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The digital download may be on the cusp of replacing the compact disc as the
way most of us acquire new music, but after the reduction in sound quality,
its second biggest shortcoming is one that becomes especially apparent
during the holiday season.
Because of this simple fact, it's likely that some form of the box set
will endure even when shiny plastic discs are extinct -- and even if we're
only buying the packaging and an annotated booklet with a code to download
the tracks illuminated therein.
Now, the CD boom of the '90s pretty much exhausted the major labels'
roster of artists worthy of the lavish box treatment: All the major names
have long since been covered. As a result, this year's offerings include a
bounty of conceptual collections and sprawling genre overviews -- as well as
a few attempts to put some old and very familiar names into new and
expensive boxes. Here's a look at the highlights on the pop beat.
Various artists, "Heavy Metal" (Rhino)
Hands down, this is the coolest-looking box of the year, ranking right up
there with earlier Rhino classics such as the Goth box (which came packaged
in a leather corset) and the alternative-rock collection (with a cover made
of Seattle coffee beans). Here, as befits the topic, we have a box that
looks like a Marshall amp, complete with a working volume knob --which, in
the great Spinal Tap tradition, goes up to 11.
The musical contents get more of a mixed review. The hardcore fan
inevitably will quarrel with particular selections in any genre overview,
especially one that attempts to cover 25 years with 70 tracks and four CDs.
But the metal world in particular has long been separated into distinctive
subgenres, and death metal fans have little in common with hair-metal
aficionados. The fact that this set tries to offer something for all of them
and many more means that no one listener will be completely happy.
The most useful part of the box is disc one, when the roots and
development of metal are traced via pioneering acts such as Hawkind, Uriah
Heep, UFO and Blue Cheer -- but no Ozzy-era Black Sabbath, a major omission.
By disc four, Pantera is rubbing shoulders with Skid Row, and that just
ain't right. Ultimately, the biggest audience for this box may be the
budding young metalheads whose only knowledge of the form comes from playing
"Guitar Hero."
Various artists, "Love Is the Song We Sing: San Francisco Nuggets
1965-1970" (Rhino)
Unusual for a Rhino product, the hand of the marketing department weighs
heavily upon this box: Timed to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Summer
of Love, it corrupts the "Nuggets" name, originally coined for a
groundbreaking collection of the '60s garage bands that laid the foundation
for punk, by using it to sell four CDs with 77 tracks that are pretty much
the peace/love antithesis of those groups. And in addition to some hoary
flower-power anthems, including early versions of "Let's Get Together,"
"Somebody to Love" and "Dark Star," there's enough ham-handed
folkie/bluegrass noodling to make you think that punk never happened.
On the plus side, producer Alec Palao tries to maintain some link to
Lenny Kaye's original "Nuggets" comp as well as Rhino's two previous
"Nuggets" boxes by unearthing a bevy of raw, ragged and long since forgotten
one-hit wonders with curious monikers, among them Frumious Bandersnatch, the
Vejtables, the Chocolate Watchband and the Syndicate of Sound. Honed to a
well-pruned two-disc set, these acts might have been enough to redeem the
Bay Area sounds of the '60s -- or at least part the haze of patchouli and
pot smoke long enough to recognize that some worthwhile music did resound
amid all the hippie clatter.
Various artists, "Flower Power: The Music of the Love Generation" (Time
Life)
Staying with the '60s vibes, there isn't much to be said of this 10-disc,
175-song collection of that era's chart-toppers that isn't said in the
title. You want the Young Rascals' "Groovin'," Canned Heat's "Going up the
Country," Barry McGuire's "Eve of Destruction," Scott McKenzie's "San
Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair)" and others of that ilk all
in one handy package? Now you got 'em! Because VH1's many rockumentaries and
those endless late-night TV infomercials just might not be enough.
Various artists, "The Brit Box: UK Indie, Shoegaze and Brit-Pop Gems of
the Last Millennium" (Rhino)
Now here's a psychedelic-rock box set that works much better: An overview
of the aborted British Invasion of the '90s (derailed in the States by the
then-thriving grunge explosion) rounding up almost all of the key names in
the swirling shoegazer movement (My Bloody Valentine, Ride, Lush), the
bouncy Britpop sound (Blur, Oasis, Supergrass) and the rollicking Madchester
dance scene (Stone Roses, Charlatans UK, Happy Mondays), along with some of
their key influences (Smiths, Cure, Cocteau Twins).
Yeah, sure, we could quibble with some of the particular tracks, or a
handful of artists missing in action. (What! No Slowdive?) But these 78
songs are amazingly consistent overall, like the play list of a good DJ on a
theme night at your favorite club, and the fact that they come packaged in a
replica of a British telephone booth complete with miniature flashing lights
adds up to make this my favorite genre box this season.
Bob Dylan, "Dylan" (Columbia)
Let me be clear: The relative stinginess of my star rating doesn't have
much to do with the music on this three-disc, 51-song box set, because
really, you'd have to be a tasteless pervert dedicated to sheer
contrarianism to deny the genius of a collection charting a five-decade
career that ranges from "Masters of War" to "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue,"
and from "Simple Twist of Fate" to "High Water (For Charley Patton)." No, my
problem is with Columbia Records, which has already sold us several boxes
devoted to the former Robert Zimmerman, among them "The Limited Edition
Catalog Box Set" (2003), "The Greatest Hits Box Set" (2002) and of course
the epic "Biograph" (1985).
Devoid of deep-catalog tracks, rarities and live cuts, this box seems
designed as a one-stop-shopping survey for the new initiate -- required
listening for a college course entitled "Bob Dylan, Modern Musical Genius
and Bard of 21st Century America." And yes, I meant to say 21st Century
instead of 20th, because while the collection certainly reprises the
best-known hits of the '60s and '70s, the best service it provides is
putting them in context with more recent work, showing the strengths and
weaknesses of both.
Devoted or even casual fans probably already own most of this, but again,
they're not the audience. And Columbia cash-in or not, new listeners will
certainly be better served by this set than by the two-disc soundtrack for
Todd Hayne's baffling biopic "I'm Not There," with five actors playing six
different incarnations of Dylan.
Genesis, "Genesis: 1976-1982" (Rhino/Atlantic)
Genesis, "Genesis: 1983-1998" (Rhino/Atlantic)
Clearly timed to coincide with the British
progressive-turned-pop-rockers' recent reunion tour, these two boxes are
distinct from the earlier two "Genesis Archive" sets by virtue of the fact
that they include the entire studio albums plus extra tracks from the
relevant periods, all in newly remastered glory. Of course, that's a plus in
the case of the good discs -- notably the post-Peter Gabriel triumphs "A
Trick of the Tail" (1976) and "Wind & Wuthering" (1977) from the '76-'82
box. But nothing could save the overblown and increasingly pandering pap
that dominates the '83-'98 box, with the nadirs coming on "We Can't Dance"
(1991) and the Phil Collins-less "...Calling All Stations..." (1997). And
neither of these sets contains material as strong as the stuff on the
as-yet-unreleased third box charting the Gabriel-led band from 1967 through
"The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway."
Various artists, "Dick Clark's American Bandstand 50th Anniversary"
(Time Life)
Various artists, "Forever Changing: The Golden Age of Elektra Records"
(Rhino)
Just because an historical overview of a pop-culture institution might
make sense as a book, magazine article or Wikipedia entry, that doesn't mean
it justifies a 12-disc, 200-song box set (in the case of the epic Clark
collection) or even a smaller 117-song set (in the case of the box
chronicling the output of the record label founded by Jac Holzman). Since
the acts appearing on "American Bandstand" mostly faked their performances
-- with notable exceptions such as Public Image, Ltd., which is missing here
-- that box set is just a schizophrenic collection of chart-topping singles
by artists willing to grant ol' Dick the rights. Meanwhile, with brand
loyalty and respect for the label's talent scouts set aside, the Elektra box
just doesn't make for an enjoyable listening experience as it veers from
Phil Ochs and Tom Paxton to the Doors and Love to Bread and the Stooges.
Also arriving in record stores in time for the holidays -- but not
necessarily in time for this critic to review -- are the "super deluxe
edition" of U2, "The Joshua Tree" (Island), which blows the 1987
original up to fill three discs with audio and DVD extras; "The Traveling
Wilburys Collection" (Rhino), which includes the supergroup's two albums
plus a handful of rarities and videos, and "The Complete Motown Singles
Vol. 8: 1968" (Hip-O Select), yet another box overview of that legendary
and groundbreaking label.
Also: Pink Floyd, "The Piper at The Gates of Dawn" (Capitol/EMI),
an expanded edition of the debut album dominated by Syd Barrett, with both
the stereo and mono versions of the original album and a third disc of
singles and rarities; Sly and the Family Stone, "The Collection"
(Legacy/Epic), with seven expanded and remastered editions of the
pioneering soul band's original albums, and "Hollywood Hits: 70 Years of
Memorable Movie Music" (Shout! Factory), a thematic collection designed
for anyone who's been dying to have the famous whistling ditty from "The
Bridge on the River Kwai," Christopher Cross' "Arthur's Theme (Best That You
Can Do)" and "Rainbow Connection" as sung by Kermit the Frog all in one
handy, 57-song box set.
jimdero@jimdero.com
Nick Drake, "Fruit Tree" (Fontana/Island)
Robyn Hitchcock, "I Wanna Go Backwards" (Yep Roc)
As I may have indicated in my Genesis review, I like box sets that
collect the original albums in remastered form and with extra tracks -- the
classic Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd boxes stand as the paradigms here. Both
of these entries by unique British singers and songwriters fall short in
comparison, but only slightly.
The Drake set rounds up the visionary folkie's three brilliant studio
albums, but with the same mixes from the 2000 reissues, and instead of a
rarities discs, we get a 45-minute BBC documentary. That DVD isn't worth the
price if you already own "Bryter Later," "Five Leaves Left" and "Pink Moon"
-- and you should. On the other hand, if you purchase those three
individually, the total is about the same as you'll pay for this box.
More extra bang for your hard-earned buck is offered by the Hitchcock
box, which includes three of the surrealistic troubadour's best and most
diverse albums -- his newly remastered solo debut, "Black Snake Diamond
Role" (1981), the phenomenal "I Often Dream of Trains" (1984) and the
stripped-down "Eye" (1990) -- plus two discs of rarities dubbed "While
Thatcher Mauled Britain." This is the first of two collections that will
chart Hitchcock's voluminous solo work, and it's a promising start.
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