20th century
   composers Bela Bartok, Igor Stravinsky, or even Jazz numbers
   from Miles Davis, Coltrane, Bird, for example.
   
   The song from Ravi Shankar is bizarre, and out of place
   although not bad in itself.....the weak spots in the lineup,
   looking back, is clearly Janis Joplin's ("Big Brother ...")
   or The Who, or Jefferson Airplane.
   
   Otis Redding packed a sincere performance, somewhat gospel
   or soul based, good for a varied bag of numbers and to
   please the African American population in the USA, as did
   Jimi Hendrix, who, unfortunately, felt it was necessary
   to exceed normal boundaries of performance, to perhaps
   impress innocent young minds with the voodoo spin on
   his presentation. I would suggest there was no need to
   exceed what most of the public would have found satisfactory
   and fine as entertainment, by burning his guitar, or
   auto-destroying himself, in the final analysis.
   
   The Mamas & The Papas are a fine closing to the festival,
   dated somewhere, but sincere in the performances, and
   with the ultimate closing song Dancing In The Street - very
   professional, and a fine closing touch on the overall festival.



2. I know that this CD set is great, that is why I ordered it. I however got an e-mail after I had already ordered the item that I found on the website saying they refunded my money because the price was wrong and the "quality of the item wasn't good." What sort of bad advertising is that? It isn't my fault that they priced it wrong, and if there was a mistake I should have received it anyway. It isn't fair, and I want everyone to know that they obviously did not do their jobs in making sure all of the information was correct to be displayed on the website.



3. I agree with "A music fan" in the other review here. The reason I'm looking at this Boxed set is for the Jimi Hendrix and Otis Redding performances. I've got an old, out of print LP of just four songs from each of them on each side, and I have to say it's outstanding. I wore it out from playing it so much and alas, my turntable is put away in the basement right now.
   
   Otis went on stage close to midnight on Saturday night. He got the whole crowd back up on their feet. Six months later he was killed in a plane crash. It's been said the Monterey Pop performance was perhaps the high-point of his career.
   
   Throw in The Who and Janis Joplin and this has to be a great deal.



4. Disc: 1
   
   1. Festival Introduction - John Phillips Listen Listen Listen
   2. Along Comes Mary - The Association Listen Listen Listen
   3. Windy - The Association Listen Listen Listen
   4. Love Is a Hurtin' Thing - Lou Rawls Listen Listen Listen
   5. Dead End Street - Lou Rawls Listen Listen Listen
   See all 17 tracks on this disc
   Disc: 2
   
   1. The Flute Thing Listen Listen Listen
   2. Mystery Train - The Paul Butterfield Blues Band Listen Listen Listen
   3. Born in Chicago - The Paul Butterfield Blues Band Listen Listen Listen
   4. Double Trouble - Butterfield Blues Band Listen Listen Listen
   5. Mary Ann - Butterfield Blues Band Listen Listen Listen
   See all 18 tracks on this disc
   Disc: 3
   
   1. Somebody to Love - Jefferson Airplane Listen Listen Listen
   2. Other Side of This Life - Jefferson Airplane Listen Listen Listen
   3. White Rabbit - Jefferson Airplane Listen Listen Listen
   4. High Flyin' Bird - Jefferson Airplane Listen Listen Listen
   5. She Has Funny Cars - Jefferson Airplane Listen Listen Listen
   See all 19 tracks on this disc
   Disc: 4
   
   1. Killing Floor - Jimi Hendrix Experience Listen Listen Listen
   2. Foxey Lady - Jimi Hendrix Experience Listen Listen Listen
   3. Like a Rolling Stone - Jimi Hendrix Experience Listen Listen Listen
   4. Rock Me Baby - Jimi Hendrix Experience Listen Listen Listen
   5. Hey Joe - Jimi Hendrix Experience Listen Listen Listen
   See all 16 tracks on this disc
   
   NOTE: To see all the tracks check-out the other Rhino listing for the Monterey International Pop Festival.
   
   This box set shows how important and how great the sound of Monterey Pop was to popular music. It had showed that pop music can now be an art form, along with classical. Unfortuantly, that isn't true about the pop music today. (Damn Britney Spears, she ruined everything!) But, the music on this album isn't what you would call pop. It's very eccentric. THere's pop rock, of course, but there's also soul, blues, pshcheydelia, folk rock, jam rock, swing, and classical. The 1st disc alone shows great variety. I start out my review with this disc
   
   1.John Phillips Introduction-A short intro which sums up the feel of the show. Music, love, flowers.
   
   THE ASSOCIATION
   
   2.Along Comes Mary-The Association start the show playing a more rock version of this song. I espiecially enjoy the flute solo. It's quite silly. There was a little controversy about this song being about marijuana, but I think it's more about hippies than anything else.
   
   3.Windy-This is a great pop song. It's got good harmonies, nice chords, and it rocks near the end. I like the drum beat on this one.
   
   LOU RAWLS
   
   4.Love Is A Hurtin' Thing-Lou Rawls is a great soul singer who, in my opinion, started rap. He had long jive-talk intros which could've influnced rap. This song is probably one of his best.
   
   5.Dead End Street-Another "Rock and soul" song that has a great inro about being in Chicago. Excellent singing.
   
   6.Tobacco Road-LONG intro, but really really cool song. I love it when Lou holds a C note for about 40 seconds.
   
   ERIC BURDON AND THE ANIMALS
   
   7.San Fransico Nights-Eric Burdon and the Animals are a great blues and folk rock band. And when I mean rock, i mean it. This is a pleasent ballad about San Fransico with some sloppy, yet nice guitar solos.
   
   8.Hey Gyp-One of the highlights on the 1st disc. A pshyadelic version of an old Donavan song. Eric's singing is so ood, and the guitars sound like the'yre having sex with each other. Quite good.
   
   CANNED HEAT
   
   9.Rolling and Tumbling-I do't know why I like this band. They sound like any other Blues rock band, but there's something about them. This is a great song. The only cool song to use a polka beat. Very cool.
   
   10.Dust My Broom-How many bands have played this song? Anyway, this is another great blues song with some really clever lyrics. I sure they were improvised on the spot.
   
   11.Bullfrog Blues-Quite interesting. I'm sure this song's about licking frogs. I don't know. But, it's their best song on this album. Pretty fast and cool.
   
   COUNTRY JOE AND THE FISH
   
   12.Not-So-Sweet Marta Lorraine-I always liked Country Joe, but I wished that they had more of them at Monterey. But this is..um, strange. Strange singing, cool solos, and some lyrics about a girl who destroys men. Either that or heroin. I'm not sure.
   
   BIG BROTHER AND THE HOLDING COMPANY
   
   13.Down On Me-When Janis Joplin was in Big Brother, it fealt more like a group than a solo act. But it's still pretty good. This sounds like a 60's British Invasion version of an old traditional song with a banshee singing. It's very very cool.
   
   14.Combination Of The Two-More of a team song, but it's decent. Should do something about the vocal mics though.
   
   15.Harry-Uh.....Ok. Let's move on.
   
   16.Road Block-Probably the best gospel rock song ever. This is the 2nd highlight of the disc. Amazing singing and screaming.
   
   17.Ball And Chain-WHOAH! How does Janis sing like that? I was impressed when I heard this. She loses her voice at the end, so you can tell she was singing with all her voice. Quite powerful.
   
   So ends Disc 1.
   
   
   Song List
   1. Introduction
   2. Along Comes Mary
   3. Windy
   4. Love Is A Hurtin' Thing
   5. Dead End Street
   6. Tobacco Road
   7. San Franciscan Nights
   8. Hey Gyp
   9. Rollin' And Tumblin'
   10. Dust My Broom
   11. Bullfrog Blues
   12. Not So Sweet Martha Lorraine
   13. Down On Me
   14. Combination Of Two
   15. Harry
   16. Road Block
   17. Ball And Chain
   18. Look Over Yonders Wall
   19. Mystery Train
   20. Born In Chicago
   21. Double Trouble
   22. Mary Ann
   23. Mercury Blues
   24. Groovin' Is Easy
   25. Wine
   26. Bajabula Bonke
   27. Renaissance Fair
   28. Have You Seen Her Face
   29. Hey Joe (Where You Gonna Go)
   30. He Was A Friend Of Mine
   31. Lady Friend
   32. Chimes Of Freedom
   33. So You Wanna Be A Rock'N'Roll Star
   34. Dhun- Fast Teental (Excerpt)
   35. Flute Thing
   36. Somebody To Love
   37. Other Side Of This Life
   38. White Rabbit
   39. High Flyin' Bird
   40. She Has Funny Cars
   41. Booker-Loo
   42. Hip Hug-Her
   43. Philly Dog
   44. Shake
   45. Respect
   46. I'Ve Been Loving You Too Long (To Stop Now)
   47. Satisfaction
   48. Try A Little Tenderness
   49. Substitute
   50. Summertime Blues
   51. Pictures Of Lily
   52. Quick One While He's Away
   53. Happy Jack
   54. My Generation
   55. Killing Floor
   56. Foxy Lady
   57. Like A Rolling Stone
   58. Rock Me Baby
   59. Hey Joe
   60. Can You See Me
   61. Wind Cries Mary
   62. Purple Haze
   63. Wild Thing
   64. Straight Shooter
   65. Got A Feelin'
   66. California Dreamin'
   67. I Call Your Name
   68. Monday Monday
   69. San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Flowers In Your Hair)
   70. Dancing In The Street
   
   
   --------------------------------------------------------------------------------



5. This box set shows how important and how great the sound of Monterey Pop was to popular music. It had showed that pop music can now be an art form, along with classical. Unfortuantly, that isn't true about the pop music today. (Damn Britney Spears, she ruined everything!) But, the music on this album isn't what you would call pop. It's very eccentric. THere's pop rock, of course, but there's also soul, blues, pshcheydelia, folk rock, jam rock, swing, and classical. The 1st disc alone shows great variety. I start out my review with this disc

   1.John Phillips Introduction-A short intro which sums up the feel of the show. Music, love, flowers.

   THE ASSOCIATION

   2.Along Comes Mary-The Association start the show playing a more rock version of this song. I espiecially enjoy the flute solo. It's quite silly. There was a little controversy about this song being about marijuana, but I think it's more about hippies than anything else.

   3.Windy-This is a great pop song. It's got good harmonies, nice chords, and it rocks near the end. I like the drum beat on this one.

   LOU RAWLS

   4.Love Is A Hurtin' Thing-Lou Rawls is a great soul singer who, in my opinion, started rap. He had long jive-talk intros which could've influnced rap. This song is probably one of his best.

   5.Dead End Street-Another "Rock and soul" song that has a great inro about being in Chicago. Excellent singing.

   6.Tobacco Road-LONG intro, but really really cool song. I love it when Lou holds a C note for about 40 seconds.

   ERIC BURDON AND THE ANIMALS

   7.San Fransico Nights-Eric Burdon and the Animals are a great blues and folk rock band. And when I mean rock, i mean it. This is a pleasent ballad about San Fransico with some sloppy, yet nice guitar solos.

   8.Hey Gyp-One of the highlights on the 1st disc. A pshyadelic version of an old Donavan song. Eric's singing is so ood, and the guitars sound like the'yre having sex with each other. Quite good.

   CANNED HEAT

   9.Rolling and Tumbling-I do't know why I like this band. They sound like any other Blues rock band, but there's something about them. This is a great song. The only cool song to use a polka beat. Very cool.

   10.Dust My Broom-How many bands have played this song? Anyway, this is another great blues song with some really clever lyrics. I sure they were improvised on the spot.

   11.Bullfrog Blues-Quite interesting. I'm sure this song's about licking frogs. I don't know. But, it's their best song on this album. Pretty fast and cool.

   COUNTRY JOE AND THE FISH

   12.Not-So-Sweet Marta Lorraine-I always liked Country Joe, but I wished that they had more of them at Monterey. But this is..um, strange. Strange singing, cool solos, and some lyrics about a girl who destroys men. Either that or heroin. I'm not sure.

   BIG BROTHER AND THE HOLDING COMPANY

   13.Down On Me-When Janis Joplin was in Big Brother, it fealt more like a group than a solo act. But it's still pretty good. This sounds like a 60's British Invasion version of an old traditional song with a banshee singing. It's very very cool.

   14.Combination Of The Two-More of a team song, but it's decent. Should do something about the vocal mics though.

   15.Harry-Uh.....Ok. Let's move on.

   16.Road Block-Probably the best gospel rock song ever. This is the 2nd highlight of the disc. Amazing singing and screaming.

   17.Ball And Chain-WHOAH! How does Janis sing like that? I was impressed when I heard this. She loses her voice at the end, so you can tell she was singing with all her voice. Quite powerful.

   So ends Disc 1.

5 comments about Simply Dusty.

1. This is an incredible book and the CD's are awesome! Dusty chronology as far as songs, when, where & why is noted page by page, as well as photographs throughout her career. It has early songs almost impossible to find as well as hits. 95 in all. A tribute to a great great singer and an interesting catalogue of the music and the times. Thoughts by other artists about Dusty's contribution throughout. Worth the price tag.



2. I ordered this & received the full size 11x11 book, not the 6x10 book like the description says. Great book & CD selections!



3. A wonderful collection for any Dusty fan or for someone looking to be introduced in a more sophisticatd way than to just buy her 'best of' albums. She is here in all her glory. A must for the Dusty devotee.



4. I have plenty of boxed sets, but none of them compare to this. The packaging is remarkable as well as the photos and the music. Dusty could make choking noises sound beautiful.



5. This set went out of print shortly after it's release for a redesign of the package; the result is amazing. I've never seen a boxed set design quite like this one, it's called an "ear book." It's "11 x 11" and fits on a bookshelf, the pages filled with photos, essays and extensive liner notes describing each song. The cd's are filled to capacity and while I wish the extended mix of "In Private" was here, there isn't enough room for the extra three minutes and the bulk of the material makes up for any shortcomings. The songs mentioned in the liner notes but missing such as the duets with Cilla Black, Spencer Davis, BJ Thomas, and the extended version of the Donna Summer co-penned "Sometimes Like Butterflies" can be found on the release "Heart & Soul" on the Varese Sarabande label. This boxed set should serve as a prototype for any collection attempting to be comprehensive as it contains all the hits and every album, including the abandoned projects, is represented. The closing track and Dusty's final recording "Someone To Watch Over Me" is stark and beautiful, it's the way any standard should be sung. Overall, for lack of a better term, I'd say this set is a masterpiece.