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50 of 60 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not really Three Dog Night, November 16, 2004
Shame on me for not reading carefully the description. These new versions of classic songs are fine in their own right, but they certainly aren't Three Dog Night. That group had an indelible sound of Chuck, Corey, & Danny. So, why reinvent the wheel here? It's as if they were trying to stick it to Chuck. I'm sorry, but the whole project feels wrong. TDN was my first rock concert ever, back at the Spectrum in Philadelphia. I saw them about a dozen subsequent times, bought all their albums on the day of release, search for cds of all their albums (still no American Pastime, Coming Down Your Way, Around The World, or It's a Jungle. It never felt completely right when they started changing the band, and even though Jay Gruska made an adequate replacement for Danny during one concert tour, the original 7 (well, Skip did bring a certain panache, so 8) to me, and I think many fans, are the only ones who can be called Three Dog Night. I was sad (although I bought it) when the band recorded their S.S. Fools album, because TDN defined a whole generation's coming of age, and this marked the end of the original TDN. It's a shame, because the original recordings were simply wonderful - full of life and energy and musical prowess. It would be nice to hear the original guys together again, giving us a real Three Dog Night concert of classics. So, if you want to re-record the stuff, reconcile & regroup already, and give your loyal fans what we've been waiting for.
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Minority Opinion, December 26, 2005
When I bought this CD for my wife for Christmas, I frankly was not prepared to like it very much. I surprised myself. As it turns out, I love it. Are the songs all remakes of old TDN hits? Yes they are. Do they sound like the originals? Not exactly. OK, so what's the deal? Well, here's why I differ from most of the other reviewers.
If the songs were all clones of the originals, this would be a pretty dull, dry CD. But not so. Each song is similar enough to the original, but with the interpretive differences that happen from 30 years of performing the same material. In fact, what you're hearing here is essentially the arrangements you would hear in a current TDN concert. And that's not a bad thing. This is who they are today. Two of the three original singers, two of the four original musicians, and a lot of great music that has modified slightly, but has remained true enough to the originals to satisfy fans.
Re-recordings with symphony orchestras can be really great or really bad. On balance, I'd rate this better than average. And if you're going to do such a project, the London Symphony Orchestra is who you want at your back. While the preludes get a bit cheesy and sound rather like some old Moody Blues album, I found the songs themselves satisfying.
My personal favorites - "Out in the Country" is particularly pleasing. "Old Fashioned Love Song" really works with orchestra. On "Eli's Coming", Jimmy Greenspoon proves that there's no substitute for an old fashioned Hammond B-3 organ and on "Liar" and Michael Allsup reminds us that he is a first-rate guitarist. But my real favorite - the live version of "Try a Little Tenderness" absolutely rocks. With horns added, it is actually a remarkable tribute to Otis Redding's definitive 60s arrangement, and the audience clearly loves it.
So to buy or not to buy? If you want to remember the old TDN exactly as they were back in 1969, pass this one up. But if you appreciate who TDN is in 2005 - slightly gray but still touring and better than most acts half their age - this CD might just pleasantly surprise you as it did me.
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12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
MEMO TO DANNY AND CORY: BRING BACK CHUCK!!!, January 19, 2005
As a longtime fan of Three Dog Night, I have followed their career with the devotion of a true aficionado. I have bought their albums, cassettes, CDs, VHS and DVD videos. I even have their lesser-known LPs (It's a Jungle, Coming Down Your Way and An American Pastime). Need I have to say more? So it's a pity that while I am anticipating, along with a legion of other longtime fans for the REAL reunion of the original three singers of this, one of the most famous rock acts of the seventies, I and countless other doggies have to put up with another TWO DOG NIGHT production and yet another GREATEST SAME OLE GREATEST HITS collection, while we're salivating for the real thing. Lighten up, Cory and Danny. You guys have great pipes, but it's time to bury the hatchet and wipe the slate clean. Bring your prodigal son back into the fold, and make that last great album you three wonderful singers are capable of. Sadly, The Beatles lost the chance that you still have.
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