New Bacharach/A&M compilation coming Tues. Aug. 5

[Mike Blakesley]

There's a new Bacharach compilaiton coming out next Tuesday, Aug. 5. Title is What the World Needs Now: Bacharach Classics.

Unlike the recent Rhino compilations, this one is drawn from Burt's A&M albums.

What is NOT clear is whether this is just a remaster/reissue of the Classics album from the A&M 25th Anniversary series. I have looked around a bit and can't find a track list (yet). The cover design is different.

Still it will be nice to have some of the A&M Bacharach in remastered form!

 

[Harry]

Bacharach Forum (House Is Not a Homepage site) lists the following:

1. Something Big
2. Do You Know The Way To San Jose
3. What The World Needs Now Is Love
4. I Say A Little Prayer
5. Walk On By - (previously unreleased, live)
6. Nikki
7. This Guy's In Love With You
8. Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head
9. Look Of Love, The
10. Message To Michael
11. Always Something There To Remind Me, (There's)
12. I'll Never Fall In Love Again
13. House Is Not A Home, A
14. One Less Bell To Answer
15. Reach Out For Me
16. Make It Easy On Yourself
17. Close To You
18. Trains And Boats And Planes
19. Any Day Now
20. Alfie
21. Knowing When To Leave
22. Promises, Promises
23. Don't Make Me Over - (previously unreleased, live) / Anyone Who Had A Heart - (previously unrelea...

I'm betting that the two "unreleased' tracks are actually from the LIVE IN JAPAN album put out in the UK. That last one lists two tracks that start a 6:22 medley that also includes: "What's New Pussycat", "Wives And Lovers", and "24 Hours From Tulsa".

Harry
...looking forward to this one, online...

 

[Mike Blakesley]

Suuuure, the ONE place I never thought to look for a track list!

I'm glad they included "Something Big." One of my favorite Bacharach songs and an overlooked gem, IMHO!

An interesting sideline is that in the current issue of Rolling Stone, they review this set and give it "four stars." Compare that to the Rolling Stone book of album reviews, in which they rated every Bacharach album a "dud" and referred to the whole catalog as "bathetic bathwater."

Amazing what a decade or two will do to a person's coolness level!

 

[Harry]

The poster on the Bacharach Forum got the tracklist from CD Universe. Tower's site has it as well.

Harry
...wishing the whole LIVE IN JAPAN album would get a release, online...

 

[Harry]

I was looking a bit more carefully at the tracklist of this upcoming disc and noticed a couple of things. In addition to the two tracks taken from the IN CONCERT live album, two are also being thrown in from the Kapp album, Burt Bacharach Plays His Hits. If I recall correctly, that album pre-dated his A&M days, and by coincidence, I suppose, Kapp was even then, a subsidiary of Universal City Music. Here's the tracklist again with the album from which each track comes:

1. Something Big - LIVING TOGETHER
2. Do You Know The Way To San Jose - MAKE IS EASY ON YOURSELF
3. What The World Needs Now Is Love - REACH OUT
4. I Say A Little Prayer - REACH OUT
5. Walk On By - (previously unreleased, live) - IN CONCERT
6. Nikki - BURT BACHARACH
7. This Guy's In Love With You - MAKE IT EASY ON YOURSELF
8. Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head - BUTCH CASSIDY & THE SUNDANCE KID
9. Look Of Love, The - REACH OUT
10. Message To Michael - REACH OUT
11. Always Something There To Remind Me, (There's) - PLAYS HIS HITS (Kapp)
12. I'll Never Fall In Love Again - MAKE IT EASY ON YOURSELF
13. House Is Not A Home, A - REACH OUT
14. One Less Bell To Answer - BURT BACHARACH
15. Reach Out For Me - REACH OUT
16. Make It Easy On Yourself - MAKE IT EASY ON YOURSELF
17. Close To You - BURT BACHARACH
18. Trains And Boats And Planes - PLAYS HIS HITS (Kapp)
19. Any Day Now - MAKE IT EASY ON YOURSELF
20. Alfie - REACH OUT
21. Knowing When To Leave - MAKE IT EASY ON YOURSELF
22. Promises, Promises - MAKE IT EASY ON YOURSELF
23. Don't Make Me Over - (previously unreleased, live) / Anyone Who Had A Heart - (previously unrelea... - IN CONCERT

So the two Kapp tracks will be appearing for the first time under the A&M banner. One other title from that album, "Don't Make Me Over" got thrown into the A&M mix on the 20th Century Masters Millennium Collection disc.

Harry
...keeping track, online...

 

[Rudy]

An interesting sideline is that in the current issue of Rolling Stone, they review this set and give it "four stars." Compare that to the Rolling Stone book of album reviews, in which they rated every Bacharach album a "dud" and referred to the whole catalog as "bathetic bathwater."

Amazing what a decade or two will do to a person's coolness level!

I don't even read that Rolling Stone record guide anymore...in hindsight it was just an ego trip for its authors, especially Dave Marsh and his co-author. In other words, let's praise the albums WE like, and the rest we'll just write a couple of sentences for. Look at the arena rock entries like Kansas, Journey and Styx...thinly veiled pot shots, without really describing the music or pointing out which albums might be best. (Why not find someone who DOES like them and can point uninitiated listeners with what IS good or bad!) And then look at how The Who's career is dissected. I do remember the "bathetic bathwater" comment. Their "Jazz Record Guide" was even more of a joke--it seemed to be about 1/3 the size and really didn't cover anything beyond the most popular catalog sellers of the day; the only good thing is that apparently Marsh wasn't involved in this one at all.

 

[Mike Blakesley]

True. Some of those short little "bad" reviews were pretty funny though. But I agree with you, Dave Marsh can be a pretentious wind-bag.

 

[Brasil_Nut]

True. Some of those short little "bad" reviews were pretty funny though. But I agree with you, Dave Marsh can be a pretentious wind-bag.

Indeed, although he did have nice things to say about Sergio's Brasileiro and Oceano albums (an exception being a gripe about the inclusion of Zucchero on Oceano -- something with which I entirely agree!)

However, when it comes down to it, Marsh is best described as a self-righteous critic who finds it all too easy to rip an artist to pieces, rather than find merit in what they have accomplished. I'd like to see him release a top ten hit!

Jon

...on his soapbox and waking up with a cup of coffee, online...

 

[Harry]

I picked up the new Bacharach compilation today, What The World Needs Now - Burt Bacharach - Classics. It was just as tough to find as last week's Carpenters compilation, but was finally found in exactly the same place - the new release 'wall' at Borders.

As I listened casually on the way back from lunch, I could tell that this was a well-put-together compilation, especially sonically. Buried in small, dark red letters on a black backround on the back insert is the phrase:

96k/24-bit Mastered / All Original Recordings

Instantly I could hear differences. My car CD player sounded great as the opening "Something's Big" played. I knew that I needed to get home to do some A-B comparisons with the old CDs. I just finished doing that - and the results were indeed amazing. If anyone can remember comparing the Verve release of Sergio's Look Around to its older Japanese counterpart, the results here are even more astounding. This new recording is so much smoother and warmer than the old CDs.

The packaging is nice too, with a first-class booklet, 16 pages long with a fairly comprehensive little history/bio/track analysis written by David Konjoyan (relation to Jon Konjoyan?) in April of 2003. The inside track listing is thorough, listing each original album and catalog number, and the fact that the In Concert/Live In Japan was unreleased in the US.

I was all ready to come here and sing the praises of producers Jim Pierson and Mike Ragogna and mastering engineer Erick Larson, in hopes that these gentlemen might be involved in any Herb Alpert re-issues.

...And then I discovered the "problem". Something was seriously missing. And if it hadn't actually been pointed to in the liner notes, it might have gone unnoticed unless doing an A-B comparison. 'This Guy's In Love With You", as originally recorded by Burt, starts with a jazzy little intro on the piano - but not here. This version starts like the Herb Alpert version, starting past that little 10-second intro that repeats throughout the song. The liner notes actually point out that Burt's versions of songs sometimes varied from the pop hit versions and mentions the jazzy piano intro to "This Guy's...".

Too bad. Other than that little gaffe, this compilation was real close to perfection. It makes it tough to recommend when you know something's missing (like the dropouts on Herb's Definitive Hits), but if this omission can be overlooked, then this set is a good one. The song, complete with intro, did manage to appear intact on the ickier compilation from 1999, the 20th Century Masters Millennium Collection, though the mastering on that one wasn't quite as good.

The disc label is plain black with a red border around the circumference, with only the disc title printed in the same style as the cover on the top. There are no logos on the disc at all, with the copyright A&M Records 2003 printed in tiny print around the center hole. The A&M logo appears on the back insert and both spines, as well as the final inside page of the booklet.

Harry
...happy and disappointed at the same time, online...

 

[Brasil_Nut]

For me (a nod to Sergio, of course!), the best part of this compilation (in addition to everything) will be "Something Big". Living Together is one Bacharach album that somehow passed me by. I located a beaten-up copy in a used record store about three years ago. It blew me away! "Something Big" is one of those original, goosebump-style Bacharach tunes that just makes you feel good. Of course, Burt's trademark instrumentals are always a highlight. However, when it comes to a song as only Bacharach can do one, "Walk The Way You Talk" is out of this world!! A bit dated perhaps, but great all the same!

I'm so anxious to get ahold of What The World Needs Now: Bacharach Classics, I can taste it. Thanks, Harry, for the in-depth review. Tomorrow night, I'll hear a non-scratchy version of "Something Big" for the first time! Ahhh... life is sweet!!

Jon

...anxious and ready for What The World Needs Now: Bacharach Classics, online...

 

[Rudy]

I'd like to run this one through the editor to see how much it's compressed. Depends...the way current CDs are made, I've been skipping the reissues and sticking to the vinyl. From what I heard, whatever TJB stuff Univer$al is working on is having the s**t compressed out of it. What a waste.

 

[Harry]

I hear ya. But my ears also tell me that this one's really nice to listen to, especially compared to the earlier releases. Regardless of what the machines tell you, sometimes it may be better to just use your ears!

As for compression on this one, I'd have to say it's limited. Listening in the car, things seemed like they stopped, when it was just the very quiet opening of "A House Is Not A Home." That tells me that there's some dynamic range intact here.

Harry
...using the ears, online...

 

[Rudy]

It would be the 'brick wall' compression used during the loudest passages. I would expect to hear it most on the Kapp tracks, since they were not as dynamic as the A&Ms were. (Thing is, on the Kapp tracks, the original recordings were even compressed, but it's not as nasty as the digital brick wall compression used today...it's more a "gradual" compression that affects the sound differently and a lot more pleasant to the ears.) Depends on who prepares the CD master, also.

If the sound is overly "warm" or "full" (even slurred if you know what to listen for), it's a dead giveaway it's been compressed substantially. David Benoit is a good comparison. You would think his recordings are dynamic and would be uncompressed, but the opposite is true--compare Fuzzy Logic, his latest, to Freedom At Midnight...a world of difference. Another good comparison for Beatles fans: the recent "1" compilation is horribly compressed and EQed; the original Beatles CDs aren't all that good either, but at least they weren't compressed! My Peter Gabriel Up SACD/CD hybrid is a built-in example--no compression on the SACD layer, vs. compression on the CD layer.

That's one reason I like getting SACDs, as they don't yet have the technology to tamper with DSD digital like they can PCM 44.1kHz/16-bit digital. It's only a matter of time though.

 

[Brasil_Nut]

I would liken all of this to the darn Dolby systems that were so popular in the '80s. I couldn't stand to listen to anything with Dolby noise reduction. Talk about muffled! Although I know this has nothing to do with CDs and compression, as taught by my brother-in-law (a local DJ and sound man), I used Dolby only in the recording mode. Otherwise, I rarely (if ever) used it for playback!

Jon

...on a different subject and sticking to my guns, online...

 

[Rudy]

Dolby actually worked very well...but you had to have a good deck in perfect alignment for it to sound any good. (Setting bias and Dolby levels for each brand of cassette was tedious, but worth the effort.) I've owned maybe four or five cassette decks in my lifetime, and only the expensive Harman/Kardon deck has been able to sound good with either Dolby B or Dolby C turned on.

Worse yet was dbx, which used a 2:1 compression on recording and 1:2 compression on playback. Thing is, cassette w/o noise reduction is quite noisy, and there was a lot of "pumping and breathing" that led me to quit using dbx within months after getting an outboard processor. Plus, dbx cassettes were unplayable in normal equipment.

So now we buy blank CDs for 25 cents and they make copies of music far better than what even the best metal cassette could record.

 

[Brasil_Nut]

Good points all. However, my Mendes recordings sounded lousy with the use of Dolby, so I "adjusted" elsewhere...the result was pleasing to my ears. Oh, and I know what you mean about dbx...for the birds! I did the same thing and abandoned use of it after a while. But, as you said, these days a CD-R will do what cassettes never could in a million years and that's happiness!

Jon

 

[Brasil_Nut]

Wow!! What The World Needs Now: Bacharach Classics is incredible to say the least. My Mom already stole mine in hopes of making a CD-R for her car! I went ahead and made a copy for myself; gave her the original. What's a son to do?

This pseudo "Brasil/Bacharach Nut" is most pleased with "Something Big" -- compressed or not. At least, it doesn't have pops and scratches found on the vinyl. That's happiness!

Highlights for me are "Nikki", "Message To Michael", "Something Big", "Reach Out For Me", "Close To You", "Knowing When To Leave", "Promises, Promises" and the Kapp recordings -- great material all.

Jon

...in Bacharach heaven, online...

 

[Rudy]

Shoot...I have a very clean white label promo copy of the Living Together album that I haven't transfered to CD yet. I'm waiting a bit though--I need to get a Serial-ATA hard drive to do my editing on, and a new digital audio card for the computer. I've decided to scrap everything I have been working on in favor of going to 24bit/96kHz processing. Even if it is later downsampled to 16/44.1, doing the processing at the higher sampling rate lowers the distortion...plus I can author DVD-Audio that way as well. (Just wish I could do Direct Stream Digital...but that would be a few years away, if it ever happens at all for the home or even the semi-pro market.)

Still could do a straight-to-CD dub in the meantime though...

 

[Steve Sidoruk]

Re: New Bacharach Classics - spoke briefly to mi amigo, Jon Konjoyan (former A&M Promo guy), who is also credited on this project. He said they were trying to get the project to have more tracks, but it wouldn't fly. However, for England, they will be releasing it as 2 CDs!!!

 

[Harry]

^^ Great! Hopefully more of the live album will get to see the light of day on CD.

Harry
...still enjoyoying this compilation, online...

 

[Harry]

I just heard from another Bacharach fan, Scott. He tells me that he's been in email contact with Mike Ragogna, one of the compilation producers. Our question about the missing intro on "This Guy's..." was answered with :

AH, here's your answer...there was a single edit created and the track was re-inserted back into the original master of the album...

So it appears that this compilation was erroneously mastered with a single edit for that track. It explains a lot.

Hopefully, they can fix this for the UK edition that Steve S. mentioned above.

Harry
...putting the pieces together, online...

 

[aymnostalgico]

I was brewing a new topic for you guys (the Bacharah knowledgables), about hearing traits of "Rain drops keep falling on my head" on "this guy's in love with you" I was just going to ask if the same composer was involved here and "VOILA" I see it in the replies you sent. No need to ask further. You know, as a musician, I listen to a lot of commercially released arrangement and it doesn't matter whether I like the artist or not. I always give a fair listen to artist. This is how I buy, but mostly I follow who produced and arranged the music, because this is what I love to do-----produce music. Well anyways, this is not the first time I hear music that for some reason I say: "man, this is got to be such and such behind this production. But now here is a question: The Carpenters I only heard a few of their tunes and I didn't even know they were part of the A&M family, that is great! Is there a link between Bacharah and Carpenters? I hear similar feel to it, unless The Carpenters were fans of him.

 

[Harry]

In olden times, people would say that their musical influences were 'the three B's', Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms. As he was interviewed when Carpenters' career was getting started, Richard would modernize this, saying that his influences were 'the three B's' - Beatles, Beach Boys, and Bacharach. So yes, Burt's music was an influence on the Carpenters' music.

They of course had their first huge number one hit with Burt's "Close To You", a song that had languished around for a few years, going nowhere. Richard's arrangement of it, with a few guidelines from Herb Alpert, sent the record to number one. On the CLOSE TO YOU album, they also did a terrific rendition of "I'll Never Fall In Love Again", as well as "Baby It's You". On the next album, they did a Bacharach medley combining a few of his hit songs, and later, they extended this medley in concert. The recorded version of the extended medley can be found on the US-released Readers' Digest set, or on the Japanese ANTHOLOGY set.

After that medley though, they never revisited Burt's compositions.

Harry
...wondering if the thunderstorms will ever finish around here, online...

 

[Murray]

After that medley though, they never revisited Burt's compositions.

Harry, you're forgetting about "Somebody's Been Lyin'" from the MADE IN AMERICA album. That song was written by Burt, with lyrics by then wife Carole Bayer Sager.

Murray
...who will be waiting for the UK version of Bacharach Classics...

 

[Harry]

^^^ Right you are. I always forget about that one. To me it doesn't sound like the prototypical Bacharach songs of the '60s and early '70s.

Harry
...not up on his later Bacharach material, online...