Thomas D. (RockerBoomer) from SOUTHAMPTON, NY Reviewed on 11/6/2010...
This is an excellent CD that contains the ORIGIONAL versions, not re-recordings, by the ORIGIONAL artists. Great songs and plenty of them. I also recommend the "companion" disc, ULTIMATE ROCK & ROLL COLLECTION : THE 50's.
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CD Reviews
The best sound quality you'll find for 1997 !
Frederick J. Hepburn | Rocky Hill, CT United States | 01/17/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Generally CDs manufacturered during and after 1999 sound better than those manufactured prior to 1999, in my opinion. This CD breaks that rule. Collectables must have done some experimenting with sound quality in 1997. Most of the songs on this CD sound far superior to recent Eric, Ace, Rhino, BMG & Sony releases of the same song. I make this judgement by looking at the meters on my professional recording equipment, a Tascam CD-RW402. By starting the songs at the same time, I can alternate between the Collectables version and the more recent release version. The sound quality goes up when switching to the Collectables Ultimate Rock & Roll 60's version. But it's not just observing the sound meters. Most times the bass comes in much stronger, etc. It's just a much better listening experience. Please note that, with digital recordings on CDs, the sound meters aren't necessarily showing just the sound volume. To me, the more the sound meters stay at the maximun during the song, the better the sound re-mastering job that was done on that song. This is expecially true of the 2002 Rolling Stones Hybrid SACD releases by ABKCO. I'm using a Yamaha RX-V995 amplifier and Sennheiser HD-600 headphones. Roy Orbison's "Oh Pretty Woman" sounds much better here than on the 1999 Sony (momument) HDCD 16 Biggest Hits. The bass on "Midnight Train to Georgia" is by far the best I've found anywhere for that song. It just goes on. I did have a concern when I received this CD. It had a 1997 date and I thought I should have received the 2001 version. I called Collectables, and I was told that it's the same CD but the packaging may be different, and that's why it may have a 2001 date. I certainly am not Collectables biggest fan, however, just what were they doing to produce this masterpiece in 1997?"
Sonic Sound Quality
Diamond Dave | Chicago, Home of the Blues | 04/16/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Not every cut is a must have but I agree with others, I have heard many inferior copies of these tunes and the sound is about as good as it gets, even surpassing Rhino's excellant 9-volume British Invasion Box Set, which also contains a very high quality version of Lulu - "To Sir With Love", for example. This topped that.
The Monkees have been repackeded umpteen times, but the pristeen version of "Daydream Beliver" is so crisp, you can hear the 6 a.m. alarm clock ringing behind Davey Jones vocals for the whole verse.
The joy of Dion & the Belmonts (Donna the Prima Donna), Jay & the American's neo-operatic masterpiece, "Cara Mia" amoung others, are in great company on board this trip down memory lane.
In addition, songs that don't make run of the mill 60s soundtracks, such as "Theme from A Summer Place" (Percy Faith), or the girl-group one-hit wonders: The Toys - A Lover's Concerto
[a classical finger minuet by Bach put to a Motown bassline]are welcome inclusions here.
Well worth seeking out for back yard parties and hard core rock and roll oldies enthusiasts.
"
AN EXCELLENT COLLECTION OF ROCK OF THE 60S
stewart L | flushing ,ny | 11/07/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I LOVE THIS ALBUM.IT CONTAINS 25 TRACKS OF GOODTIME 60S ROCK.YOU CANNOT GO WRONG. THERE ARE SO MANY MEMORIES PACKED IN THIS DISC.I OWN THIS CD. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT.UPDATE YES THE SOUND OF THIS DISC IS MUCH BETTER THAN THE NEWER RELEASES..COLECTABLES HAS PRODUCED MANY GOOD SOUNDING RECORDINGS.AND YES THE QUALITY IS WAY DOWN ON MANY OF THE NEW CD RELEASES.THIS IS MOST LIKLY CAUSED BY COPYGUARD DISTORTION AND SLOPPY ENGINEERING.AND YES THIS IS THE SAME AS THE WCBS-FM RELEASE..I HOPE THIS WAS HELPFUL FOR ALL CONCERNED.THANK YOU STEWART L."
And the nostalgia continues...
Matthew G. Sherwin | last seen screaming at Amazon customer service | 01/27/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The Ultimate Rock & Roll Collection: The 60's has lots of great `60s tunes that are sure to bring back great memories and introduce newcomers to this genre at the same time! The sound quality is rather good, too.
The Tokens do a great job on "The Lion Sleeps Tonight;" they harmonize and sing this to perfection. I love that rockin' beat that swings back and forth as the song goes along so well. "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" is an excellent `60s ballad. The Monkees also turn in a great performance on "Daydream Believer;" their sound is quite good and catchy, too! The like the subtle key changes along the way and "Daydream Believer" is a song many people can enjoy.
Little Peggy March never sounded better than when she sings "I Will Follow Him;" her voice is as clear as a bell and this always impresses me. Jay & The Americans also give a great contribution with their awesome "Cara Mia;" this was always one of my very favorite tunes from the 1960s.
Little Eva's "Loco-Motion" rocks and rolls just as good as the first time I ever heard it; and listen also for Spiral Starecase doing their fantastic ballad "More Today Than Yesterday." This bouncy little tune is a great celebration of love. Roy Orbison's "Pretty Woman" also ranks high on the list of highlights of this CD.
Neil Sedaka's "Breaking Up Is Hard To Do" shows off his great talent as he sings this to perfection. Lulu also does a bang-up job on "To Sir With Love." Lulu sings beautifully and hers is another voice that is just as clear as a bell.
Dion's "Donna The Prima Donna" has a great beat as Dion sings of a girl he doesn't really like so much anymore; and The Happenings turn in an innocent and sweet number with their "See You In September."
Overall, fans of that great `60s music will want this CD in their collections. People just finding out about this style of music will not regret this purchase at all.
"
Best of the 60's
Edward F. Engle | Winston-Salem, North Carolina United States | 11/06/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"The best of all the 60"s collections floating around out there that I've seen so far"