I bought this for a few songs not found on the "Legend" CD, especially "Natural Mystic", which could easily have been a hit. It's a classic album --- 5 of the hits found on Legend came from here, namely "Exodus", "Jammin'", "Waiting in Vain", "Three Little Birds", "One Love/People Get Ready". The other songs are all very similar in style and sound, but the hits do stand out.

I was pleasantly surprised by the remastered sound on this 2001 CD. You can really hear and feel the bass guitar now! Makes me want to get a remastered version of the "Legend" CD. Between these 2 CD's I have all the Marley I want.

I was also happy to see the lyrics included. I never knew what Marley was singing half the time! Gives a better insight into his songs.

This 2-CD set has all the songs from the double album "Greatest Hits, etc." except "East Side Toodle-oo" (a non-hit instrumental), plus many extra added tracks. Both CD's are full of music, which includes all the hits, and every one of their original albums is well represented. Here's a breakdown of the songs taken from each album:

From "Can't Buy a Thrill" --- Do It Again, Dirty Work, Only a Fool Would Say That, Reelin' in the Yeears, Change of the Guard

From "Countdown to Ecstacy" --- Bodhisattva, Boston Rag, Show Biz Kids, My Old School

From "Pretzel Logic" --- Rikki Don't Lose That Number, Night by Night, Pretzel Logic, Any Major Dude Will Tell You

From "Katy Lied" --- Black Friday, Bad Sneakers, Doctor Wu, Any World That I'm Welcome To, Chain Lightning

From "Royal Scam" --- Kid Charlemagne,Don't Take Me Alive, The Fez, Haitian Divorce

From "Aja" (you get almost the entire album, minus 2 songs) --- Black Cow, Aja, Deacon Blues, Peg, Josie

From "Gaucho" --- Babylon Sisters, Hey 19, Time Out of Mind, Third World Man

Extra non-album tracks --- FM, Here at the Western World

What's missing are songs from their two recent reunion CD's, "Two Against Nature" and "Everything Must Go". I guess they could have put one less song from each of the above albums to make room for some songs from these two albums as well, to cover their entire career.

Steely Dan is noted for their musical sophistication, the high calibre of the studio musicians' playing, and the great sound of their recordings (especially the later albums). I'm not sure if the remastering on this CD is the same as on the individually released remastered CD's from the late 1990's. Compared to the box set, the sound here is clearer, cleaner, fuller. But it's not a night-and-day difference, as the older CD's already sounded very good.

If you're looking for a great collection of Steely Dan, this is the best one. The price is no higher than the other collections and more songs are offered here, along with improved sound. This same collection has been released with 2 different covers. I'm not sure what the difference is, but I got the cheaper one available from Amazon.ca's third party vendors. Highy recommended!

These "Original Album Classics" 5-CD sets offer great value. They offer the older (no bonus tracks) versions of the CD's in cardboard album cover replicas (good luck reading all the tiny fonts!), all kept together in a thicker cover which gives the track listing for each CD on the back. $20 (or less) for 5 CD's is $4 per CD, you can't beat that.

Each of these CD's has been re-released separately and re-packaged with bonus tracks, remastered sound, etc. but are not easy to find. The CD "Recorded Live in Memphis" has long been out of print, and very expensive. It's the real reason I bought this collection, to get "Let Me Be There", which was left off the otherwise great remastered and expanded "Moody Blue" CD.

I've purchased 2 more of these "Original Album Classics" 5-CD sets for Elvis, and have been happy with the value I'm getting for each. Similar sets exist for other artists as well. While the others don't have remastered sound, I should say that Sony bought the Elvis catalogue and did remaster all the recordings, and that SOME of the CD's in these collections have remastered sound too.

Earlier, I found a CD called "Herman's Hermits Retrospective" on the ABKCO label, with 26 songs, all the hits, and greatly remastered sound. It quickly replaced my older Disky label hits CD for Herman's Hermits. That made me want to update from other Disky hits CD's I had, including one for Gerry & The Pacemakers' hits. The Disky CD's are often cheap to buy and usually have a lot of songs to fill the CD, including all (or almost all) the hits. The sound on Disky CD's is good, but not great (not remastered). However, remastered CD's can sometimes be too loud/harsh/bright and less warm than their earlier versions. It's so uneven from artists to artists and label to label that it can be frustrating.

I checked out reviews on-line and found "The Best of" (2005, 2 CD, 40 songs) and "The Very Best of" (1997, 2008, 1 CD, 27 songs) both seem to get great reviews for songs and sound. Both are released by EMI gold and both claim to have remastered sound. I bought both for around $10 each through Amazon.ca third parties, and have compared the sound with my earlier Disky CD.

Compared to the other two, which have the same versions of the songs, the Disky CD had some different vesions of the songs (ie. stereo vs mono mix, or single vs LP version). I was surprised by this because the Disky versions are the ones I am familiar with, the ones I've heard on the radio. The most notable differences to me are the hit songs "It's Gonna Be Alright" (with the much shorter intro, which I prefer) and "I'm the One" (mono mix, which is the way it was really mixed, the drums sound right, and the newer CD's have a fake stereo mix which was common in the 60's in the USA, but it makes the drums sound flanged).

Each CD sounds "different" and none stand out as sounding "fantastic". Overall, it's this double CD that sounds the best, cleanest, clearest of all. The single CD "Very Best of" sounds thinner (noticeable on guitar sounds), unevenly brighter but lacking bottom end. The advantage of that CD is having all the hits on 1 CD instead of spread out over 2 CD's. For fans of the band, it's better to have all the extra songs, the B-sides and album tracks, including several cover songs which give a fuller, more realistic picture of what the 1960's British Invasion LP's were like. Many of the same cover songs were played by other British bands at the time, including the Beatles in their Cavern days. It's neat to hear how each band's version was unique. Gerry does a really cool version of the jazz standard "Summertime".

Gerry & The Pacemakers have a special place in 1960's British Invasion music history. Their hit making time was relatively short, and their music never changed or developed in the way the Beatles, Stones, Hollies, Kinks, Who, etc. grew and changed. However, they did what they did very well. These songs are of their time, short and catchy, right to the point. You could easily imagine many of the songs being sung by other 60's artists too. Enjoyable CD, good value for the price.

I'm very glad I got this CD. The other choice was the Essential CD, which also gets good reviews and has 2 CD's, so there's more bang for your buck there for a true fan. However, I really just wanted 4 songs (Hungry, Kicks, Good Thing, and Just Like Me), so I preferred having a single CD compilation. I'm happy to also have Indian Reservation, which is on either CD collection, even though it is really Mark Lindsay's solo hit.

Before buying, I checked out the sound excerpts on Amazon.com and found there were several other songs that sounded good to me. One was "I'm Not Your Steppin' Stone", which was a hit for the Monkees; it's not on the Essential CD, so that's another reason why I chose this CD instead. Overall, I like most of the songs on this CD, or at least I don't mind them and I find them growing on me. The only one I truly dislike is their version of Louie Louie.

Lastly, I wanted a GOOD sounding CD. I've heard the older Greatest Hits single CD and it doesn't sound that good. People have commented on how good the remastered sound is for this CD and for the Essential CD; this CD is on the Raven label, which I'm not familiar with, while the Essential CD is on the Sony/Columbia/Legacy label, which has a proven track record, so I felt I was taking a chance. I'm happy to say the sound is even BETTER than I'd hoped for. I wish the 60's recording from Kinks, the Who, etc. sounded this good! All the parts are clean, clear, well balanced, powerful but not over-compressed. The mixes are in stereo, although they may be fake stereo mixes with some parts coming mainly from the left speaker and the other parts coming mainly from the right. I have not compared this to the Essential CD, but it sounds great as is.

The price for this CD seems to fluctuate a lot on Amazon.ca, and the Essential CD is usually cheaper (even though it has 2 CD's). I waited until the price came down to about $15.

This is NOT a review of the music itself, which I think is good. More accurately, the songs are very good but the band feels it didn't spend enough time recording them properly (in terms of sounds and arrangements and parts). When comparing it to their other classic 70's albums, I would have to agree. Instead of discussing the music, I will give my observations in comparing the sound of the original CD with the remastered one.

I recently replaced 4 older Supertramp CD's with remastered versions, all based on good reviews online. I have compared these with the original CD's on a good stereo system. I'm posting the same review for each CD, as I discuss them all.

Overall, the remastered versions are cleaner, have more clarity and brightness, more depth, and have louder and thicker sounds. While that all sounds positive, it ain't necessarily so... I have mixed feelings about the remastering.

First, I must say that I have no clue how well the original tracks were recorded and preserved. I tend to hear distortion and compression in many vocals and keyboard parts, ven on the original CD's. It may have been recorded that way, with tube preamps and compressors distorting the sound to give it colour. However, modern remastering trends tend to raise the levels of the music so loud that the peaks need to be compressed... this new compression was never part of the original sound of the music. Many are fooled into thinking that the music sounds better, simply because it is louder. However, reducing the dynamic range of the original music is NEVER better, and would be the equivalent to reducing the range of contrast in the colours of a film.

A trained eye/ear will notice the compression. Software which allows you to see the audio file will show it. Using NERO, I was able to see and compare the original and remastered audio files. On every original CD, the files NEVER near the peak levels and NEVER need to be compressed, so the music sounds more natural. The remastered CD's all reach peak levels and require compression, although the level of added compression is different on each remastered CD. Overall, the "Breakfast in America" CD is too compressed throughout. "Crisis? What Crisis?" has less added compression, it's only too much in some spots. "Even in the Quietest Moments" is similar to "Crisis? What Crisis?" but the remastered music sounds much too bright and mid-rangy. "Crime of the Century" seems to have the best remastering of the CD's I heard, IMO. "Famous Last Words" is too compressed throughout, and lacks the brightness of the others.

The booklets/inserts for all the remastered CD's are better than the original ones, in that lyrics and layout look better and are easier to read. However, the cover images are smaller and less blue-ish on "Crime of the Century", and the new photos are too dark on "Crisis? What Crisis" (you can't see the faces of the band clearly on the back cover shot, it's better on the older CD).

Most online reviews for the remastered Supertramp CD's are positive. I think most people will feel happy with the remastered CD's. People who are pickier about the sound, audiophiles and people who listen on higher end stereos, may not be as convinced the remstered CD's are the definitive versions. I'm part of the latter --- I agree the music on the original CD's wasn't loud enough, there was much more head room, but I feel the remastered music is too compressed, which makes it sound less natural and warm. However, I do enjoy the cleaner, clearer sound, as though a thin sheet was removed from in front of the speakers, allowing us to hear more depth and fullness. I hope the music gets a better remastering someday, but I'll be ticked to have to buy it yet again.

This is NOT a review of the music itself, which I think is great. Instead these are my observations in comparing the sound of the original CD with the remastered one.

I recently replaced 4 older Supertramp CD's with remastered versions, all based on good reviews online. I have compared these with the original CD's on a good stereo system. I'm posting the same review for each CD, as I discuss them all.

Overall, the remastered versions are cleaner, have more clarity and brightness, more depth, and have louder and thicker sounds. While that all sounds positive, it ain't necessarily so... I have mixed feelings about the remastering.

First, I must say that I have no clue how well the original tracks were recorded and preserved. I tend to hear distortion and compression in many vocals and keyboard parts, ven on the original CD's. It may have been recorded that way, with tube preamps and compressors distorting the sound to give it colour. However, modern remastering trends tend to raise the levels of the music so loud that the peaks need to be compressed... this new compression was never part of the original sound of the music. Many are fooled into thinking that the music sounds better, simply because it is louder. However, reducing the dynamic range of the original music is NEVER better, and would be the equivalent to reducing the range of contrast in the colours of a film.

A trained eye/ear will notice the compression. Software which allows you to see the audio file will show it. Using NERO, I was able to see and compare the original and remastered audio files. On every original CD, the files NEVER near the peak levels and NEVER need to be compressed, so the music sounds more natural. The remastered CD's all reach peak levels and require compression, although the level of added compression is different on each remastered CD. Overall, the "Breakfast in America" CD is too compressed throughout. "Crisis? What Crisis?" has less added compression, it's only too much in some spots. "Even in the Quietest Moments" is similar to "Crisis? What Crisis?" but the remastered music sounds much too bright and mid-rangy. "Crime of the Century" seems to have the best remastering of the CD's I heard, IMO. "Famous Last Words" is too compressed throughout, and lacks the brightness of the others.

The booklets/inserts for all the remastered CD's are better than the original ones, in that lyrics and layout look better and are easier to read. However, the cover images are smaller and less blue-ish on "Crime of the Century", and the new photos are too dark on "Crisis? What Crisis" (you can't see the faces of the band clearly on the back cover shot, it's better on the older CD).

Most online reviews for the remastered Supertramp CD's are positive. I think most people will feel happy with the remastered CD's. People who are pickier about the sound, audiophiles and people who listen on higher end stereos, may not be as convinced the remstered CD's are the definitive versions. I'm part of the latter --- I agree the music on the original CD's wasn't loud enough, there was much more head room, but I feel the remastered music is too compressed, which makes it sound less natural and warm. However, I do enjoy the cleaner, clearer sound, as though a thin sheet was removed from in front of the speakers, allowing us to hear more depth and fullness. I hope the music gets a better remastering someday, but I'll be ticked to have to buy it yet again.

This is NOT a review of the music itself, which I think is great. Instead these are my observations in comparing the sound of the original CD with the remastered one.

I recently replaced 4 older Supertramp CD's with remastered versions, all based on good reviews online. I have compared these with the original CD's on a good stereo system. I'm posting the same review for each CD, as I discuss them all.

Overall, the remastered versions are cleaner, have more clarity and brightness, more depth, and have louder and thicker sounds. While that all sounds positive, it ain't necessarily so... I have mixed feelings about the remastering.

First, I must say that I have no clue how well the original tracks were recorded and preserved. I tend to hear distortion and compression in many vocals and keyboard parts, ven on the original CD's. It may have been recorded that way, with tube preamps and compressors distorting the sound to give it colour. However, modern remastering trends tend to raise the levels of the music so loud that the peaks need to be compressed... this new compression was never part of the original sound of the music. Many are fooled into thinking that the music sounds better, simply because it is louder. However, reducing the dynamic range of the original music is NEVER better, and would be the equivalent to reducing the range of contrast in the colours of a film.

A trained eye/ear will notice the compression. Software which allows you to see the audio file will show it. Using NERO, I was able to see and compare the original and remastered audio files. On every original CD, the files NEVER near the peak levels and NEVER need to be compressed, so the music sounds more natural. The remastered CD's all reach peak levels and require compression, although the level of added compression is different on each remastered CD. Overall, the "Breakfast in America" CD is too compressed throughout. "Crisis? What Crisis?" has less added compression, it's only too much in some spots. "Even in the Quietest Moments" is similar to "Crisis? What Crisis?" but the remastered music sounds much too bright and mid-rangy. "Crime of the Century" seems to have the best remastering of the CD's I heard, IMO. "Famous Last Words" is too compressed throughout, and lacks the brightness of the others.

The booklets/inserts for all the remastered CD's are better than the original ones, in that lyrics and layout look better and are easier to read. However, the cover images are smaller and less blue-ish on "Crime of the Century", and the new photos are too dark on "Crisis? What Crisis" (you can't see the faces of the band clearly on the back cover shot, it's better on the older CD).

Most online reviews for the remastered Supertramp CD's are positive. I think most people will feel happy with the remastered CD's. People who are pickier about the sound, audiophiles and people who listen on higher end stereos, may not be as convinced the remstered CD's are the definitive versions. I'm part of the latter --- I agree the music on the original CD's wasn't loud enough, there was much more head room, but I feel the remastered music is too compressed, which makes it sound less natural and warm. However, I do enjoy the cleaner, clearer sound, as though a thin sheet was removed from in front of the speakers, allowing us to hear more depth and fullness. I hope the music gets a better remastering someday, but I'll be ticked to have to buy it yet again.

Updated review - April 2013

This is NOT a review of the music itself, which I think is great. Instead these are my observations while comparing the sound of the original CD with the remastered one. I hooked up two good, matching CD players and played both CD's at the same time through the same good stereo to do A/B comparisons. First thing I noticed is that the remastered CD is 19 seconds longer. The fade out on "Oh Darling" is longer, making up most of the difference.

Overall, the remastered version is cleaner, has more clarity and brightness, more depth (you can hear the reverb adn effects more), and have louder and thicker (you can hear the bass guitar more) sounds. The remastered CD jumps out at you more, with brighter highs and mids, while the original is quieter, more balanced and contained sounding.

It sounds like the original studio tracks contained some distortion and compression in many vocals and keyboard parts; it's there on both CD's but more apparent on the remastered CD. It may have been recorded that way, with tube preamps and compressors distorting the sound to give it colour. However, modern remastering trends tend to raise the levels of the music so loud that the peaks need to be compressed... this new compression was never part of the original sound of the music. Many are fooled into thinking that the music sounds better simply because it is louder. However, reducing the dynamic range of the original music is NEVER better, and would be the equivalent to reducing the range of contrast in the colours of a film.

A trained eye/ear will notice the compression. Software which allows you to see the audio file will show it. Using NERO, I was able to see and compare the original and remastered audio files. On the original CD, the files NEVER near the peak levels and NEVER need to be compressed, so the music sounds more natural. The remastered CD reaches peak levels and requires compression. This accounts for the increased loudness. Overall, the "Breakfast in America" CD is too compressed throughout.

The booklet/insert for the remastered CD is better than the original one, in that lyrics and layout look better and are easier to read. The photo on the back cover is a little larger too, as the song titles are now located all at the bottom.

Most online reviews for the remastered Supertramp CD's are positive. I think most people will feel happy with the remastered CD. People who are pickier about the sound, audiophiles and people who listen on higher end stereos, may not be as convinced the remstered CD is the definitive version. I'm part of the latter --- I agree the music on the original CD wasn't loud enough, there was much more head room, but I feel the remastered music is too compressed, which makes it sound less natural and warm. However, I do enjoy the cleaner, clearer sound, as though a thin sheet was removed from in front of the speakers, allowing us to hear more depth and fullness. I hope the music gets a better remastering someday, but I'll be ticked to have to buy it yet again.

The CD's are not remastered, so buying them individually would be better sonically. They still sound fine, this is how they were originally released on CD. The box that houses the 7 CD's is useful and sturdy. Inside fits the CD's, each having a replica of its album cover. The CD's aren't as well protected as buying individual CD's (they can slide out of the covers and get scratched over time) and the writing on the covers is too tiny to read. The main advantage of this set is that it's a cheap way to get these 7 albums, and each album has some good songs that are missing from the various hits CD's available. Highly recommended for the price.