Customer Reviews

Very Best of the 5th Dimension

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This import collection is an abbreviated version of Arista Records' "definitive" 5D collection, and even shares that release's cover illustrations. It's also one of two Import CDs called "The Very Best Of 5D," currently available at Amazon. (The other is priced slightly less than this one.) The selections here represent a little more than half of those on "The Definitive Collection," and they include the group's best known singles and album cuts. It even includes "On The Beach," which was unavailable on CD until a few years ago.

There's no question that this is first rate vocal Pop, and there's not a clinker in the set. The only reason that I can't call this a "5 star" album is the fact that this collection is one of many, and offers nothing unique. I should mention that due to the abundance of material and the budget price of this disc, it IS a better buy than Arista's "Encore Collection," "Master Hits" and even the 28 year old "Greatest Hits On Earth." There is a similarly titled Import collection ("The Best of 5D") available now which should be passed over for this larger (and much more reasonably priced) compilation.

Now that Arista has licensed 5D's first five albums for CD re-issue, it's easier than ever to skip over all the 5D hit collections and opt for the intact albums that spawned those hits. This CD is an excellent choice for casual 5D fans or Pop Vocal enthusiasts. If you find yourself playing one of these "best ofs" often, do yourself a favor and get the Buddha Records reissues while they are still available.

-Mic

Let me state at the beginning that to this day I'm not certain what possessed me to purchase this disc. I certainly don't care for "golden-oldies" and I tend to think of my listening taste as being far to "hip" to enjoy what many consider to be MOR artists! But....

I stumbled upon the cd here at AOL and seeing the single disc available,as opposed to the two-cd collection, I was strangely drawn to it. Now, with hind-sight being 20/20, I am so thankfull that I did. At 22 songs and over seventy-one minutes worth of music it was certainly worth the investment. As for the music...well, most of it can and should speak for itself! The Fifth Dimension were able to release music that encompassed not only Soul but also R&B plus a little Vocalese as well. All of this tied together with a perfect 'Pop' sensibility. Take a look at the song selection and you'll see what I mean. Composers such as Bacharach/David, Jimmy Webb and Lauro Nyro plus more! For the most part each song is extremely well performed and the musicianship is first-rate.
My greatest fear, that this was going to be an exercise in nostalgia, was initially true but oddly enough the music has held up well under the demands of time.Why I'm surprised...who can say! The shear variety and different styles of music that the 5th Dimension were capable of creating is to this day still amazing! And as for the song "Love's Line's, Angle's and Rhymes", my personal favorite, a more sublime song I've rarely heard.

I don't make a point of recommending discs to total strangers but I can safely urge you to purchase this one. Wonderful melodies, singers who can actually harmonize and no drum machines! Come to think of it.....this is pretty "HIP"!

This is definately the 5D compilation to acquire-40 songs for 7 bucks-instead of the rip-off Japanese Import, "The Best of the Fifth Dimension" which has 18 songs for 40 bucks! This Arista release is a baby-boomer's aural eden; the elasticity of the vocals mirrors the unfettered emotions and expansive hopes of the era that defined this music. Blissed-out soul, psychedelica and joyful pop collide in classics like "Up, Up And Away," "Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In," and the lesser known, "Save The Country." And if long for this kind of music with today's sparkling production values, you should also pick up current groovesters Swing Out Sister (who out-Fifth Dimension Fifth Dimension on their cover of "Stoned Soul Picnic" on their "Shapes and Patterns" CD. Another British band who seem to have worshipped at the 5D shrine, Noonday Underground, will wow you on their "Self Assembly" CD, bursting with easy-listening, chorus-filled tunes: this is the promise of the Fifth Dimension coming true 25 years later!

THE VERY BEST OF THE FIFTH DIMENSION: Call them the black Mamas and the Papas if you want...unbelievably, the Fifth Dimension sounded even whiter than the Supremes. Marilyn McCoo's cool flair and the group's knack for covering some of the best song craftsmen of their era (Laura Nyro, Jimmy Webb, etc.) resulted in an unbroken string of Top 40 gems from the late sixties through the early seventies. McCoo's husband Billy Davis Jr. succeeded in piercing the gang's RNB bubblegum with a delicious blast of gospel grit on the second half of AQUARIUS/LET THE SUN SHINE IN, but for the most part, the 5D were as safe as Three Dog Night or the Grass Roots. The highlights...UP, UP & AWAY, STONED SOUL PICNIC, ONE LESS BELL TO ANSWER...are many here, from five talented performers more than able to take pop vocal harmony to another dimension.

RATING: FIVE BELLS

A double CD compilation was released in America - Up up and away The definitive collection - but the Fifth Dimension only had one major hit in Britain, so it was wisely decided that a single CD would suit the British public better. This, then, contains 22 tracks from the 36 originally presented on the American compilation, presented in a totally different order. Since the liner notes only refer to their American career, it seems that they have not been changed except to include the initials US where appropriate. No mention is made of the UK anywhere. Still, it's the music that counts and that is undeniably good.

Their first American hit was Go where you wanna go, a cover of a Mamas and Papas song., but they quickly moved away from folk-rock and established their own identity with a mix of pop, easy listening, soul and psychedelia. Their biggest American hit, the medley Aquarius / Let the sunshine in, just missed the British top 10. Another of their big American hits, Up up and away, was a big UK hit for Frank Ifield. The remaining songs are generally unknown in Britain, which is a pity because several of them were huge American hits. Perhaps the best of them is Wedding bell blues, but there many great songs here.

Their early recordings were full of delightful harmonies but as the years went by, some tracks sounded more like solo recordings by Marilyn McCoo with the others merely providing backup, but the songs remained of a high quality. When the group disbanded, Marilyn and another member, Billy Davis Junior, continued as a duo. Although their duo music is outside the scope of this collection, they had a huge hit with You don't have to be a star to be in my show - it was a bigger hit in Britain than Aquarius / Let the sunshine in. It is a pity that it could not be included here.

The Fifth Dimension's eclectic mix of various musical styles may not suit everybody, but that very mix makes them one of the more interesting groups of the late sixties and early seventies.

These are the original arrangements and recordings that caused folks like me to love the 5th Dimension. Their musical blends, harmonies, and arrangements are rare finds these days. This is an excellent compilation if you are a fan of the group.

Great CD with every song you could want,except for one of my favorites... Never My Love.. originally recorded by The Association. The 5th Dimension put their signature sound on it and i've never heard it performed better! Other than this CD omitting this wonderful song, it's a definite keeper!

This import collection is an abbreviated version of Arista Records' "definitive" 5D collection, and even shares that release's cover illustrations. The selections here represent a little more than half of those on "The Definitive Collection," and for the most part they are the group's best known singles and album cuts. It even includes "Flashback," which was unavailable on CD until a few years ago.

There's no question that this is first rate vocal Pop, and there's not a clinker in the set. The only reason that I can't call this a "5 star" album is the fact that this collection is one of many, and offers nothing unique. I should mention that due to the abundance of material and the budget price of this disc, it IS a better buy than Arista's "Encore Collection," "Master Hits" and even the 28 year old "Greatest Hits On Earth." There is a similarly titled Import collection ("The Best of 5D") available now which should be passed over for this larger (and much more reasonably priced) compilation.

Now that Arista has licensed 5D's first five albums for CD re-issue, it's easier than ever to skip over all the 5D hit collections and opt for the intact albums that spawned those hits. This CD is an excellent choice for casual 5D fans or Pop Vocal enthusiasts. If you find yourself playing one of these "best ofs" often, do yourself a favor and get the Buddha Records reissues while they are still available.

-Mic

Major proto-ABBAists, popcult daytrippers, black EZ for fems, the 5th Dimension did a corporate Byrds amalgam groove equal parts Vegas, Motown and Woodstock. Many of their singles thump tougher than the ubernotorious hits, so don't be shy. The two-CD comp Definitive Collection is all you'll need. High queen kitsch, indefatigable day-glo grooviness. Significantly, The 5th Dimension provide a high-calorie introduction to Laura Nyro (8 tunes, 7 featured here) - a delightfully disembodied turn-of-the-screw. Even (some of the) songs by schlockmeister Jimmy Webb percolate along with quirk ("Everybody says I'm quite insane, and someday I'll be going down the drain; I know they're right - but I feel no pain!"). Mercifully, there's no Dylan or Beatle covers! iPod essentials: "California Soul" (utopian groove), "Go Where You Wanna Go" (silicone folkrock) "Puppet Man" (Dusty Springfield softcore), "Paper Cup" (Sinatraesque debauch), "Blackpatch" (with naughty emphasis on the "lipstick on her reefer" line), "Up Up And Away" (oral heaven), and, of course, "Aquarius" (In-A-Gadda-Da-Muzak with an Otis Redding outro). Upper anthems, done swinging.

Growing up in the late '60s, it was decidedly 'square' to like The Fifth Dimension. Nevertheless, their precision harmonies and slick production really etched themselves into the 60's collective consciousness.

40 years later, it's okay to admit that they are part of the soundtrack of a great many lives, and this collection covers the high points without beating that consciousness to death.

A real trip down memory lane!