“Something Big: The Complete A&M Years…And More!" by BURT BACHARACH (Featuring the albums "Hit Maker!" (1965), "Reach Out" (1967), "Make It Easy On Yourself" (1969), "Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid – Original Soundtrack" (1969), "Burt Bacharach" (1971), "Living Together" (1973), "Burt Bacharach In Concert" (1974), "Futures" (1977), "Woman" (1979) and more (November 2004 (reissued January 2007) Hip-O Select 5CD Book Set of Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"…The Bell That Couldn't Jangle…”

"Something Big: The Complete A&M Years…And More!" by BURT BACHARACH is a sumptuous 5CD set originally released November 2004 in the USA-only as a non-numbered limited edition of 5000 by Universal’s premium reissue label - HIP-O SELECT (reissued January 2007).

I’ve managed to borrow a copy from a friend and while it sounds spiffing (remasters from real tapes) – musically it’s a very mixed bag to say the least - some of it good - some of it downright awful. There’s a lot on Hip-O Select B0003615-02 (Barcode 602498642863) - so let’s get to it straight away…

Disc 1 (72:14 minutes):

Tracks 1 to 11 are the album "Reach Out" - released 1967 on A&M Records SP 4131 (Stereo)

Track 12, "The Bell That Couldn't Jingle" is the A-side of the 1968 US 7" single on A&M 1004

Tracks 13 to 23 are the album “Make It Easy On Yourself” - released 1969 on A&M Records SP 4188 (Stereo)

Disc 2 (77:00 minutes):

Tracks 1 to 10 are the album "Burt Bacharach", A&M SP 3501, 1971

Tracks 11 to 20 are the album "Living Together", A&M SP 3527, 1973

Track 21 is the 1st song on the album "Futures", A&M SP 4622, 1977

Disc 3 (79:59 minutes):

Tracks 1 to 10 are the remaining songs on the album "Futures", A&M SP 4622, 1977

Tracks 11 to 18 are the album "Woman", A&M SP 3709, 1979

Disc 4 (78:24 minutes):

Tracks 1 to 9 are the soundtrack "Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid", A&M SP 4227, 1969

(Track 2 is the famous B.J. Thomas number 1 chart hit, "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" - track 5 is an instrumental version of it track 6 is "On A Bicycle Built For Joy" - another vocal version of "Raindrops…" by B.J. Thomas - the one used in the film with the speeded-up 'vaudeville' bit towards the end of the song)

Track 10 is "Etta's Theme", a previously unreleased alternate version of track 7 "Come Touch The Sun" - it's from the "Butch Cassidy…" sessions, 1969

Tracks 11 to 25 are the album "Burt Bacharach In Concert", A&M SP 68279, 1974

(11, 13-15 and 17-25 are previously unreleased in the USA)

Disc 5 - "Essentials” - 64:40 minutes):

Track 1 is a previously unreleased alternate mono mix of "Saturday Sunshine", 1963

Track 2 is "And So Goodbye, My Love", a US 7” single on Kapp Records 532, 1963

Tracks 3 to 14 are the album "Hit Maker!" on Kapp Records KS 3428, 1965

Track 15 and 16 are "What’s New, Pussycat?" b/w "My Little Red Book (All I Do Is Talk About You)" - the A & B-side of Kapp Records 685, a US 7" single from 1965. The A is not the more famous Tom Jones hit - but has vocals by Joel Grey - the B-side vocals are by Tony Middleton

Track 17 is from the soundtrack "After The Fox" on United Artists UAS 5148, 1966

Track 18 is "The Fox Trot", a US 7" single on United Artists 50123, 1966

Tracks 19 and 20 are "Nikki" b/w "Juanita's Place" - the A&B sides of Liberty 55934, a US 7” single from 1966

Track 21 is from the soundtrack "Arthur The Album", 1981 on Warner Brothers, it’s an instrumental and not the number 1 chart hit sung by Christopher Cross

Track 22 is "That's What Friends Are For", from the soundtrack to "Night Shift" in 1982 on Warner Brothers, it’s an instrumental and not the chart hit sung by Dionne Warwick & Friends in 1985

Track 23 is "Love Theme From Arthur", on the soundtrack "Arthur 2: On The Rocks", 1988 on A&M Records, it’s an instrumental version

Burt Bacharach and his lyricist Hal David have penned huge numbers of great tunes across the decades, carried into record charts the world over by scores of superb interpretative artists. But therein lies the problem with this nice, but hugely expensive set – it does NOT provide an overview of those definitive versions, but instead Bacharach’s interpretations of his own songs, and to call them ‘cheesy’ is to be way too generous! Most tracks are instrumentals and removing the singer, and the lyrics they sing, reduces the songs to boring brass blasters that just don’t work. When he does sing, his voice is grating and wildly un-expressive. They are to my ear just awful – beyond the valley of drivel. Remember, this exclusive and limited 5CD velvet book set clocks in at over $150 Stateside and £100 sterling here in the UK – and given that half of the material is un-listenable dreck - a person has to question whether it’s worth even half that price.

Don’t get me wrong – there are lovely moments on here, the 1971 remake of the 1966 “Nikki” is beautiful – both are included. The three instrumental versions on Disc 5 of The Arthur movies and Night Shift track are as lovely as anything John Barry has done. The remastering too – superlative – it’s been done by tape supremo ERICK LABSON at Universal and is typically warm, full and beautiful to hear, and I suspect, one of the main reasons why easy/soundtrack enthusiasts will buy this set – despite its price.

But I would say – hand on my heart - hold those expectations on this one. Try to hear it before you buy. Or better still - purchase the original 'long-book' issue of the superlative 1998 Rhino 3CD Box set "The Look Of Love" instead – it’s a fraction of the cost and ten times the listening pleasure. And its track-by-track attached booklet is a work of art in itself - both it and the music contained within - a genuine tribute to Bacharach's songwriting genius…

"Depend On Me: The Early Albums" by THE MIRACLES (2009 Hip-O Select 2CD Set - Ellen Fitten Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

This Review Along With 100s Of Others Is Available in my

SOUNDS GOOD E-Book on all Amazon sites

SOUL, FUNK and JAZZ FUSION - Exception CD Remasters  

Just Click Below To Purchase for £3.95

Thousands of E-Pages - All Details and In-Depth Reviews From Discs 

(No Cut and Paste Crap)

"…Everybody's Got To Pay Some Dues…" 

You can’t accuse Hip-O Select of scrimping on this one - 5 albums across 2CDs, loads of non-album single sides and even Previously Unreleased. The presentation is lovely and the remasters absolutely top notch. There’s a huge amount on here so let’s get to those three-minute Soul Serenades straight away…

Released January 2009 in the USA on Hip-O Select B0012855-02 (Barcode 602527073071) – "Depend On Me: The Early Albums" by THE MIRACLES fans out as follows:

Disc 1 (79:04 minutes):

1. Who’s Lovin’ You

2. (You Can) Depend On Me

3. A Heart Like Mine

4. Shop Around

5. Won’t You Take Me Back

6. Cause I Love You

7. Your Love

8. After All

9. Way Over There

10. Money (That’s What I Need)

11. Don’t Leave Me

Tracks 1 to 11 are their debut LP "Hi, We're The Miracles" – released June 1961 in the USA on Tamla 220 and July 1963 in the UK on Oriole PS 40044

12. That’s The Way I Feel

13. Everybody’s Got To Pay Some Dues

14. Mama

15. Ain’t It Baby

16. Determination

17. You Never Miss A Good Thing

18. Embraceable You

19. The Only One I Love

20. Broken Hearted

21. I Can’t Believe

Tracks 12 to 21 are their 2nd LP “Cookin’ With The Miracles” – released November 1961 in the USA on Tamla 223 (No UK release)

BONUS TRACKS – NON-LP SINGLES:

22. Mighty Good Lovin’ – B-side of “Broken Hearted”, a USA 7” single released June 1961 on Tamla 54044

23. The Feeling is So Fine – A-side of a USA 7” single released September 1959 on Tamla 54028 but withdrawn

24. Shop Around (Second Regional A.K.A. “Slow” Version) – Second Pressing of a USA 45 on Tamla 54034 released September 1960

25. I’ll Try Something New – A-side of a USA 7” single released April 1962 on Tamla 54059

26. What’s So Good About Good Bye – A-side of a USA 7” single released December 1961 on Tamla 54053

27. He Don’t Care About Me – Recorded Late 1961

28. A Love That Can Never Be – Recording Details Unknown

29. I’ve Been Good To You – B-side of “What’s So Good About Good Bye” – see 26 – tracks 25 to 29, see also 1 to 5 on Disc 2

Disc 2 (74:44 minutes):

1. Speak Low

2. On The Street Where You Live

3. If Your Mother Only Knew

4. I’ve Got You Under My Skin

5. This Swear, I Promise

Tracks 25 to 29 on Disc 1, Tracks 1 to 5 on Disc 2 are their 3rd album “I’ll Try Something New” – released July 1962 in the USA on Tamla 230 (No UK release)

6. You’ve Really Got A Hold On Me

7. I’ve Been Good To You

8. Such Is Love, Such Is Life

9. I Can’t Take A Hint

10. Won’t You Take Me Back

11. A Love She Can Count On

12. Whatever Makes You Happy

13. Heartbreak Road

14. Happy Landing

15. Your Love

Tracks 6 to 15 are their 4th album "The Fabulous Miracles" – released May 1963 in the USA on Tamla 238 and November 1964 in the UK on Stateside SL 10099

16. Mighty Good Lovin’ (Live)

17. A Love She Can Count On (Live)

18. Happy Landing (Live)

19. I’ve Been Good To You (Live)

20. What’s So Good About Good Bye (Live)

21. You’ve Really Got A Hold On Me (Live)

22. Way Over There (Live)

Tracks 16 to 22 is their 5th album “Recorded Live On Stage” – released May 1963 in the USA on Tamla 241 and October 1963 in the UK on Tamla Motown TML 10055 (Mono) and STML 10055 (Stereo). 16 to 18 were recorded live at the Regal Theater, Chicago and 19 to 22 at The Apollo in New York.

23. Shop Around (First Regional Version) – A-side, 1st pressing, issued as a 7” single in the USA on Tamla 54034 in September 1960

24. The Only One I Love (Single Version) – B-side of “Ain’t It Baby”, A USA 7” single released March 1961 on Tamla 54036

The card digipak folds out into four-leaves and is very tastefully done in a sort of sepia feel – a bit of a trademark in Hip-O Select presentation. The 24-page booklet is gorgeous with detailed liner notes from STU HACKEL (profiled The Miracles many times before), black and white and colour publicity photos and indepth track-by-track annotation. But the absolute bomb is a foldout concertina of the colour album sleeves – it’s kept in the first flap and on the rear of each ‘detachable’ card is the back sleeve artwork – American Album covers that most fans simply never see. You get "Hi We're The Miracles" (June 1961), "Cookin' With The Miracles" (Nov 1961), "I'll Try Something New" (July 1962), "The Fabulous Miracles" (May 1963) and "Recorded Live On Stage" (May 1963). It’s a really nice touch and the ‘colour’ is beautiful.

Better still is the ELLEN FITTON remasters from first generation tapes. She’s been involved in huge swathes of Motown reissues for both Universal and especially Hip-O Select (she did all 13 of the award-winning “Singles” book sets. These are mostly MONO recordings not exactly put down in audiophile conditions – so her work here with the tapes is superb.

Musically these are early days – most of it is more Vocal Group than Sixties Soul. That nonchalant slow-paced Vocal Group vibe permeates “Who’s Lovin’ You”, “A Heart Like Mine” and “What’s So Good About Good Bye”. There are shades of the Marvelettes in “Ain’t It Baby” and heaps of Echo on “I’ll Try Something New” giving it a feel of Summer Nights at the Drive-In. The stand alone single “Mighty Good Lovin’” is a great dancer and the pleader “You Never Miss A Good Thing” has huge sound (and strings). It doesn’t say who the female vocalist on the rather excellent “He Don’t Care About Me” is (probably Claudette – Smokey’s wife) or the male lead on “A Love That Can Never Be” – but both are nice additions as is the mid-tempo B-side “I’ve Been Good To Soul”.

Despite its lovely presentation – there’s stuff on here that’s awful like their cheesy cover of “On The Street Where You Live” or Frankie’s “I’ve Got You Under My Skin”. Things improve immeasurably with Smokey’s wicked “You’ve Really Got A Hold On Me” – and easy to hear why it was an R&B Number 1. A nice bopper is “I Can Take A Hint” and the bluesy “Won’t You Take Me Back” even has a Joe Turner piano R&B feel. I find most of the live album unlistenable – crude recordings – but at least “Happy Landing” has some life in it. “The Only One I Love” was transferred from a mint 45 and noise-reduction technology used to dampen the crackle – and it sounds great.

Musically – I find the earliest Motown hard work – and these are no different. But if you’re a fan – the great sound, presentation and rarity value is going to be a huge draw…

PS: this 'limited edition' set is now deleted and commands heavy price tags in some quarters. (No pun intended) shop around - it can be bought for a lot less...

This review is part of my SOUNDS GOOD Music Book Series. One of those titles is SOUL, FUNK and JAZZ FUSION - Exceptional CD Remasters - an E-Book with over 245 entries and 2100 e-Pages - purchase on Amazon and search any artist or song (click the link below). Huge amounts of info taken directly from the discs (no cut and paste crap). 

"Barnstorm" by JOE WALSH (2006 Hip-O Select CD - Gavin Lurssen Remaster) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"…Sets Me Free Without A Warning…Wonder Why..."

It's hard for me to be rational about Joe Walsh's "Barnstorm" - I've adored it for over 45 years and this brill-sounding American CD reissue has only made matters worse.

First things first though - this Hip-O Select/Geffen CD re-issue on B0006229-02 (No Barcode) has had a troubled existence. It was first released in January 2006 to howls of derision because someone had used the wrong master tapes (laden with unbearable amounts of hiss) and even left gaps between the songs on Side One where certain tracks segue into each other. 

Mistakes were admitted - it was withdrawn and it re-appeared in November 2006. To complicate things further - there are in fact 5 variants of the album on CD - the American 1980s crappy MCA issue, the wonderful silver disc version by Mobile Fidelity in 1990 (now rare and pricey), a 24-bit remaster issued in Japan in December 2004 as a mini-album repro - with a further 2011 reissue of that in Japan on the SHM-CD format - and then this - the Hip-O Select USA November 2006 issue. I've the Mobile CD, the 2004 Japanese one and this - and to my ears - the HIP-O SELECT version remastered by three-times Grammy winner GAVIN LURSSEN out does them all…

1. Here We Go

2. Midnight Visitor

3. One And One

4. Giant Behemoth

5. Mother Says

6. Birdcall Morning [Side 2]

7. Home

8. I’ll Tell The World

9. Turn To Stone

10. Comin’ Down

Having left THE JAMES GANG behind after 3 great albums - Walsh recruited KENNY PASSARELLI and JOE VITALE to record his solo debut in March of 1972. It was finally released in the USA on Dunhill DSX 50130 in October 1972 with its British counterpart released November 1972 on Probe SPBA 6268 (later reissued in 1974 on ABC). It was afforded the luxury of a gatefold sleeve, which is reproduced on both sides of the gatefold inlay in colour (the inside of the UK sleeve was in black and white). There's no new liner notes though - nor any juicy bonus tracks nor outtakes - which is a damn shame - a missed opportunity there.

SOUND:

GAVIN LURSSEN has remastered the album – he's an engineer who did exceptional work on the two STEPHEN BISHOP Hip-O Select titles "Careless" and "Bish" and the stunning 2 CD "Gold" set for Universal by THE CRUSADERS (see separate reviews for them all). Originally produced and engineered by BILL SZYMCZYK, "Barnstorm" was always a ‘sloppy’ album in feel (in stark contrast to say "So What" from 1974) and was always going to be a difficult album to remaster well - but LURSSEN has done a fantastic job. The instruments are live and in your face. There is still hiss on some of the tracks, but in the main it's minimal. Some love the rough feel of the recordings; it drives others crazy; personally I find there's charm in them that's missing in the more polished later albums. Walsh and his guitar have a sound and this album exemplifies that - warts and all.

The production difference for instance when you go from the slightly hissy "Giant Bohemoth" to the all-out riffs of "Mother Says" is marked. MS rocks like a monster now and even in the centre passage where all the instruments crescendo and threaten to get out of hand, this remaster holds it all together - YOU HEAR IT ALL - the drums, the wonderful keyboard flourishes - even the men giggling like loons at the end when it fades out. Superb stuff.

But then comes the gem I've been waiting for - "Birdcall Morning" - I'm lost man - I go to pieces at hearing this. After 30 years it finally sounds a fresh as a new sixpence - a beautiful song now given beautiful sound. I've A/B'd this with the Japanese issue and it's just brighter - fuller somehow - wonderful. "Turn To Stone" is the original version and is just HUGE in sound - a little `too' rough I would say for most tastes. The album ends with the lovely acoustic ditty "Comin' Down" - the strings rattling around the speakers with the harmonica playing it out. 

A little know fact about one of the album tracks is worth mentioning. Alana Gordon and Allan Jacobs of the obscure American band THE MAGICIANS wrote "I'll Tell The World (About You)". Allan "Jake" Jacobs later went on to be JAKE and THE FAMILY JEWELS. The Magicians made 4 excellent 7” singles on US Columbia in the mid Sixties that unfortunately each sank without trace (never got an album out either) and they quickly disbanded. The group’s last single "Lady Fingers" had help in its production from BILL SZYMCZYK - and as Szymczyk produced "Barnstorm" - it was probably he who introduced the lovely “I’ll Tell The World” to Walsh. The US Sundazed label have a wonderful anthology CD of the band's work called "An Invitation To Cry" which has the original of this beautiful song on it - well worth checking out. Someone has posted a video of their original version on You Tube - in fact and it wouldn't surprise me in the least if this long forgotten Sixties gem turns up in a hip 'n' happening advert somewhere near us soon - it's that good.

To sum up - the remaster on this lesser known 1972 gem is an absolute joy. "Barnstorm" is the kind of album you need to get into your life - and this Hip-O Select Remaster is to my ears the best version of it yet. It's been deleted years now and typically garnished a rather nasty price tag - as much as £40 on occasion - but if you can find one - I urge you to seek it out.

Joe Walsh once ran for President of The United States of America. On the strength of this album - I could never understand why he didn't get the job…

PS: (March 2009 footnote) The Japanese-only 2004 24-bit CD Remasters of Joe Walsh's first 3 albums "Barnstorm", "The Smoker You Drink, The Player You Get" and "So What" complete with vinyl LP repro sleeves and inners have now become hugely expensive collector's items. Someone in Japan seems to have noticed this, because the 3 are being 'reissued' on 22 April 2009 in Japan again but on the new SHM-CD format (Super High Materials) - but this time along with the missing 4th title - the live set "You Can't Argue With A Sick Mind". They are available for pre-order from the 2 excellent Japanese mail-order sites "cdjapan" and "mundojapan".

PPS: (October 2009 footnote) see also review for "So What" the SHM-CD

PPPS: check out his 2012 live video with DARYL HALL on “Daryl’s House” where they covered “Funk 49”, “Life’s Been Good” and a stunning version of a forgotten Hall solo track called “Somebody Like You” (see YouTube)

PPPPS (how many Ps can you have, Feb 2016 footnote): For GAVIN LURSSEN REMASTERS see also my reviews for “Driving Wheel” by Little Milton, “Gold” by The Crusaders, “Careless” and “Bish” by Stephen Bishop, “Occasional Rain” by Terry Callier and “All Things Must Pass” by George Harrison

This review is part of my SOUNDS GOOD Music Book Series. One of those titles is CLASSIC 1970s ROCK - an E-Book with over 245 entries and 2100 e-Pages - purchase on Amazon and search any artist or song (click the link below). Huge amounts of info taken directly from the discs (no cut and paste crap). 

"Hoochie Coochie Man: The Complete Chess Masters Volume 2, 1952-1958" by MUDDY WATERS (December 2004 US Hip-O Select 2CD Limited Edition Book Set of 5000 - Erick Labson Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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"...I Love The Life I Live...I Live The Life I Love…"

Part 2 in Hip-O Select's ongoing reissue series (for Parts 1 and 3, see list below) - "Hoochie Coochie Man: The Complete Chess Masters Volume 2, 1952-1958" by MUDDY WATERS was US released December 2004 as a 2CD set on Hip-O Select/Geffen/Chess/Universal B0002758-02 and is non-numbered Limited Edition Book Set of 5000.

Disc 1 has 25 tracks at 72:37 minutes - Disc 2 has 26 tracks at 73:19 minutes. 

In order to properly show what's on offer - I've provided a track-by-track Discography with song placements after each title - [9/1] is Track 9 on Disc 1 - [1/2] is Track 1 on Disc 2 etc. 

It breaks down as follows...

7" SINGLES:

1. Chess 1526 (released 1952)

Standing Around Crying [1/1 *] b/w Gone To Main Street [2/1]

2. Chess 1537 (released 1952)

She's All Right [6/1] b/w Sad Sad Day [8/1]

3. Chess 1542 (released 1953)

Who's Gonna Be Your Sweet Man [24/2 Vol.1 *] b/w Turn Your Lamp Down Low (Baby Please Don't Go) [9/1]

4. Chess 1550 (released 1953)

Mad Love (I Want You To Love Me) [13/1] b/w Blow Wind Blow [12/1]

5. Chess 1560 (released 1954)

(I'm Your) Hoochie Coochie Man [15/1] b/w She's So Pretty [16/1]

6. Chess 1571 (released 1954)

I Just Want To Make Love To You [17/1] b/w Oh Yeh (Oh Yeah) [18/1]

7. Chess 1579 (released 1954)

I'm Ready [19/1] b/w I Don't Know Why [21/1]

8. Chess 1585 (released 1955)

Loving Man [11/1] b/w I'm A Natural Born Lover [22/1]

9. Chess 1596 (released 1955)

I Want To Be Loved [1/2] b/w My Eyes Keep Me In Trouble [2/2]

10. Chess 1602 (released 1955)

Manish Boy [3/2] b/w Young Fashioned Ways [25/1]

11. Chess 1612 (released 1955)

Trouble No More [16/2] b/w Sugar Sweet [5/2]

12. Chess 1620 (released 1956)

Forty Days And Forty Nights [8/2] b/w All Aboard [9/2]

13. Chess 1630 (released 1956)

Don't Go No Farther [11/2] b/w Diamonds At your Feet [12/2]

14. Chess 1644 (released 1956)

I Got To Love... [4/2] b/w Just To Be With You [10/2]

15. Chess 1652 (released 1957)

Got My Mojo Working [16/2] b/w Rock Me [14/2]

16. Chess 1667 (released (1957)

Good News [17/2] b/w Come Home Baby (I Wish You Would) [19/2]

17. Chess 1680 (released 1958)

I Love The Life I Live (I Live The Life I Love) [13/2] b/w Evil [18/2]

18. Chess 1692 (released 1958)

I Won't Go On [21/2] b/w She's Got It [22/2]

19. Chess 1704 (released 1958)

Close To You [25/2] b/w She's Nineteen Years Old [24/2]

20. Chess 1724 (released 1959)

Ooh Wee [23/1] b/w Clouds In My Heart [7/2]

21. Chess 1758 (released 1960)

Love Affair [13/1 *] b/w Look What You've Done [15/2]

NOTES on 7" SINGLES":

* Standing Around Crying is miscredited in the booklet as Chess 1542 when it's the A-side of Chess 1526

* Who's Gonna Be Your Sweet Man (Chess 1542) in on Volume 1 in this Series called "Rolling Stone: The Golden Anniversary Collection"  - Track 24/Disc 2

* "Love Affair" (Chess 1758) is on "You Shook Me - Volume 3" 2CD set - Track 13/Disc 1

ALBUMS:

1. "The Blues, Volume 3" (Various Artists)

Argo LP 4034 (1964)

Baby Please Don't Go (Alternate) [10/1]

2. "More Real Folk Blues"

Chess LP 1551 (released 1967)

My Life Is Ruined (Landlady) [5/1]

She's All Right (Alternate) [7/1]

3. "Rare And Unissued"

(Compilation LP released 1984 in the USA on Chess CH-9180)

Born Lover [23/2]

Iodine In My Coffee [3/1]

Let Me Hang Around [20/2]

Smokestack Lightning [20/1]

4. "The Chess Box"

(Major retrospective 6LP (CH6-80002) and 3CD Box Set (CHD3-80002) released October 1989)

Flood [4/1]

(I'm Your) Hoochie Coochie Man (Alternate) [14/1]

5. "Hoochie Coochie Man: The Complete Chess Masters Volume 2, 1952-1958"

Clouds In My Heart [7/2] (Previously Unreleased on US album)

Come Home Baby (I Wish You Would) [19/2] (Previously Unreleased on US album)

I Won't Go On [21/2] (Previously Unreleased in the US)

Loving Man [11/1] (Previously Unreleased on US album)

Ooh Wee [23/1] (Previously Unreleased on US album)

She's All Right [6/1] (Previously Unreleased on US Album)

She's Got it [22/1] (Previously Unreleased on US album)

She's Got It (Alternate Mix) [26/2] (Previously Unreleased)

This Pain [24/1] (Previously Unreleased in the US)

Turn Your Lamp Down Low (Baby Please Don't Go [9/1] (Previously Unreleased on US album)

As packaging goes - Hip-O Select's Volume 2 is a lovely thing. The hardback book cover is the width of an A4 page and about half that in length. As you can see from the photo - it has a woody textured feel with the man's real name embossed onto the spine in large letters - McKINLEY MORGANFIELD. Inside is a 42-page booklet with further card pouches to hold CD 1 and 2 on the front and back covers. Pages 3 to 11 have liner notes by noted expert and fan MARY KATHERINE ALDIN - pages 12 to 31 are all photos of the great man (gorgeous shots in both colour and black/white). Pages 32 and 33 picture the 7" singles of "Turn Your Lamp Down Low" (Chess 1542) and "Manish Boy" (Chess 1602) and the remaining pages are recording/reissue credits with the words 'Limited Edition' embossed on the rear cover (non-numbered). The set's been compiled by great names like ANDY McKAIE and PAT LAWRENCE and remastered/restored by one of Universal's top engineers - ERICK LABSON - a man with well over 1,100 tape transfer credits to his name (including most of the huge Chess Records catalogue). It sounds wonderful - clean, full of presence and not too trebled for the sake of it.

As you can see from the Discography provided above - musically you get a whopping 21 non-album singles and their equally cool B-sides - and the many straggler tracks issued since the Sixties on albums and CD retrospectives down through the decades. The eagle-eyed amongst you will notice that whilst 9 of the overall 51 tracks are technically 'Previously unreleased on album in the USA' - there is only one genuine previously unreleased cut - an Alternate Mix of "She's Got It" on Disc 2.

The writing credits are split between Muddy and Chess's resident songwriting genius Willie Dixon and Muddy's stellar band reads like a who's who of Blues luminaries - Little Walter on incendiary Harmonica (with Walter Horton, Junior Wells and James Cotton), Otis Spann his long-time piano-playing sidekick, Jimmy Rogers and Pat Hare provided tasty Guitars, the legendary Willie Dixon on Upright Bass, Elgin Evans and Fred Below on Drums and many more...

Even now in 2014 - listening to these tracks is a hair-raising audio experience - the sheer power of the man hits you over and over again - and that voice backed up by a band that breathed the Blues with every large lung intake. "I Just Want To Make Love To You", "I'm Ready", "Manish Boy", "Got My Mojo Working" - it's all so ludicrously good and of course woven into our consciousness and Rock culture in ways that would take books to explain. I sequenced the first 10 singles on my Mac - A's and B's - and what a playlist it is. Fabulous music and the kind of compilation that makes you want for more (I've also reviewed Volume 3 in this series - "You Shook Me").

Will we ever see the likes of Muddy Waters or his incredible Chess players ever again - it's unlikely. But "Hoochie Coochie Man..." is a beautiful and satisfying way to celebrate such an amazing musical legacy and honour true giants of the genre.

HIP-O SELECT (and MCA) CD Compilations for MUDDY WATERS in this Series:

1. "Rollin' Stone: The Golden Anniversary Collection"

(27 June 2000 USA 2CD set on MCA/Chess 088 112 301-2 (Barcode 008811230128)

Volume 1 - covers 1947 to 1952 on the Aristocrat and Chess labels

2. "Hoochie Coochie Man - The Complete Chess Masters Volume 2, 1952-1958"

(December 2004 USA 2CD BOOK PACK on Hip-O Select/Chess B0002758-02)

3. "You Shook Me - The Chess Masters Vol. 3, 1958-1963"

(December 2012 USA 2CD set on Hip-O Select/Geffen/Chess/Universal B10017581-02)