Best Traditional Pop
The soft, soothing sounds of Karen and Richard Carpenter are perfectly suited to a white Christmas with a crackling fire; here are their Christmas Portrait ('78) and An Old Fashioned Christmas ('84) LPs, together in one 2-CD set: It Came upon a Midnight Clear; O Holy Night; Christmas Waltz; Sleigh Ride; Silent Night; Jingle Bells; Ave Maria; Carol of the Bells; My Favorite Things; Do You Hear What I Hear; Santa Claus Is Coming to Town , and more!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"great music and something I did not expecp the lyrics being staged to follow along, I keep hearig it over and over in my mind."
"The Christmas collection was not similar to the ones I heard earlier."
"Joy to hear them again."
"There are breaks/pauses between the tracks which were NOT on the original recordings of the albums ."
"He won't stop playing it."
"One of the best female voices of all time."
"I absolutely love this album!!!!"
"Love all the Carpenters music."
Though Christmas Portrait is harshly abbreviated, this version--the Special Edition --features almost 40 songs, including goose-bump giving versions of "Ave Maria" and "O Holy Night" and is definitely the better disc of the two.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I enjoyed the Carpenters Christmas Cassette immensely."
"This cd is a great blast from the past, classic Carpenters!"
"Christmas wouldn't be the same without this classic album."
"I have been looking for a new copy for a long time and found it."
"I have already listened to it and it is JUNE!"
"Always loved the Carpenters."
"If you love/like the Carpenters, then you'll love this."
"Opened and enjoyed the CD on Christmas eve day, mid afternoon, but the description stated I would receive a free MP3 of this album which I didn't find in the shipping box."
Somehow, without the fatherly image of Bing Crosby, or the svelte croon of Frank Sinatra or Tony Bennett, or even the reverent innocence of Perry Como, Andy Williams managed to make a holiday institution!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"What a wonderful collection of Christmas songs."
"So happy I could find this!"
"Another favorite from my childhood - he has one of the most melodic voices I have heard."
"Love this whole album."
Best Classic Broadway Vocalists
The warm, crooning tones of Perry Como are sure to lend a little extra Christmas cheer to this season's festivities. This collection brings together many of his classic seasonal recordings and some tracks even collectors will be delighted to find, including "Some Children See Him," recorded in 1954 but left off The Perry Como Christmas Album .
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"These songs reflect all that I remember of Christmas, when Christmas was still Christmas!"
"Nice variety of songs -- in particular, I like Perry's version of "The Little Drummer Boy" and "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer.""
"Perry is the voice of my childhood singing these Christmas songs."
"Good old Perry Como and his songs ."
"Always liked Perry."
"Perry Como is one of those singers who just captures the magic of Christmas with the traditional songs sung perfectly."
Best Radio Show Recordings
The trailblazing troupe took on the radio detective shows of old in '69 with their most famous creation, Nick Danger.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This is a great collection of all the Nick Danger recording and brings back a lot of really good memories."
"But for any culture geek out there who likes their humor clever and original, you cannot ignore the genius of these four guys {and their caste of thousands} Of course, the original episode, from How Can You Be In Two Places At Once, will never be surpassed."
"Whether you were there at the time or not (...an old joke about the 60's) I recommend this collection whole-heartedly."
"The booklet illustrates the fine writing skills of the two departed Firesigners, though, making this even more poignant than imagined."
"My father quotes lines from this series all the time."
"Since I know Philip Proctor, all I can say is THIS IS A FANTASTIC PRODUCT!"
"The box set has a great Mix of Nick's stuff."
"Added to my CD Collection."
Best Easy Listening
Led by 'All Or Nothing At All,' this collection is stacked with standouts, including 'I'll Never Smile Again' (1940), 'I've Got The World On A String' (1953), 'In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning' (1955), 'I've Got You Under My Skin' (1956), 'Come Fly With Me' (1957), 'The Way You Look Tonight' (1964), 'Fly Me To The Moon (In Other Words)' (1964), 'Strangers In The Night' (1966), 'My Way' (1968), and 'Theme From New York, New York' (1979), among many more.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The reviewer who gave this set 1 star is being very nit picky about what is obviously a great representation of Sinatra's music. Sure, hardcore Sinatraphiles such as myself always want to hear more previously unreleased Sinatra music, and Sinatra's catalog of recordings is so vast that even 100 recordings is super-difficult to narrow it down to."
"This is the first time material from all three of Sinatra’s labels (Columbia, Capitol, and Reprise) are included on the same collection, and it’s also the first time many of these tracks have had any significant remastering efforts, so that alone makes this a worthy purchase."
"The most important songs IMO (the ones that are in disc 2) are mostly mastered fine, but for example the first 2 tracks on the first lp are atrociously bad sounding, i dont know where they sourced them from but i guess no mastering will save that mess."
"I'm sure the most adamant Sinatra fans would find a song or two missing but for a great overview of this man's career spanning works, this is a must have collection whether you are just discovering Sinatra's music or have been a fan for decades."
"This is the best LP I own, I've tried to listen the same songs on iTunes music and the difference is very sharp, it was really good remastered."
"If you want a brief collection of Frank Sinatra from 1939 to his last years,this is the collection for you.I am a collector and if I was to pick 100 songs that best define him,my choice would be pretty close to these selections."
"I love this collection.I have many Frank Sinatra collections but, this is by far the best."
"There's nothing to add to sinatra perfomance and songs, a excellent compilation of his songs, the pressing is excellent, highly rated in british audio magazines."
Best Baroque Pop
The classic original Beatles studio albums have been re-mastered by a dedicated team of engineers at Abbey Road Studios in London over a four year period utilising state of the art recording technology alongside vintage studio equipment, carefully maintaining the authenticity and integrity of the original analogue recordings.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"In fact, much of the album was written in India."
"I wrote this review in order to assist the general consumer make an informative decision when purchasing a product that they can't touch prior***."
"It's the Beatles' White Album - what else is there to say?"
"It has Bungalow Bill, Back in the USSR, Rocky Racoon, and Blackbird plus a lot more."
"A 2 CD "mini-box" with a picture book, and a small version of a collage poster that may have been part of the original album all those years ago."
"Awesome tunes written/performed by 4 awesome talented me."
"Album cover was slightly warped, but other than that it was sure nice to hear these old songs again."
"I could go in depth about this album in my review, but don't need to: This mono issue has different versions of many tracks that cannot be heard anywhere else, including the Anthology series."
Best Bubblegum Pop
Nearly every one of these 104 tracks is a hit, and we mean a big hit, from 36 different, very famous artists-the Supremes, Temptations, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson, Martha Reeves & the Vandellas et cetera, et cetera .
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This box set was a gift to me back in the 80's. I was and still am big fan of MOTOWN , so I invested in vol #2."
"(If you are looking for the more esoteric material, however, you may need to supplement this with other collections or individual albums."
"The only other music that is in the same "league" is The Beatles music for the complete and udder joy and emotional rescue these magnificent songwriters, musician's, producers, arrangers, techs, etc...etc...provided from both sides of the "pond.""
"HITSVILLE USA is a box set that's clearly marked as a SINGLES COLLECTION-- that means these 104 tracks are in the original monaural sound. Each CD jewel case is fronted with a repro of a Gordy Co. label, including one of the very first MOTOWNs, which was pale pink in color."
"Awesome compilation of old school music!"
"Some songs were put out by other singers but it's great to hear the Motown take."
"Some of the songs even brought tears to his eyes because, in his words, he had "not heard them since he was a young scrap of a boy"."
"My dad's one of those guys that doesn't like getting gifts, but I figured I'd grab him this collection for his birthday."
Best Doo Wop
THE VERY BEST OF FRANKIE VALLI & THE 4 SEASONS packs a single CD with 20 classics recorded for Vee-Jay, Phillips, Curb/Warner, Private Stock, and RSO between 1962-1978.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"My favorite of the three Frankis Valli CD's I bought."
"Buy the album, if you own nothing by The Four Seasons."
"Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons are incredible."
"Makes me feel young again to listen to their old hit songs."
"Every song a hit every song I remember growing up."
"This CD was a great trip down memory lane and reminded me that, much like the Beatles' music, the music of the Four Seasons is always timely and exciting."
"Someone should digitally re-due the original recordings, as they now sound "tinny" compared to the new digital recordings from the show."
"I love this album... it's got just about any hit by this group you could want, including a couple from when Frankie Valli broke away and went single (Grease)... Not to crazy about the couple of Disco era songs (I just don't like disco) but there are only about two or so, and some 16 or better are just great listening."
Best Tin Pan Alley
Imagine hearing George Gershwin play his own compositions in pristine sound!
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Close your eyes and imagine that you are listening to George Gershwin play right there in your living room!"
"I bought the CD to give to her as I think it's an outstanding compilation of Gershwin's pieces."
"As it turns out, long before George and Ira Gershwin's golden age, when they were turning out musicals with tunes that are still performed today, George (sometimes with Ira, sometimes not) was writing tunes for musicals now forgotten, and recording them on piano rolls."
"This is one of my favorite recordings of Gershwin material."
"Someone on a music forum that I watch online posted a clip of Rhapsody In Blue from this recording and I was immediately blown away."
"Had to rearrange some part to play some tunes in 4hands-1piano instead of 2 pianos."
"It's wonderful to hear Gershwin compositions played by the composer himself!"
"Its just that type of music you have to sit and listen."
Best Girl Groups
Nearly every one of these 104 tracks is a hit, and we mean a big hit, from 36 different, very famous artists-the Supremes, Temptations, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson, Martha Reeves & the Vandellas et cetera, et cetera .
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This box set was a gift to me back in the 80's. I was and still am big fan of MOTOWN , so I invested in vol #2."
"(If you are looking for the more esoteric material, however, you may need to supplement this with other collections or individual albums."
"The only other music that is in the same "league" is The Beatles music for the complete and udder joy and emotional rescue these magnificent songwriters, musician's, producers, arrangers, techs, etc...etc...provided from both sides of the "pond.""
"HITSVILLE USA is a box set that's clearly marked as a SINGLES COLLECTION-- that means these 104 tracks are in the original monaural sound. Each CD jewel case is fronted with a repro of a Gordy Co. label, including one of the very first MOTOWNs, which was pale pink in color."
"Some songs were put out by other singers but it's great to hear the Motown take."
"Some of the songs even brought tears to his eyes because, in his words, he had "not heard them since he was a young scrap of a boy"."
"My dad's one of those guys that doesn't like getting gifts, but I figured I'd grab him this collection for his birthday."
"Fast service, and a great price."