European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 5, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse The perfect gift for music lovers by Roger Catlin and Owen Mcnally Hartford courant i n a time of pretty packages record labels make it easy for shoppers by fashioning deluxe packages of favorite artists. Responding to the surprising popularity of past Box sets by Bruce Springsteen Bob Dylan and Eric Clapton the 1990 Christmas crop offers an even wider array of similarly lavish retrospectives of artists a with remixed and remastered sounds for the compact disc age Glossy picture books extensive session notes and lengthy critical reassessments. A. A the Mammoth Box sets with their similarly Mammoth Price tags of around $50 take Center stage Over the recording Industry s usual Holiday Issue of More modest greatest hits compilations which this year Quot come from Madonna Elvis costello a req Rush Poco the alarm the go gos Kathy Mattea and Merle Haggard among others. Other notable end of the year repackaged include five albums from Paul Mccartney Phil Collins Slaughter Roxy music Ringo Starr and Jimmy Buffett and that new upstart in the repackaging world the remix album with new titles from new kids on the Block the cure techno tronic Fine Young cannibals 3rd Bass and so at a time when Consumers Are getting used to the smaller dimension of individual cd the Box sets bring Back Vinyl s symmetrical 12-.by 12-Inch format. _ even if As in the Case of last summer s to diddle Box set there Are Only two cd inside. There is experimentation with the 12-by-12 size of Box sets this season however. Four disc sets chronicling the Byrds and Roy Orbison have been a. Issued in 6-by-12 configurations that Are Able to fit in shelves with the rest of the in their Long Box sleeves. The strangest shape for a Box might be Lennon a four disc retrospective that is almost cubical. 1�? gifts come in Many shapes a a though and Here is an overview of. Those packaged for you this season by the recording Industry. A a the e l Ong anticipated led Zeppelin is already the biggest Selling Box set since Springsteen s Box of Iive material debuted at no. 1 four years ago. Led Zep has a big rep it is a band More beloved and probably More played on the radio now 10 years after it broke up than when it was together. And this four cd set remastered and programmed by guitarist Jimmy. Page himself will please most fans. Certainly the digital treatment delivers the sonic crunch of the highly regarded band even if it presents just a couple of previously unreleased tracks. Along with the thoughtful essays in the Book the. Music builds a credible Case for the band which May Well re form for a tour next year on the strength of the set As did the Allman Brothers for their Box set last . A a a. A you could not find a better gift for the classic Rock addict on your list. J. T equally handsome is the four disc collection from Elton John to be continued. A title that indicates that this Box is not his Tombstone yet the artist who compiled the set himself says in the Booklet Quot my old life Steps with the release of the Quot As with most Good packages John includes enough big hits to make the Box appealing to casual fans but to attract die hards he sprinkles in a number of historical goodies an Early song he wrote for Long John Baldy a a blues ology the demo of your song As Well As four new songs produced this year by Don was. A the four new songs on the Byrds Are a bit More significant they represent the first new material from the groundbreaking California Folk rockers turned. Country rockers in More than a decade. A not that the new material by Roger Mcguinn David Crosby and Chris Hillman Gene Clark and Michael Clarke sat out is great they include yet another version of the current Chart hit from a distance. But it is a a refreshing to hear again the band that emerged full blown on its first single or. Tambourine Man and later j. Forged country Rock just As surely As it had forged Folk Rock. Although alive version of that song done this year with Bob Dylan does not have the resonance it should it is a Strong set with surprisingly few lulls. A a lifelines the Jimi Hendrix Story includes 70&Quot songs Quot a Over its four cd including 18 that were previously unreleased. Taken from an extensive radio special it includes the spoken introductions Between the rare live and Vintage tracks. A \ a. A Lennon includes 74 Solo tracks from John Lennon spanning 1969 to 1980 Over four discs. The 96-Pagebooklet includes lyrics but there is no beatles material Here and nothing previously unreleased despite the wealth of outtakes and unreleased material that have been broadcast on the lost Lennon tapes radio series which so far have been unavailable for sate a except on Bootlegs. Quota the Marvin Gaye collection is one of the first important Box sets from a soul great. It depends not on chronology but on subject a 20 of his greatest hits a collection of his duets including some not a previously released whole disc. Of rare or unreleased material and a final disc chronicling his unsuccessful Effort to become a Balladeer. In All More than a third of the. Album has never been released before. Ironically Only the first disc will be Oft played by the casual fan. A the legendary Roy Orbison is a four cd set that includes 75 tracks spanning 30 years from his work on Sun Monument and Mem records. Session notes Are spotty despite the 36-Page Book. And while the scope is vast and the sound Quality Good More casual fans would be served by Rhino s single disc greatest hits compilation. \. A gees Box set tales from the Brothers Gibb a history in song 19671990. Despite their Success in Ballad night fever Era the Trio has still nol been forgiven for. Becoming so popular. And the Box set which includes Liberal amounts of Early hits disco Days and recent material May Only play to the converted t ditto a triple disc retrospective of the electric Light orchestra afterglow. Sure it gives a Complete history of the 70s-Era band but even after the Success of Jeff Lynne in the travelling wilbury where exactly is the _ demand for this a most Box sets celebrate an artist Derek and the Dominos the Layla sessions 20th anniversary edition. Celebrates a single work a the still popular 1970 album by Eric Clapton and his Short lived group. But Only musicologists will feel the need to have the 2vfe hours of rare and unreleased digitally remixed jams and rehearsals. Good Golly the regular edition will do just Fine. A a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a likewise Only cultists will be interested in the Rocky horror picture show 15th anniversary collection of course when it comes to Rocky horror cult is the name of the game this four cd collection includes the soundtrack albums from the movie the London stage version one disc of Quot Rocky horror tracks from around the world Quot and another full disc of rarities including commercials and a version of the time Warp As played by a los Angeles lakers band at a game. Christmas jazz gifts can Range from the blues to classic Early jazz to the incomparable Dexter Gordon. A the Complete recordings of Tbone Walker 1940-1954 $90 cd plus $3.50 mailing and handling from mosaic records 35 Melrose place Stamford Conn. 06902 is a six cd set by the influential blues Singer and guitarist. Savor the Zesty licks of Walker one of the All time great blues guitarists and you hear foreshadowing of Jimi Hendrix. A the five cd Jelly roil Morton Centennial his Complete Victor recordings is a Delight for the Trad jazz connoisseur As Well As for others with openers for this innovative new Orleans composer and piano Man a Sidney Bechet the Victor sessions master takes 193243 is a three cd set of gems by the master Soprano saxophonist and clarinet St who inspired even the great modernist John Coltrane. A Dexter Gordon s Homecoming live at the Village Vanguard is a double cd set. After years in Europe As an expatriate Tenor saxophonist Gordon made his _ a return to the states and this Superb live session catches the drama of the conquering heroes return. Wednesday december 5. 1890 the stars and stripes Page 17
