Customer Reviews

Dreams Come True

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

 

 

Although I have given this 4 stars, this has been put together with tender loving care, with packaging which is very well done and quite unique.

I have been a Judee Sill fan since her first album came out in the very early 70's. I knew of Heart Food but not until it was unavailable. Then both became available on CD last year (or the year before) and I splashed out £40 for each - they are still selling in UK shops for about that, but they are well worth the high price.

I never knew of any other material. So this is a treat. The songs are typical of the type she wrote and the album sub-title (Hi I love you right heartily here) oozes Judee Sill-speak. I think the songs mask the troubled life she must have left. You only have to read the extraordinarily informative booklet to get an idea of the life she led a tortured soul, perhaps. However, the songs fly away on the breeze but always make a soft landing.

The film footage from 1973 on disc 2 is not great quality, but is the first I have seen of her and is very enlightening and enchanting.

So if you liked her first two albums, then you need to have this little gem - but I think you need the two studio albums first to appreciate her at her very best before embarking on this package.

Because it's so well done, this package is a welcome addition to Judee Sill's legacy. While she is unknown by much of the public, to those who really focus on music, she is a legend. The book detailing her life is revelatory. I had heard about a troubled past, but had little understanding of the depth of problems from the alcoholic mother, abusive stepfather, brother who died, prostitution & lesbianism. While I had heard about her heroin addiction, I was unaware that she'd also had committed armed robbery. The funniest quote is from Russell Giguere, one of the original members of the Association, "She told me that she got busted for armed robbery & was so nervous she actually said, 'Okay mother sticker this is a fu*k up.'" This is the stuff from which movies are made!

But her musical muse is well in tact on her "lost album," one to be sought by those for whom "Heart Food" and the self titled Asylum LP are classic listening. "The Apocalypse Express" showcases Judee's lovely sense of melody & harmony, "Here it comes with dynamos churning, Love steady burning & knowing no rest, Savage shield is twisting & turning, screaming a sermon, That's smoldering stress." "Things Are Looking Up" has Judee's lovely vocals that seem to float effortlessly, "What a spell I'm under, I've been smiling at the Earth way up here on high, Is it any wonder that my trouble disappeared & I learned to fly?" The studio demo of "'Til Dreams Come True" is beautiful just to hear Judee playing piano sans vocals.

Of the music on the second disc, it's interesting to read about the tunes in the booklet. "Dead Time Bummer Blues" is referenced as the first song she wrote and was during her incarceration, "My cellmate stole a Cadillac & she's going home tomorrow." "Sunny Side Up Luck" has Judee's lovely sense of melody that makes you wish you could have heard the arrangement she'd have developed for the tune. "Emerald River Dance" is another delightful gem, "It seems like everyone's so afraid of the ocean 'cause they can't bear the pain, but the deeper sorrow carves in the heart of your being, the more joy you can contain." Judee's home recording of the randy tale "North Country" is a hoot, particularly when you realize it was sung by bank robber and has the cooing of a small child in the background.

Judee's life was a hard one, some of it by choice. However, the religious imagery and the exquisite sense of melody give birth to the beauty of her music. While this set is for those who already appreciate her craft, it is a welcome addition to her recorded legacy. The concern footage is also welcome for giving a glimpse of her live performance. Enjoy!

let me say that iam a true fanatical fan of those two judee sill records and that HEARTFOOD in particular is one of the pinnacles of the greatest ever records..yep along side PINK MOON BLOOD ON THE TRACKS ASTRAL WEEKS the great tragedyis that she is so unknown..nice to see uncut magazine hopefully starting some sort of huge revival ..like nick drake and brian wilson have ..i urge all readers to buy the rhinohanmade versions of the first two albums immedietly...sell the car..pawn the tv..but get those cd,s..they are limited editions.and they are both total masterpieces.Anyway when i heard about DREAMS COME TRUE icouldnt beleive it.I got a copy immedietly and it does not dissapoint in anyway..The packaging is simply beautiful with a book so lovingly put together containing many interviews with those who knew her..she obviously seems to have left a huge mark on thier lives. And even more incredible is there is video footage .But its the music and her songsthat make this wonderful release one of the most exciting cd,s in years ..yesthis is as greatas her two albums i kid you not.Okay i admit it took me a good few listens over a few days before the whole thing just really blew my mind,what an incredible bunch of songs..how on earth did this go unreleased..the whole cd is heartbreakinly beautiful and so very sad...its one of those very rare releases which i just cant get outta me head.I will let other reveiwers describe its detail as m totally inebt at being rational enough o gather my thoughts clearly enough to say how much this has knocked me out..best thing ive heard this century by the greatest female singer songwriter of all time..

This is put together like a box set, but what it was put in was just cellophane, not a box. It does not have any big hit songs, so it might have been hard to sell as a box. The description on the cellophane strikes me as being entirely accurate:

Judee Sill ~ Dreams Come True
hi ~ i love you right heartily here ~ new songs
two-disc set featuring her previously unreleased 1974 3rd
album, mixed by Jim O'Rourke, plus studio and home demos,
and a 12-minute QuickTime movie of a '73 concert. Contains
a deluxe 72-page book with interviews and vintage photos.

Credits in the book for the Judee Sill Live at USC 1973 movie mention "Original video produced and recorded by Pat Blessing . . . restored by Bay Area Video Coalition Preservation Center, San Francisco, CA . . . Portrait photography of Judee Sill by Wesley Pouliot, Joan Plummer and Judy Himmel." During parts of the five songs on the video, still pictures of Judee Sill are panned. The microphones which appear in the video do not seem to be responsible for the sound, which is typical of what cameras were picking up from a distance.

For those who would not recognize the titles of the five songs that appear in the movie, I would suggest getting the many versions that are now on a 2-CD set with 19 bonus tracks that are available as the complete recordings of the Asylum years. When I bought that set, it was called `Abracadabra.' It included seven songs Live in Boston, 1971, which included more informative comments than anything on `Dreams Come True.' The quality of her singing on her demos is so great, I'm now buying every song she has been recorded doing, including the Tommy Peltier `Chariot of Astral Light' CD which has a QuickTime video of two songs on which Judee Sill was one of four people in a studio that got a decent soundtrack for `Chariot of Astral Light' and `Smile All the While.'

I like Judee Sill's gospel piano abilities slightly more than the competent guitar she plays half the time on any CD. Her voice is heavenly, but words in the early Gospel songs skewed the theology in a highly personal direction that always sounded great coming from her. I like listening to her, whatever the circumstances, and I wish I could find ways to know her songs even better. Sheet music would be nice, but I haven't seen any.

Judee Sill's first two albums are two of my favorite records of all time. They are consistently brilliant in every way. So you can imagine my great anticipation when I heard that her fabled 3rd album (plus rarities) was to be released. Needless to say, this collection does not disappoint. Disc one, which is devoted to the 3rd album "Dreams Come True", is fantastic. The 2004 mixing and mastering of these titles is tremendous, with a very rich and full sound. Interestingly enough, Judee decided to change her style a little bit. At first listen, the Sill fan will notice a much "earthier" approach. Not only in the song production (which has a very "jam session" kind of feel), but in the material itself, which is more upbeat. It's still catchy, concise and clever as hell, but in a new way - which is refreshing, because every artist should grow. Her back-up band is wonderful - there's not a misplaced note anywhere in these 8 songs (supposedly all recorded live in the studio, including Judee's lead vocal). These tunes aren't as immediately accessible as her previous ones and I think that is due in part to the strange, new environment in which we are hearing Judee's music. But once you get used to this, it's classic Judee Sill. Each of the 8 songs is a gem, but the finale in particular ("Til Dreams Come True") is an absolutely beautiful song and worth the price of the CD alone. It's just Judee and her piano running through one of the most achingly powerful performances I've ever heard. After the proper album, there are 3 demos, which are a nice touch (especially the solo piano backing track of "Dreams Come True"). Disc two is a collection of "lost songs", which are pretty much all home demos, so the scratchy, amateurish quality is to be expected. The songs themselves are great. One of the discs is enhanced, featuring an old Judee Sill video performance. It looks like she's playing in a University courtyard or something. The quality is inferior, but that's perfectly understandable and only enhances her haunting legacy. I'm happy just to see her in action. Lastly, the accompanying booklet is about 70 pages and features all you could ask of a booklet. Overall, this is an excellent collection that Sill fans and non-fans alike will surely enjoy.

I love her other records, but this one's mixed badly, seems like weak songs, and not worth buying. What a disappointment after hearing it DID exist. Ah well, get the other records, the outtakes, the BBC and maybe this one at the very last, if you have to....

What is there to say about Judee Sill?..a true true genius/unique60's/70's singer-songwriter!!!!BOTH her previously released solo albums were quite simply exquisite!First heard her (now i show my age!), when "Jesus was a cross-maker " first got radio airplay('71?), anyway , when i finally picked up the vinyl album , ijust could not believe my proverbial ears!Literally the whole of her 1st. album, now on c.d., is a bonafide materpiece!She quickly proved the more or less equal of , say , Joni Mitchell/ Laura Nyro / Carole King e.t.c.In fact i'd say , Judee was definitely out there, completely on her own.True, true talent.With the 'help' of David Geffen's Asylum label , Judee showed enormous potential!Songs such as Crayon Angel, Bless the Ridge Rider, Lamb ran away with the Crown, Abracadadabra, are now forever snuggled in to my 'collective conscience!!How did she get such remarkable lyrical talent??And that voice ,,,angelic, beautiful, worldly-wise, all this and more!!That 1st.ALBUM -"Judee Sill" gets my vote as one of the BEST album of songs ---EVER !!!!!!the fact a 2nd. album of also incredible music..."Heartfood" made it quite obvious , to the discerning listener, thaty Ms. Judee Sill was truly a one off , even amongst her 'peers'!The 2nd. album(beautiful strings , added by no other than the Grreat Mr. Henry Lewy(Jimmie Spheeris/ Joni Mitchell e.t.c.) was also magnetic/ mystical/Beautiful to behold, also(The Pearl/The Bride-groom), what fabulous lyrics!-those piano -hooks..phew, those marvellous choruses Judee crafted-here was a true , true musical Genius, no doubt!!!............and then ....she was gone!!!!!What happened to her talents ..why did she not make a return ??As time elapsed , we sadly heard of her previous 'drug problems' , and her oh so unhappy childhood(alcoholic parentse.t.c.) Judee may have grown up quick, rebellious, sreet=-wise and hard , but somehow her 'uniqueness' brought her through this!Also , we learned of her terrible 'back problems' . made worse by incompetent surgery!!She certainly went thru' life's wringer!!When news broke thru' about this current release of a previously 'unreleasde 3rd.,album.."Dreams come true", no-one here in England could have been more delighted than myself!!!So, ...here's the review!!!If you know of Judde Sill's ENORMOUS , mostly still un-recognised talent, as a singer-sopngwriter from the halcyon 1970's, if you know and rate her work/songs anything like i do ......this double c.d. release will probably ba one enormous let down to you , as it surely has been for me , sadly.I truly ponder as to whether this so called 3rd. album should EVEN have been released at all!!!!Maybe 3 of the entire 2-c.d. batch of songs is worth remembering!!!!!certainly"Apocalypse Express" is remeniscent of the genius she showed on her 1st. to CLASSIC albums, as is "oMEGA..." possibly the Best song here!.......the rest just probably needed more work doing on them , which Judee herself would probably have done to great success , had this '3rd.' album been on release!The 2nd. c.d. , of unknown songs , is so , so badly recorded i feel whoever released this album , they did Judee's memory a great dis-service!!So , anyway , there's my review ...had to write it!!Judee SILL , you are greatly, GREATLY missed by us all!!!!Get this c.d. maybe , tape and sell, just to hear it!!