The Noel From M.O.N.O.
Martin Natchez | Michigan | 06/09/2008
(3 out of 5 stars)
"It was Noel Harrison's exquisite reading of Charles Aznavour's "A Young Girl" that made me originally purchase this LP in STEREO on London Records in 1966. And from start to finish, the collection of 12 songs was a joy, showcasing actor Harrison as a more-than-competent singing wannabee. Retrospectively, it still possesses an artful freshness and diversity that simply evaporated when he moved to Reprise Records and cast himself as an easy-listening folkie. His hit remake of the Leonard Cohen standard, "Suzanne," is, unfortunately, more remembered than any of these earlier recordings.
Backtracking to this particular reissue, however, prospective purchasers should be aware that the entire CD is taken from the MONO LP master tapes, which were apparently identical to both its U.K. release on Decca Records and its U.S. London Records counterpart. And with that being the case, the stereo collector who would be hopefully eyeing this CD to obtain a clean version of "A Young Girl" in stereo and the rest of the album in its rarer two-channel glory, will be deeply disappointed and puzzled by how Rev-Ola repackaged this '60s souvenir.
Although there is no mono or stereo designation on the outer packaging, the buyer is assured that the contents were licensed from Universal Music Group, guaranteeing master-tape quality. Open the CD and on the label is the designation "Visual Stereo." So far so good, and by this time the disc is probably in the CD player, so you hit Track 1, "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue." Mono. Skip to "A Young Girl." Mono. Sample all the others. Mono! Mono! Mono!
There's no explanation in the inner insert, except to note that this digital reissue is credited as "Originally released as Decca LP LK 4783 in 1966," truthfully indicating that the CD replicates the original mono British album. Go figure. Then try to comprehend the liner note writer's tepid praising of Harrison's performances, culminating in a dumbfounding epitaph that's worthless, as well as uninformative.
After being so long out of print, this could have been a stellar CD reissue of "Noel Harrison," especially if the rest of his Decca/London output, including 45 and EP extras such as "In a Dusty Old Room," "Out For The Day" and "Over The Rainbow" had been added as bonus tracks. Mono for those would have been fine. But there was no excuse for Rev-Ola not to seek out the album's stereo LP master and properly indicate the format it was offering. I admit I may have bypassed buying the CD, had I been better informed about its non-stereo contents. Now that you are forewarned, there will be no surprises."
Great sounding classic from the '60's
Nick of Midland | Midland | 06/07/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Must admit I purchased this product for just one song-A Young Girl (of Sixteen) to replace the version I've had on vinyl for over 40 years. Sound was crystal clear and after all these years it was nice to hear a forgotten classic without all the hiss and pops that I've grown used to. Excellent album for those that enjoy hearing songs that no longer seem to have radio airplay."
Blast from the Past...
fendemos | Bowling Green, KY United States | 03/23/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I grew up with this album years ago when it first came out in the late 60's. Somehow over the course of time, we lost track of the actual LP, only managing to save the cover. So, I was tickled to find the CD remaster available recently. Noel's versions of these time tested songs were fairly new at the time, but unbeknownst to me at such a young age, I was being exposed to Dylan gems and the like long before I would ever hear the originals. A Young Girl stands out to me as the obvious hit here, and still manages to move me even to this day. Check this CD out. It's a groovy look back at a hipper age, indeed."
Track Listings (12) - Disc #1