Customer Reviews

Jersey Beat: Music of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This set literally blew me away...literally, like where was I??!!?? I have to be honest, I saw this set and thought, hmmmm, nice packaging, then I saw it for a great price, so I thought I'd bite. Rhino recently put out the 2CD "Definitive Pop Collection", which was decent, but I thought a better collection could be done...then I saw this set.

Now, I figured, I wanted a well-done proper anthology of their work, so I can put it all into proper perspective. I knew, and loved, a bunch of their hits, and Frankie's solo hits, but not them all, so I wanted to hear them all, in chronological order. I originally thought Frankie and the Jersey boys to be prefabricated, with songs by outside songwriters, and no more than a guilty pleasure. I figured, if I didn't enjoy it, I knew I can sell it to a friend who loves their work.

Well, I opened it up first and went right to the 84-page booklet, nicely put together by-the-way. Saw the main essay was written by none other than Dennis Diken from one of my fave powerpop bands, New Jersey's own Smithereens!!! It's well-written and VERY insightful. THEN, I saw all the tributes under each of the songs, by everyone cool, from Little Steven Van Zandt (from Bruce Springsteen's E-Street Band, the Sopranos and his own Underground Garage radio show on Sirius Satellite Radio), UK guitarist Johnny Marr (From the Smiths, Pretenders, The The and now Modest Mouse), Brian Wilson, Cher, Neil Sedaka, Neil Diamond, Joe Pesce, Billy Joel, even Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban, and a ton of others...so I couldn't wait to listen.

Oh...My...Gosh. I was floored. One thing I didn't know...pretty much ALL the songs were written by the band's keyboardist Bob Gaudio...he was the Brian Wilson of the band, him and genius producer Bob Crewe. Frankie Valli, even though he wasn't a songwriter, he had a voice like an alien, almost a freak of nature, unique and finely-tuned...one part classic crooner, one part rock & roller. Vocally, the 4 Seasons were like the Beach Boys, similar influences and the way the band evolved. The productions were very ARTFUL. Radio did this band no favours. They didn't show the band from an artistic angle, just a hitbound one, which is a bad thing. As the band evolved and became less commercial, the hits dried up, but they became better, musically. They even dabbled in psychedelia in 1968/1969, with their artistic masterpiece, the album "Genuine Imitation Life Gazette", which sold a little, not as much as their prior work, and most people don't know the genius level at work on this opus. It's their equivalent of "Sgt Pepper's", "Pet Sounds", "Smile", "Head", "Odessa", "Battle Of The Bands", etc, you get my drift.

Even after the band hit a dry period and Bob became just the band's songwriter behind the scenes, and 4 new 4 Seasons were indoctrinated, the band evolved even further on the "Who Loves You" and "Helicon" albums in the mid-to-late 70s. As the 4 Seasons entered the 80s and 90s and now, they never stopped growing, but records appeared less frequently. Frankie's solo work always was of a high quality as well, but different from the band's. Now, with the Broadway show "Jersey Boys" playing to sellout crowds, the genius of their work will finally be appreciated and will garner their due...it did from me, but I don't feel guilty though, I blame radio, ESPECIALLY oldies stations, for this heinous crime against this great band.

This genius group is well-documented on this packed-to-the-gills 3CD/1DVD boxset. All 3 CDs are 79 minutes and change, so they are filled to the brim with no room for more, with 99% of their charting hits, B-sides, overlooked album tracks and rarities, all in proper perspective. The 4th disc, a DVD, is a nice 40-minute souvenir, with TV appearances, live concert clips and 3 promo vidclips from the mid-to-late 70s. What struck me was that up until 1975, the band didn't have a drummer (and no drummer appeared with them on TV either...just studio drummers on their recordings)...usually, I'd say this is a bad thing, but then again, ABBA didn't have a drummer in their lineup, just studio players. Also, Frankie was VERY low-key and modest, and in the mid-70s, he went from a Wayne Newton look (that moustache, ouch!!) to almost Eric Carmen-ish during the comeback. And, in the mid-70s lineup, their DRUMMER was their lead singer on "December, 1963"!!! Interesting.

Anyhoo, one of the most revelatory boxsets I've ever heard in my life, and I now count them up there with the Beach Boys and Byrds as one of THE best, most innovative pop/even powerpop bands that ever was...AND finally, with many acts around this long, a boxset would be enough, all you would need in your collection...nope, with these fellas, I WANT THE CATALOGUE, and I saw their 24(!) studio albums (band and FV solo) were reissued on Collector's Choice as remastered 2-fers in 2006, so I will buy those, probably the first one being "Working My Way Back To You/Genuine Imitation Life Gazette".

Investigate pronto...and prepare to be floored...I was, and I thought they were cheese originally. NO WAY!!! One of America's true treasures, and NOTHING is subpar or 2nd rate, even their 80s and 90s work!!!

This is all you will ever need. This has everything you want.
"Jersey Beat" is a perfect box set covering the careers of The Four Seasons and Frankie Valli. Like many people, after seeing the remarkable "Jersey Boys", I sought out some Four Seasons music, and ordered THIS.

Jackpot.

All important (and many peripherally interesting) songs are here, remastered as good as they're probably ever going to get. Big hits, B-Sides, those weird "Wonder Who" songs...they sound glorious.

The three CD's cover "Sherry" all the way to an unusual Four Seasons-Beach Boys "duet." And it's one heck of a ride. Those early singles have not lost an ounce of their power. The 70's songs...like "Who Loves You" and "December 1963"...also hold up surprisingly well.

Classic singles abound..."Walk Like A Man", "Dawn", "Rag Doll"...even slightly cheesy material like the solo "Swearin' To God" comes to life here. I discovered other tunes to love...like "Alone" and "Opus 17".

The fourth disc is a 40-minute video compilation of a bunch of their songs, performed on various TV shows over the 60's and 70's. I promise you that you will laugh out loud watching the strange, stilted choreography, the hilarious haircuts and riotous "fashions" of the era.

But those songs still hold up.

A terrific, thick booklet accompanies the set, with great liner notes.

This box set is a master class in the legacy of The Four Seasons.

I had high hopes that Rhino would give the 4 Seasons the killer multi-disc set they deserved. And this is the closest they have come to doing so. It's frustrating to long time fans who have bought earlier best-of's and wanted improved sound quality, maybe a few alt-takes, stereo remixes and more gems. Die hard Seasons fans didn't get it again. Like the 25th Anniversary set, this set really needed a 4th CD for more goodies. 3 CD's just doesn't do the 4 Seasons justice with over 40 years of recordings.

And the sound quality isn't much an improvement than the older Rhino, Curb and Ace UK reissues. It's just been remastered louder than before with more compression and bass EQ for the IPOD generation (a fault of most newly "remastered" CD's - some have already complained, so hang onto those 80-90's vintage Seasons CD's!).

The choice to have the 62-65 material in mono and then everything after "Lets Hang On!" in stereo is bewildering. Most of the Seasons early 60's material sounds wonderful in wide stereo, so why not use it?

Or on the other hand (since I own most of this stuff before) I would have loved to have had a expanded version of the Ace "Edizione D' Oro" CD (which I lucked out finding used) with ALL MONO SINGLE MIXES from 62-70. If it was released on a 45 in mono it should have been in mono here for God and History's sake.

Like Motown and the Beach Boys many of the 4 Seasons/Valli mid 60's mono versions like "Your Ready Now", "Working My Way Back To You" "Tell it To the Rain", "Opus 17" and "Beggin'" are far superior mixes with a punch and dynamics missing from the stereo versions.

The way this set has been compiled with CD #1 almost all in mono it looks like that could have been the intention, but it seems to me Rhino ran out of time (or money) to find and then remaster the later single versions.

Still the booklet is a fitting tribute to the group with lots of info I've never discovered before (Thank you Dennis Diken!), and the DVD is fun to watch though short - there's plenty of other TV appearances Rhino could have dug up.

Again this is a good set for new 4 Seasons fans who have discovered them via oldies radio and "Jersey Boys". But I suggest digging around and finding Rhino's "25th Anniversary collection" - which was done when Rhino was a real record company not just a AOL-Time Warner imprint. Everything that was recorded in stereo is in stereo on that set, and the sound quality is smoother and less harsh on the ears. (and it doesn't have a guest appearance by Mike Love!)

(BTW: I give this set a 4 1/2)

Let me say I really was not a Four Seasons fan until Jersey boys. Hey I grew up in the 80's and they really peaked in the 60's- 70's. I saw Jersey boys and was hooked. I just bought this collection and have played it over and over. I wish I grew up in the 60's and 70's. I especially like the Down the Hall song, Rapsody and Streetfighter. I am in a band and we actually think Down the hall fits todays sound and plan on covering it. I am still blown away by this collection, and some of the music here I have never heard of and love the lyrics and the songwriting. That Bob Guadio was amazing. And I never was a fan of Frankie Valli (Grease), but now I wish I had seen him perform. His DVD vocal on Working my way back to you is as powerful a vocal as I have ever heard any singer perform. Kodos to Frankie Valli.

It's inexplicable that Rhino just couldn't bring itself to putting all the stereo versions of Let's Hang On, Dawn and Rag Doll on ONE compilation. They have appeared separately in various compilations. ACE came close by putting stereo versions of Let's Hang On and Dawn on the 'Edizione d'oro'. The Philips double LP of the same title have all the tracks in stereo. The stereo track, 'Let's Hang On', on this Jersey Beat compilation sounds very similar to that on the Edizione d'oro, with the starting refrain in 'mono'.

Brilliant CD-DVD combo, simply wicked. Worth SIX stars if all titles from Rarities vol. 1&2 were included.

First let me say I love the 4 Seasons. Saw them live a couple of times in the late 60's and early 70's. Unfortunately there are a lot of songs on this box that would be best left forgotten. There are hit collections that do them better justice for less money.

Sometimes we forget who was REALLY responsible for the actual songwriting behind The Four Seasons (and many other top stars of the day)!Bob Gaudio and Bob Crewe were the Lennon/McCartney of the USA....or the other way around! What a true musical genius Bob Gaudio is! And of course,Frankie Valli's vocals are golden!This collection is far superior to any other FV and The Four Seasons previously released.The bonus DVD is amazing to watch too! All the hits are here and more.Honorable mention also goes to Joe Long and Gerry Polci for their later contributions to the band.Worth every penny!!

Let me start by I was born in Jersey in 1983. But I grew up to the sounds of WCBSFM 101.1 from NYC. This of course included many of The Four Season's Hits. I have an original vinyl copy of Gold Vault of Hits that, for a while, constantly played in my parent's turntable. I love The Four Seasons. This collection should be in every home in America (and around the world). It allows me to discover even more songs that until now I didn't know existed. BUY THIS COLLECTION. As far as I'm concerned, it's a steal at this price.

Thanks to the hit musical "Jersey Boys," the once largely ignored impact and influence of The Four Seasons is now more relevant and recognized than ever. This new 4 disc boxed set, containing 3 cds and one dvd, is by far the most comprehensive and essential collection of their music ever released. With 76 classic Four Seasons tracks and a bonus dvd of tv appearances and live performances, the group's legacy has never been more accuarately represented.

Disc 1 and the first half of Disc 2 chronicles the band's meteoric rise to success from 1962 to 1967. Thanks to the band's angelic harmonies, top notch production values, lead singer Frankie Valli's soaring falsetto and insanely catchy and brilliantly written songs by members Bob Crewe and Bob Gaudio. Songs such as "Sherry," "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Walk Like A Man," "Dawn (Go Away)," "Ronnie," "Rag Doll," (one of the most perfect songs ever written), and "Let's Hang On." All of these songs helped define American Rock and Roll and provided ample competition during The Beatles' invasion.

Of course, besides these all time classics in the pantheon of popular music, lesser known tracks such as "Marlena," "Peanuts," "Marcie," "Silence Is Golden" and the woefully underrated "Big Man In Town" were further proof of The Four Seasons' kanck for creating well crafted, Spector esque musical productions with the same professionalism and uniqueness of early Beatles and Motown records that for many years cast The Four Seasons aside.

By 1966, The Four Seasons' music starting getting more exprimental and complex as the 1960s' wore on. Records like "Working My Way Back To You," "Opus 17 (Don't Worry 'Bout Me)" an their cover of "I've Got You Under My Skin" represented a more mature, adult sound to their music, a far cry from the Doo-woop sound just four years earlier. By 1967, Frankie Valli was working part time as a solo artist and scored a massive hit with one of the most beautiful songs in the world, "Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You." A rift began forming around this time. Frankie was ready to venture out on his own. Still, great music was still to be found from the group, despite a lack of chart success. "Watch The Flowers Grow," "Will You Love Me Tommorrow," (one of the best versions of the song), "She Gives Me Light," and "The Night." But by 1972, differences drove them aparrt. The original lineup departed from each other.

Frankie Valli, however, remained active in the music field, and by 1975 he had established himself as a successful solo artist, scoring him a number one hit with the melancholy "My Eyes Adored You," a haunting reflection of lost childhood love that topped the charts. Frankie scored further hits with the funky "Swearin' To God" and an updating of "Our Day Will Come." His newfound success assured, Frankie put together a new version of The Four Seasons, with him as the only original members. The new incarantion of the group scored a massive hit with "Who Loves You?" and scored the biggest hit of their career with the timeless "December 1963 (Oh, What A Night)," a classic foray into disco known the world over.

Valli scored further with "Grease," and by the 1980s' he and The Four Seasons were legends, still cutting records and performing. These rarely heard songs are a highlight of Disc 3.

The set's accompanying booklet and dvd are both fantastic, and the book has some wonderful notes on each song by various well known celebrities in the entertainment field.

This excellent collection is essential for all music fans.