Search - Happenings :: Very Best of

After Years Of Searching, An Absolute Dissappointment

Kenneth J. Wetzel | Quakertown, PA United States | 09/05/2000

(1 out of 5 stars)

"I have been searching for literally years to find a good CD compilation of The Happenings. After finding this one, I was willing to settle for anything. Not nearly all of The Happenings finest works were included on this CD, but most of the hits were there. After receiving it is where the real disappointment came in. I have always been led to believe that Japanese Import CD's are of the highest quality, and that has generally been my experience. This one is an absolute joke. The digital remastering was done so horribly that honestly, my Happenings LP's and singles sound tenfold better. This CD is one of the most horrible sounding recordings I have ever listened to and I can speak from experience, having 1,000's of CD's in my collection and a true audiophile ear. Unless you absolutely have to have The Happenings on CD, stay away from this one. You will be disappointed. Wait until some record label finally hears all of the discontented Happenings fans out there and puts out a better one (Rhino Records, where are you when we need you). Keep searching, the NEM label issued a compilation CD set in the mid-90's, but it is now out of print, and trust me, impossible to find but maybe you'll get lucky. For a die-hard Happenings fan, this is not the one for you."

Horrible remastering - sounds like a transistor radio!

Kenneth J. Wetzel | 08/14/1999

(1 out of 5 stars)

"Buyer Beware! While ALL of this music on this c.d. is excellent and many songs have been anticipated in digital form; the sound reproduction is the worst I have ever heard. It is the most terrible mixing and remastering I have ever heard - a waste of good money. In short, terrible listening and a major disappointment. I couldn't wait to hear these songs on c.d and was amazed at just how horrible they sounded. The bass was muffled; the mid-range was simply not there and the high end was too piercing and distorted - it bled. It sounded as if the whole disc was recorded off of an old transistor radio. I thought imports were supposed to be higher quality. This just proves that c.d.'s in the good ole' USA can be just as good if not better. If you want the music on this c.d. then buy it. If you want it to sound good, this is not the c.d. for you. My recommendation - don't buy it unless you just absolutely have to have these tunes in your collection. You will be disappointed as I was. Wait until another collection comes out. This one isn't worth the price of the postage."

A Half Way Decent Collection of Hits

J. GENIO | Earth | 07/14/2000

(3 out of 5 stars)

"The Happenings are the greatest harmony group of all times. I thoroughly enjoyed their renditions of "I Got Rhythum," "Sealed With A Kiss," and "See You In September." This CD, however, has a couple of flaws. First, the old Happenings LP I have with these songs on it sound much better than this CD. I thought laser technology is supposed to make the music sound better. What happened? The second gig, there is a lot of filler on this CD. Unfortunately, the filler material detracts from the solid performances on this CD."