2024 the best of bill withers album review

mscmd • November 4, 2024 8:34 pm • review

Price: Amazon Music Unlimited
(as of Dec 19, 2024 20:01:07 UTC - Details)

Nine CD set features all nine albums which the poet laureate of Slab Fork, West Virginia released in his bold, beautiful, brilliant but short-lived recording career. Right from the opening acoustic strum of "Harlem" on his fabulous debut album Just As I Am and onto the gutsy pump of "Lonely Town, Lonely Street" which opens the equally brilliant follow up LP Still Bill, the sound quality is truly glorious throughout. The live double album Carnegie Hall - like Donny Hathaway's Live from 1972 - has garnished a legendary reputation amongst soul aficionados. All the albums are remastered from the original analog tapes. Includes the hit-singles "Ain't No Sunshine", "Lean On Me" and "Lovely Day".
Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.24 x 5.12 x 1.18 inches; 9.88 ounces
Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ Music on CD
Original Release Date ‏ : ‎ 2020
Date First Available ‏ : ‎ March 14, 2020
Label ‏ : ‎ Music on CD
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B085XF9SNJ
Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 9
Reviewer: Who Fanatic
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Amazing box set, with just a few oversights...
Review: From someone who buys a lot of music, this is one of the richest purchases you can make. Bill Withers is that rare breed of performer who gets to you on an even greater level personally than he does musically. This set neatly compiles all of his albums, and leaves us to treasure hunt for some very worthwhile material. However, given the low price, and the company's admission of most of these omissions in the original press release, it's hard to get too sour. Here are the main (i.e., songs with Bill on lead vocals) omissions I've identified:1.) Three Nights and a Morning - 1967 single, an early version of Harlem as a full soul rave-up. Currently unavailable on CD or digital format.2.) What'll I Do - Cover of the Irving Berlin song, the b-side of the above single. Also currently unavailable on CD or digital.3.) Better Days - theme from the 1971 film "Man and Boy". It can be found as a bonus track on the 2003 Raven two-fer CD of "Just as I Am" and "Still Bill".4.) The Gift of Giving - 1972 holiday single. It can be found on the "Smooth Grooves: Sensual Christmas" (!) compilation.5.) Let Us Love - the studio flipside to the above track, included in a live version on the Carnegie Hall album. It appears the original studio version has not been released on CD or for download.6.) It's All Over Now - 1975 duet with Bobby Womack. It can be found on the same CD as #1, as well as "The Essential Bobby Womack".7.) Rosie - a beautiful demo recording of an otherwise-unreleased song off the 2008 reissue of "Menagerie," which also contains a single edit and instrumental track of two songs originally on that album.8.) Just the Two of Us - The hit 1980 duet with Grover Washington, Jr. off the latter's "Winelight" album, and any Bill Withers compilation.9.) Soul Shadows - 1980 collaboration with The Crusaders, off their "Rhapsody and Blues" album. It can also be found on Bill's 1989 "Greatest Hits" compilation.10.) USA - 1981 solo single. Unreleased on CD or for download.11.) Apple Pie - Off Michael Berger's 1982 "Dreams In Stone" album.12.) In the Name of Love - 1984 duet with Ralph MacDonald. I believe this is a vocal version of an instrumental track that originally appeared on Grover Washington Jr.'s "Winelight" album. It can be found on the "Love & Happiness Mix - Classic Soul, R&B, Slow Jams - 8" compilation.(*UPDATE: Tracks 3, 8, 9, and 12 can now also be found on 2013's "The Essential Bill Withers".*)The majority of these tracks are terrific, and would make for a helluva compilation to complement this great and well-priced box set (shop around and you will find some ridiculously cheap prices, but the difference in retail between the US and UK puzzles me). (**UPDATE 2: After adding a couple more entries to this list after Bill Withers' recent passing at the age of 81, I see that those ridiculously cheap prices are LONG gone. Good luck finding a copy!)Other, more recent guest appearances:13.) Playin' the Loser Again - 2004 duet with Jimmy Buffett off the latter's "License to Chill" album.14.) Lovely Day - Maroon 5's cover from the 2006 "Hoot" soundtrack, featuring Bill and Kori Withers on backing vocals.15.) (You've Been Quite a Doll) Raggedy Ann - A primarily spoken-word performance from 2017's "The Rhinestone Hillbilly: A Tribute to Little Jimmy Dickens". Definitely an unconventional epilogue to his lifetime releases, but a moving last few minutes with that voice.Bill also wrote, produced, and played on two otherwise-unreleased songs (Better You Go Your Way, Tenderness is His Way) from Gladys Knight & The Pips' 1974 "I Feel a Song" album.So nice to see the humble master get his due, and hopefully sales and renewed interest in his overall work will spur further releases of archival or new material (the documentary "Still Bill" indicates he has hardly been twiddling his thumbs these last three decades).

Reviewer: M. Klein
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Great quality, Withers is awesome!
Review: I always loved Bill Withers music and voice, but had only bought one CD for some inexplicable reason. I bought this set for the live concert, which is just amazing!, but have been just as happy with the others in the set. Caution, they cause toe-tapping and singing along, so you might get weird looks listening to them in the car. ð Completely worth the price, and more.

Reviewer: vanatic
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: An almost too good to be true item!
Review: I am a big Bill Withers fan, but only owned his greatest hits CD and a few tracks from iTunes. When I stumbled across this collection of all nine of his albums on the Sussex and Columbia labels for under $30, I was suspicious as all get out. We're talking less than $4 per CD! Yet several reviews of the set gave it glowing ratings, and with the Amazon guarantee behind me, I decided to take a chance.Despite shipping from the UK, the package arrived promptly, and after opening the package I was not disappointed. Not only is this boxed set well constructed, the remastered CDs sonically wonderful, but the forty-page booklet is a gem with well written commentary, detailed info on each track (musicians, etc.) and a nice surprise: a foreword by Mr. Withers himself.This set is one of the best boxed sets I've ever purchased (and I own more than fifty of them), and is easily the best bargain of any I've ever seen. Bill Withers has always been under-appreciated, it's nice to see his entire body of work so lovingly and beautifully compiled into this collection.

Reviewer: Richard Gelderman
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: wonderful collection
Review: These old albums from the great Bill Withers are wonderfully mastered. It is great to have them together in a single boxed set.

Reviewer: -=Rudy=-
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: All of your Bill Withers albums in one place!
Review: Given the bargain price of this import box set, it is a steal! You get nine Bill Withers albums in one box set, with a book containing a short remembrance by Withers himself, as well as a short essay by another author. All of the album artwork is reproduced in the booklet, while the CDs come in miniature LP replicas of their original packaging ("Carnegie Hall" is a gatefold, and "Still Bill" has the "French door" style front cover to it, just like the original LP). The discs themselves feature period-correct labels.I consider a handful of Withers' albums to be essential but at this price, you can own the whole set for the cost of those two or three CDs. The mastering on this set is nice also. However, the version of "Menagerie" in this set is not a reissue of the earlier single CD that featured the bonus tracks; you will want to hang onto that disc if you already own it. "'Bout Love" makes its CD debut with this package, as it was the last piece in my collection of Withers' recordings on digital that I did not yet own.The one quibble I have with this set: where are the b-sides, rarities, etc.? "Better Days" from the rare Sussex Records soundtrack to the little known "Man and Boy" film would have been a good choice, as well as his 45-RPM-only release, "U.S.A." (which I have not been able to find in any digital form). The demo "Rosie" (which appears on "Menagerie") would have fit in here nicely also, and there are several guest appearances and remixes that could fill up a disc rather quickly.Some of these discs appear to be recent masterings, and as such they all sound quite good.Aside from the lack of rarities, this is a highly recommended box set. Get one while you still can!

Reviewer: Sandra M. Marsh
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Always a Bill Withers fan, I am thrilled to now have his complete body of work.
Review: I have several Bill Withers CDs, but I didn't realize that there was so much more music available that I had never heard before. He is gone, but not forgotten. I am happy to have the Complete Sussex & Columbia Album Masters, especially the live performances. This is a superb collection that I will be enjoying for a long time.

Reviewer: AldOne
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Ottimo cofanetto in box vinil replica

Reviewer: Shelley J. Woods
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: ... though it was written by Bill Withers, it originally appeared on Grover Washington, Jr.'s "Winelight" LP.The price of this 9 disc set is worth it for the 4 Sussex albums alone. Withers' 5 Columbia albums are an unfortunate example of a major label not understanding (or caring) how to record and/or market a great artist. Columbia didn't waste any time drowning Bill's songs with the full-on dreck treatment: strings, backing singers and disco beats. There is some listenable stuff, but nothing breathes post-Sussex the way "Ain't No Sunshine" and "Grandma's Hands" did. It's the Sussex recordings that contain the best of Bill Withers, and 1973's "Live at Carnegie Hall" was a nice surprise, it's a gem as live albums go, and as it was originally a double LP, this set arguably contains 10 records.

Reviewer: Cees Witte
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: I bought most of these albums on vynil from the first moment they were available. I had already replaced two or three of them when this box came out. I immediately ordered it, because the price made it a real bargain and because it made my collection complete in one stroke. I am very happy with it, playing all this beautiful music all day. Bill's voice has always had a certain quality for me, it always made me happy and sad at the same time. Many songs are very moving and even on his most mediocre moments he still sounds unique and distinguished.All time favourites, lots of them. What more can you want? Buy it now, before someone realises this is too much value for the money.

Reviewer: Javier
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: RecopilaciÃ³n de los Ã¡lbumes de Bill Withers en una prÃ¡ctica caja de cartÃ³n, con los CDs a su vez en sobres de cartÃ³n imitando las portadas de los LPs originales, incluye libreto de 38 pÃ¡ginas con informaciÃ³n detallada de cada disco: canciones, crÃ©ditos, etc. La mÃºsica es fantÃ¡stica, una instrumentaciÃ³n genial y una producciÃ³n correcta.

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