Various Artists - Atlantic Soul Classics +Album Reviews

You Can't Afford to Be Without This Collection

C. Manson | Destin, FL United States | 07/13/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"From Arthur Conley's "Sweet Soul Music" and Arthur Bell & the Drells' "Tighten Up" to the better known hits by Aretha, Sam & Dave, Ray Charles, et. al., this is my favorite "oldies" collection ever. One of the first CD-only compilations I can recall, I vividly remember being blown away by the sonic richness of these classics. It still blows me away."

Funny how times change...

David Kenner | Fort Worth, Texas United States | 05/08/2004

(3 out of 5 stars)

"In the first decade of the compact disc, this was THE disc to own for the oldies fan. At the time, you would have been hard pressed to come up with a better 15 track compilation of classic soul. The magazine CD Review gave this their very first 10/10 rating to indicate that it was the tops in both performance and sound quality. Now you can look back at it and see that it wasn't really all it should have been. Record companies were still using inferior masters to make CDs and some of these songs like "Green Onions" and "Sweet Soul Music" really don't sound all that great compared to more recent reissues from Rhino. "Tighten Up" and "Respect" sound much better in mono, and Atlantic even used the wrong take of "I've Been Loving You" instead of the hit version. But I feel that this CD became kind of a blueprint for future oldies compilations and fueled many record companies to just make them better and better."

One Of The First Indeed

C. Manson | 08/27/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As one reviewer points out this CD has been around since the advent of the CD format and is STILL one of the best such compilations to be found. When outfits like Curb and EMI-Capitol were giving us 10-selection albums, some with questionable sound quality, the people at Warner Special Products were turning out 15- to 20-selection sets at comparable prices and with excellent sound reproduction.

All 15 are original analog recordings digitally re-mastered, and they even contrive to give you both Parts 1 and 2 of the Ray Charles classic What'd I Say (# 1 R&B/# 6 Billboard Pop Hot 100 for Part 1 in late summer 1959 on Atlantic 2031).

The insert provides original production dates for each track as well as where each was produced - but no original label numbers nor chart performance information. A single page of notes provides an interesting insight into the reproduction techniques used, and three paragraphs on the instrumentalists involved on the tracks.

As the label "Classic" what else can you call these?: Soul Man by Sam & Dave - # 1 R&B for SEVEN weeks/# 2 Hot 100 in the fall of 1967; In The Midnight Hour by Wilson Pickett (# 1 R&B/# 21 Hot 100 in July/August 1965); Respect by Aretha Franklin (# 1 R&B for EIGHT weeks/# 1 Hot 100 for two week in early summer 1967); I've Been Loving You Too Long (To Stop Now) by Otis Redding (# 2 Hot 100 and R&B in June 1965); Green Onions by Booker T & The MG;s (# 1 R&B for four weeks/# 3 Hot 100 in the fall of 1962); Sweet Soul Music by Arthur Conley (# 2 Hot 100 and R&B in the spring of 1967); Tighten Up by Archie Bell & The Drells (# 1 Hot 100 and R&B for 2 weeks each in the spring of 1968); On Broadway by The Drifters (# 7 R&B/# 9 Hot 100 in May/June 1963); Yakety Yak by The Coasters (# 1 R&B for SEVEN weeks/# 1 Hot 100 in August 1958); Just One Look by Doris Troy (# 3 R&B/# 10 Hot 100 in July/August 1963); Make Me Your Baby by Barbara Lewis (# 9 R&B/# 11 Hot 100 in late 1965); Stand By Me by Ben E. King (# 1 R&B for four weeks/# 4 Hot 100/# 10 Adult Contemporary in summer 1961); When A Man Loves A Woman by Percy Sledge (# 1 R&B for four weeks/# 1 Hot 100 for two weeks in June 1966); Shake, Rattle & Roll by Joe Turner (# 1 R&B for three weeks in 1954).

Pretty hard to call them anything BUT classics. One of the first, and still one of the best such compilations on the market."

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	Various Artists Atlantic Soul Classics Genres: Special Interest, Pop, R&B, Rock
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