The Dusty Springfield Anthology

Customer Reviews:

• Best Female Singer : (Note to Shelby Lynne fans: This box-set contains 7 of the 9 Dusty songs Shelby recorded on her tribute CD "Just A Little Lovin", and 70 other Springfield classics)
  
  Even with an artist you love, 77 songs stretched out over 3 CD's can be a bit much. But that's not the case with Dusty. Believe me when I tell you that I play it all the time, and there's not one bad song.
  
  This spans her entire career. Listen and you'll hear fine examples of folk/pop, lushly orchestrated dramatic ballads, uptempo pop, Motown covers, soft soul music, quiet ballads, and even some semi-disco dance music. Dusty could do it all. When a song needed to be "belted out", she was more than up to the task. When a song required subtlety and nuance, she could do it - and with so much expression in her voice.
  
  Sight unseen, many people hearing her for the first time thought she was black - so soulful was her sound. I knew differently (I'd seen her album covers), but was shocked to learn she was British. I would've sworn she was an American southerner!
  
  For me, Dusty's warm, sensual vocals have never been equalled by anyone. No one can put across a lyric like Dusty Springfield. She's the Queen, and this box-set and "Dusty In Memphis" deserve a place in everyone's collection.
• Demand Reissue!: On only three compact discs, there are about 70 + songs which are hits, classics, and memorable. Dusty's voice was really one of a kind like a musical instrument given to her by God. SHe paid attention to every syllable and letter. I wished I still had mine but I left two of them in the box on British Airways flight to London from Newark in August 2003 but I would love to see this anthology reissued again. For the price, it truly is a bargain and a wonderful tribute to a special lady. Her voice has a range which is not only versatile ranging from country to folk to rock and roll. She inspired many musicians like the Pet Shop Boys and Sir Elton John who adored her. In reality, Dusty was a perfectionist who sought perfection in her art and was known to be difficult because she chose perfection over mediocre. Maybe that's why she is still a powerful influence in the music industry. There are people trying to get a movie made about her life. Of course, the best tributes to Dusty are these anthologies and musical packages based on her performance. I don't want to know about the sad Dusty who was depressed, lonely, and seeking the right partner in life who was usually a female at a time when it was frowned upon. Dusty will always be one of my favorite songstresses. She can sing anything in my opinion and her death was a great loss to the music industry.
• Beautiful Digipack, Great Music, Flawed Production: Big Dusty fans will have most everything here; but wait, there is one relative rarity, and it's a beaut! "Bits And Pieces," on disc 3 is a song from the movie THE STUNT MAN, whose soundtrack I somehow missed during the brief time it had been available. At the time of this boxed set's release, I had only one other multiple CD collection by Dusty, THE LEGEND OF DUSTY SPRINGFIELD, which was available in a limited edition run in the U.K. I found it, by some miracle, long after it was certified Hard-To-Find, in an Albuquerque, New Mexico record and bookstore that sold used music. Between 1994 and 1997, I assumed that I would never hear another "new" Dusty recording. "Bits And Pieces" was a huge and welcome surprise for this lifelong Dusty Fanatic, and of course, subsequent to Dusty's passing, many "new" recordings have resurfaced, or have seen the light of day for the first time. It's a pity that the bonanza of available Dusty material didn't occur in Dusty's own lifetime. She would have ultimately, finally understood how loved she really was... Once again, though, after an initial flurry of post mortem releases, some of them are already out of print, as THE DUSTY SPRINGFIELD ANTHOLOGY apparently is. It is worth having, and I see some third party sellers still have used copies available.
  
  Now, as for the rest of this collection, it's fairly representative of the enormous range of Dusty's talent, but I have some major quibbles, nearly all of them to do with Discs 1 and 3 (Disc 2 is superb, and includes only one song I never cared much for, "Silly, Silly Fool," despite its wonderful wa-wa guitar intro).
  
  Disc 1: Why did Mercury Chronicles not find a way to get the true stereo mixes, hot off the heels of the Tarragon release, STAY AWHILE/I ONLY WANT TO BE WITH YOU/DUSTY? I realize that some folks want to hear original hits the way they remember them, and that includes stuff known primarily in mono, but come on, those mono mixes have been released many times before! I haven't discounted the possibility that there may have been some exclusive deal involved concerning the stereo mixes. I hope that was the case, because if it was a conscious choice to not use them, it was a bad one. Dusty's vocals are the same ones used on most of the stereo versions, and the sound is WAY superior to what we have here. To be honest, I was always annoyed by the recorded-in-a-bathtub quality of many early Dusty singles (apparently, some of them really WERE recorded in the loo)! The sound is muddy and full of extra reverb, and sometimes Dusty's voice sounds like it's yelling from down the hall! The saving grace on Disc 1 is the stereo mix of "The Corrupt Ones," a minor single from the movie soundtrack album, THE PEKING MEDALLION. Essentials "Some Of Your Lovin'," supposedly Dusty's favorite among her own recordings, and "Goin' Back," which was cited by its writer, Carole King, as being the definitive version, are here, which helps allot.
  
  Disc 3: Not all of the choices I that I would have made. Too many slow, drippy ballads from Dusty's "lost" years, buried in washes of easy listening strings. Although we have the sublime, heartbreaking, "I'd Rather Leave While I'm In Love," a pale version of which was a hit for Rita Coolidge, IT BEGINS AGAIN should have been further represented by "Checkmate" and the disco raver, "That's The Kind Of Love I've Got For You," rather than the mediocre cover of "A Love Like Yours" and the Barry Manilow tear jerker soap opera, "Sandra." WHITE HEAT has several songs on it that are superior to "Don't Call It Love," although "Soft Core" is fun and different. The one really great track from that underrated 1982 album, "Time And Time Again," is, thankfully, here, but why was the only song that was used from Dusty's final album A VERY FINE LOVE, "Where Is A Woman To Go?" True, it has (barely audible) vocals by Mary Chapin Carpenter and K. T. Oslin, but "Roll Away" and "I Can't Help The Way I Don't Feel," are infinitely better songs, I.M.O. Despite my disagreement with many of the selections made, there are some shining lights on Disc 3, besides the aforementioned "Bits & Pieces." They are "Tupelo Honey," one of Dusty's best, superior-to-the-original covers, and another from CAMEO, "The Other Side Of Life." While I would have rather had "You Can Do It," from LIVING WITHOUT YOUR LOVE, the title song is a nice little pop ditty. "What Have I Done To Deserve This?" with the Pet Shop Boys was the comeback hit Dusty needed to allow us the marvelous REPUTATION album, worth buying in its entirety. The SCANDAL soundtrack song, "Nothing Has Been Proved" and "In Private," a decent hit in the U.K, nicely represents it. "Daydreaming" in which Dusty raps (!) is an unfortunate omission (a reissue called REPUTATION & RARITIES can still be found. It has some great bonus tracks; get it before it disappears)!
  
  This could have been a 5-Star collection, were it not for several unfortunate choices. Because it's Dusty, I give this 4 stars, even though I was tempted to take it down to 3. To end on an upper, the liner notes are above average and there are some very nice pictures in the booklet.
  
  
  
  
  
• A treasure trove for the Dusty fanatic: These three CDs have provided me hours and hours of enjoyment since I first got them in '97. This is a truly comprehensive overview of Dusty's career in all its phases. Disc One covers her pop and soul material of the early and mid-60's. The best- known hits are here, as are selections that affirm Springfield's status as a definitive interpreter of Bacharach-David and Goffin-King. (Carole King is said to have been moved to tears upon hearing her exquisite rendition of "Goin' Back" -- which was played at Dusty's funeral in 1999.) The highlights of Disc Two showcase Dusty's sultry mature style of the late 60's. While Disc Three has a number of overlooked gems from later years, it also chronicles artistic aimlessness (forgettable film music, for example) and declining vocal prowess as Dusty struggled with addictions and emotional troubles in the '70s and '80s. Yet the final track, "Where Is A Woman To Go" from 1995, powerfully demonstrates that even towards the end of her life, she could work wonders with the right material.
  From beginning to end of her long career, Dusty was most in her element when navigating the dark waters of despair, desire, yearning, and heartbreak. Even her innocuous upbeat hits ("Wishin' and Hopin'," "I Only Want To Be With You") have strange undertones of panic and hysteria. Nobody did this like Dusty, although others (Annie Lennox!) seemed to be getting close at times.
  Yet this anthology is probably a bit overwhelming for the non-hardcore. Dusty was prolific (maybe too prolific) and versatile (maybe too versatile) and the novitiate Dusty cultist will have his/her head spinning after listening to all this. But for the true aficionado, it's an Aladdin's Cave of classics and rarities. Rob Hoerburger's substantial essay in the liner notes is witty as well as informative, a small masterpiece in its own right. However, newcomers who want to understand why Dusty's reputation is flying so high three years after her death would do better to pick up "Dusty In Memphis" and/or "The Ultimate Collection."
• That Voice!!: Oh boy. Where to begin?. I love this woman and her voice. She was definitley one of a kind. A british woman with a beehive and raccoon eye shadow singing soul and pop songs. What is not to love?. This is a 3 disc collection that has pretty much everything a fan, or a new fan, could possibly need. In fact, it probably has more than you need. Best to have it all huh?. Dusty came to fame in the early 60's with her smokey, huskey voice that was unavoidable. It pulled you in and you had to listen no matter what. She shot to fame with such early hits as "I Only Want To Be With You", "Wishin' And Hopin'" and "Stay Awhile". They were huge hits on both sides of the pond. Dusty went thru several more great songs like "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself", "Anyone Who Had A Heart", and the magnificent Carole King penned "Goin' Back". These were songs that were successful in the U.K., but barely hit the radar in the U.S. More great ones include traditional 60's pop ditties like "Do Re Mi", "Needle In A Haystack", and the great "Live It Up". This disc also includes one of Dusty's most important and immaculate recordings. I'm talking about the perfect, epic ballad "You Don't Have To Say You Love Me". Tremendous. A full throttle vocal performance from Dusty that brings chills. Sadly, and frustratingly, Dusty never had the amount of huge icon status and success in the U.S. like she did in the U.K. It doesn't make sense. Disc 2 is full of more treasures. "The Look Of Love", a Burt Bacharach song, is memorable, but a tad...,well, a bit maudlin. There are some cover tunes here like "How Can I Be Sure?" and "Spooky". I have to say that they are both better with Dusty behind the mike. "Am I The Same Girl" is included here. It was a hit again in the 80's by Swing Out Sister. The crown jewel of disc 2, and maybe of Dusty's career, is the classic "Son Of A Preacher Man". A perfect song for Dusty. This was included on the 'Pulp Fiction' soundtrack in 1994. It brought new life to the song and a new generation of fans to Dusty. Disc 3 is mixed. There are some great songs here like "Mama's Little Girl" and "You Set My Dreams To Music", but the rest is questionable. Not bad, but not up to the usual Dusty standards. There are some catchy early 80's stuff like "A Love Like Yours", "Don't Call It Love", and a cover version of the old Smokey Robinson classic "You Really Got A Hold Of Me". The voice was different too. The late 70's and early 80's weren't a good time for her voice. It seemed used. Tired. As if she didn't have the life to breath into these routine numbers. Things changed by the late 80's when in 1987 The Pet Shop Boys called on Dusty to come out of retirement to do a duet with them on a song called "What Have I Done To Deserve This?". It was a typical 80's synth pop dance number, but it was fun and pretty catchy. Dusty's warm vocals were back in shape and, naturally, buried the robotic like voice of lead singer Neil Tennant. The song was a top 5 smash in the U.S. and U.K. The disc ends with her 1995 song "Where Is A Woman To Go". It's a bluesy barroom type song written by country singer K.T. Oslin, who sings back up on it along with Mary Chapin Carpenter. It's fast becoming a Dusty classic. Her voice was back. She also did the theme song for 'Growing Pains' with B.J. Thomas called "As Long As We Got Each Other". Okay okay, so it's not essential and isn't on here, but I just thought I'd point it out. Dusty is easily one of the best singers ever. No question about it. That voice and style is unmistakeable. Sadly, Dusty died from breast cancer in March of 1999. She was 59 years old. What a tragedy. We and the music biz lost a true treasure. May her music live on.