Customer Reviews

Looking Through: Ultimate Collection

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There are hit pop songs (I counted 24 that I recognized), hit country songs, hit songs in Italian, and a well-chosen selection of songs which document Gene Pitney's very successful Anglo-Euro career and which many Americans will, like me, be hearing for the first time. This is the most comprehensive anthology of any artist I've seen outside of the coffee-table box-set types that sell for many times more than this. What a terrific find! The interview on the liner notes is informative and fun. Gene Pitney participated in a song-by-song commentary going right down the list of all 50 songs, with plenty of storytelling to illuminate the people and situations surrounding each. It's a treasury of insight into the personality and history of the artist and his times that simply can't be found elsewhere. Candid, funny and fascinating, I'm sure there's a great book in this man waiting to be written! Back to the music: What must be said is that Gene Pitney was the most accomplished male vocalist of the 60s "teen idol" set, with great pipes, a unique sound, incredibly nuanced phrasing and a flair for drama that made his vocals both real and moving. From "Liberty Valance" to "Half Heaven - Half Heartache," he gave conviction to every lyric and easily pulled the listener into his world. Considering he was only twenty when his singing career began (apparently without any formal vocal training beyond what he picked up as a songwriting, demo-singing worker-bee at the Brill Building), you have to conclude that this guy is seriously gifted, and was born to the task. Add to that a truly top-notch selection of material which yielded (for starters) about a dozen 60s classics, and I wouldn't hesitate to put him right beside Sinatra as the best vocal interpreter of his generation. In short, if you're even a casual fan, you'd be foolish to pass this up. Buy "Looking Through Gene Pitney" and prepare to be amazed and delighted by this man and his music.

Yes...it's a marvelous package with a first-rate interview with Gene Pitney himself, but, amazingly, of the 17 mono or rechanneled tracks, 10 of those in mono....have been previously issued in stereo on other collections! Pitney's producer was known for producing Pitney (from "Liberty Valance" on) using multi-track stereo equipment. In some cases, additional harmony vocals were added to the mono mixdown. That explains why "It Hurts To Be In Love" has never been issued in stereo. (On the plus side, one of the mono tracks here, "That Girl Belongs To Yesterday" is usually issued in stereo missing the harmony vocal!).

So...on this "Ultimate" collection, "Mecca" is in mono (why??). Same goes for "True Love Never Runs Smooth", "Twenty Four Hours From Tulsa", "Who Needs It", "Yesterday's Hero", and "Looking Thru The Eyes Of Love", among others.

I own it...but I'm disappointed. This previously-available-in-stereo mono issue also hampers finding a definitive CD by The Searchers.

This is a very comprehensive collection of Gene's finest music. All his British and American hits are here, including his American country hits with George Jones and his late eighties duet with Marc Almond.

In the sixties, Gene had many high-charting pop hits in Britain and America. Curiously, none of them reached number one, although he reached number two in both countries with different songs. He finally got to number one in Britain when Marc Almond and Gene recorded Something's gotten hold of my heart as a duet.

I'm gonna be strong was Gene's only hit to reach the top ten in both Britain and America. Gene's other top ten American hits to be found here are The man who shot Liberty Valance, Only love can break a heart and It hurts to be in love. Gene's other top ten British hits to be found here are Twenty four hours from Tulsa, That girl belongs to yesterday, I must be seeing things, Looking through the eyes of love, Princess in rags, Backstage, Nobody needs your love, Just one smile and the original solo version of Something's gotten hold of my heart.

With a total of fifty tracks this collection includes not just the essentials, but all the minor hits and even a couple of songs recorded in Italian. It also includes his original version of Hello Mary Lou, a song he wrote before he had a recording contract and which was a huge hit for Ricky Nelson.

You won't find a better compilation of Gene's music anywhere, although if you just want a basic sixties hits collection there are plenty of single CD's to choose from.

THIS 2 CD COMPILATION RANKS AS ONE OF THE GREATEST DEALS AVAILABLE AT AMAZON.COM.I HAVE COLLECTED MOST OF GENE'S MUSIC OVER THE PAST 40 YEARS AS HE CONTINUES TO BE ONE OF THE GREATEST MUSICAL ENTERTAINERS OF ALL TIME.TO DENY YOURSELF THIS WONDERFUL PIECE OF MUSIC HISTORY WOULD BE SINFUL-HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

So many great artists, so many "greatest hits" albums! I got turned onto Gene Pitney years ago after hearing "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart," and have purchased a few compilations throughout the years. I thought my collection was complete, but this "Ultimate Collection" is really worth picking up, even if you already have two or three "alternate ultimate greatest hits, etc...." One of my favorite perks on this two CD set is that we get Pitney's original "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart" along with the duet version he recorded with Marc Almond. Add that to unique collectible tunes like his duet with George Jones, "That Girl Belongs to Yesterday" (which, for those unfamiliar with Pitney's songs, is a beautiful power packed piece penned by Mick Jagger), and a few hits recorded in Italian. In my opinion, Gene Pitney tops the 60s pop crooners, and this compilation gives you the greatest variety and finest examples of his work.

Perhaps second only to Frankie Valli, Gene Pitney has one of the most recognizable voices in pop music. This 50-song package showcases Pitney's wonderful range of musical style, from the doo-wop Spector-produced "Every Breath I Take" to the raucous "Heartbreaker," to the lovely ballads like "Looking Through the Eyes of Love" and "Just One Smile." Of course his signature tunes are here like "Town Without Pity," "Liberty Valance," "It Hurts to Be in Love," and "I'm Gonna Be Strong." But the true aficianado will love some of the lesser known material, especially "Backstage," "Somethings Gotten Hold of My Heart," and "Yours Until Tomorrow" (an overlooked Goffin/King masterpiece). The sound is crisp and the package features a booklet with photos and an extensive interview with the artist.

This is the definitive Gene Pitney collection : two CDs with all the chart hits, a generous helping of B-sides, albums tracks, and lesser-known gems in excellent remastered sound, plus a booklet with photos of LP and 45 sleeves and track-by-track commentary by Gene Pitney himself ... and all at the price of a single CD. Marvellous!

I only have hazy memories of Gene Pitney during his glory days. (I was only a little kid back then). I do remember Liberty Valance, It Hurts To Be In Love and especially Town Without Pity which I sent my grandfather out to buy, without success! LOL. This is a great set. If you want to know what great 60's music was like sung by one of the best 60's crooners, you cant top Gene Pitney. This has many more songs than the other compilations and is worth the extra price. Great music doesnt date and this is 60's music at its best!

Gene Pitney was my initial pubescent love affair with Pop. Bob Dylan would supercede him three years hence when I would forsake the clean-cut smile for the sardonic glare, the homeknits and tie for the hounds-tooth coat and elasticized boots, the careful grooming for disdainful art-school unkemptness. Until then, Pitney comfortably ruled the aural world emanating from my small bedside radio, just as Bob's discs ground an expanded language into my consciousness. The big stringed dramas, the androgyny of the voice in shrill ecstasy, Gene was out there, with hot competition(Orbison and Valli) to be sure, but he let it rip as no other. His uniquley tough tenor may be an acquired taste. At times it's a tool, not so much rising above the surge of strings, drums and trumpets, as lasering through them. This double set is as complete as I need, and I'd quickly add that most of my memories and continued thrills continue on the first disc. I know the hit factory mentality driving the sort of thing Pitney did. At his height, Pitney drew on the best the Brill buiding could offer; the two and a half minutes of adrenalin rush perfected by the likes of Burt Bacharach and Hal David.Ineveitably a formulaic concrete sets and one starts to quote from oneself, or at least, the bods surrounding the artist do. By the 70s the hits had ceased, however you might defend the guy...and that's the story of the second disc. I like the Italian stuff, and when you get a wad of Italian Pop on the radio as I did in Sicily over 3 months last year, you can understand how Pitney holds appeal for them. His operatic reach is so apt for ears accustomed to the theatrics of Pop's power plays. Can't say much for the George Jones country departure. 'Fool' on the 2nd disc is tender and beautiful(another Bacharach/David piece that Gene kept on his set-list until his death), a pity this direction hadn't proved more fruitful. I wasn't a fan of 'Mecca','Tulsa', 'Town Without Pity' or,'Liberty Valance' and the sexism of,'Who Needs It' has dated. But the simple joy, the naiviety of some early hits still ruffles the nerves, and,'Every Little Breath I Take' is pure exhileration, capable of casting its spell over both my 20 yr old and 8 yr old girls. Finally, though,'Tower Tall' hovers on sentimentality, its inclusion in the collection helped determine my choice given its absence on other anthologies. Gene, you're still tower tall with us in the pantheon of strident vocalists, the Terry Reids, The Buckleys, The Aaron Nevilles, The Alim Qasimovs, the Antony(plus his Johnsons). This last named may have title as our current century's songbird. But Gene was the pirouetting high altitude aviator of last century's sixth decade!