The sound quality is terrible
R.Bay | 07/06/2010
(1 out of 5 stars)
"People complain about the selection of songs, but that's debatable. It has a lot of Stevie's best songs on it. The big problem is that we all know what these songs are supposed to sound like and its not how they are on the album. The recording is terrible. I am not very picky about these things. I often don't even notice the things that cause others to complain about sound quality, but it's glaring throughout this album. Just awful and frustrating. I'd avoid this album."
GOOD GOD
SHEERAH | 06/25/2010
(2 out of 5 stars)
"I WAS SO EXCITED TO FINALLY GET A MIX OF STEVIE WONDER. I LOVE THE OLDIES. THE SONGS ARE GREAT BUT THE SOUND ON THIS CD IS TERRIBLE. I REFUSE TO PLAY IT. IT SOUNDS SO CHEAP-LIKE FROM A TRANSITOR RADIO. I'M SO DISAPPOINTED. I WOULD LIKE TO SEND THIS BACK. THE SOUND IS THAT BAD. WHAT A SHAME."
Very good, but a few flaws
Andy S. | Fremont, CA USA | 09/14/2010
(4 out of 5 stars)
"For the casual Stevie Wonder fan who doesn't want to buy multiple CD's, this is a very strong compilation - the best available on a single disk (in fact, better than the two-disk "Song Review: A Greatest Hits Collection" as well). It's impossible to capture all the big hits in 80 minutes, but The Definitive Collection comes close. Still, there are few things that could have been done better:
* Obviously, there are technological limits when it comes to cleaning up early-60's recordings, but the sound quality of the early tracks is definitely mediocre.
* "Hey Love" was just a minor hit, and really doesn't belong here. Likewise, they made the odd choice of including the 7:23 minute album version of "Living for the City" rather than the 3:41 single edit (which is far superior, IMO). With those two changes (saving 2:43 from "Hey Love" plus 3:42 from "Living for the City" = 6:25), they could have added: "If You Really Love Me" [US#8, R&B#4](3:00) and "Isn't She Lovely" [hugely popular, but never released as a single](3:18; radio edit), or "Go Home" [US#10, R&B#2](5:18).
* The liner notes are OK, but nothing special."