 |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
"Memorial/Cheatin' Heart" reissue (2003)
This nicely-presented 30-track two-CD compilation from the respected BGO label neatly packages together digitally remastered versions of the two French LP's issued in France during the early 1970's, "The Johnny Kidd Memorial Album" and "Your Cheatin' Heart". This marks a first-time release in the UK for either of these collections, and indeed anywhere in the world as far as CD goes. In the absence of anything approaching the "Complete" 2-CD set, compilations like this will do, supplemented by a judicious choice or two of other CD collections currently available. Even so, the thirty tracks contained herein acts as a comprehensive taster of the band across its seven years in EMI's Abbey Road studios.
Again, as with all CD's issued after the "Complete" CD, the remastered stereo versions are used wherever available. In a way this is a shame - EMI France had only the original mono masters to master into the "electronic stereo" heard on the original vinyl releases, so it would have been nice to have heard all recordings as nature originally intended - in glorious, powerful mono. Of course, none of the tracks recorded in 1964 for what turned out to be the abortive album appeared on either of the respective compilations at the time. Virtually all of the latter have appeared exclusively in stereo since the 1992 "Complete" collection.
Chris Woodford of "Now Dig This" wrote the straightforward sleeve notes, which credit Keith hunt and his marvellous book at the end. The booklet also contains parts of the original black and white artwork used in both the album's production. As can be seen from the reproduced covers on the CD front these were colourised for the purpose although I had to wait until I actually obtained a copy of this re-issue before I appreciated the full gore of that beetroot-red cover with the green writing! Other pictures used are small-scale reproductions of what looks like piccies grabbed off this site....
See "The Johnny Kidd Memorial Album" and "Your Cheatin' Heart" in the LP section for more specific information regarding the respective track listing for each album.