50's 60's Folk Comps: Kingston Trio, Peter Paul & Mary?

Any recommendations for 50's-60's Folk compilation CDs with the groups mentioned and similar artists?

 

I strongly recommend Time-Life's 4 Volume "Treasury of Folk Music" ... it's mastered by Dennis Drake ... I've heard Vol.s 1 and 2 and they sound great ... here are the track lists.

 

Tnx They look damn good! Great selections.

 

Wish I had a copy now, but back when I was getting those '80s import CD catalogs with listings for Japan CD's, I remember one I let get away: (TEN)YEARS TOGETHER, the only PP&M comp during the vinyl age. I would guess this was likely sourced from whatever tape copy was sent to Japan, and if my handful of WB Japan's are any indication, you get the 'flat' sound and all the hiss and warmth you could want(making me wistful I didn't snag it when I had the chance--who knew? )

For the Kingston Trio, the disc Steve mentioned is about as good as it gets; the 4-CD box set is an enjoyable journey if you can ignore the NR, which, frankly, is hard to do if you have the Furmanek comp for reference.

As Steve points out, the stereo gold label WB's sound very nice; the last one was ALBUM 1700, worth the journey alone for "Leaving On A Jet Plane" and "The House Song," which were coupled as a fall '69 single as their *final* 45 before their *breakup* --as if they ever could

ED

 

Interestingly ... I picked up a copy of PP&M's 1990 'The Very Best of ... ' (WEA International - Made in Japan - WPCP-3877) today and I think it sounds pretty good ... I don't hear the digital echo that Steve mentioned, but I don't have fancy high-end system ... BSN gave it a "C" because of audible hiss on all the tracks which is usually a good sign ... the track list is:

1. Leaving On A Jet Plane
2. Early Mornin' Rain
3. 500 Miles
4. Don't Think Twice, It's All Right
5. Settle Down (Goin' Down That Highway)
6. San Francisco Bay Blues
7. Puff (The Magic Dragon)
8. Lemon Tree
9. Hush-A-Bye
10. Day Is Done
11. I Dig Rock And Roll Music
12. A Soalin'
13. All My Trials
14. Gone The Rainbow
15. Tell It On The Mountain
16. Cruel War
17. Where Have All The Flowers Gone
18. If I Had A Hammer
19. Blowin' In The Wind
20. This Land Is Your Land

It seems odd to have a 20 track "Very Best of" and leave off "Stewball", "For Lovin' Me" and "Too Much of Nothing" ... but I guess these weren't hits in Japan ... the insert booklet contains the words to all 20 songs in English and Japanese.

 

OK Steve, There's a project for ya! I wonder what the market would be today?

 

That would seem to be a keeper, Chip! In Japan, judging by the discs I have on various labels, they used either their own tape sources or unprocessed masters sent from the US, and so didn't issue the digital remixing and other stuff that happened over here. A nice score, unless I'm mistaken

ED

 

And they're way too bright. The original LPs have tube magick! Utterly gone from the CDs.

 

Me Too!
I believe Peter Yarrow was involved with the PPM reissues...

 

I'm always surprised how relatively easy it is to find those Gold Label WB Peter, Paul & Mary LPs -- used, but in great playing condition -- relative to vinyl from other pop artists of that vintage. I guess folkies kept better care of their records.

Jim W.

 

Anyone hear the Readers Digest Cee Dee Set? I know it has the most wanted "Wedding Song"

 

Funny you should mention this album - I picked it up on cassette the other day to play in the car, and it sounds great. I had 4 or 5 Peter Paul and Mary LPs in the late Sixties, and my brother and I were big fans. I went off them later on, but it's been wonderful revisiting them just recently.

Tower are cleaning out their cassettes at 3 for $10 so I bought a dozen old classics to listen to while driving around - early Springsteen, Neil Young, Dylan, etc. They sound terrific and immediate in the car - there is something about analogue.

I'm driving around, singing Peter, Paul and Mary songs at the top of my voice. What a hoot. Even "Puff the Magic Dragon". How about "I Dig Rock and Roll Music" - that's a pretty unusual number for them.

Regards,
Geoff

 

A humorous parody/commentary on the vacuousness of commercial radio and pop music, but became a huge Top 10 Hit anyway.

Jim W.

 

The truth? It was a parody/cheapshot against the inevitable trend toward psychedelia and sonic studio tricks the Beatles had introduced, coupled with envy toward the Mamas & Papas making more of harmony than PP&M ever did(commercially).

I'd like to think the whole thing was a kind of joke, but after Monterey and the very notion the folkies had heard electric Dylan, Love, The Doors, REVOLVER & SGT. PEPPER, I think they saw their pop decline, well....IN THE WIND

ED

 

I have this CD (although pressed in Hong Kong) and after reading a thread here about the song A Soalin' (someone looking for a dry version heard on the radio) I played this and concluded it has added echo.

 

The Reader's Digest set does have the added echo on the PP&M tracks, but buy it for the solo disc anyway and at www.noelpaulstookey.com, Paul does have his solo albums on CD.

 

I have been searching high and low for ANY CD source that contains the original PPM mixes, not the echoed remixes. The differences in the mixes are not subtle at all. The original LP mixes from the 60s are very dry while the CDs are drenched in echo.

To my knowledge, the original mixes are completely unavailable on CD. However, I am intrigued by the above comments regarding the Japan Very Best Of comp.

Has anyone compared this Japan comp against the domestic "echoed" CDs? I may try to track this one down if it does indeed contain the original mixes.

 

The wife was looking for a good PPM compilation a few years ago and we found a German pressing of 10 years together (flat green label) in a used record store.

Good sound on that one.

 

As a result of Ragu's comment, I listened again to the Japanese CD that I referred to above, using headphones this time ... unfortunately, I did hear echo to various degrees on 13 of the tracks including "A Soalin' " ... but I didn't hear echo on tracks 2, 4, 6, 9, 13, 15 and 19 ... so it's a mixed bag.

 

We can always rely on Ed for the straight dope. Come to think of it now, I do recall reading somewhere that Peter Yarrow was pretty upset when Dylan "plugged in".

Jim W.

 

Steve,

You REALLY should get/borrow a copy of this from someone to listen again!

This is a "best of...worst of" deal for me. Put on the "ole" headphones (or listen in a quiet area) and you can easily pick out the tracks that BOB NORBERG had a (heavy) hand in!

The tracks with some hiss sound nice and alive...the tracks without...

have been "Norbergered" to lifelessness!

Everybody who has this disc should give a listen to see what I mean, and hear for youself, why Bob Norberg does NOT help the music!

 

The 10 Best Kingston Trio CD sounds excellent throughout