Jake in a Box: the EMI Recordings 1967-1976

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Binding: Audio CD EAN: 0094635791228 Format: Box set Label: EMI Manufacturer: EMI Number Of Discs: 4 Publisher: EMI Release Date: 2006-04-17 Studio: EMI
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Editorial Reviews: A 4 CD set containing his 4 EMI studio albums, The Last Will & Testament, Jake's Progress, Bantam Cock and On Again! On Again! with previously unreleased studio recordings, a mono acoustic version of his first LP, singles (including one in French), demos and alternate versions.
Spotlight customer reviews: Customer Rating: Summary: A jumbled up collection of most of the EMI releases Comment: Wow, I was quite shocked at the polarisation of the reviews of Jake's EMI releases (you just need to add the full recording of his live performance (Live Performance) to have pretty much the full works). Ah, but there is an explanation for the disappointment. Jake Thackray was a fantastic solo performer with a beautiful classical guitar style. Now helpful producers don't always recognise art, they like to domesticate it. The first CD starts with the over orchestrated LP "The Last Will and Testament of Jake Thackray" - yes they manage to musically imitate the pony's harness jingling in "The Little Black Foal". It's a bit of a teeth clencher when you know Jake well and just detracts from his dour West Riding accent and deadpan song writing. (I'm just getting thoughts of the Sing Something Simple Singers from classic Radio 2 singing "The Bantam Cock"- now that would be an improvement!). The choired up version of the additional track "Remember Bethlehem" (CD 1. Track 12) is a case in point-set your sights higher and start a little later on. Oddly the editor chose to split up the individual albums so that you have to swap CDs mid way. Between releases they have salted the compilation with unreleased tracks....so to stop you being confused...(before you reorder them on the iPod). Last Will and Testament 1967. CD 1. Tracks 1-11. The aforementioned over-orchestrated effort. Jake's Progress 1969. CD 1. Tracks 16-22, CD 2. Tracks 1-7. With a thankfully more restrained accompaniment on piano, bass and guitar in demure cafe jazz style. Jake's vocals are just a little strained. Bantam Cock 1972. CD 2. Tracks 19-25. CD 3. Tracks 1-6. With a slightly more inventive cafe jazz accompaniment and far more relaxed vocals. On Again On Again 1976. CD 3. Tracks 10-21. Way better! A more sympathetic arrangement with backing guitar and bass which enhances Jake's solo style. Last Will and Testament 1967. An unreleased acoustic version with a slightly different track listing from the orchestrated effort. CD 4. Tracks 1-12. A vast improvement on the "terribly nice" orchestrated version. If you want to discover Jake's French inspiration (Gorilla, La-Di-Dah, Isabella) you can find exhaustive Georges Brassens compilations on the Amazon.fr website with full sample music files. Customer Rating: Summary: Worth a listen Comment: I bought this set largely on word-of-mouth recommendation after I heard and greatly enjoyed a cover-performance of one of Jake Thackray's songs. The songs talk of love and life and are touching with an engaging boy-next-door earthiness. I can see why Jake Thackray has a cult following. Some of his songs are humourous in a mouth-twitching kind of way, although the meek melodies and sparsity of presentation lead the listener to lean heavily on the lyrics. However, to the uninitiated some of it may be a little inaccessible and, for someone so reliant on lyrics, dare I say it, on occasion pointless. I feel that Jake Thackray's appeal would have lain especially within his live performances and unfortunately this is now no longer possible with his death a few years ago. As with many artists, this live spark often is very difficult to capture on record and with Jake Thackray, once that spark of presentation is expunged, the content is not quite strong enough to sustain the myth. This is certainly worth a listen, although it would be wise not to listen to all four discs back-to-back. However, those who are unfamiliar with Jake Thackray ought to be aware that he is probably more of a religion than a listening experience. Customer Rating: Summary: pure genius Comment: There is little I can add to the reviews already posted here, except to say that Jake thackray is largely forgotten, grossly under rated, and should be considered a national treasure! Why is there no statue of him in his home town of Leeds? Jake was a genuinely intelligent writer of both comic and profoundly moving songs. His wordcraft is simply superb, and he never fails to entertain. unlike most reviewers, however, I like the orchestrated arrangements of his songs as well as the 'man and his guitar' approach. I have waited years for EMI to finally release a complete collection fo his works. At last I can enjoy the full range of his output. It knocks spots off the rubbish churned out today. Buy this - you won't be dissapointed. Customer Rating: Summary: An unqualified delight Comment: If you're already familiar with Jake Thackray's work it's the final CD that will be the real delight: unadorned guitar-and-vocal versions which show that the songs and delivery are almost all fully formed at this early stage, and that the more elaborate arrangements on the first album are essentially unnecessary. There's a real sense of intimacy with the occasional false start left in or Jake (needlessly) apologising in advance to the producer or engineer about making mistakes on Remember Bethlehem. It has long been one of my big regrets that I never got to see Jake perform live in 1977; listening to this disc in one sitting feels like the nearest thing to doing so - and no distracting laughter from other people. Customer Rating: Summary: At last EMI does justice to a forgotten genius Comment: This 4 CD set is every fan's dream. It contains Thackray's four studio albums, alternate versions, a host of previously unreleased songs and an entire CD of Thackray's early songs stripped of orchestras and jazz ensembles - just the man himself and his guitar, performing his songs much as he did in his thousands of live appearances in small clubs. There are gems too many to mention here, and humour and humanity in abundance. A pretty much definitive portrait of a late and greatly lamented genius, this set complements perfectly the new Live Performance CD. More Reviews