Search - Gloria Gaynor :: Never Can Say Goodbye [Expanded Edition]

CLASSIC DISCO ALBUM FINALLY OUT ON CD!

Xavier Limtuaco | Manila, Philippines | 07/05/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In 1974, my grandfather was having a birthday party in my grandparents' beautiful home. Their parties were really fun parties simply because there was plenty of dancing. At that time, disco was just starting to breakout and make its presence felt. Later that night, my uncle brought home a stack of new vinyl records he had just bought and, included in this stack, was "Never Can Say Goodbye" by Gloria Gaynor, which he played to the absolute delight of the guests. That LP is still in my possession and I will always remember the opening notes of the LP - the buzzing sound of a bee to "Honey Bee" which moved into "Never Can Say Goodbye" and finally "Reach Out (I'll Be There)." In those days, 3 songs in their extended versions connected to one another on one side of an LP was never heard of until this LP came along.



36 years after, this classic LP is finally out on cd. The cd version has been lovingly put together from the beautiful jewel case to the liner notes inside to the fantastic remastering. You even hear someone counting "..one, two, three, four..." before the opening buzz of "Honey Bee" starts. The sound quality of this cd is simply superb and you hear the songs as if they had just been recorded. Another great thing about this cd is that the original single versions of "Honey Bee" are included plus the single versions of "Never Can Say Goodbye" and "Reach Out (I'll Be There)". It is nice to hear the edited versions and somewhat amusing how one long version can be crammed into 3 minutes.



Gloria Gaynor's vocals are clear, beautiful and soaring and this is evident throughout the whole album. She holds the distinction of having the very first no. 1 in the Billboard Dance Chart with "Never Can Say Goodbye" which is why she was crowned "The First Lady of Disco" and will always be remembered in pop music history as the first artist ever to hit no. 1 on the Billboad Dance Chart. This classic cd is a must-own and the manufacturers of this beautifully-made cd should be commended for a job well-done. With its steep price, it is worth every cent. Bravo!"

I like the music, but the remastering is not good

Music Fan Jeff | San Francisco, CA United States | 07/09/2010

(2 out of 5 stars)

"I'm quite honestly surprised that the two other reviews here (so far) both comment positively on the mastering on this cd. Here are my observations on sound quality:



It does seem like the mastering engineer had access to better tapes for this album than had previously been used on other compilations that feature "side one" of the original album (Honeybee/Never Can Say Goodbye/Reach Out I'll Be There). I say this because (a) there is a little studio chatter before Honeybee begins and (b) it all sounds a little less muddy than on, say, the 2-cd Gloria Gaynor anthology that Polygram issued in the 1990s. What bothers me about this release, however, is that the left channel is significantly lower in volume than the right, causing the entire image to shift to the right speaker and the lead vocal to not be centered. This defect affects the entire Honeybee/NCSG/ROIBT suite. Then, when you get to the bonus tracks, the single edit of Never Can Say Goodbye is quite hissy when compared to the same single edit that previously appeared on cd on Rhino's Didn't I Blow Your Mind/Soul Hits Of The '70s series.



Unfortunately, all previous releases of the Honeybee/NCSG/ROIBT suite on cd have been marred by muddy sound, so there really isn't a great alternative to get these tracks. Still, I'll take the muddy but properly centered sound over the odd mastering presented on this cd."

Awesome!

Luis Alberto Roca Leãn | 06/16/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I just want to say: this reissue is simply amazing. The sound remaster is the best thing about this album!!!!!"