Customer Reviews

20th Century Masters: Millennium Collection

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This 20th Century Masters CD is nothing but an incomplete version of 'The Best Of Switch' CD from 1991 (which also included 'Next To You'). Even with the 'remastered' tag, this CD still loses points for not including additional tracks. I added the following songs for an IMPROVED 'Best Of Switch' CD (now clocking in at 79:57).....

12. Calling On All Girls
13. It's So Real
14. Next To You
15. We Like To Party..Come On
16. I Wanna Be With You
17. You're The One For Me

Instead of releasing a comprehensive collection, or even better, all of Switch's albums on CD format, Motown/Uni insists on selling fans short. Well, since they refuse to do the right thing, I remastered 'The Best Of Switch' with the bonus tracks listed above, and I also created my own 2 on 1 CD featuring BOTH 'Switch'(1978) & 'Switch II'(1979) together like they should be. If you own mint vinyl copies of these albums, you should get them mastered onto CD ASAP...you'll love the end result! In closing, this 'Best Of Switch' CD is nice, but long time fans deserve much more!

The Debarge family was Motown's big family act after the Jacksons left, and spawned two groups Debarge and Switch. Switch had a string ful of hits but in my opinion there ballads were what really made stand the group stand out. Tracks like They'll Never Be, I Call Your Name, Love Over & Over Again are seventies R&B at their finest. But the track that really does it for me is I Wanna Be Closer. Courtesy of Jermaine Jackson's writing and producing talents , I Wanna Be Closer is a song that's silky smooth and overflowing with romanticism. Bobby Debarge's searing falsetto countered by Philip Ingram's tenor/baritone made this a quiet storm staple and is serious need of a remake. My only complaint about the CD is it lacks Caling On All Girls but for $9.99 you get your money's worth.

Switch was a very talented group of musicians, and they are apparently fondly remembered by a small (but perceptive) number of Old School R&B fans like me. There are a lot of good songs on here--"There'll Never Be", "Friend in the Sky", "Call on Me", etc. but none comes close to "I Call Your Name", one of the all-time great slow jams, presented here in all its 7 minutes-plus glory. The opening rap is sweet, funny and completely endearing, and Bobby DeBarge proceeds to sing like an exalted angel throughout the rest of the song. Everyone I've played this for has fallen in love with it: "I'm a man now, baby, a grown man!" It should have been a monster hit.....just typing about it now makes me wanna slip it back on the cd player.

This review is for all the old school lovers and romanticists'. This is a must for you on CD..It's got them all, except Calling All Girls..You can get that on a slow jams compilation CD.

How can you forget the little 45 laying by the turntable and everyone saying put that switch on!! Huh..!!

Switch's first album was nothing but, There'll Never Be..Well from time to time you would here Best Beat in Town, if you could afford the album..Umppphh..Slow dancing (grinding) in the basement to that song over and over at the house parties (sends chills)..

How can you forget the intro to I Call Your Name???
Remember...Are You going to call me like you said u would??Sometimes...I just can't get over thinking about u baby...Sometimes..

How can you forget I Wanna Be Closer..?? A classic often overlooked gem by the DeBarge brothers..It's on here..

How can you forget classic Bobby Debarge anthems..Don't Take My Love Away and Love Over and Over (I just want you to love me, there's no mystery, love me---Love me, love me, love me) God rest his soul that voice!! And you get Switch's Best Beat In Town a rare up tempo song..

This is a classic CD..I can't imagine anyone who grew up in this era without at least two Switch songs to there collection and you get them all here..

I just wish it had Calling All Girls--My all time favorite next to.....When I'm Lonely..When I'm discouraged..I-CAll-Your-Name..

Trust me...

First of all I do like the compilation, I gave it 4 stars because its basically the same album as the 1991 release Best Of...Now i love all the songs on the best of series but how could you leave off others nuggets as "I Wanna Be With You" from the first album "SWITCH" and "Calling On All Girls","You're The one For Me" and "Falling" from SWITCH II The second release, The 3rd release "This Is My Dream" Featured gems such as the title track and "Why'D You Let Love Fall" and "All I Need Is You" this release featured sister Bunny DeBarge contributing three lovely written songs, The 4th release "Reaching For tomorrow' contained nuggets such as "I've Finally Found Someone New" and the beautifully written song "My Friend In The Sky" Very inspirational and Bobby DeBarge vocals here shine through and shows you that there will never be another like him PERIOD! The last release featured the nuggets "I Luv It" and "Push The Switch(HIGH ENERGY SWITCH)" this release also introduced two new members Terrance Gaines on Lead Vocals and Attala Zane Giles on Lead & Bass Guitars ......This release signaled the departure of Bobby DeBarge and Tommy DeBarge the year was 1981. Over all Switch had Five albums for motown. Switch was a well oiled unit and they JAMMED on the Up Tempo joints and as for the Slow Jams they brought the heat wit Bobby and Phillip ingram on vocals that was a nice combo, superb songwriting and musicianship "There'll Never BE" another switch and Bobby DeBarge man with a VOICE like ANGLES of course gone too soon man, What a falsetto......WOW! Now i have all 5 albums and they are in MINT CONDITION and i will be making my own best of serious........Keep Jamming SWITCH!!!!

When one hears the voice of Bobby Debarge, they will swear out angels came down from heaven for a serenade. Bobby's voice is so beautiful that words cannot even begin to express. This whole CD is tight. Bobby, RIP.

I think Motowns biggest mistake was not doing enough
to promote bands like Switch,despite Jermaine Jackson's instistance to the contrary.Featuring the two older DeBarge brothers,Switch had a very appropriate name seeing as the band
was capable of performing both cute falsetto slow jams and (my own favorites)smoking mid and uptempo funk and dance numbers,both of whitch are featured here.My favorites in the latter catagory are the discofied "Best Beat In Town","I Do Love You" and "(You Pulled A) Switch",whitch adds some slightly fusion-y keyboard work to the mix.One of the more diverse and accomplished bands on late 70's Motown.Why they wern't developed into a new Funk Brothers I will never know!

Switch the Soulful Singing&Playing is all over the place here.you know this Group was something else because unlike other Motown acts before&after Switch was never tweaked up.they were able to keep there In the Pocket Grooves&Smooth Soulful Sounds."There'll Never Be"&"I Call Your Name" can hang with any Slow-Jams over the past 20 plus years easily.this Group is Vastly Underrated.You hear so much harmony&on point arrangements.the Instrumentation is also Tough.these Guys were Multi-Instrumentalists able to play various Instruments.the Lead Vocalist Bobby Debarge was something else.a Musical Force that never got His Full Due.if you want Songs that take you back to a time period when you were taking away by the Music&Feeling then this set is for you.

VERY PLEASED WITH MY PURCHASE,SWITCH AS A WHOLE WAS A GREAT GROUP WHO MADE REMARKABLE MUSIC THAT YOU COULD FEEL AND THE MANY TALENTS OF BOBBY DEBARGE, TRULY AMAZING. MY PERSONAL FAVORITE HANDS DOWN THE SPECIAL "THERE'LL" NEVER BE" THE FIRST SWITCH SINGLE RELEASED IN 1978...THE YEAR I WAS BORN. THIS TUNE HAS A CATCHY GROOVE THE HARMONIES ARE TOP NOTCH AND THE ARRANGEMENT IS EXCELLENT. OTHER HIGH NOTES ON THE ALBUM ARE "FRIEND IN THE SKY", "DON'T TAKE MY LOVE AWAY" IN WHICH YOU REALLY GET A FEEL OF THE VOCAL RANGE BOBBY DEBARGE POSSESED FROM THE START TO FINISH OVER A NICE STRING ARRANGEMENT "YOU AND I" IS A LOVE BALLAD THAT MAKES YOU THINK AND THE VOCALS ARE OUTSTANDING AS USUAL. "LOVE OVER AND OVER" IS A NICE EQUASION OF HEARING THE GROUP SING FOR US ALL IN HARMONY, AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST THE FLAWLESS "I CALL YOUR NAME" IN WHICH IS SAMPLED IN OUR EARS THESE DAYS WHEN WE HEAR "THROW SOME D'S" BY RICH BOY. I ALWAYS WONDER DO THESE NEW ARTISTS FEEL THE MUSIC AND KNOW THE GREATNESS OF ONE IN WHICH THEY ARE SAMPLING OR PERHAPS THEY MAYBE NEVER HEARD OF THE INDIVIDUALS. THE BEST OF SWITCH IS AN ALBUM YOU CAN PUT IN AND IT'S SURE TO RELAX YOUR MIND PUT YOU IN A GROOVE AND DELIGHT YOU.WHEN YOU ARE A TRUE MUSIC LOVER LIKE MYSELF IT NEVER GETS OLD IT JUST ALLOWS YOU TO TAKE A CHANCE AND OBSERVE THE NEW BUT IN DUE TIME YOU TEND TO COME RIGHT BACK TO THE BEST, THE BEST THAT YOU FELT IN GENUINE EXTRAORDINARY MUSIC THAT WILL ALWAYS BE GREAT, AND THAT'S WHAT YOU GET IN THE MILLENNIUM COLLECTION OF THE BEST OF SWITCH. THANKS GENTLEMAN FOR YOUR BEAUTIFUL PIECES OF WORK.
MARCE'

Switch were an excellent group despite never making a major impact their music still remain a staple for R&B lovers. Songs like "There'll Never Be" "I Call Your Name" & "I Wanna Be Closer" are timeless jams that still receive airplay to this day on the oldies stations. The album as awhole is a treat and it gives people who were fans of their major singles to become familiar with some of their lesser known songs. It's not a full length album but this compilation is the closer you can become since most of their albums are out of print. You can't deny when you hear one of their singles on radio it makes you feel just as good now then it did when it 1st came out. "I Call Your Name" is the cut.