Customer Reviews

Look at Us

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

As a few other reviewers have pointed out, Sundazed made the indefensible decision to release all of Sonny & Cher's albums mixed down to monaural sound. When I wrote to the company to complain, they explained that the original mixes were not acceptable, and that the easiest solution was to make them all mono. It is true that some of Sonny and Cher's first albums (and the first Cher solo album) were oddly mixed, so that essentially all of the instrumental sounds came from one channel, with the vocal(s) on the other--and nothing in between. But Sundazed overlooked two facts: One, at least some of the tracks on the original S&C albums--most significantly their signature hit "I Got You Babe"--exhibited excellent stereo separation on the original LPs (and let us remember that the brilliant orchestration, including those gorgeous woodwinds, was a great part of the appeal of that song). And second, when I buy a CD release of a beloved LP, it's because I want the original in a durable format, free of pops and clicks; I don't want someone else's idea of how the record should originally have sounded (another example of this is the disastrous remix on the first CD release of Frank Zappa's "We're Only In It For The Money"). One reviewer complained that it's like coloring a classic black-and-white movie, but it's actually worse--like releasing a Technicolor classic like "Gone with the Wind" in black and white. It's a sad state of affairs when a nearly 40-year-old LP has better sound than a brand-new CD. Even more objectionable, at least one song has been "edited" from the original: for reasons no one explains, the second verse of "Just You" has disappeared (the part where Cher sings:
"Thought right then he'd break my heart,
I could feel the teardrops start.
Why, didn't he know I love him so,
I could never let him go.")
WHY WOULD THEY DO THAT? (That verse at least is included in the "Best of" album, although again, it's mixed down to mono.)
To sum up, this is a sad representation of a glorious pop classic. Maybe someday someone will release the REAL Sonny & Cher albums.

This Lp was the most exciting the pair released.The lp is packed with heart-felt duets. It is vital folk rock. "Look at Us" has genuine sensititvity, and Sonny Bono is at his best, both writing, singing?, and his Spector-homage production. The haunting "Unchained Melody", and the folkie 500 miles are fresh and heart-felt."Just You " is still a rhapsody for teenagers. The anthem "I Got You Babe" has surely lasted and become an American piece of pop history. I do own the LP in stereo, and wrote the notes for this reissue series. I regret that these recordings have not been issued in stereo, though I was told this was for tape condition reasons. The LP "Good Times" has since been reissued in mono, so..I made my own cd from the original LP, so I could enjoy the stereo separation. Sonny and Cher sound better as duets in stereo, though I was thrilled to see these reissues come forth.

As a vintage music collector I was pleased to see some interest was put in the music of Sonny & Cher.

I know the label Sundazed to be relaible to come up with the best possible sound quality of vintage recordings.

But what a dissapointment to find, after buying all three discs, that the stereo masters were not used but again the sometimes overmodulated mono versions.

Being in the position of owning the original albums on Atco, I know that they had a srange idea about stereo recording engineering at Atco (Atlantic). But anyone who is in the possesion of the original stereo "Good Times" album (Atco 33-214) must agree that the producing skills of Sonny Bono (wich sometimes go beyond Phil Spector' ones, who by the way also battered his recordings by mixing them down to mono on his cd boxset "Back to mono") sound much better in stereo!

With nowdays technology it is possible to remix these "weird" sounding stereo masters to "normal" stereo. Listen for example to the recordings of Bobby Darin on the recently re-released albums on Atlantic. (thanks to the effort of Stephan Innocenzi).

Maybe someone ought to explane to Bob Irwin (who mastered the recordings for these cd's) that releasing these original intended stereo recordings in mono is like colouring original black and white intended movies (like The Longest Day)!

So if anyone feels the same way about this, please let me know!

And for the label Sundazed, you still can make it up by releasing the album "Good Times" by Sonny & Cher in it's original stereophonic sound!!!

"Look at Us" is one of the best collections of (mostly) cover songs from the Sixties. Yes, Sonny Bono wrote a couple of mega-hits with "I Got You Babe" and "The Beat Goes On," but most of this work was forgettable. Even when she was just starting out Cher was a damn fine singer and Sonny always had a flair for making their totally different voices work together and this album proves it pretty much from start to finish. Even if you have never heard this album, just look at these familiar songs and think about what it would be like to hear Cher (and Sonny) singing them: "Unchained Melody," "Then He Kissed Me," "The Letter," "Let It Be Me" and "You've Really Got a Hold on Me." They did a nice cover of "Tell Him," but that was on another album. If you only going to own one Sonny & Cher CD, then I would recommend this one over their greatest hits collections (even the ones that throw a lot of Cher's solo work at you). The only song you are missing is "The Beat Goes On" and you can certainly find that on a nice Sixties hit collection where you can pick up some other gems of that period.

SONNY & CHER's first album "LOOK AT US" sold over 4,000,000 million copies in the USA alone!! This reissue of it reminds everybody what the excitement was all about!! Yes this is the album that has the greatest love song of the rock folk movement of the sixties, "I GOT YOU, BABE". This album evokes the best of the Phil Spector Sound in which Sonny Bono Copied and improved on!!!! Outstanding songs include, "Just YOU", "Let It Be ME', "Then He Kissed Me", & "YOu Really Got A Hold On ME". Yes, this is the definite Sonny & Cher Album!!

Sonny Bono picked up every trick from Phil Spector book and surrounded himself (and his young girlfriend) with tinkling bells,echoing drums and so on,re-creating that famous "Wall of Sound". It was a huge hit and made stars of them,thought if you ask me,it does sound a bit gimmicky. Both voices are incredibly ugly - just listen to that painful wail on "It's gonna rain" - sounds like two Sonny Bono's together,young Cher shows occasional promise ('500 Miles") when given space but most of the time it's simply case of too much Sonny.

Music is cute folk-pop with lots of covers as was the style of the time.

I understand the appeal they had for the kids at the time and fans of 1960s pop love this,but I prefer later Sonny & Cher when they polished rough edges and became TV entertainers, contrary to rock history and all the critics,I think they sounded better once they learned how to hide weak spots and push her voice in the front.
Trivia: "You really got a hold on me" was a duet here,re-recorded in the next decade with next husband. She actually made Duane Allman sounding like Sonny Bono.

This was purchased as a gift for my wife who is still trying to replace all of her original vinyl records, with newer technology.
The album arrived ahead of time, in perfect condition, with original security seals still in place, and wrapped in factory cellophane.

This cd, " Look at Us", is a superior example of post-Spector work by the deceased Sonny Bono. The origional 1965 LP produced the hit " I got You Babe", as well as "Just You", a ballad that echoes its' predecessor, the Ronettes, "Baby I Love You", in mood and colour. The bridge between folk music and soft-rock is achieved. This cd reflects the mid 60s shift from folk influenced tunes to rock. All of the tracks seem to be stylistically consistent, and the albumn has an innocence that is still fresh, although a little on the jangly side in production.The weakest cut is probably " Why Don't They Let Us Fall In Love".It's a bit hard to take the 30 year old Sonny singing about how he's too young to go steady!There is a folky version of 500 miles, The Peter Paul and Mary hit, and it has a tender approach that rivals the hit.This cd is Sonny and Cher in their 1st incarnation and the music is more experimental and soulful than their MCA recordings of the 70s, which were blatently commercial.

Sonny & Cher's fresh California mid-'60s pop sound is achieved terrifically here. Lots of fun listening to the Phil Specter sound made better and softer by Sonny Bono's production skills. Cher sounds very yound and fresh. I think this CD is very COOL! You'll enjoy it. Great selection of Sonny Bono compositions (he wrote some GREAT melodies, I have to admit!) combined with fresh arrangements of others' pop-rock hits from the ewarly '60s. Have FUN!

I wholeheartedly agree with everyone here. We have the technology to capture the original recordings digitally, and preserve them for history. It takes an engineer who is a good technician, and would well be worth the cost, knowing that we the fans would buy the product. Collectors want the best quality possible.