Search - Various Artists :: Easy Rider - Deluxe Edition

The Quintessential Hippy Soundtrack Gets Full Justice

Bruce Kendall | Southern Pines, NC | 06/12/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I stumbled across this CD on Rhapsody today and have to say, I'm just stunned. I haven't heard these tracks sound so fresh since sitting in a movie theater, circa 1969. Even then, I don't believe the quality matched the listening experience this CD provides. I don't normally address other reviewers, but I stongly disagree with a reviewer who said to stick with the earlier, single CD. This is worlds better audially. Every instrument, vocal nuance, backup singer, etc. is crisply, distortion-freely rendered.

It's as good a job of remastering as I've ever heard. Even Blue
Cheer's "Summertime Blues," which sounds notoriously muddy and indistinct on most compilations, sounds as if it was recorded using contemporary, state of the art sound boards. Other tracks fare even better. The discs are rather pricey (in comparison with the single CD compilation), but well worth the money. This is definitive Golden Age of Rock history here. Steppenwolf, Hendrix, Procol Harem, The Seeds (one of the most overlooked bands of the era), Richie Havens (I had forgotten he even contributed to the soundtrack, but a musical, twelve string guitar genius, nonetheless!), The Moodies, and on and on. I'm putting my order in today, as Rhapsody doesn't include all the tracks for listening or downloading. Ring up another sale, Mr Bezos! I've gotta have this one!!BEK"

Where's The Electric Flag?

riot67 | detroit | 05/19/2005

(2 out of 5 stars)

"The Easy Rider soundtrack was tainted from the very beginning for two reasons:1)the exclusion of The Bands version of "The Weight" replaced with the far inferior version by Smith 2)The exclusion of The Electric Flags "Flash,Bam, Pow". Despite these shortcomings the Lp worked. Now 30 odd years later it would seem that when and "Expanded" version was released the kinks would have been worked out. This however is not the case. The Bands version of "The Weight" is included--on side two with a bunch of songs that have a lot to do with the 60's and nothing to do with the movie. Why wasn't Smith's version of "The Weight" dropped alltogether and the Bands inserted in proper sequence as it should have been all along. Additionally The Electric Flag is still missing. What gives? The first disc is the same as what was released 36 years ago and disc two is nothing more than a 60's compilation of songs that aren't even in line with the feel of the movie as the original Lp was--the reason the soundtrack worked is that it coincided so well with the film. Overall this is a highly disappointing release."

Essential '60s soundtrack receives a full release

hyperbolium | Earth, USA | 04/07/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In some ways it's fitting that the soundtrack to this landmark film has suffered a series of legal hassles from The Man. In its original 1969 vinyl release, it was denied the film's use of The Band's "The Weight" (by the band's then-label Capitol), and a sound-alike cover by Smith was issued in its place. More recently, the soundtrack was withheld from domestic CD reissue, squeaking out a European version many years before MCA's 2000 digital issue. The latter reunited The Band with their film-mates, at the expense of altering the original Smith-bred artifact. Hip-O's deluxe two-disc reissue provides the best of both worlds - including both versions of "The Weight" - and filling out a second disc of contemporaneous radio hits.The original soundtrack is a five-star release on its own, brilliantly capturing the flavor of the film and its times with a carefully selected set of music, and augmented with snippets of sound and dialogue. Many of these songs were, or became, period classics, burned into everyone's consciousness by endless radio play; but what really makes the album great are the non-hit tracks. Beyond the collection of well-worn hits are more unusual inclusions: The Holy Modal Rounders' lunatic old-timey "If You Want to be a Bird (Bird Song)," Fraternity of Man's stoner country "Don't Bogart That Joint" and The Electric Prunes' reverb-drenched psychedelic mass "Kyrie Ellison." Roger McGuinn's cover of Dylan's "It's Alright Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)" and his original "Ballad of Easy Rider" close out the original track lineup with a helping of paranoia, dissolution and salvation.Disc two adds 19 period selections that flesh out the country's growing acid-paranoia, from the independence-minded garage punk of The Seeds and psychedelic trippings of the Electric Prunes and Jefferson Airplane, to the reactionary folk of Richie Havens and The Youngbloods, and heavy-metal acid freak-out of Blue Cheer. Nearly all of this will be very familiar to those weaned on the era's radio, as well as those who've bought other late-60s anthologies. The Band's original version of "The Weight," omitted from the original soundtrack, is a bonus; the rest of the disc, which, unsurprisingly, plays more like an anthology than a film soundtrack, is superfluous in contrast to the original soundtrack."