Startrax

[Harry]

I just recently won an auction for the Australian TJB compilation called Startrax. This A&M compilation series mostly mirrored the Japanese/German Gold Series back in 1991, but the TJB volume got more tracks. It was probably an effort to pad out the CD since the Startrax logo also included the verbiage "Over 60 minutes of music".

Comparing tracks, the first 15 are identical to the Gold Series (sometimes called Volume 2, sometimes just Gold Series):

1. A Taste Of Honey
2. This Guy's In Love With You
3. The Work Song
4. Spanish Flea
5. Mame
6. The Happening
7. Mexican Road Dance
8. Third Man Theme
9. South Of The Border
10. A Banda
11. Hello Dolly
12. Marching Through Madrid
13. Whipped Cream
14. Mexican Shuffle
15. Cabaret

The next five are all contained on the companion Gold Series Volume 1:

16. Tijuana Taxi
17. Theme From Zorba The Greek
18. Casino Royale
19. The Lonely Bull
20. The Girl From Ipanema

And there are still six more tracks included:

21. A Walk In The Black Forest - which appeared on the German Very Best of
22. Acapulco 1922 - showed up on Solid Brass, the German Very Best Of, and Classics 1
23. I'm Getting Sentimental Over You - placed on Classics 1 and Greatest Hits
24. More & More Amor - contained on Classics 1

The last two, to my knowledge have never been released on a CD compilation anywhere else, and both are from Going Places:

25. Walk Don't Run
26. Felicia

An interesting track list. I'll be interested to hear how well or poorly it was mastered.

Harry
...awaiting Mr. Postman, online...

 

[Captain Bacardi]

I got this compilation a couple of years ago. It's the first time I had "The Happening" on CD. Sound wise it's the exact as Gold Series 2 IMHO. Frankly, I never understood why GS2 is available as is without the remaining tracks that's on Startrax. But then again, I never understand the record biz anymore... :|


Capt. Bacardi

 

[Harry]

I hadn't realized until recently that Startrax was indeed different from the Gold Series. I thought it was just a regional name change.

I'm not sure now WHICH CD I saw up in Canada back about five years ago. We were shopping around in Montreal during a weekend visit, and I stopped into an HMV store. As I usually do, I checked out favorite A&M artists in the rack, saw this one compilation that had "The Happening" on it, and thought I'd buy it. But as we were heading elsewhere, and I didn't want to carry it around all day, I decided to get it later, since the store was only a block from our hotel. When I went back, the next day, the store was closed, so I missed out, as we left that evening. I recall the green cover, but not whether it was a Gold Series or a Startrax. I tend to think it was a Gold Series, since I don't remember it having so many tracks.

The only other Startrax disc I have is a Carpenters release. It's got promos in the booklet for all the others in the series, with the exact same pictures/colors as the Gold Series inserts do. They're both listed as 1991, so I guess it was a regional thing where Australia got the Startrax series instead of the Gold Series. All I know for sure is that we in the States got nothing, nada, zip, zero, zilch, of any of these series.

Harry
...awaiting Startrax from Australia, online...

 

[nelly]

Thank you Harry for your rundown of this CD. Today I borrowed this from my local library in Australia but unfortunately the original cover was missing - just a very unreadable photocopy but you came to the rescue.
It is just a few weeks since I got acquainted with these fabulous musicians. What happy music they play - it is so cheerful and full of the goodtime spirit. It is impossible to stay motionless and miserable when it comes out the speakers.
Ta, nelly

 

[Harry]

Startrax arrived today in the mail. Giving it a quick run-through, I noticed that "The Lonely Bull" has that late fade-in opening with the first few notes of the fanfare missing. It was the same way on that German best-of disc I found a year or so ago.

Harry
NP: Startrax - Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass