Customer Reviews

Piano (Digi-Pack Format)

5 star:		(43)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This CD boxed set is a real treat. Sooooooo many remarkable Tori Amos recordings in one place! Most of the hits are here (Where is "Talula"?) -- as well as a wealth of hard-to-find b-sides, 10 previously unreleased tracks and alternate takes of familiar Tori gems.

And wait until you hear the re-sequenced, expanded edition of Tori's solo debut "Little Earthquakes"! It's like hearing the album for the first time. The reconditioned sound is top-notch! And the four added-back-in outtakes are tremendous. I love it, love it, love it!

However ...

1. No covers? Tori wrote all these songs, with the exception of two traditional numbers. At the very least, "Smells Like Teen Spirit" should have been included. Tori does an amazing version of that song, one that Kurt Cobain himself loved. And it was heavily played on alternative radio back in 1992.

2. We get the re-recorded version of "Mary". Um, why? The original version is much, MUCH better and is EXTREMELY hard to get ahold of on CD. Besides, fans already have this new, sanitized version on "Tales From a Librarian," where it was an A-side (and promoted as a single), from 2003. Also, why in the world is the newer "Mary" on the "Bonus B-sides" disc? It was on an album, so calling it a b-side is inaccurate.

3. "Purple People" isn't noted as such in the liner notes, but it is an alternate version. Not as inviting as the other version, but still a tasty morsel. "Beauty Queen/Horses" is also an uncredited alternate mix that contains slight electronic vibe under the track, which was not on the original "Boys for Pele" version.

4. We get two versions of "Professional Widow," but neither remotely resembles the album version, either musically or lyrically. Kind of a disappointment, because the original album track most effectively relays the song's story.

5. I was bummed that "Humpty Dumpty" was not included. I think that is one of Tori's best b-sides. Such an mean-spirited little ditty; I love it!

That's it. All the "flaws" (for lack of a better word) I could find.

This collection is DELICIOUS. If you are a Tori fan, this is essential to your collection.

Thank you, Tori, for 15 years of soul-searching and -searing music.

The basic criticism of this collection is that it includes too few b-sides and non-album tracks (certain key songs like "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and the original version of "Mary" are omitted), and too many album tracks are (most people who would buy this collection more than likely already own not only the original albums, but the "Tales of a Librarian" collection as well). As a career-spanning collection, there are pros and cons to having as many album tracks as there are here. Mainly, it can be frustrating to shell out for the same songs over and over again just to get the previously unreleased songs.

On the other hand, to have a collection of only b-sides, demos, and live recordings would be to take many of these songs out of context. Particularly on the first disc, "Little Earthquakes Expanded," we have the classic breakthrough album presented in its entirety, with added songs not tacked on at the end, as reissues typically do, but placed strategically within the album. For me, it improves the album greatly, my one problem with the album being its relentless intensity. The added tracks serve to vary the pacing of the album, making it more listenable even as they lengthen the playing time.

Regardless of previous hits collections, putting all of these songs together in almost-chronological order ("Venus" songs appear before "choirgirl" songs, for some reason, and some b-sides are scattered a bit) is a tour-de-force presentation of a restless, wonderfully diverse artist. Though Tori Amos has a very distinctive sound, being able to listen to her career over the course of 80+ tracks reveals a lot about how she changed over the years, which elements of her music she chose to change, and which elements she always retains.

As can be expected, most people will wonder why a few songs weren't included (for me: She's Your Cocaine, Raspberry Swirl, and Taxi Ride), but it's easy enough to mix those in yourself if you keep music on your computer or mp3 player. And, for the most part, they got it right (for all the songs included, there is only one groaner, the live version of Professional Widow on the second disc.)

The sequencing is mostly well done, and the package is very nice. The cds each have their own individual cases, so they're protected. The book is informative and entertaining, containing Tori's trademark eccentric comments about her own work, as well as some rather interesting discussions about how her songs and different sounds came about.

This likely will not be the last Tori collection to come into existence, so hopefully a few years down the road we'll see more of a straight-up gathering of b-sides and hard-to-find tracks. For now, though, I think this is an outstanding collection, ranking for me alongside Tom Petty's "Playback" as being as good a box set as one could hope for. It should be interesting to see in which direction Tori will choose to go next.

Most of what I feel has already been said in other reviews so I will simply recap.
1. No Covers. Where is Smells Like Teen Spirit, Angie, Thank you, Do It Again etc?
2. Just the rare and unreleased please. I own all the Tori albums and don't really need a recap (Though Tori points out that disc one is they way Little Earthquakes might have been, so that is kind of cool)
3. I have never liked the Digi pak, I like the jewel box. Digi paks wear out and are hard to deal with.
4. Now I have to find a place to store this obnoxious box. Sorry Tori or whoever designed it but I just want the music and the liner notes, I don't need another box to hide away somewhere.

WIth that said, this is a great box to give someone who wants some Tori and has none. It covers many of her best songs and her comments in the book are interesting and insightful.

I also recommend more men to give Tori a listen. As one of her male fans I like to compare her to music legends like Kate Bush.

Obviously die hard fans will have to own this one and nothing I say will change that.
Enjoy.

Being a rather rabid Toriphile, there was no question of whether or not I was going to purchase A Piano. Upon first glance the box set is really quite stunning. The piano shaped packaging is beautiful and perfect for a Tori box set. The included book is also gorgeous and full of interesting information and pictures, including some drawings done by Tori. Each disc is housed in it's own beautiful digipack that rests inside a faux velvet-like tray. My only complaint the with packaging is with the book. There were few very minor errors with some of the information, but what I was most disappointed with was the lack of a true "track-by-track" commentary of the included songs that I thought was going to be there. Instead, Tori comments on selected songs. Regardless, the commentary that is included is insightful and interesting.

As for the music itself, there is quite a lot to take in. But when it comes to Tori's music, I believe the more the better. And it really is about time that a true box set chronicled her career. However, some fans may find themselves disappointed with this collection as it does not offer much in the way of new/rare material, particularly if you collect Tori's singles and already have many of the b-sides. Also, the "alternate mixes" are not strikingly different from the album versions. With some of the alternate mixes I could hear the differences with the first listen. With many of them I am still struggling to find any difference. Even with the ones I did notice, the differences were fairly subtle.

Disc A: I am enjoying being able to hear the expanded version of Little Earthquakes that is more akin to how Tori originally envisioned it. I like that Tori decided to only use alternate mixes that were done in the Little Earthquakes era, rather than remixing as was done for Tales of a Librarian. But again, the alternate mixes are subtle in their differences.

Disc B: This disc focuses on Under The Pink and Boys For Pele era songs. I don't know what process of selection Tori went through when choosing songs to be included in this collection, but I find it strange that "Icicle" did not make the cut as I consider it to be one of the standout tracks on UTP. Conversely, I was surprised by some of the tracks that were included. "Take Me With You" is also a wonderful song that I am happy has now found a home. As for the BFP material, my comments are the same. I don't understand why some tracks, such as "Talula", were left off and why others were included. I don't mind the substitution of the Merry Widow version of "Professional Widow" for the album version, as I enjoy both.

Disc C: This disc wraps up the material from BFP and covers the material from To Venus And Back and Tales Of A Librarian. I am confused as to why there is another version of "Professional Widow" here (Armand's Star Trunk Funkin' Mix). This version of the song, to me, always seems out of place among Tori's other works. The unreleased song, "Walk to Dublin," is also a new gem that I greatly enjoy. The TVAB material was a surprise to me as I thought that Tori left off some of the best tracks from that album, "Juarez" and "Josephine" in particular, but included what I consider to be some of the weakest tracks. However, I was glad that the live version of "Sugar" and "Waitress" were included because of how much different (and better) they are from their studio counterparts.

Disc D: This disc covers material from Scarlet's Walk, The Beekeeper, and From The Choirgirl Hotel. I think this disc is really where the collection starts to falter. I was disappointed with how little material from Choirgirl was included in comparison to LE, UTP, BFP, and TVAB. It escapes me why songs like "Northern Lad" or "Pandora's Aquarium" or "Raspberry Swirl" were not included as well. Also, why only two songs from SW are here is puzzling. TBK also got similarly ignored with only three tracks making the cut. Among the tracks are newly remixed versions of "iieee" and "Cruel". Honestly, I prefer the album versions of both songs. "iieee" here sounds disjointed and choppy. While the remix of "Cruel" here feels like it's lost it's emotional intensity. There are also four unreleased songs on this disc. "Ode To My Clothes" is a funny song and I am glad that the booklet explains the story behind it, otherwise I doubt I would care much for it. "Zero Point" is a great song that I am amazed she set aside in favor of "Datura" on TVAB. "Dolphin Song" grabbed me instantly and I enjoy it immensely. "Not David Bowie" on the other hand, is the only unreleased song on the collection that I am not yet impressed with.

Disc E: This disc focuses on b-sides throughout Tori's career. Once again, I feel that this disc really faltered. With such an amazing catalogue of b-sides, I am a bit curious as to why Tori included songs like "This Old Man", "Hungarian Wedding Song", "Toodles Mr. Jim", etc. over songs like "Ode to the Banana King", "Siren", "Alamo", etc. The demos were interesting to hear, but with the exception of "The Fire Eater's Wife," I doubt I'll listen to them often. I would've rather had more b-sides or unreleased songs in place of them. The last unreleased song, "Peeping Tommi", is a great addition to the collection.

All in all, I greatly enjoy A Piano. However, there seem to be glaring omissions in what is supposed to be a retrospective of her solo career up to this point. Personally, I don't feel that FTCH was adequately represented considering that it was the album when Tori began experimenting with electronic music. Also, Tori's most recent studio albums, Scarlet's Walk and The Beekeeper, barely got a mention in this collection. Also missing from this box set, but perhaps not missed by many fans, are any selections from Tori's 2001 covers album, Strange Little Girls. Unfortunately, trying to capture Tori's incredible career in a 5 disc boxset is a near impossible task. I think this collection would've benefited from at least one more disc and a slightly modified track listing.

In my opinion, this collection is worth the money for two reasons: "Not David Bowe" and "A Sorta Fairytale" (the version that was unedited and NOT on the Scarlett's Walk cd). those are, hands-down, the best songs in the collection. this release is like a timeline of tori's musical career. the inclusion of the awesome, hardcover lyrics album with commentary by Tori, the cool artwork and cd covers featuring classic and never before seen pictures, the amazing faux-piano case, and the b-sides and other rare tracks are just the icing on the cake. if ur just beginning to discover tori, consider yourself lucky, because you can just buy this collection and you're set!

Even if you're like me and have been lucky enough to hear just some of her B-sides and rare songs by finding them along the way through the years--like Never Seen Blue, Sister Janet, Merman, & more, this collection still offers several songs that I hadn't yet been lucky enough to hear before now (& that equals an entire album length worth of new material). Some of my favorite new finds are: Flying Dutchman, Not David Bowie, Dolphin Song, Walk to Dublin, and Take Me with You. Although she offers a literary guideline for the songs, you'll be proud of yourself when you can spot the era the non-album tracks were written from just by the music and the sound of her vocals. And although some remixes listed are almost too subtle to tell the difference, the demos have new parts (although the one for "Playboy Mommy" is very short). Overall, it's worth the money because Tori Amos always satisfies.

After years of whispers, promises and delays, finally here comes the Tori Amos box set, and what a delight it is for Tori fans.

"A Piano: The Collection" (5 CDs, 86 tracks, 383 min.) brings an overview of Tori's best work, plus a wealth of rare, live, demos and previously unreleased tracks. When you get so much music (6 1/2 hours in total), it takes a while to digest it all, reason I only now post my review (I bought this box set the day it came out). The most enjoyable CD for me personally is Disc C ("Pele, Venus and Tales"), which brims with energy from start to finish (I admit that "To Venus and Back" is my favorite Tori album). Disc A is rightly devoted solely to Tori's incredible debut album, here titled "Little Earthquakes extended". It includes 4 B-sides from the singles of that album. Disc E ("Bonus B-Sides") brings just that: a wealth of B-sides, demos and other rarities (check out for example the excellent "Merman", previously only available as an internet download in 1999). And so on...

The packaging of this box set is outstanding. The set comes with a 60 page book, providing lines notes and album and track commentary by Tori herself. The folks at Rhino did their usual job of delivering a top notch product. After the disappointing "Tales from a Librarian" compilation in 2003, this 5CD box sets the record straight, and brings us almost all we'd ever want. Almost? yes indeed, despite the wealth of 86 tracks on this set, the box could have easily added a 6th CD with a collection of Tori's cover songs, of which she has done so many and so well over the years. Maybe there is another compilation on just that still waiting to be made someday. Meanwhile, enjoy this box set! Highly recommended.

Overall, buy this set as soon as possible. You won't regret it.

Now, for my somewhat lengthy review for my favorite artist:

The photos on the web do not do it justice. Holding the shiny white and black piano-keyed box in my two hands, I was surprised to see how nice it looked. I lifted the top and inside found a very nice, black, hard-covered book full of background about Tori and plenty of nice, color photos. I skimmed through the familiar information and pictures and skipped to the back where the interesting content waited. Tori helps reveal why she included some of the songs in the box set and what inspiration led her to create her "girls" in the first place. Also, Tori discusses the new tracks and what inspired these as well. These new insights helped me as a fan better understand her perception of her songs and what place they held in the formation of Tori as song-writer and performer.

Now, to the discs. Each disc comes in its own thin, cardboard and plastic case. There are different pictures on each case. All the actual discs are sort of a mahogany brown with gold and white lettering. I was a little disappointed that these were not picture discs, but they still do look attractive.

The first of five discs is Little Earthquakes with additional songs that got cut long ago for whatever reason, and now are returned to their rightful place amongst the already released tracks. The sound itself even sounds clearer and crisper. Added back in are "Upside Down," "Crucify [Unedited Single Version]," "Flying Dutchman," "Take to the Sky," and "Sweet Dreams." Although "Flying Dutchman" here sounds different than the previously released version, a version which I prefer, it is still nice to see it here. All of these songs sound like they belong and one wonders why they were ever removed from the track list in the first place. It is probably my favorite disc in the set, rejuvenating LE for me.

"Take Me With You," a new track, is a highlight on the second album which is comprised of songs from the Under the Pink and Boys For Pele era. I found it more rich and hypnotizing after multiple listenings. Some of my most favorite Tori songs are included on this disc, including "Cornflake Girl," "Honey," "Waitress," "Yes, Anastasia," "Blood Roses," "Mr. Zebra," "Father Lucifer," and the haunting "Marianne." Noticeably missing is "Talula" in either of its forms-the original release on the first issues of BFP with the "say good-bye to the glitter girl" lyrics, as well as the revamped version that appears on the Twister soundtrack. I enjoy the presence of "Professional Widow [Merry Widow Version][Live]," but I think it should have been paired with the original LP version rather than the remixed version which appears later in this set. It seems that the original version is elusive for some odd reason, replaced with the remix on Tales of a Librarian and again replaced with the remix/video montage on the Fade to Red DVD music video release. The remixed version is no where near as intoxicating as the original.

Disc 3 has its ups and downs. It starts great, including the new track, "Walk to Dublin (Sucker Reprise)" but also unfortunately includes the less appealing remixed version of "Professional Widow." It quickly recovers with gems from Boys For Pele and To Venus and Back, somewhat breaking the chronological order of the actual albums, since TVAB is after from the choirgirl hotel, whose songs do not appear until Disc 4. Some of the sprinkles on this scoop of ice cream include, "Hey Jupiter [Dakota Version]," "Bliss," "Glory of the 80's," "Datura," and "Snow Cherries From France." Anybody who for some reason missed out on Disc 2 of TVAB can visit the two most powerful songs from the live set: "Sugar [Live]", and the rockin' ten-minute "plugged" version of "Waitress [Live]."

Most of the new, previously unreleased tracks appear on Disc 4, as well as snippets from Scarlet's Walk. "Not David Bowie" rocks out, "Zero Point," is both sweeping and ensnaring with its trance like melody and lyrics leading to a passionate no-nonsense Tori sing-snarling, "I got a way to my baby, oh yeah/I got a way to my sister, oh yeah." I love the end of this song because it reminds me of the live treatment given to "Waitress." "Ode to My Clothes" is a sad/sweet/funny song in which Tori describes seeing her lovely designer clothes all about Ireland on other people and dogs. It's a precious song without being sappy and I absolutely adore it. The groovy improv "Intro Jam," while enjoyable, doesn't really add anything to "Marys of the Sea," and I think it might have been better for them to be separate tracks. "Dolphin Song" is another new track, but I still have not warmed to it yet. The disc concludes with the epic "Gold Dust" which sums up the emotions of the disc well.

And at last, but not least, the 22-track Disc 5 concludes the box set with b-sides from all various times in Tori's solo career. Most fans, like myself, will likely already own most of these, but it's still nice to have them all on one disc. Some true rarities are "Sugar," "Black Swan," "Here.in my head," and "Merman." Previously, the only versions I personally owned of "Sugar" were the live versions from the "Hey Jupiter" EP and TVAB. It's nice to finally here the original, studio-recorded version. Very pretty. Similarly, the only version of "Here. In my head" I owned was a live version which appeared on the "Past the Mission" UK single. "Merman" was on the No Boundaries: A Benefit for Kosovar Refugees album, which is harder to find today and is a nice track to have without having to skip over other artists' tracks to get to it. The new b-sides are "Peeping Tommi," "Fire-Eater's Wife/Beauty Queen [Demo Version]," "Playboy Mommy [Demo Version]," and "Sorta Fairytale [Demo Version]." Be prepared: the demo version songs are only parts of the songs, which Tori explains in her book, are not the full versions because they are not fully developed. She wishes only to illuminate the song-writing process, not release the songs in their imperfected-yet versions.

Overall, the set includes a broad range of Tori's music from 1991 to present. All the epic songs are here, such as "Little Earthquakes," "Yes, Anastasia," "Datura," "Gold Dust," and "Beekeeper." Main tracks and beloved b-sides are here. Slightly remixed versions, mostly with additional or altered backing vocals, are here. New songs are here! Yes, some favorites like "Talula," "Professional Widow," "In the Springtime of His Voodoo" are missing as well as tracks from motion pictures ("Siren," "Butterfly"). Yes, the only dance remix that appears is the "Professional Widow" one (what about "Blue Skies" or "Voodoo" or "Don't Make Me Come To Vegas"?). There are no covers on these discs, either, but that is fine. These discs are all about Tori, not other artists. It's a beautiful collector's item for weathered Tori fans and a great introduction to budding, new Ears With Feet who will have a harder time tracking down past b-sides without spending a fortune at e-Bay. Well worth the money and an upgraded set of headphones.

The sound on this collection is amazing. Crank up the stereo, because these songs have never sounded this good. The b-sides, in particular, come out very well in the remastering.

Fans may also want to note the significant number of b-sides which weren't included on this compilation. No reason has been provided for their absence, though the artist has commented on the deterioration of the original masters of various tracks -- thus the "alternate mixes" being chosen for the compilation. Here is a list of officially released b-sides and rarities which were not included:

"I'm On Fire"
"Purple People (Christmas in Space)" (b-side version)
"Take to the Sky" (original b-side version)
"Flying Dutchman" (original b-side version)
"Siren" (soundtrack)
"Blue Skies" (collaboration with BT)
"Graveyard" (b-side)
"Butterfly" (soundtrack)
"Losing My Religion" (soundtrack)
"All the Girls Hate Her" (b-side)
"Over It" (b-side)
"Song for Eric" (b-side)
"A Case of You" (b-side)
"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" (b-side)
"Ode to the Banana King" (b-side)
"Humpty Dumpty" (b-side)
"Smells Like Teen Spirit" (b-side)
"Angie" (b-side)
"Thank You" (b-side)
"Samurai" (b-side)
"Amazing Grace / Til the Chicken" (b-side)
"That's What I Like, Mick (The Sandwich Song)" (b-side)
"Sister Named Desire" (b-side)
"Alamo" (b-side)
"Tootles Mr. Jim" (b-side)
"Thoughts" (b-side)
"Operation Peter Pan" (b-side)
"Mountain" (internet-only b-side)
"London Girls" (b-side)
"Garlands" (bonus DVD track)
"Ruby Through the Looking-Glass" (b-side)
"Seaside" (b-side)
"Bug a Martini" (b-side)
"Apollo's Frock" (b-side)
"Tombigbee" (b-side)
"Indian Summer" (b-side)
"Carnival" (soundtrack)
"Murder She Said" (soundtrack)
"You Belong to Me" (soundtrack)
"If Six Were Nine" (b-side)
"Strange Fruit" (b-side)
"After All" (b-side)
"Only Women Bleed" (b-side)
(plus various live tracks, remixes, and early tracks)

The track list incorrectly labels "Purple People" as being the b-side version from the "Spark" single, when the version featured here is the live soundcheck version from To Venus and Back.

Likewise, the version of "Take To the Sky" featured here is a different mix than the one actually released as a b-side on the "Winter" e.p. The alternate mix on this compilation is mostly noticeably different in that it does not have the backing vocals on the second chorus or during the outro.

Other errors in the printed tracklist may also be present.

I wish I could say that this is the first Tori album I ever bought and that I want to now run out and buy all her CDs. However, I do own her CDs and I must say that I am very impressed with this compilation. I've always hoped to get "Sugar" on CD (other than on her live album) as well as a few of the other songs. This is a serious MUST-HAVE for any Tori fan. Of course, I'm sure all the Tori fans ALREADY GOT. LOL She is a wonderful singer/songwriter/pianist. The book included is also another nice addition. Part bio, part Directors commentary if you will. A serious must own.