An astonishing body of work from a songwriting genius; an in
Dave | United States | 08/09/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"There are undoubtedly folks out who would think, "A five CD box set of Rupert Holmes? Are you kidding me?" Of course though, these would be the words of someone who doesn't know better.
If you're a genuine fan of Rupert, you're already well aware of the depth and sophistication of his talent as a songwriter and record-maker, and you'll find this limited edition box set a dream come true. Entitled "Cast of Characters: The Rupert Holmes Songbook", this is indeed a 5 CD set.
The first 4 CDs contain every song from all of his proper albums, going in chronological order by album and retaining the original song sequencing, with none of the songs from any particular album being "stranded" on a separate disc. In other words, each of the first four discs are twofers--disc one contains 1974's "Widescreen" & 1975's self-titled album; disc two contains 1976's "Singles" & 1978's "Pursuit Of Happiness"; disc three contains 1979's "Partners In Crime" & 1980's "Adventure"; and disc four contains 1981's "Full Circle" & 1994's "Scenario", the latter album of which was previously only released in Japan. For the absolute diehards, it's worth pointing out that some minor "trimming" of songs was done in order to squeeze these albums onto 4 CDs; this is somewhat unfortunate--for instance, you lose a memorable snippet of Dean Bailin's song-ending guitar solo on "In You I Trust" due to a slightly early fadeout--but overall it's really not a major gripe. Much of this material has been extremely pricey/ extremely difficult to come by on CD, if not impossible, and great care has been taken here with the remastering, with Rupert himself being very much involved with bringing this set to life.
I also can't help but point out that there is some missing material here. The really obvious gaffe is pointed out in the set's liner notes, specifically, it was decided to not include any of Rupert's contract work recorded during the timeframe of 1969-1972. A large bulk of this material was released, in the wake of Rupert's 'overnight' success with "The Pina Colada Song", over the span of 3 albums by Excelsior Records: 1980's "Rupert Holmes" and "Rainy Night In Georgia", and 1981's "She Lets Her Hair Down". This material, though on the whole tackier (but by no means embarassing) and obviously not as fully-realized as his proper albums that he'd subsequently record, is still a blast for fans, with most of the songs having been written or co-written by Rupert, and his knacks for melody and wordplay already clearly establishing themselves. All of the material from the aforementioned 3 albums, 27 songs worth with no duplicated songs, would have easily fit on a single CD; it's kind of a shame Hip-O Select didn't go the extra step and include the early material, hence making this an even more well-rounded set. Then again, there's yet another 'cash-in' album that was released in 1980 by Klatt Records called "Daybreak Lover" with a few additional Rupert vocal numbers, and there's no doubt more material of various sorts floating around, so the claim that a line had to be drawn somewhere does seem reasonable.
Still, there is simply an enormous amount of great music on this set--it's an absolute treasure trove. Rupert is one of the most talented melodicists that music has ever had, and this fact is proven again and again and again over the course of these discs. As a lyricist, Rupert's often devastatingly witty and filled with humor, yet often heart-tuggingly sentimental as well. He's proven time and time again to be a terrific, expressive vocalist with a Brian Wilson-style flair for layering his own vocals to create a one-man-choir. And there are also his talents as a producer, as a keyboardist and saxophonist, and as an orchestral arranger.
His first album "Widescreen" has been released on CD twice by Varese Records including a "Collector's Edition"--each of these discs feature tracks from his follow-up album as bonus tracks. Also, 8 of the 10 tracks from his self-titled album and 7 of the 10 from "Singles" are on "The Epoch Collection" CD, also a Varese Records release, although it looks to have gone out of print at some point. I believe that this box set gives the 'neglected' tracks their first appearance on CD.
In the US, "Escape (The Pina Colada Song)" hit #1 in late 1979, and the subsequently-released "Him" also hit the Top Ten--the parent album of these two classic tunes is the often whimsical/ sarcastic masterpiece "Partners In Crime" which made it to #33 and became Rupert's first (and presumably only) gold album.
Somewhat amazingly, his next album "Adventure" didn't even make the US top 200, and it seems to have previously only been released on CD in Japan. It does have a slick, synthesizer-heavy sheen, but it really works, and the album contains such gems as the "Day Tripper"-ish riff-rocker "Crowd Pleaser"; the sumptuous ballad "Morning Man"; and the humorous stomper "I Don't Need You". Also superb are the title track and "The Mask" which are wildly dynamic and incredibly catchy songs that, to put it loosely, reflect on the idea of wanting the most out of life.
His next album, "Full Circle", proved to be his last for many years and in the meantime he pursued interests in theatre and screenwriting. I had never seen this album, or even a single track from it, officially available on CD prior to the appearance of this box set. "Full Circle" traces the ups and downs in the relationship of one couple, and includes such gems as the catchy mid-tempo pop-rocker "Loved By The One You Love"; the amusing, yet wonderfully charming "You Remind Me Of You"; the title track with its bracingly emotional chorus and excellent trombone soloing; the dreamily reflective "Love At Second Sight"; and the wonderfully bittersweet album-closer "One Born Every Minute".
Going beyond the call of duty is the 5th disc in this set which brings together non-album tracks, previously unreleased material, and newly recorded tracks--to call this disc a boon to collectors would be putting it mildly. "Magic Trick" is here, a song that seemed damn near impossible to locate previously. There's the fascinating "The Law Of The Jungle", which is basically the backing track of "Escape" with the same melody, but a completely different set of lyrics written before Rupert cooked up the new ones which resulted in the infamous classic "Escape (The Pina Colada Song)". There's also "You Got It All (Over Him)", a demo which ultimately became a huge hit for the Jets in 1986/ 1987--I was flabbergasted to learn that Rupert wrote this song!
Rupert himself contributes really interesting liner notes that reflect upon each album. His notes seem rather rushed at times, but at the same time, perhaps he didn't want to seem overly self-absorbed and was resisting the temptation to write a novel--after all, there is such a large quantity of music here. Printed lyrics are included for every song in the set, and thorough musician credits are also supplied.
To call this box set a pleasant surprise it a major understatement--if you're a fan of soft rock/ great pop-rock songwriting, you simply can't go wrong with this incredible 5 CD set. This is easily one of the best multi-disc sets ever assembled, and a HUGE thumbs to Hip-O Select for releasing this."
The Best Thing I've Bought in a Long Time!
hawkman217 | Lone Star State | 11/03/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I can't add much to the previous review, which was very thorough and well-written, so I won't say as much as I normally might. I've been a fan of Rupert Holmes since, you guessed it, the "Pina Colada Song" and the "Partners in Crime" album in 1980, but have never been able to accumulate much of his work. This 5-CD collection is outstanding, however, and well worth the price to any fan of Rupert Holmes. But check the Rupert Holmes website before paying over $100 from an Amazon seller....
In addition to all the great music, the accompanying book has all the song lyrics and introductions to each section written by Rupert. It's a great little package! I know $79 or so is a lot to pay for music, but remember that it's all 8 of Rupert's albums (only $1 per song!) and an additional CD with 25 other cuts, many of which have rarely been heard. The songs he wrote for the Jets are all awesome - - maybe they'd still be around if they had recorded more of his stuff! All in all, one of the best purchases I've ever made - - I listen to it every day. His genius amazes me."
Track Listings (20) - Disc #1