Texas Campfire Takes

Michelle Shocked | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 22, 2003)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Mighty Sound
• ASIN: B00008Z48S
• Also Available in: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #104,502 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #72 in Music > Alternative Rock > New Wave & Post-Punk > Urban Folk

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. 5 A.M. in Amsterdam

2. The Secret Admirer

3. The Incomplete Image

4. Who Cares?

5. Down on Thomas St

6. Fogtown

7. Steppin' Out

8. The Hep Cat

9. Necktie

10. (Don't You Mess Around With) My Little Sister

See all 12 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. 5 A.M. in Amsterdam

2. Fogtown

3. 4/4 Troubador

4. Steppin' Out

5. Hold Me Back

6. Fool for Cocaine

7. Down on Thomas St

8. Hardly Gonna Miss Him

9. Hepcat

10. Necktie

See all 22 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Re-issue includes the edited 1987 version and the complete, original & unedited session with never-before-released songs and narratives including a 52-page journal of rare photos from the 1980s. The paper sleeves & booklet are housed in a slimline cardboard box. Mighty Sound. 2003.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars low level, July 24, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Texas Campfire Takes (Audio CD)

this album is really some of the folkiest, piniest music you can find outside of folkways. i highly recommend it, but i will warn that the recording levels on this album are so low, that even with stereo at full blast, some guitar-strumming is hard to hear. if you want really down-home at its best, though, you're gonna have to deal with the drawback.

12 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars What a disappointment, June 13, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Texas Campfire Takes (Audio CD)

This CD is a major disappointment for a huge fan. One often hears the phrase "for fans only"; in this case, I would say, "fans stay away". "Takes" contains the original CD, which Michelle much lamented and which seems to have started the rift between her and Mercury Records, and the so-called "real McCoy", apparently taken from the actual tapes but with more material.

The problem with the second CD is the sound quality. I have heard many bootlegs that sound pristine compared to this. I literally had to turn my (100-watt) car CD player all the way up to even barely hear most of it. Many of the lyrics and the between-song dialog are practically unintelligible. This is extremely frustrating, especially knowing all the technology that's available now to fix these sorts of problems. This is 2003. Even if she couldn't get a decent copy of the tapes, they could have been cleaned up much better.

This is a very weak first release for Mighty Sound. Hope the rest are better.

5.0 out of 5 stars Poor quality doesn't detract from great songs, June 16, 2010

By 

Alan Paterson "swee'pea" (London) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Texas Campfire Takes (Audio CD)

I'm sorry to see so many people grousing about the technical quality of this production. The damn thing *was* recorded on a walkman, peeps, give it a break! In any case, what matters is the songs, and this is a cracking collection, all the way through. Not a dud in the pack, and fogtown is one of the most moody and poignant songs I know. 'I would run if I only had a place to run to...'

If you want high-def, get a copy of Brothers in Arms. If you want great songs and a really unique sense of atmosphere, try these...and make allowances for the technology.