Here is some text from the new issue of ICE magazine which clears up a couple of questions about the box set.
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A&M reconfigures its 1991 Carpenters rarities box From the Top (now titled The Essential Collection) on October 22, removing some of the more obscure tracks and filtering in many signature tunes left off the first version ("Jambalaya [On the Bayou]," "I Won't Last a Day Without You"). Other additions include a seven-piece medley previously available in Japan only; a 30-second Japanese commercial for High Crown Chocolate; and the original "Sing" (which replaces the Spanish-sung version). The set has now been distilled into cube form, with a hard slipcase and 76-page booklet; some errors in the credits have also been righted. Director of A&R Mike Ragogna explains to ICE, "The goal of the first box was not to present an overview of The Carpenters, it was to present rarities. The purpose of this box is to give fans essentially everything they need...it's a total overview." Meanwhile, the label just issued a Best of with all 12 tracks chosen by Richard.
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A&M reconfigures its 1991 Carpenters rarities box From the Top (now titled The Essential Collection) on October 22, removing some of the more obscure tracks and filtering in many signature tunes left off the first version ("Jambalaya [On the Bayou]," "I Won't Last a Day Without You"). Other additions include a seven-piece medley previously available in Japan only; a 30-second Japanese commercial for High Crown Chocolate; and the original "Sing" (which replaces the Spanish-sung version). The set has now been distilled into cube form, with a hard slipcase and 76-page booklet; some errors in the credits have also been righted. Director of A&R Mike Ragogna explains to ICE, "The goal of the first box was not to present an overview of The Carpenters, it was to present rarities. The purpose of this box is to give fans essentially everything they need...it's a total overview." Meanwhile, the label just issued a Best of with all 12 tracks chosen by Richard.