Many issues with this volume of the series--but a few gems
Daniel W. Kelly | Long Island, NY United States | 01/30/2007
(4 out of 5 stars)
"With this latest volume in the 12"/80s series, there are only a couple of real rarities I'd been hunting for on CD. We also get many tracks that have made it to CD before, as well, as early fades, bad vinyl transfers, versions that are NOT the 12" versions, and even a bad modern remix. Here's the breakdown:
CD1
1. gold...spandau ballet (7:13) (full 12" version)
2. girls on film...duran duran (5:27) (full 12")
3. Poison Arrow...ABC (7:01) (the God AWFUL U.S. jazz mix.)
4. Living on the ceiling...blancmange (5:35) (the full 12")
5. Love & Pride...King (6:13) (full length USA summer mix)
6. everybody wants to rule the world...tears for fears (5:49) (full 12")
7. new song...howard jones (5:34) (the full length ORIGINAL 12" mix, which is actuall more like a dub, with very few vocals)
8. Dance Hall Days...Wang Chung (6:23) (I'm guessing this is one of those awful remixes done when their greatest hits CD came out a few years back--a jeep/hip hop mix that even includes a rap by a female. HORRIBLE)
9. ordinary day...curiosity killed the cat (4:47) (short, but it's the full 12")
10. I won't let the sun go down on me...nik Kershaw (5:59) (nik Kershaw 12" singles are QUITE rare on CD, so this is definitely a treasure)
11. Cry...godley & crème (6:33) (this is not the extended remix as stated, it's actually the album version isolated from the other song attached to it in a "medley" on the original godley & crème CD/LP)
CD2
1. don't go...yaz (4:07) (WEIRD. this is the first half of the original 12" version, which was actually a continuous mix of a couple of versions that ran 8 minutes)
2. small town boy...bronski beat (5:00) (album version, not the 9 minute 12" version)
3. Victim of Love...Erasure (7:07) (the full awesome 12" version)
4. rip it up...orange juice (4:51) (um...the original ALBUM version is longer than this, which is titled the `intermediate edit")
5. What...soft cell (6:04) (full 12")
6. Johnny come home...fine young cannibals (5:27) (oh boy. This is about 20 seconds shorter than the 12"...and it is mastered from just about the WORST scratchy vinyl I've ever heard used for a CD--which might be why it fades early, due to pops that may have been too loud on the vinyl used)
7. money go round...style council (7:44) (I assume this is the original 12". Not sure)
8. lullaby...the cure (7:40) (this is indeed the version from the Cure's "Mixed Up" CD)
9. nelson Mandela...special AKA (4:32) (this is the long version, but I think there's a longer 12" version out there)
10. pass the dutchie...musical youth (6:04) (This is the 12" version, but the crime is with the original mixer from way back when--the break that has the "the play it on the stereo" vocal lyrics is omitted from the 12". Go figure)
11. treason...teardrop explodes (3:02) (this is, as it states, the remix)
12. only way is up...Yazz (6:49) (the original maxi single length)
CD3:
1. Abracadabra...steve miller band (3:39) (12" mix??? That's what it says on the CD case, but this is the 7" single version, which is an edit of the awesome, very long LP version.)
2. addicted to love...Robert palmer (5:49) (This is the LP version faded about 10 seconds early)
3. dancing on the ceiling...lionel richie (7:08) (the 12" version)
4. I'm coming out...Diana ross (5:19) (this is the full length album version)
5. Unconditional Love...Donna Summer (5:11) (AT LAST! The 12" version on CD!!!)
6. super freak...rick james (7:03) (the 12" version)
7. sign of the times...belle stars (5:35) (12" version)
8. stool pigeon...kid creole (6:16) (12" version)
9. kissing with confidence...will powers (5:29) (SO awesome to get the 12" version on CD, considering I never thought I'd even see the 7" make it to CD. You'll swear the female vocalist on this novelty track is Carly Simon)
10. baby I don't care...transvision vamp (5:38) (full abigail's party mix)
11. you keep me hanging on...kim wilde (9:03) (the full length 12" remix, which is the worst remix of an amazing song. I've always stuck to the original mix, which should have had an extended version)
12. Miami vice...jan hammer (6:54) (do we really need a long version of this song? Either way, we get it)"
The 12"/80s series is getting mighty lazy, misrepresenting t
hippiedj | Palm Desert, CA USA | 05/09/2007
(3 out of 5 stars)
"Whew boy, what's wrong with the folks behind the 12"/80s series? From the very first release, they've been giving us shortened versions of the extended mixes, or just putting single mixes in and calling them extended. For a glaring example, on the first release the entire first minute of The Cure's "A Forest" is missing, and the so-called "long version" of "I'm In Love With A German Film Star" by The Passions is no different than the 7" vinyl single I have. Sure, many of the tracks in this series are indeed extended, but someone is not doing any fact-checking or just not caring what they're getting their hands on.
For 12"/80s/Pop, I was furious when Steve Miller's "Abracadabra" faded out at 3:38. That's no 12" mix, and as a matter of fact, there really is no official 12" mix because the LP version is way over 5 minutes anyway. I would have been satisfied with the LP version since I don't have Miller's album on CD yet. "Kissing With Confidence" by Will Powers (with Carly Simon on vocals!) is just the LP version, which I believe is the only version that exists. It may have been released as a 12" single, but that doesn't make it "extended" by any means. I have many 12" vinyl singles that were just regular tracks.
Plus, giving us some of the worse versions shows how the people involved with this series are just not trying to seek out the good ones -- be VERY warned about the Wang Chung (what? RAP?? you gotta be kidding!). The Tracks by Fine Young Cannibals ("Johnny Come Home") and The Special AKA ("Nelson Mandela") were taken directly from vinyl sources with the crackles and pops intact. On the track "Nelson Mandela," the louder the vocals get, you can here a bit of distortion in the sound. Sure, I've got old out of print vinyls I've saved to disc with the faults intact, but on a big release compilation like this it's a very, very bad move. So, I have to program to cut out these tracks, as well as the awful Wang Chung one, when listening to these discs.
I could go on and on about the shortchanging going on in this set, but you can refer to other reviewers that have listed track-by-track descriptions. For me, this set was worth getting primarily for Nik Kershaw's "I Won't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" -- I had no idea there even WAS an extended version of this song, and I thought I had all of his 12" singles!
I'm an avid 80s collector, used many of the extended versions on my radio shows. This set and the 12"/80s series is, in general, still worth getting despite the shortcomings and laziness of the compilers involved. Just beware of the misrepresented tracks, and try to compare time lengths if you can (especially if you own any of the tracks on vinyl or on other CD compilations). For people like me who are well-versed in 80s music and are sticklers about getting actual remixes and extended mixes, this set and the others are a bit of a disappointment."
Track Listings (11) - Disc #1