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Brian W.
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| Posted: 20 August 2008 at 5:08pm | IP Logged
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From producer Ed Osborne on SteveHoffman.tv:
Ed Osborne wrote:
Available October 14th from Collectors' Choice Music and Aura Records: the definitive Tommy James collection!
This is the one you've been waiting for...Tommy's 47 single A-sides from 1966 to 2006 plus a bonus track from 1962...all in their original "hit-bound" mixes.
The first 15 singles, from "Hanky Panky" through "Crystal Blue Persuasion," are in their original mono form, as released on 7" vinyl way back when. Only "I Think We're Alone Now" and "Hanky Panky" - for which no stereo mixes exist - are available on CD in mono. And even "Hanky Panky" is different. We've included the original slightly slower Snap mix in best-ever audio, thanks to a first-generation disc dub from Tommy's collection and some super clean-up work by Andrew Sandoval.
Speaking of Andrew: with an ear toward giving you great audio, he used the best available sources and referenced them against the vinyl singles. (Some of the master tapes hadn't been touched since the 1960's!) Bill Inglot and Bob Irwin also provided invaluable behind-the-scenes assistance to help make this package "sing" sonically. As with the recent Jan & Dean singles set, we've remained true to the original mixes as created by Tommy and his studio colleagues.
Starting with "Ball of Fire," the original single mixes were stereo, yet, there still were differences between them and the album versions; the latter of which have been used for CD reissues. 40 Years contains the official single versions for those releases where differences existed. Not only are these unique to this package, 40 Years includes many Tommy James solo singles that have never been available on CD.
Tommy's also delved into his personal archive for period photos. The liner notes were written by Tommy, (his co-biographer) Martin Fitzpatrick, and myself.
The only thing left to say is: those mono mixes - with their pounding bass rhythm - kick butt! |
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I did post a question asking him about the single mix for "Draggin' the Line," since it was mono, but he hasn't answered yet.
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eriejwg
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| Posted: 20 August 2008 at 5:12pm | IP Logged
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Brian, the first thought I had too was "Draggin' The Line."
I did some painstaking surgery on a beat up 45 to recreate the mono 45 of "Crystal Blue Persuasion." Will be ideal if the mono 45 of this turns up in the collection.
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TomDiehl1
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| Posted: 20 August 2008 at 5:14pm | IP Logged
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As a bonus track they should include the early mono version of Draggin' The Line, when it was just a B side of the release before the hit version. I shocked one of my DJ friends by playing both for him back to back....
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eriejwg
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| Posted: 20 August 2008 at 5:30pm | IP Logged
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So, Tom, there were actually 3 versions of "Draggin' the Line?"
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Todd Ireland
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| Posted: 20 August 2008 at 5:53pm | IP Logged
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I'm pumped to learn of this new Tommy James compilation and can't wait to finally be able to get the original hit single mixes from master tape sources! This is a CD collection that's long overdue.
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Yah Shure
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| Posted: 20 August 2008 at 7:05pm | IP Logged
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Yes, "Draggin' The Line" sans brass overdubs is quite the revelation!
"Ball Of Fire" was a stereo single mix? Where? My double A-sided promo is mono/mono, and my stock copy is mono as well. But the bass on the 45 mix just blows away the wimpy stereo LP version.
Let's hope that CCM gets Tommy's non-charting final Roulette 45 right. The "Calico" that Rhino passed off as Roulette 7147 on The Solo Years may have been a song called "Calico," but it was an entirely different song than the "Calico" 45. The promo copies of the "Calico" 45, though labeled and deadwax stamped as stereo/mono, actually played mono/mono. Will CCM unearth it in stereo?
XM's '60s channel played Tommy's newer stuff; I bought the CD singles of "I Love Christmas" and the remake of "Sweet Cherry Wine" with Tommy and The Kootz. Sounds like they might be included, too.
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TomDiehl1
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| Posted: 21 August 2008 at 12:35am | IP Logged
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eriejwg wrote:
| So, Tom, there were actually 3 versions of "Draggin' the Line?" |
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Yep....
There's the common stereo mix, where the horn echoes from one channel to the other, there's the hit mono mix where the horn appears to be without any echo on it (so you hear the horn part twice each time in the mono as opposed to 4 times in the stereo -- im just going by memory here, btw), and there's the original 45 rpm version that is without the horn part entirely. If further clarification is needed i can provide short samples of what I mean...
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Brian W.
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| Posted: 21 August 2008 at 2:06am | IP Logged
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eriejwg wrote:
Brian, the first thought I had too was "Draggin' The Line."
I did some painstaking surgery on a beat up 45 to recreate the mono 45 of "Crystal Blue Persuasion." Will be ideal if the mono 45 of this turns up in the collection. |
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AaronK did a good 45 transfer, too, and I seem to remember him telling me that for one damaged portion he folded the stereo mix, and you couldn't even tell. I think he played it for me, and I couldn't tell, either.
So maybe the commercial 45 was a fold-down of one of those unique mixes Osborne is talking about.
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Todd Ireland
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| Posted: 28 September 2008 at 12:38pm | IP Logged
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Does anyone know if the upcoming Tommy James 40th Anniversary CD compilation on the Collectors' Choice label is still sheduled for an October 14 release? I've been wanting to pre-order it on the label's website, but I still don't see any information about it.
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TomDiehl1
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| Posted: 28 September 2008 at 6:32pm | IP Logged
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Re-reading the original post, i was surprised to see the comment that there is no stereo mix of I Think We're Alone Now. Not on vinyl, sure, but at least two different stereo mixes do exist on cd.
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Yah Shure
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| Posted: 28 September 2008 at 7:20pm | IP Logged
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TomDiehl1 wrote:
| Re-reading the original post, i was surprised to see the comment that there is no stereo mix of I Think We're Alone Now. Not on vinyl, sure, but at least two different stereo mixes do exist on cd. |
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But are either of those the final mix of the song? I only have one stereo version on CD, which Tommy has referred to on XM as an early, rough mix attempt, on which they'd added keyboards and other instrumentation.
After listening to it, they went back and stripped much of that instrumentation out during the verses for a simpler feel on the final, hit mix. After all of that adding and stripping, the final mix sounded a bit distorted even on the original 45, which perhaps might explain why a stereo mix was not attempted in 1967.
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TomDiehl1
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| Posted: 29 September 2008 at 9:04am | IP Logged
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Yah Shure wrote:
TomDiehl1 wrote:
| Re-reading the original post, i was surprised to see the comment that there is no stereo mix of I Think We're Alone Now. Not on vinyl, sure, but at least two different stereo mixes do exist on cd. |
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But are either of those the final mix of the song? I only have one stereo version on CD, which Tommy has referred to on XM as an early, rough mix attempt, on which they'd added keyboards and other instrumentation.
After listening to it, they went back and stripped much of that instrumentation out during the verses for a simpler feel on the final, hit mix. After all of that adding and stripping, the final mix sounded a bit distorted even on the original 45, which perhaps might explain why a stereo mix was not attempted in 1967. |
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The 2nd stereo mix was a remix from the session tape, it sounds closer to the 45 version but is still not accurate....but then again 95% of all stereo mixes don't match their mono counterparts when folded down to mono.
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Yah Shure
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| Posted: 29 September 2008 at 4:12pm | IP Logged
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Todd Ireland wrote:
| Does anyone know if the upcoming Tommy James 40th Anniversary CD compilation on the Collectors' Choice label is still sheduled for an October 14 release? |
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The October CCM catalog arrived today, and it says October 14th is the day.
The set is A-side singles-based, so it would appear that the version of "Draggin' The Line" on the set will be the hit A-side with overdubs, not the horns-free original B-side (so hang onto those "Church Street Soul Revival" 45s!) I know that the slower pitch on "Hanky Panky" will drive me nuts, but that'll be easy enough to deal with. :)
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Paul C
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| Posted: 01 October 2008 at 8:34am | IP Logged
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Yah Shure wrote:
I know that the slower pitch on "Hanky Panky" will drive me nuts, but that'll be easy enough to deal with. :)
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According to Mike Callahan's BSN 1991 publication A Guide To Oldies On Compact Disc, Bill Inglot has stated that Rhino used a Snap 45 for Billboard Top Rock 'N' Roll Hits - 1966. It is therefore quite possible that most CD appearances of this song are in fact the Snap speed.
The same publication claims that Roulette used a Snap 45 when they reissued the song, although Tommy James claimed in a Goldmine interview many years ago that he himself brought the master tape to Roulette.
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TomDiehl1
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| Posted: 01 October 2008 at 11:20am | IP Logged
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Roulette never had a master tape to source from until they made their own master using a 2nd pressing Snap 45 (which was already sped up). The Roulette master has record noise on the intro but is how the record always sounded on Roulette 45's and lp's, anyway.
There were tens of thousands of 2nd pressing Snap (and Red Fox) 45's sold which contained the song already sped up. Chances are some cds (and probably the Roulette master) are sourced from these, but they're still not the true originals. Besides, if Roulette had the master tape, why would anyone need to use a vinyl source? All copies of the song clearly are vinyl dubs, without exception...and i've heard the slower version of the song, i prefer it sped up for sure.
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Todd Ireland
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| Posted: 02 October 2008 at 9:52pm | IP Logged
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The 40 Years (1966-2006) CD set is now available for pre-order on the Collectors' Choice website. You'll need to perform an artist search under "TOMMY JAMES & THE SHONDELLS" to find it.
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Paul C
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| Posted: 05 October 2008 at 1:32pm | IP Logged
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Thanks for that interesting info, Tom. I have owned a Snap 45 for over twenty years but have always suspected it was not an original. It must be one of the second pressing 45s, and it's also likely one of these that Rhino used.
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TomDiehl1
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| Posted: 05 October 2008 at 3:08pm | IP Logged
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That is a 2nd press Snap 45, as it mentions Red Fox records on the label. It could be an original if it has machine stamping in the trail-out, but this was the version that was bootlegged.
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Todd Ireland
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| Posted: 21 October 2008 at 8:34pm | IP Logged
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Has anyone received their copy of the 40th Anniversary CD set yet? I pre-ordered mine from the Collector's Choice website several weeks ago and I still haven't received anything, nor have I gotten word of a delivery date.
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eriejwg
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| Posted: 21 October 2008 at 9:01pm | IP Logged
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Todd:
I've seen a website list 10/21 as a release date, yet in a Google search, found 2 other websites with later release dates. One listed 11/11 and the other listed 11/25.
Could the collection have been delayed?
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Topic: Tommy James 40th Anniversary CD
