Customer Reviews

Ultimate the Alan Parsons Project

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

 

 

This CD has something found ONLY on this CD. The first 2 songs, "A Dream Within a Dream" and the "Raven" are found as they originally sounded on the 1976 vinyl LP, "Tales of Mystery and Imagination". When Parsons released the 1987 CD of this album, he added a 1 minute Orson Welles reading of Poe to the beginning of "Dream Within a Dream." The last 30 seconds of this reading is mixed in with the first 30 seconds of the song! In "The Raven" a guitar solo was added at 2:27-2:48. It re-appears in little 5 second blasts three other times from 2:58 to 3:23.

When I first bought the vinyl LP of "Tales of Mystery.." in 1976, I was blown away by the simple clean beginning of "Dream Within a Dream" and loved how the slow build up and simple bass line began. Then this instrumental merged flawlessly, again via that simple bass line, into "The Raven". I was mesmerized by these two 3 minute songs and this remains today one of my favorite moments of Alan Parsons Project music. Yes, it was very simple (some would say simplistic), but it created such a mysterious mood and was the perfect lead for the next rocker, "The Tell-Tale Heart". It was unique in that few songs of that day had isolated the bass line so cleanly.

Well, the 1987 CD screwed this up. I love Orson Welles, but I wanted that clean uncluttered instrumental buildup of "Dream Within a Dream." I also did not want the guitar solo in "The Raven" (although this was more tolerable than the Welles insert). So one of my favorite LP albums was ruined on the CD and I was greatly disappointed to find that the 1987 2-CD "Definitive" collection, as great as IT is, did not include "Dream Within a Dream". It did include "The Raven" but with the added guitar solo still there.

So, until this single CD came out, a remastered version of these two songs AS THEY ORIGINALLY SOUNDED on the 1976 vinyl LP was not available. And I'm afraid the newer multiple CD sets don't contain "Dream Within a Dream". So, if you really liked the beginning of APP's first album, then I believe this is the ONLY CD where you will find it as it originally sounded. The clean fade-in beginning of "Dream Within a Dream" sans Mr. Welles is spectacular!! THANK YOU THANK YOU!! It's been a long time coming.

The rest of the songs on this CD are great and this offers I think the BEST 77 minutes of APP that's possible on a single CD. I'd have included "Breakdown" - it's such a great vocal. But I can't see any other songs to be cut except possibly "Days Are Numbers" or "Old and Wise." If you want more remastered songs, get the fantastic 1997 2-CD Definitive Set. If you want more than that, there are a couple of sets recently available with more than 2 CD's - but they are pricey (and don't have "Dream Within a Dream").

I can't get enough of Parson and will do anything to support his music: Even buy another "Best Of." Very Good tracks on this album and a fair representation. Few obscure tunes, although some of his obscure are his best. For instance, 'Turn of a Friendly Card,' in my humble opinion, Parson's best and representative of the acme of his career, could've included both versions of the title track from that album. Raven and Lucifer are both very good tracks too, but were included on his live album. "Voyager" from "Pyramid" would have been a better selection for an instrumental at this stage. "Days are Numbers" was an excellent choice. So, is I Robot(instrumental) which is very representative of Parson's work and a particularly good choice for that album, although I agree with one of the other reviews who wanted another cut from that album. Yes, "Ammonia Avenue" is associated with 'elevator music' nowdays, but it's music is still much beloved and I'm happy some cuts were included from it. Sirus and Eye in the Sky, have to be included with any sample from "Eye in the Sky", but "Psycho-babble" a concert staple of Parson's wouldn't have been one of my choices. I would've liked "Standing on Higher Ground" from Gaudi. One of my favorite tunes. Other than some of the above comments, I find this a favorable addition to any Parson Project collection and a fine overall sample of his music for those unfamiliar with the Project's work. Being released now, considering some of the Projects work is almost 30 years old is quite an accomplishment for any band. It puts Parson's and his bandmate among some of the greats.

I recommend.

I've always liked The Alan Parsons Project, from the first time I heard them. My first favorites were "Games People Play" and "I Wouldn't Want To Be Like You". Then, I also liked what came after these songs. If I have one complaint about this compilation, it's that "Stereotomy" wasn't included. Otherwise, this is a decent overview of TAPP. I would recommend it to anyone that likes pop/rock and prog rock.

I'm a long time fan of The Alan Parson's Project. Their sound is a unique and captivating blend of classical instrumentation, techno-rock and straight-forward lyrics with a touch of tongue-in-cheek cynicism.

Having grown up listening to all his work, this "Best Of" captures most of it. Since all the Alan Parsons albums were based on a theme, it is a bit hard to capture a "best of" and have it make sense lyricaly. However, if you don't over think this and just enjoy the music it works. I saw him live about a year ago. If you get the chance, don't miss it.

i basically bought this album to acquire one track that I especially liked (Sirius - an instrumental). But I found other tracks that I am familiar with that I also enjoyed. This is a very good album and heartily recommended.
The sales transaction was flawless and I was very pleased with the outcome

This looks like a great collection of some of the best Parsons tunes from his best albums, and thankfully leaves off anything from later albums that, while they have their moments, just aren't nearly as good as the albums featured on this compilation.

One comment on the versions of Dream Within A Dream and The Raven - they were available on CD in their original versions, on the Mobile Fidelity series of excellent discs. Regrettably this version has been out of print for some time, so in that respect it is correct that this collection is now the only way to hear these as originally recorded - which is good because the remasters with the Orson Welles bits and the heavy-handed guitar solos and drum remixes were awful. Good to know the original versions were used here. For the uninitiated, this looks like a great low-cost way to start.

inexcussably leaves off "breakdown" and overemphasizes the "eye in the sky" tracks as well as later day elevator music selections