Search - Judy Collins :: Judy Collins 3 & 4

Judy at her folksinger peak--Wow

klavierspiel | TX, USA | 03/03/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Judy Collins' "#3" album was one of my favorite records growing up. I hadn't heard it for a long time and had eagerly awaited this re-release, at the same being a bit nervous in case it didn't live up to my rose-colored memories. I needn't have worried. Although Collins would go on to a long and distinguished career of notable musical eclecticism, in some ways she never surpassed the performances on both these discs, particularly in sheer vocal freshness and beauty. Already she is aiming for a higher, lighter sound than on her first two albums and the results are now available again for all to hear--the arching vocalise at the beginning and end of "Anathea" must be as gorgeous a thing as she's ever sung. Indeed, the sheer magnetism of her sound leavens what on the whole is a pretty intense and serious program, with grim, in-your-face anti-war tracts ("Masters of War," "The Dove") rubbing shoulders with protest songs whose message is in no wise veiled by their tunefulness ("Deportee," "The Bells of Rhymney"), with folk-style homages to classic images of oppressed and abandoned women thrown in ("Anathea," "Ten O'Clock All is Well," and the chilling "In the Hills of Shiloh," about a backwoods Miss Havisham character). The sweetness of Bob Dylan's "Farewell" and Pete Seeger's "Turn, Turn , Turn" is a masterly contrast to these topical songs which seem not to have dated at all."The Judy Collins Concert," documenting her first Town Hall recital in 1964, being a live recording, is naturally less vocally polished, but the electricity of the occasion evokes an intensity in Collins' singing which is ample compensation. Here as on "#3" is superb material: the haunting "Winter Sky," the irresistible "Tear Down the Walls" and her version of the traditional ballad "Cruel Mother" are highlights. Though the remastered sound reveals some distortion on both albums, the wonderful playing of her assisting artists, Jim McGuinn and Bill Takas on "#3," Steve Mandell and Chuck Israels on "Concert," can now be more fully appreciated."

At last!

Edward Aycock | New York, NY United States | 04/16/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"For the past ten years, I've been bemoaning the lack of Judy Collins early catalog on CD. Her first four recordings were unavailable for many years, and from what I gathered, hadn't ever been available on cassette. With the release of "Maids and Golden Apples" in 2001 and this new recording, the problem has finally been fixed. I am familiar with all the songs due to combing the record stores for so many years but on CD, they sound even better. Collins has a powerful voice in these early songs and has never sounded better. It's an improvement that this time around the albums have been separated into two different CDs; "Maids and Golden Apples" had a few too many songs to comfortably fit on one disc. I thank the people at Wildflower Records for getting these out, and for Elektra for releasing them from their vaults. The world is in need of some good folk music right now, and this CD fills the void. God Bless Judy."

Finally, the Elektra collection is complete

Edward Aycock | 01/18/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The release of "Judy Collins #3" and "The Judy Collins Concert" (referred to as #4) on CD finally completes the release on CD of her entire Elektra album catalog, although some of her later albums for Elektra have gone out-of-print on CD...This 2-CD set contains the complete albums on separate discs, but contains no bonus tracks. This differs from the recent release on CD of "Maids and Golden Apples," her first two albums (which were both put on a single disc with one newly-recorded bonus track).Liner notes are nice here, with new notes by Judy Collins, along with the original album notes and complete lyrics. Unfortunately, the original album covers aren't reproduced in a large size; we only see them as thumbnail-size in the packaging, with 1/2 of each album cover used as the front cover of the booklet.The remastering on this set is very nice; the songs are bright and clear with very little hiss and distortion."