"Achtung Baby" by U2 – November 1991 UK Eight Album (Seventh Studio) on Island Records featuring Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. with Producers/Remixers Brian Eno, Steve Lillywhite, Daniel Lanois, Flood, Paul Oakenfold, Steve Osborne, Ian Bryan, Paul Barrett, Apollo 440, The Stereo MCs, David Morales, Pete Heller, Terry Farley (and more) with Filmmakers Kevin Godley, Richie Smyth, Davis Guggenheim, Phil Joanou, Mark Pellington, Maurice Linnane, Anton Corbijn (and more). Also includes their ninth album (eighth studio) "Zooropa" from July 1993 and its Tour as a thematic part of the Box Set with Guest Johnny Cash (October 2011 UK Mercury/Interscope (20th Anniversary) 'Super Deluxe Edition' LP-Sized Box Set with 6xCDs, 4xDVDs, 92-Page Hardback Book, 16 x LP-Sized Achtung Baby Artprints and Arnie Acosta Mastering) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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*****

"...Even Better Than The Real Thing..."

 

The first things that hits you about this 'Super Deluxe Edition' LP-Sized Box Set of the November 1991 genre-breakthrough U2 album "Achtung Baby" is the weight.

 

Released late October 2011 as a massively comprehensive 20^th Anniversary Box Set - it came loaded to the gunnels - 6 x CDs, 4 x DVDs, a 92-Page LP-Sized Hardback Book and a separate pouch holding 16 x LP-Sized Achtung Baby Artprints. And more than any other Super DE I have, the presentation went a long way to creating a superb balance between AUDIO and VIDEO – in fact you could argue (sure they are not BLU RAYS) that the Visuals are where it is at for collectors – years of effort and documenting having gone into them.

 

The ARNIE ACOSTA Mastering is both old and new – Guitarist The Edge admitting that a full on Remaster has not taken place here because they went to such extraordinary lengths to get that original in-yer-face grunge sound on the 1991 album in the first place (get away from the Joshua Tree and Rattle and Hum U2 in 1987 and 1989 that preceded it). Edge advises that some tweaking here and there has taken place, but most did not get Remastered and I for one loved how it sounded then and now.

 

A proper nerdy fan back in the day - I was one of those guys who bought all five CD singles that came off the monster Number 1 album and their duo partners (CD2's) – so CD3 "Über Remixes" and CD4 "Unter Remixes" are just gathering up what many die-hard fans will probably already have. But what a listen it is – the huge array of Guest Producers and Remixers - Brian Eno, Steve Lillywhite, Daniel Lanois, Flood, Paul Oakenfold, Steve Osborne, Ian Bryan, Paul Barrett, Apollo 440, The Stereo MCs, David Morales, Pete Heller, Terry Farley (and more) with Filmmakers like Kevin Godley (of 10cc fame), Anton Corbijn, Smyth, Davis Guggenheim, Mark Pellington and many more.

 

The legendary dancefloor goodies of "Salomé (Zooromancer Remix)" and "Even Better Than The Real Thing (The Perfect Mix)" are fantastic reinterpretations - while CD6 called "Kindergarten – The Alternative Achtung Baby" is a great idea and a genuinely fresh look. I wouldn't call it better than the (ahem) real thing, but I liked it and appreciate the effort. And I dig the "Zooropa" album being included as CD2 because it was Part 2 of the whole German reinvention vibe and look – even if it wasn't a patch on its album predecessor. To the details...

 

UK released 28 October 2011 - "Achtung Baby" by U2 on Mercury/Interscope 2779370 (Barcode 602527793702) is a 20^th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition Box Set with 6xCDs and 4xDVDs, a 92-Page Hardback Book, 16xLP-Sized Art Prints and Previously Unreleased Audio and Visual Material that play out as follows:

 

CD1 "Achtung Baby" (55:27 minutes):

1. Zoo Station [Side 1]

2. Even Better Than The Real Thing

3. One

4. Until The End Of The World

5. Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horse

6. So Cruel

7. The Fly [Side 2]

8. Mysterious Ways

9. Tryin' To Throw Your Arms Around The World

10. Ultra Violet (Light My Way)

11. Acrobat

12. Love Is Blindness

Tracks 1 to 12 are their ninth album (Eighth studio) "Achtung Baby" – released 18 November 1991 in the UK/EUROPE on Island 262 110 (CD) and 19 November 1991 in the USA on Island 314-510 347-2. Produced by BRIAN ENO and DANIEL LANOIS – it peaked at No.1 in the UK and USA.

 

CD2 "Zooropa" (51:19 minutes):

1. Zooropa [Side 1]

2. Babyface

3. Numb

4. Lemon

5. Stay (Faraway, So Close!)

6. Daddy's Gonna Pay For Your Crashed Car

7. Some Days Are Better Than Others

8. The First Time

9. The Dirty Day

10. The Wanderer [with Johnny Cash]

Tracks 1 to 10 are their ninth album (eight studio) "Zooropa" – released 3 July 1993 in the UK on Island CIDU29 (518047-2) and 5 July 1993 in the USA on Island 314-518 047-2. Produced by BRIAN ENO, FLOOD and THE EDGE – it peaked at No. 1 in the USA and UK.

 

CD3 "Über Remixes" (67:16 minutes):

1. Night And Day (Steel String Remix) – Youth Remix, 6:58 minutes

2. Even Better Than The Real Thing (The Perfecto Mix) – Paul Oakenfold and Steven Osborne Remix, 6:37 minutes

3. Mysterious Ways (Solar Plexus Extended Club Mix) – Howard Gray, Steve Lillywhite and Trevor Gray Remix, 7:01 minutes

4. Lemon (The Perfecto Mix) – Paul Oakenfold and Steve Osborne Remix, 8:56 minutes

5. Can't Help Falling In Love (Triple Peaks Remix) – Ian Bryan and Paul Barrett Remix, 4:35 minutes

6. Lady With The Spinning Head (Extended Dance Mix) – Alan Moulder, 6:08 minutes

7. Even Better Than The Real Thing (V16 Exit Wound Remix) – Apollo 440 Remix, 3:19 minutes

8. Mysterious Ways (Ultimatum Mix) – Stereo MCs Remix, 5:01 minutes

9. The Lounge Fly Mix – Flood Mix, 6:28 minutes

10. Mysterious Ways (The Perfecto Mix) – Paul Oakenfold and Steve Osborne Remix, 7:06 minutes

11. One (Apollo 440 Remix) – Apollo 440 and Steve Lillywhite Remix, 5:03 minutes

NOTES:

Track 11 is PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED

 

CD4 "Unter Remixes" (69:11 minutes):

1. Mysterious Ways (Tabla Motown Remix) – Apollo 440 Remix, 4:27 minutes

2. Mysterious Ways (Apollo 440 Magic Hour Remix) – Apollo 440 Remix, 4:26 minutes

3. Can't Help Falling In Love (Mysterious Train Dub) – Paul Barrett Remix, 8:29 minutes)

4. One (Apollo 440 Ambient Mix) – Apollo 440 and Steve Lillywhite Remix, 5:07 minutes

5. Lemon (Momo's Reprise) – David Morales Remix, 4:08 minutes

6. Salomé (Zooromancer Remix) – Pete Heller and Terry Farley Remixes, 8:02 minutes

7. Even Better Than The Real Thing (Trance Mix) – Paul Oakenfold and Steve Osborne Remix, 6:47 minutes

8. Numb (Gimme Some More Dignity Mix) – Rob D and Rollo Remix, 8:47 minutes

9. Mysterious Ways (Solar Plexus Magic Hour Remix) – Apollo 440, Howard Gray, Steve Lillywhite and Trevor Gray Remix, 8:14 minutes

10. Numb (Soul Assassins Mix) – The Soul Assassins Remix, 3:57 minutes

11. Even Better Than The Real Thing (Apollo 440 Stealth Sonic Remix) – Apollo 440 Remix, 6:42 minutes

NOTES:

Track 4 is PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED

 

CD5 "B-sides And Bonus Tracks" (65:17 minutes):

1. Lady With The Spinning Head (UV1)

2. Blow Your House Down

3. Salomé (Backing vocals by Paul Barrett and Ian Bryan)

4. Even Better Than The Real Thing (Single Version)

5. Satellite Of Love (Lou Reed cover, Additional Vocals by Gavin Friday)

6. Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horse (Temple Bar Remix)

7. Heaven And Hell

8. Oh Berlin

9. Near The Island

10. Down All The Days

11. Paint It Black (Rolling Stones cover)

12. Fortunate Song (Creedence Clearwater Revival cover)

13. Alex Descends Into Hell For A Bottle Of Milk/Korova 1

14. Where Did It All Go Wrong?

15. Everybody Loves A Winner

16. Even Better Than The Real Thing (Fish Out Of Water Remix)

 

CD6 "Kindergarten – The Alternative Achtung Baby" (60:23 minutes):

1. 'Baby' Zoo Station

2. 'Baby' Even Better Than The Real Thing

3. 'Baby' One

4. 'Baby' Until The End Of The World

5. 'Baby' Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horse

6. 'Baby' So Cruel

7. 'Baby' The Fly

8. 'Baby' Mysterious Ways

9. 'Baby' Tryin' To Throw Your Arms Around The World

10. 'Baby' Ultra Violet (Light My Way)

11. 'Baby' Acrobat

12. 'Baby' Love Is Blindness

 

DVD1 "From The Sky Down – A Documentary" (1 hour, 15 minutes)

Includes Glastonbury Festival Performance

 

DVD2 "The Videos"

17 Videos from "The Fly" filmed in September 1991 to "Numb" filmed in 1993

Directors include Richie Smyth, Anton Corbijn, Kevin Godley, Mark Pellington, Phil Joanou, Wim Wenders, Mark Neal and many more – includes Greenpeace footage from 1992

1. The Fly (Directors, Jon Klein and Richie Smyth)

2. Mysterious Ways (Director, Stéphane Sednaoui)

3. One (Director, Anton Corbijn)

4. Even Better Than The Real Thing (Director, Kevin Godley)

5. One (Buffalo Version) (Director, Mark Pellington)

6. One (Restaurant Version) (Director, Phil Joanou)

7. Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horse (Director, Phil Joanou)

8. The Fly (Performance Only) (Director, Richie Smyth)

9. Even Better Than The Real Thing (The Perfecto Mix) (Director, Richie Smyth)

10. The Fly (Text Only) (Director, Mark Pellington)

11. Until The End Of The World (Live) (Director, Maurice Linnane)

12. The Fly (Live From The Stop Sellafield Concert)

13. Even Better Than The Real Thing (Live From The Stop Sellafield Concert)

14. Love Is Blindness (Director, Matt Mahurin)

15. Lemon (Director, Mark Neale)

16. Stay (Faraway, So Close!) (Director, Wim Wenders)

17. Numb (Director, Kevin Godley)

18. Numb (Video Remix) (Director, Emergency Broadcast Network)

 

DVD3 "Bonus Material"

1. Zoo TV Special – A Documentary (Filmed in the USA August 1992 by Kevin Godley – 1 hour and 10 minutes)

2. MTV's Most Wanted - ZooTV Special (Filmed in the USA by Justin Murphy, 45:33 minutes)

3. MTV Rockumentary (Filmed in the USA by Maurice Linnane, 24:13 minutes)

4. U2 on Naked City, 1993 (11:46 minutes)

5. U2 on TV-AM, 1992 (15:12 minutes)

6. Trabantland Documentary (Director, Maurice Linnane, 7:54 minutes)

7. ROM Content (Screensavers, Web-links, Desktop Wallpapers etc)

 

DVD4 "Zoo TV Live From Sydney – The Concert" (1 hour and 58 minutes)

1. Show Opening

2. Zoo Station

3. The Fly

4. Even Better Than The Real Thing

5. Mysterious Ways

6. One

7. Unchained Melody

8. Until The End Of The World

9. New Year's Day

10. Numb

11. Angel of Harlem

12. Stay (Faraway, So Close!)

13. Satellite Of Love

14. Dirty Day

15. Bullet The Blue Sky

16. Running To Stand Still

17. Where The Streets Have No Name

18. Pride (In The Name Of Love)

19. Daddy's Gonna Pay For Your Crashed Car

20. Lemon

21. With Or Without You

22. Love Is Blindness

23. Can't Help Falling In Love

 

A quick look to the rear artwork of the Box set to check for original artwork and we see that the square photo of Adam Clayton's genitals are the covered up X-ed Version (the British and European originals had his full lunch pale on display) and none of the 16 Art Prints inside the embossed Baby Face Star and Car Logo pouch have the naughty version either (no balls, har har). The LP-Sized Card Art Prints are essentially large version of the photos used on the cover and in the booklet – the Trabant, U2 ring, the Band dressed as women like the Rolling Stones did back in the day – all that stuff. It all has that blurred look, but mostly you will look at them once and forget about them.

 

The hardback book however is properly gorgeous. Stunning photos buffer the writing, essays coming from Andrew Mueller where he sets the Berlin scene. That is followed by Producer Daniel Lanois talking about a blur of creation and intensity, Photographer and Band Depicter Anton Corbijn remembering five full months creating the graphics with the Band in Germany, Morocco, Tenerife and Dublin (the most they ever spent working on an image and look). Martin Scholz discusses other artists that had taken to Germany's capitol city too (Bowie, Iggy Pop and Depeche Mode) which is followed by a full LP-sized page showing the handwritten lyrics to "One" – a song he refers to in his superb essay. There is a reprint of the Martin Wroe article in the 1991 Propaganda Magazine (Issue No.14) that includes interviews with Edge and Bono as they struggled - and then a very Irish slant from Brian Eno described the restless creative nature of the four – the Producer most associated with this great band. Eno explains that the yearlong recordings did not produce a polish he calls democratically neutered – but instead represented a search that ultimately produced a result even they initially thought was beyond them – an album of musical oxymorons - as he describes it. And so on to minutely detailed track-by-track credits. To the actual music...

 

Deliberately breaking away from their previous sound and determined to move forward (reinvent) - "Zoo Station" acts more as a Mission Statement than as a starter to the new U2. It grunts out of your speakers and takes the punter by surprise. This was their David Bowie in Berlin moment – we start all over again as something different whether you wanted the old or not. And yet their updated sound was strikingly commercial. The 1991 album provided five singles out of its twelve tracks and enough Remixes and Promos to sink a collector’s monetary nest egg - "The Fly" (October 1991), "Mysterious Ways" (November 1991), "One" (February 1992), "Even Better Than The Real Thing" (June 1992) and "Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses" (November 1992).

 

Producers DANIEL LANOIS and BRIAN ENO and Engineer MARK "Flood" ELLIS worked with the band to get that almost garish gruff sound (a deliberate decamp to the Hansa Studio in Berlin after initial Demo Sessions in Dublin). The artwork too was less black and white single-photo posturing in deserts and stage lamps and more Trashy Glam Rock in its abandon, clothing and gimmicks. The in-yer-face front and rear cover collages with their barrage of blurred images added too - lipstick smudges, bling festooned pants, Trabant cars and even dressing up as pouting tarts – saw the band literally Rock Out With Your Cock Out (or at least Adam did). In some ways too – the fall of the Berlin Wall with images of people chiselling at concrete and cutting wires and toppling domineering statues of old regimes – played into the reinvention. They had ended the Eighties as the biggest Rock Band in the World but began the new decade of change feeling like they were already the old dreaded farts in the rear view mirror – pastiches of Rock and Roll instead of actual purveyors. Something had to change and "Achtung Baby" – complete with its deliberately off-the-cuff title – was that move forward.

 

It helped though that the new songs were actually fantastic – hooky choruses – and every one becoming monster in the live environment - which is why the Tour documents on DVD in the back pouch of the Hardback Book represent such a full picture of the two years that engulfed them. To this day there is a magnificence to "One" – a song that was surely another "Every Breath You Take" moment – powerful, epic and yet entirely within the new soundstage. Making the 1993 follow-up album "Zooropa" listen Number 2 is actually quite a smart move because in overall context it works. "Lemon", "Stay..." and the wonderful Johnny Cash duet on "The Wanderer" brought together two giant talents in a perfect yet new way.

 

CD3 and CD4 present interesting and cool listens – CD3 opens with a B-side to "One" - the pinging guitars and Drum whacks of "Night And Day (Street String Remix)" from the Cole Porter Tribute Album project "Red Hot + Blue" in 1990. The famous Lounge Lizard standard is utterly transformed by a near-seven-minute Electronic Dance meets Rock soundscape - a clever starter-for-ten that sets the Remix scene - somehow Youth making the band sounding like they naturally recorded the song this way. Love, love, love The Perfecto Mix of "Even Better Than The Real Thing" – the perfect blend of Rock and Dance in a single that could have easily a stand-alone release. Fans will head for Track 11 – the first of two Previously Unreleased Versions by Apollo 440 - "One" preceded by the sound of children giggling against a backdrop of church organ – then that guitar – and it works. It does not take on the original, but it is interesting. The Non-LP B-side "Lady With The Spinning Head" (a B-side for "Even Better Than The Real Thing") gets a full-force Audio assault – an Alan Moulder Dance Remix that is fantastically attacking but in all the right ways – Edge going ape on the Guitar while Mullen locks into a tight drum pattern that sounds huge. Another favourite is the Egyptian Reggae vibe to the Ultimatum Mix of "Mysterious Ways" – offsetting the disappointing Lounge Fly Mix that somehow manages to emaciate all the power of the grab-your-throat original – but not in a good way.

 

Amongst the B-sides and Outtakes on CD5 is an excellent "Blow Your House Down" – a drug of choice rocker that could easily have been a Rattle & Hum throwback and was probably left off because it wasn't radical enough for the new direction. "Salome" has always been a fave in any form – gotta love the riffage guitar of the standard B-side version to "Even Better Than The Real Thing" and then the extraordinary Zooromancer Mix on CD2. The Lou Reed classic "Satellite Of Love" is a so-good fit for U2 (a B-side to "One") while another newbee "Heaven And Hell" feels like a possible epic in the making – five-minutes of ballad with Declan Gaffney on Backing Vocals. The Sessions Outtakes continue with "Oh Berlin" – another track recorded at Artillery Studios in London – where Bono starts singing some lines in German – it’s good but again you can hear why it was left behind despite some lovely old-style guitar work from The Edge.

 

The pretty instrumental "Near The Island" might only be 2:56 minutes long with just Acoustic Guitar and a Piano – but it has a calm at the centre of the storm loveliness that will one day see it used in a movie. Two more new come in the shape of "Down All The Days" that feels like a Rattle & Hum song reworked while "Everybody Loves A Winner". They then cover The Rolling Stones with "Paint It Black" and Creedence Clearwater Revival with "Fortunate Son" and Maria McKee shares duet vocals with Bono on the old William Bell Soul single "Everybody Loves A Winner" (originally on Stax in 1967). The Remixes end with The Fish Out Of Water Version of "Even Better Than The Real Thing" from the U2360 Tour – short and sweet.

 

The movie/documentary samples everyone from Kraftwerk ("Man Machine") to The Clash ("Should I Stay Or Should I Go") to Iggy Pop doing "Lust For Life" to The Beatles "All You Need Is Love" to the obvious "Heroes" by Bowie and the co-write with Iggy on "Some Weird Sin". There are Glastonbury Festival performances in the UK – BBC interviews – "From The Sky Down" is a hugely comprehensive display that in itself is complimented by an actual gig on another DVD with the full bore of ZooTV in Australia – the crowd completely transfixed as Can’t Help Falling in Love plays out the spectacle. There is even Dolby 5.1 Sound in DVD1 and DVD4.

 

You could argue that overload might be a good word to describe this Box Set and the Uber Deluxe Version has indeed gone into legend as just that (it's been deleted years and has a three-figure price premium because of that). But somehow "Achtung Baby" and its sibling "Zooropa" could only be this way – big – loud – brash and frankly unapologetic for being so. Let your fingers wander all over this bad boy and just this once – excess is the one to bless...

"Star Time" by JAMES BROWN – Subtitled '71 Songs Including Many Rare Or Previous Unreleased Tracks' – Cliff White, Harry Weinger and Alan Leeds Compilation Including Mono and Stereo 45-Singles, Album Tracks and Unreleased Recordings from February 1956 to June 1984 on Federal, King, Polydor, People, T.K. and Tommy Records. Including Acts Associated with JB Productions (Nat Kendricks & The Swans, The Poets, Fred Wesley And The J.B.'s) – Featured Musicians are The J.B.'s with Fred Wesley, Bobby Byrd, Jimmy Parker, Pee Wee Ellis, Maceo Parker, St-Clair Pinckney, Joe Farrell, Richard Griffith, Sam Brown, Fred Thomas, John Jabo Starks, Clyde Stubblefield and more with Guests Catfish Collins and Bootsy Collins of P-Funk, Billy Cobham, Jerry Poindexter, Afrika Bambaataa and many more (May 1991 Original Issue, June 2004 and October 2007 Reissues UK Universal/Polydor 4CD Long Box Set and Two Subsequent 4CD DigiBook Reissues (With Upgraded Booklets) Using 1991 Ted Jensen Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

 

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"...Ain't That A Groove... "

 

***** 

 

When Harry Weinger and Alan Leeds started their eleven-volume 2CD series for James Brown and his mighty Singles output (covering March 1956 on Federal up to May 1981 on Polydor) – they finally finished the Herculean task with twofer number eleven in October 2011 having started as far back as September 2006 for Vol. One. Put out on the hugely collectable Hip-O Select Label (initially the mail-order wing of Universal) – all eleven are genuinely things of digital reissue beauty - and have become big-time collectables ever since. I diligently bought the lot as they came out and have reviewed (in detail) all but the first three volumes (see my Sounds Good, Looks Good Blog) and I intend to get to those Tres Hombres some time in the future too.

 

I mention Weinger and Leeds because these two JB-champions were also two of daring-do crew behind the now legendary Star Time 4CD Box Set that debuted all the way back in May of 1991. Alan Leeds was his Tour Manager between 1970 and 1974 and co-edited The James Brown Reader - while Harry Weinger (as Vice President of A&R at Universal) has been heavily involved down through the decades in Soul and Funk CD Reissues for Motown, James Brown and the superb Funk Essentials series. Their two names are synonymous with JB and their handling of his legacy has been done with diligence, joy and respect (shipmates good and true names like Cliff White and Bill Levenson also had a large part in it).

 

Back to this release... taking its names from what the announcer used to prep the crowds with before JB and the Band hit the stage (are you ready for...) and subtitled '71 Songs Including Many Rare Or Previous Unreleased Tracks' – "Star Time" has been a Box Set backbone of any self-respecting music fan collection for over 4 decades now. However, here in June 2023, the 4CD Career Anthology "Star Time" by JAMES BROWN has been issued a total of three times and the details for each are worth chronicling because there are subtle differences.

 

First up came the original chunky long box of Red and Gold colour issued 7 May 1991 in the UK on Polydor 849 108-2 (Barcode 042284910828). That variant had a 64-page booklet. However, it was reissued 7 June 2004 in the UK using the same catalogue number and Barcode as Universal/Polydor 849 108 2 (Barcode 042284910828) - but this time with an upgraded booklet to 96-Pages, different artwork front ad rear and a more easy-to-manage 4CD Digibook Presentation. When Brown passed in December 2006 (aged 73), Polydor reissued that Digibook Presentation (with the 96-page booklet) yet again - 29 October 2007 as Universal/Polydor 0600753022498 (Barcode 600753022498). You could argue that it was a bit sloppy of Universal to use the 2004 booklet text in the 2007 reissue because it does not mention Brown’s passing in late 2006 (in fact it awkwardly states he’s alive). But it is a minor quibble in what was and still is a feast of goodies you need in your life (you could argue CD3 alone is damn near Funky Nirvana perfection). Here is the breakdown (all tracks US 45s unless otherwise stated)...

 

CD1 "Mr Dynamite" (71:38 minutes):

1. Please Please Please

2. Why Do You Love Me - Tracks 1 & 2 are the A&B-sides of his March 1956 Debut US 45-single on Federal 45-12258, Mono

3. Try Me

4. Tell Me What I Did - Tracks 3 & 4 are the A&B-sides of October 1958 US 45-single on Federal 45-12337, Mono

5. Bewildered - From the US LP "Think!", October 1960 on King 683 in Mono

6. Good Good Lovin' - July 1959 US 45 on Federal 45-12361, A-side, Stereo

7. I'll Go Crazy

8. I Know It's True - Tracks 7 & 8 are the A&B-sides, January 1960, Federal 12369, Stereo

9. (Do The) Mashed Potatoes Pt.1 - February 1960, Dade Records 1804, A-side, Mono, credited to Nat Kendrick and The Swans

10. Think - May 1960, Federal 45-12370, A-side, Mono

11. Baby, You're Right - Previously Unreleased Alternate Take

12. Lost Someone - November 1961, King 45-5524, A-side, Stereo

13. Night Train - November 1961 US LP "Night Train" on King 771

14. I've Got Money - B-side to "Three Hearts In A Tangle", November 1962, King 45-5701, Mono

15. I Don't Mind (Live) - From the May 1963 US LP "James Brown Live At The Apollo" on King 826

16. Prisoner Of Love - April 1963, King 45-5739, A-side, Stereo

17. Devil's Den - April 1963, Try Me Records 45-28006, A&B-sides combined, credited as The Poets

18. Out Of The Blue - Previously Unreleased Alternate Take

19. Out Of Sight

20. Grits – From the 1964 US LP "Grits & Soul" on Smash Records SRS 67057 in Stereo

21. Maybe The Last Time – Tracks 19 and 21, A&B-sides, July 1964, Smash Records S 1919, A-side Mono, B-side Stereo

22. It's A Man's World - Previously Unreleased Stereo Mix from June 1964

23. I Got You – A Fall of 1964 Single originally to be on a 45 and LP, withdrawn

24. Papa's Got A Brand New Bag, Pts. 1, 2 & 3 – Previously Unreleased Complete Take in three-parts; this version was later sped up and released as a 2-part King Single Master

NOTES:

Tracks 11, 18, 22 and 24 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED

 

CD2 "The Hardest Working Man In Show Business" (74:33 minutes):

1. Papa's Got A Brand New Bag, Pt. 1 – July 1965, King 45-599,A-side, Mono

2. I Got You (I Feel Good) – November 1965, King 45-6015, A-side, Mono

3. Ain't That A Groove – Previously Unreleased Unedited Version – James Brown with The Jewels

4. It's A Man's Man's Man's World – April 1966, King 45-6035, A-side, Mono

5. Money Won't Change You – Previously Unreleased Complete Version – Edited and Released July 1966 as a two-part US 45-single, King 45-6048

6. Don't Be A Dropout – Previously Unreleased Unedited Version – Edited and Released October 1966 as a two-part US 45-single, King 45-6056

7. Bring It Up (Hipster's Avenue) – Previously Unreleased Unedited Version – Edited and Released January 1967 as a two-part US 45-single, King 45-6071

8. Let Yourself Go - Previously Unreleased Unedited Version – Edited and Released April 1967 as a two-part US 45-single, King 45-6100

9. Cold Sweat – Complete Version from the 1967 US LP "Cold Sweat" on King Records 1020. Edited and Released July 1967 as a two-part US 45-single on King 45-6110

10. Get It Together – October 1967 A&B-sides combined, King 45-6122

11. I Can't Stand Myself (When You Touch Me), Pt. 1 – Original Recorded Tempo – US 45-single release A-side was slowed down for December 1967 released on King 45-6144

12. I Got The Feelin' – April 1968, King 45-6155, A-side, Stereo

13. Licking Stick – Licking Stick – May 1968 A&B-sides combined, King 45-6166, Stereo

14. Say It Loud - I'm Black And I'm Proud, Pt. 1 – August 1968, King 45-6187, A-side, Stereo

15. There Was A Time (Live) – Previously Unreleased

16. Give It Up Or Turnit A Loose – January 1969, King 45-6213, A-side, Stereo

17. I Don't Want Nobody To Give Me Nothing (Open Up The Door I'll Get It Myself) – March 1969 A&B-sides combined, King 45-6224, Stereo

NOTES:

Tracks 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11 and 15 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED

 

CD3 "Soul Brother No.1" (72:54 minutes):

1. Mother Popcorn – Combined A&B-sides of US 45-single, June 1969, King 45-6245, Stereo

2. Funky Drummer – Original Mix Combined A&B-sides of US 45-single, March 1970, King 45-6290, Stereo

3. Get Up (I Feel Like Being A) Sex Machine - Combined A&B-sides of US 45-single, July 1970, King 45-6318, Stereo

4. Super Bad, Pts. 1 & 2 – Previously Unreleased Stereo Mix – Original US 45-Single two-parter released in Mono, October 1970, King 45-6329

5. Talkin' Loud & Sayin' Nothing – Previously Unreleased Extended Version of the Original Mix – Portion originally released February 1972 as a two-part US 45-single, Polydor PD 14109

6. Get Up, Get Into It And Get Involved – Previously Unreleased Stereo Mix – Originally a Mono US 45-single, December 1970, King 45-6347

7. Soul Power, Pts. 1 & 2 – Previously Unreleased Unedited Stereo Mix – Originally Edited and released as a three-part US 45-single, March 1971, King 45-6368

8. Brother Rapp / Ain't It Funky Now (Live) – Previously Unreleased, Recorded 8 March 1971 at Olympia Theater in Paris

9. Hot Pants, Pt. 1 – July 1971, People 45-2501, A-side, Mono

10. I'm Greedy Man, Pt. 1 – November 1971, Polydor PD-14100, A-side, Stereo

11. Make It Funky, Pt. 1 – August 1971, Polydor PD-14088, A-side, Mono

12. It's A New Day (Live) – From the December 1971 2LP Live Set "Revolution Of The Mind –Recorded Live At The Apollo Vol.III" on Polydor PD 3003

13. I Got Ants In My Pants, Pt. 1 And I Want TO Dance – January 1973, Polydor PD-14162, A-side, Stereo

14. King Heroin – February 1972, Polydor PD 14116, A-side, Stereo

NOTES:

Tracks 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED

 

CD4 "The Godfather Of Soul" (75:35 minutes):

1. There It Is, Pt.1 – April 1972, Polydor PD 14125, A-side, Stereo

2. Public Enemy ♯ 1, Pt.1 – From the 1972 US Stereo LP "There It Is" on Polydor PD 5028

3. Get On The Good Foot – July 1972, Polydor PD-14139, A-side, Mono

4. I Got A Bag Of My Own – October 1972, Polydor PD 14153, A-side, Stereo

5. Doing It To Death by FRED WESLEY And THE J.B.s – April 1973, People PE 621, A-side, Mono

6. The Payback - From the 2LP Studio Set "The Payback", December 1973 USA on Polydor PD 2-3007 and April 1974 in the UK on Polydor 2659 030 (using US copies)

7. Papa Don't Take No Mess, Pt.1 – From the June 1974 US 2LP Studio Set "Hell" on Polydor PD 2-9001

8. Stoned To The Bone, Pt.1 – October 1973, Polydor PD 14210, A-side, Mono

9. My Thang – Previously Unreleased Mix – Originally Issued as a US 45-single, June 1974, Polydor PD 14244, Stereo

10. Funky President (People It's Bad) – October 1974, Polydor PD 14258, A-side, Stereo

11. Hot (I Need To Be Loved, Loved, Loved) –November 1975, Polydor PD14301, A-side, Stereo

12. Get Up Offa That Thing (Release The Pressure) – New 6:14 Minute Edit in Stereo created for "Star Time"

13. Bodyheat (Part 1) – December 1976, Polydor PD 14360, A-side, Stereo

14. It's Too Funky In Here – From the July 1979 LP "The Original Disco Man" on Polydor PD-1-6212

15. Rapp Payback (Where Iz Moses) – October 1980, T.K. Records TKX-1039, A-side

16. Unity, Part 1 by Afrika Bambaataa And The Godfather Of Soul James Brown – September 1984, Tommy Records TB-847-7, A-side

NOTES:

Tracks 9 and 12 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED

 

"Star Time" – Subtitled '71 Songs Including Many Rare Or Previous Unreleased Tracks' – legendarily took one and half years to complete – compiled by Harry Weinger, Cliff White, Oscar A. Yong and Bill Levenson. Compiler and JB pal Harry Weinger (in interview) has stated, it was just as well too. While compiling the anthology, Brown was in State Prison doing a suspended sentence of just over 2 years for aggravated assault, but was out on its May 1991 release. Timing-wise, that handily also happened to coincide with the 35^th Anniversary of his debut single - "Please Please Please" on Federal. Another thing you notice about the quality of the listen is that across 4CDs and 71-songs – how few are album cuts (only 10). Weinger admitted that in the early years and even much of the Sixties decade (outside the much vaunted live sets), Brown had way too much filler on his contractually obliged studio albums. So Weinger became determined to create an across the board listen on all four discs that would cut it – even as stand-alones (never sold as such). The extended playing times of tracks particularly on CD2 and CD3 are largely due to two-parter 45-singles co-joined).

 

TED JENSEN did the Remasters (from original tapes) at Sterling Sound in New York and you can for the want of a better word – feel this sucker sweat as it Funkifies your listening area with the baddest band that ever laid down a groove. Take the 6:19 minutes of "Mother Popcorn" that opens CD3 and the seven-minutes of "Funky Drummer" that follows it – Stereo Funky Nirvana. MP has Brass Jabs aplenty with JB hollering at Maceo to give it some – while FD combines JB on Organ, Jimmy Nolen on Guitar and the boys just goofing off on the Horns. Can I count it off – the still thrilling "Sex Machine" starts – presented here in its full 5:15 minutes of Stereo glory (Catfish Collins playing that fabulous guitar groove). Staying on the scene (they way he likes it) – we then get a sensation as far as I’m concerned – the normally Mono two Parts of "Super Bad" presented to us in Stereo for the first time with Catfish Collins on Guitar and Bootsy Collins slapping that Bass. And all of it in Fantastic Sound.

 

Brown himself did the introduction (dictated by phone from his prison stay) and famed musicologist and writer Nelson George even won a Grammy for Best Liner Notes – his connecting of Browns hard-hitting Funk Rhythms to the emerging Hip Hop Sound and Culture hitting all the right alliance notes. Alan Leeds has a signed-copy of "Star Time" and treasures it.

 

The booklet breaks things down into a JB Introduction on one page (January 1991), a 4-page Essay from Nelson George called "Right On!" to "Word Up!", Alan Leeds section is called "From the Inside", Cliff White and Harry Weinger provide "Are You Ready For Star Time?" while the remainder does a song-by-song credits, Discography and general credits at the rear. The text is peppered with period photos (mostly black and white), tour posters, record company and promoter promo shots (great snap of Brown chatting with an admiring Mick Jagger in 1964), some album covers, Godfather Of Soul jacket buttons, live photos of his famous train-routine exiting the stage with a cape over his shoulders and so on. The "Star Time: Song By Song" section does what it says on the tin – it lists musician credits that are hugely detailed – recording dates – catalogue numbers – details on the new stuff whilst referencing the originals and so forth. And the discography that follows of 45s and Albums is cool even if it does forgo actual release dates for just a year date. And you can see that in some years he might have had as many as six LP releases – hammering it all times – a work ethic that was as relentless as his band in the pocket.

 

As you can glean from the track lists above on CD1 to CD4, right through the Sixties and even the Seventies – his 45-singles seemed to have this Mono vs. Stereo battle – with Mono being the most likely winner. So the listen flits from one sound stage to another – but both are impressive. Take the Stereo 45-cut of "Lost Someone" from as far back as November 1961 to ten years later and "Make It Funky, Pt. 1" in August 1971 which is Mono – the punch of the Remasters is remarkable on both counts. I always prefer Stereo if I am truthful – but real fans will notice the subtle choices made by the compilers – the swapping out of familiar Mono variants for a fresher Stereo touch – or unreleased mixes of giants like "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag" here in a near seven-minute three-parter – or the extended cut of "Talkin' Loud & Sayin' Nothing" that stretches this famous beast out to nearly nine-minutes! And I know that all the CDs are chockers full of value, but I do wish they could have swapped out say something lesser like say "Hot (I Need To Be Loved, Loved, Loved) " from 1975 and included instead the incredible flipside to "King Heroin" called "Theme From King Heroin" from February 1972 – what a masterpiece (I have a Hip-O Select Remaster of it and wow!).

 

I know that his Sixties output had been groundbreaking and probably his most commercially winning period – but musically and culturally – I would openly cough-up to JB in the Seventies as being the dogs for me. JB and his evolving JBs had issued the "Black Caesar" soundtrack in February 1973, the soundtrack to "Slaughter’s Big Rip Off" in July, a compilation called "Soul Classics, Volume II" in October and then "The Payback" in December 1973. And when you think that in November 1972 he had released another double-album gem in the shape of "Get On The Good Foot" – the dude was prolific if not anything else. 1973 was a helluva year for The Godfather Of Soul – once again bringing him well deserved commercial success – all of only marred by the horrible loss of his son Teddy in an automobile accident on the 14th of June. Still JB carried on that punishing schedule for years after. My admiration for him and what he achieved is boundless. He paid the cost to be the real boss for damn sure. For sure the listen tapers off towards the end of CD4 and that album called "The Original Disco Man" seems like blight on his extraordinary legacy. "Star Time" also avoids the Living In America song – his last chart success, but maybe that is a good thing.

 

James Brown – The Godfather of Soul – The Preacher – the only real comparison is Prince – another giant gone but never forgotten. Soul and Funk owe JB and his Band of Funky Pirates big time (described in the liner notes on Page 56 by Cliff White and Harry Weinger as an unrivaled powerhouse). And how many 4CD Box Sets elicit such genuine affection more than four decades after their issue. 

 

"Star Time" does...and how...