Search - K.D. Lang :: Recollection 2 CD Set

KD Lang Has The Purest And Most Pristine Voice In Music !

Brien Comerford | Glenview, Illinois United States | 02/09/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"" Recollection" is an impeccably perfect collection of KD Lang songs that brilliantly showcases her boundless vocal range, eclecticism and enrapturing splendor. She can master country, ballads, torch, jazz and light rock. Her vocals can be tender, upbeat, sad, inspiring, enthralling and invariably awesome. "Trail Of Broken Hearts" is a melancholic marvel. "Constant Craving" resonates with yearning and will always be a hit. KD's dynamic rendition of "The Air That I Breathe" is majestic. She transforms Neil Young's "Helpless" into a song that is equally poignant and assuaging."You're OK" is another compelling vocal performance that literally sends pleasurable audio sensations to your psyche and soul. "In The Valley" is incredibly emotive and heavenly to listen to. "Crying" with Ray Orbison is one of the most tremendous songs in music history. Last but not least is her peerless rendition of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" which is beyond amazing.



Each track on this CD is remarkable. There are a few rare tunes and covers that are also exemplary. KD Lang can frequently perform another artist's song better than the original. Ms. Lang is also a proud Lesbian, a humane vegetarian and a peaceful Buddhist. God and/or a Higher Power certainly bestowed such a pleasant person with a celestial and luminous voice that is peerlessly phenomenal."

Superb material, excellent remastering... can we have a COMP

Coltbear - A Music Fan | NY/NJ Metro Area | 02/15/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"From 1987's "Angel With A Lariat," k.d. lang's first American debut up to this very day when I just finished watching her singing "Hallelujah" at the XXI Olympic Opening Ceremony, I find myself (as you will be asking about your own personal favorites), where is "Pullin' Back The Reins" from "Absolute Torch And Twang?" Where is "Lock, Stock and Teardrops," along with several other classics from "Shadowland?" The gorgeous "Still Thrives This Love" and "Save Me," from "Ingenue" are nowhere to be found, as the astonishingly beautiful "Infinite and Unforeseen" and "If I Were You," from "All You Can Eat" are sorely missing. Instead of the admittedly more dramatic "Theme From Valley of the Dolls" and "Till The Heart Caves In" from "Drag," we get "Smoke Rings," and "The Air That I Breathe," the latter which proves that when Miss lang covers a song as in Dionne Warwick's "Theme From Valley of the Dolls" or the Hollies' "The Air That I Breathe," both definitive versions, she makes them her very own on a par with the originals, a truly rare gift indeed. Unfortunately, there are also a few excellent but neglected tracks from 2000's "Invincible Summer," 2004's "hymns of the 49th parallel," and finally, her stunning return with 2008's "Watershed." While "I Dream Of Spring" and "Thread" were included live on the bonus disc, as was the studio version of "I Dream Of Spring," I found myself longing for "Coming Home" as well.



The reason I mentioned all of those favorites is because the 2 discs have a LOT more room to accommodate at least some, if not all of my favorites above, or whichever yours might be. Disc 1 clocks in at a mere 47:14, and Disc 2 at 48:47. That's another 63 MINUTES, or an entire CD of music! (If you include the third live bonus disc at 42:09, that's another 37 minutes, for potentially 100 MINUTES!) I don't normally time CDs, but when another 63 to 100 MINUTES (!) of music could have been added to this already excellent set from one of my all-time favorite singers, it is hard not to question why many more of our favorites could have been added but were not. The inclusion of a new version of "Hallelujah," with more orchestration was somewhat extraneous in my opinion, adding even potentially more time to Disc 2. Having said that, the songs on the discs in this collection ARE superb, and worth buying for the remastered tracks alone. I happen to have the 3-CD + DVD box set (please see my review), and have listened to all three discs over and over again already. In my humble opinion, the remastered songs, live CD, DVD, booklet and very well thought out and elegant packaging all combine to make the box set the definite version of "Recollection" to own.



There ARE a few gems to be found on these 2 CDs, such as "Golden Slumbers/The End," from the 2006 movie "Happy Feet," as well as Miss lang's contribution of "So In Love," from the 1990 "Red Hot & Blue" AIDS benefit tribute to Cole Porter CD. k.d.'s gorgeous, ethereal duet with fellow Canadian Jane Siberry's "Calling All Angels" is here, which appeared on Jane's 1993 still amazing "When I Was A Boy" CD, as are k.d.'s reverent and beautifully done versions of Siberry's "The Valley" (on Disc 1), and "Love Is Everything" (on the DVD only), both from "hymns of the 49th parallel." Obviously, I'm enamoured of Siberry's writing as Miss lang is. Speaking of writing, MAJOR kudos and props to Ben Mink, as her fellow lyricist and band member since her career began, as well as to the long-time collaborators in her band as well.



There is also one new song on CD 2, "Beautifully Combined" (2:41), though brief in length, the lyrics (as usual), are excellent. There are also duets of k.d. with Tony Bennett on "Moonglow," and her memorably famous duet with Roy Orbison on "Crying." The first song, "You're The One" from Roy's 1992 "King of Hearts" album could easily have been included here, as it's practically a duet with Roy as well.



The only two things I'm really disappointed about is that I've never been to one of Miss lang's concerts, and after hearing her sing "The Right To Love," which ends the live CD and I'm sure (or would hope), is a concert staple for her, I am saddened that I will probably never get to hear those poignant lyrics and the incredible jazz piano accompaniment with her soaring and passionate vocals in person. The second is that Miss lang is one of the most deserving, finest artists/vocalists EVER, and truly deserves to have a more thorough, comprehensive and complete boxed set, with a lot more of her timeless, older material remastered (it's time... it HAS been over 20 years!), as well as more rarities, CD-single mixes and many guest vocals on other albums, soundtracks and compilations she has done. It would be spectacular to have all of those remastered in one boxed set, wouldn't it?



Some of these include "A Kiss To Build A Dream On," from the 2005 compilation "Timeless"; her duets with Tony Bennett, "What A Wonderful World" and "Dream A Little Dream Of Me," from their 2002 duet album of the same name, and two personal favorites, Carter Burwell conducting an achingly beautiful intro and accompaniment to Miss lang's superb version of "Secret Love," (never before released on any CD, from the end credits of the outstanding 2001 DVD documentary, "The Celluloid Closet"), the other being her heavenly duet on the title track of Bruce Roberts' 1995 CD, "Intimacy," to name only a few more. I'm aware that in some cases there are licensing issues, but in ANY case, the fans suffer, as we would gladly buy an extended, complete boxed-set containing all of the above and more.



While I will admit this technically IS an excellent 2-CD set, it would have been great to see "Recollections" reach the full potential this collection was truly capable of. And that's a compliment of the highest order. That, along with the extensive variety of songs in Miss lang's repertoire, and those yet to come, combined with each new (single CD) release of hers :-) , all prove where she is concerned, it just doesn't get any better. To bring so much joy to so many with the power or subtlety of a lyric, sometimes both in one, is truly an amazing gift.



Last, but certainly not least, I'll be waiting patiently to hopefully be the first of k.d. lang's countless fans to own a copy of that COMPLETE boxed set! :-)







"

This is good, but it leaves out a few.

Robert G Yokoyama | Mililani, Hawaii | 02/16/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I have most of these songs on her previous albums, but it is good to hear all her songs on one collection. I love "Constant Craving" and the carefree "Summerfling". I love her duet "Crying" with Roy Orbison. The new song "Beautifully Combined" is a romantic love song. I also like her "Moonglow" duet with Tony Bennett. What is missing here are a few more excellent tracks from her the Drag album from 1997 and a few others. I would have loved to have seen "The Joker" and "Don't Smoke in Bed" included here. The beautiful reflective duet entitled "River" with Madeleine Peyroux is also not included here. "A Case Of You" is another song by KD that moves me. This lovely song is missing here. I cannot give this two disc set five stars because of these exclusions. I give it four stars for the excellent music that is included here. This music is highly enjoyable."