Favorite Rock Box Set?

[danasgoodstuff]

My criteria for rock boxes is a little different. If it's a single artist box, then IMHO the basic rule is that you should be able to just buy the box and forget it - that should be all you really need. The Velevet Underground and Cream boxes, as different as they are, both meet this criteria - you could certainly live with just that, even though I can think of things which would have made them even better. I think the Faces box comes close, but I'd have to get all the original albums (aand some boots) to be sure and that kinda defeats the purpose. Of course, those bands all had relatively short lives, bands like the Stones would be hard to do properly in a managably consise box, although I'm sure that once Allen Klein dies we'll see one or more. Klein has of course kept Sam Cooke from being fully boxed, although the last attempt that included all of Nightbeat and Live @ the Harlem Sq. Club was v. good. The Who nd the Band should be possible to do in 4 CDs but so far the attempts have fallen far short. I've read that Robbie Robertson is working on another attempt at a Band box; it'll only work if they include some stuff with Hawkins and Dylan. Speaking of Bob, I have the Ten of Swords box, 10 LPs all at the time officially unissued from the beginning through Live at the Albert Hall (sic). Very nice even if it fails my test as set forth above.

For genre boxes, I'm v. fond of Rhino's Doo Wop boxes, at least the first two, III is a little spotty. I was going to include a long tangental rant on the centrality of Doo Wop to R 'n R, but I'll save it for another thread. I enjoyed hearing both Nuggets boxes but don't feel any need to own them. Wouldn't mind hearing the Rhino Surf box, suffered through the Rhino Punk/New Wave box. I got all five Rhino Instrumental Rock CDs in a cardboard 'box' for $18 - not a perfect set but well worth it at that price.

I don't think anyone has discussed label boxes here: I like the Stax Singles boxes (esp'ly the first), and the Jewell/Paula, Swingtime, Sun, Specialty, King, and Fire/Fury. A good overview of RPM/Kent still needs to be done; BB King's work for them has been given the royal treatment by Ace, UK.

Chess has many interesting boxes on individual artists and various concepts, but most of them only add to the confusion in the end. I'd like to see boxes of their main artist that simply compile everything that was initially issued on singles, yes their are Muddy Waters singels that have still never been on US albums. Maybe next time we switch formats this will get done.

[Shawn]

A band that really DESERVES a box set (especially since the single CDs are so poorly mastered) is Thin Lizzy. Phil Lynott is very underrated as a songwriter and the two-guitar tandem sound they created was one-of-a-kind and very influential...but never quite surpassed.

It would be a LARGE set if it was complete...but most of their albums are worthwhile.

[medjuck]

Los Lobos - El Cancionero: Mas Y Mas - includes hits, great album tracks, live stuff, unreleased stuff, and side projects. A great summary.

Funny: I was just playing "Just Another Band from East LA" (at least I think that's the title) an earlier box set. Is there any over-lap?

BTW I just got to hear them at a concert in a vinyard where there was lots of room for dancing. They make a great bar band.

[Michael Fitzgerald]

"The Who and The Band should be possible to do in 4 CDs" - ??

You are comparing this with the Cream boxed set - that's complete, is it not? Cream was in existence for under three years. The Who started a year earlier and lasted *ten* years after - plus a four year addendum (anything past 1982 is off limits in my book) - with pretty much everything from 1969 to 1978 being a "classic" (including two double-Lp epics). Which is not to say that pre-Tommy material isn't worth considering, it's just much less consistent. Compared to The Rolling Stones, The Who wins hands down for consistency.

These are bands for which serious fans want to own *every* album. (BTW, it should be noted that there was a serious boxed set of The Who - it was titled "Phases" and came out in 1981. It was 11 LPs - the first 9 albums, complete.) Anthologies just don't do it. Now, a rarities boxed set would be different. Just keep the "regular" stuff off it.

Mike

[GregK]

I agree that rock is not the right content for huge anthology sets, unless we are talking a lot of unreleased stuff, live curios, etc. There are SO FEW rock bands that can sustain two+ hours of straight through listening, in my snotty opinion.

That was part of the reason I moved on to jazz. And that's why I love the Dylan series and the Beatles Anthology.

You are exactly right. Box sets for rock bands work best when they are an improvisational band anyway, like King Crimson, or some of the supreme Allman Brothers.

[GregK]

I am surprised nobody has mentioned the Eric Clapton 'Crossroads' box. As far as I remember, this was the first rock box set and remains the biggest selling one. Showing its age by now I guess.

I believe the Dylan Biograph was first, wasn't it? 1985 vs 1988 for Clapton. Speaking of Clapton, I enjoyed the Layla box set, which had a full disc of studio jams (one involving most of the Allman Brothers too), which isn't always the most thrilling listen but is still interesting

[neveronfriday]

You may laugh (and I don't care, HA!), but "Frampton Comes Alive" is still one of my fave albums outside of my Jazz collection.

Holy shit! And I was embarrassed about Simon & Garfunkel????

You know what?

And maybe I should add this (although it has been said elsewhere on this thread) ... hell, let me put this into a list:

a) I'm sorry, but I'm never ever embarrassed about music I listen to (and I have lots other people might find disgusting). It's a personal thing, and - this has also been said elsewhere - there is always some personal angle to stuff you listen to. I also love watching "Plan 9 from Outer Space", probably the worst film ever made, but I love it. Call it "the aesthetics of bad taste", but I can really get off on that stuff.

b) Much like many people on this board, I switched to jazz (something I always had around me in one way or another), because I got tired of a lot of stuff I had in my collection. Frampton can be fun, but only whenever memories catch up with you ...sentimental stuff. And right at that moment, Frampton is the best possible thing to play ... for me. Or "Last Child" by Aerosmith, or "Grinder" by Judas Priest with it's absolutely killing riff and driving beat towards the end.

c) Whenever I want to use my brain and enjoy music on a level that engages mind AND body, I listen to jazz. Call that elitist, but that's the way it is for me. It might be country music for others, or classical music, whatever, but for me, it was a development. I didn't reach that stage until later in life.

Finally - and this is no rebuttal (and please don't misunderstand this), I NEVER laugh about the musical choice of other people. I'm just happy that they listen to something that tickles their fancy. There are enough people on this planet who think that music is muzak, and I'm happy about anybody who gets something out of any kind of music. Hell, when my brother dances, he has the rhythm of a physically handicapped person, but he loves it at that moment ... which is cool with me.

So, whenever I feel like it, I listen to Motorhead, followed by Mussorgsky, followed by the Clash, followed by Paul Desmond.. And I hope other people do the same.

Cheers!

Edited September 11, 2004 by deus62

[wolff]

The Jimi Hendrix Experience box set.

Wolff, do you know if the LPs are from analogue masters?  All I can find on them is that the LPs are on 180 gram vinyl, but nothing said about the mastering.  Do they address that aspect in the box set?

Does not say. And there is no mention anywhere on the other four Experience Hendrix LP's I have.

There is this from their site:

Over 4 hours of music on 4 CDs and 8LPs, compiled and digitally remastered by original Hendrix engineer Eddie Kramer, and accompanied by a full-color, 80-page book filled with rare....

Just got a note from someone at the label that the LP's are from analog masters.

[Leeway]

Thanks Wolff, that makes them sound a lot more appetizing

[Michael Fitzgerald]

If you're claiming something from 1985 is the first rock boxed set, you must have some hidden stipulations that need to be laid out - are we talking CD only?

As I mentioned earlier, the boxed set "Phases" by The Who was issued in 1981 and there are certainly earlier examples - for instance, I have a boxed set on Capitol (STCR-288) from sometime in the early 1970s, I'd say (green label). The cover states:

the significant works of a perceptively creative musical era...

3 complete records of sensory experiences sensationally created by

The Steve Miller Band ("Sailor")

The Band ("Music From Big Pink")

Quicksilver Messenger Service

And then of course there's the Chicago: Live At Carnegie Hall Volumes I, II, III & IV boxed set - from 1972 (I can tell because it's got The Fifty State Voter Registration Laws - 1972 as an insert).

Mike

[GregK]

If you're claiming something from 1985 is the first rock boxed set, you must have some hidden stipulations that need to be laid out - are we talking CD only?

I remember newspapers, Rolling Stone, Billboard, etc making a big deal about Dylan's Biograph in 1985, claiming it to be the first box set for a rock artist.

[martini]

I'l have to put the Hendrix, Zombies and Velvet Underground on my wish list.  I've even started-- way late in life- something of an interest in Black Sabbath,  so that one is a definite maybe. 

Black Sabbath from '70-'78 was fantastic and much more musically diverse (for a rock act--let's keep it in perspective here) than most people realize. Although their first three albums generally get the most attention, in recent years I find myself listening to Sabatoge and Volume 4 more often than their earliest efforts, which are also stellar. Their last two albums with Ozzy were not up to par with their previous efforts (all of which were impeccable for rock albums), but they are still pretty decent listens these days. I highly recommend the box set. You may find that Tony Iommi deserves to be ranked very highly among the greatest rock guitarists of all-time, and that there was once a time when Ozzy Osbourne was a young, talented lad who did not drool on himself on MTV. Yes, Ozzy was great back then, and we should respect that too.

Edited September 11, 2004 by martini

[Jazzmoose]

Finally - and this is no rebuttal (and please don't misunderstand this), I NEVER laugh about the musical choice of other people.

Hell, I'm just funnin' ya, Deus...I actually had a Frampton Tshirt even, so even if I was serious I wouldn't have any room to talk!

[neveronfriday]

A band that really DESERVES a box set (especially since the single CDs are so poorly mastered) is Thin Lizzy. Phil Lynott is very underrated as a songwriter and the two-guitar tandem sound they created was one-of-a-kind and very influential...but never quite surpassed.

It would be a LARGE set if it was complete...but most of their albums are worthwhile.

There is a Lizzy box set.

Just not a complete one.

http://www.thinlizzyfan.com/albumpages/boxset.html

It's got pretty decent sound as well.

It should be readily available everywhere.

Cheers!

[neveronfriday]

What I would like to see is a Status Quo box set. Everything that is out on the marked at the moment just sucks sound-wise, including a pretty useless box set.

I heard their catalogue is supposed to be remastered, but if it's anything like the last effort (the box set), forget it.

The early Status Quo material, up to that dreadful "Rockin' All Over the World" release and subsequent duds, is great. I'd love to see all of THAT on a box set, remastered, with as much bonus material as possible. I'd be in heaven.

The current one has nothing at all from their time before 1972. There's plenty of extra material on there already, but also too many useless tunes. That's one box set that gets me pi**ed off everytime I look at it. What a waste.

Cheers!

[A Lark Ascending]

I'm totally with you, deus62.

I regard all the jazz, classical etc music I've grown to love over the last 25 years as 'additions' rather than 'replacements' for what I listened to as a teenager.

I get great pleasure playing the rock music of the early 70s I grew up with. In my case I still have my 'Moody Blues' LPs which get the occasional spin.

Worse still I still buy recordings from that time that I didn't know then but hve grown curious about. I recently bought anthologies by The Turtles, The Association and The Fifth Dimension!

[mikeweil]

Are Walter Becker and Donald Fagen "Rock"?

My Steely Dan box is the one box that has gotten the most consistent play at my house ever since I got it (1993?) when it came out in its first incarnation.

That's probably the one I pull out the most often, too.

If they only had included all the lyrics ...

I don't have too many rock box sets, the only one I pre-ordered was the Buffalo Springfield, 'cause I simply love their music.

The Cream is great too, and it is absolutely classic material!

[mikeweil]

I don't think anyone has discussed label boxes here:

The only label box I have is the 2-CD Cobra box - at thetime it was the only way to get the Otis Rush master takes in one place. Other music on it is good, too.

[Shawn]

There is a Lizzy box set.

Oops! That shows you how often I've gone box set shopping for awhile.....

Looks like a fairly good representation...and would probably be perfect for most fans. Although, there are alot of album tracks missing that are among my favorites. Thanks for the tip though!

So, whenever I feel like it, I listen to Motorhead, followed by Mussorgsky, followed by the Clash, followed by Paul Desmond.. And I hope other people do the same

I'm glad I'm not alone here! Just last night when I got home I listened to some Johnny Griffin, then played King's X - Gretchen Goes To Nebraska, then Helen Merrill's Casa Forte and then finished off with Slayer's Reign In Blood!

and speaking of the Lemster and his buds....don't forget this box...

[BruceH]

I like the Stax Singles boxes (esp'ly the first),

[Jazzmoose]

What I would like to see is a Status Quo box set.

Help me out here; was that the Pictures of Matchstick Men group?

[Michael Fitzgerald]

Yep

[Jazzmoose]

Wow...and here I thought they were just another "one hit wonder"...

(Mind you, any song that can automatically make my eyes dialate is a hell of a "one hit"... )

[mikeweil]

Has anyone here got the Rhino Rascals box set? Does it merit the high price?

[BruceH]

(Mind you, any song that can automatically make my eyes dialate is a hell of a "one hit"... )

Apropos of that: How about Creation and the song "Making Time." (They had a couple other decent songs, but that one really gets me.)