Steppin’ Out: Tony Bennett Reveals Plans For Complete Album Box Set

Forgive me if this has been posted elsewhere - but Tony Bennett/ Sony are working on a Complete Albums box set.

Details here.

Anyone likely to be up for this at about $500?

And should we rehearse our reservations/ doubts/ fears about what might happen to the soupy echo on many of his earlier album masterings? I wonder who is engineering the project?

 

What soupy echo, specifically? I think the Columbia 30th street studio echo (if that's what you mean) would have to remain.

I'd very much like to own this set, it looks promising, especially seeing how Sony has the reigns. But 500 bucks out of my music budget is a little high at the present time.

 

I would very much like a set like this, but not for $500. Perhaps it will be available at a significant discount through Amazon or Pop Market.

 

Oh, my word, no - the 30th Street Studio is a legendary place! No, I thought the extra added reverb was a little too heavy on some of the earlier albums. I am not a great Bennett expert at all - I'm sure I'd read that the cognoscenti believe the reverb was a little over ladelled in the mixing/ mastering of the earlier tiles on vinyl - and subsequent CDs?

I don't know how many albums the Bennett back catalogue amounts to - quite a few - so what are the chances a complete remix/remastering makeover a la Beatles remasters could we expect with such a vast number of titles? What are they inviting Tony Bennett's fans to spend their $500 on? I just wondered what the project might entail...

 

I'll buy it from Pop Market for $149.

 

Two things...

1.) Though beloved by many here, Frank Laico who engineered most of Tony's 30th Street recordings was the master of overdosing on reverb. a lot of those classic 50's and 60's LP's could use a real 21st century master and cut down on the "soup".

2.) Why the high price tag for this set? Tony himself held out for years on the idea of a box set and what might be done using alternate takes, studio chatter, etc. He finally caved in and said he'd permit Sony to have control over his old masters...for a price. That price was $10 million cool ones.

I love Tony, but to me that was the ultimate sell-out.

I have all the LP's and love most of them. I will not be shelling out for this set.

 

Less 10% with one of Hutlocks codes!

 

If he got that price he is not only a great artist but also a very astute businessman. How will Sony ever recoup that investment?

 

I'll wait to see details, but I'm probably in.

 

They printed the echo straight to tape at 30th Street, right? In which case the it would pretty much have to remain. Hope it would, any monkey business in that area might leave nastier artifacts.

 

That sounds about right.

 

Yes, I have always wondered how much of reverb etc was the natural 30th Street studio sound and how much was added on some of those Tony Bennett, Johnny Mathis, Percy Faith, Mitch Miller, etc albums. I will be willing to eat my hat if it turns out they didn't engineer in a lot of changes. I believe I have read ? that Mitch Miller wanted and got more treble on some of his productions.

 

All I know is his early Columbia singles like "Because of You" and "Cold Cold Heart" were almost completely dry. Tons of reverb was added years later, and they always showed up that way on CD prior to "Essential Tony Bennett." I hope they are presented in their dry versions on his "Because of You" album, if that album will be part of the boxed set.

 

Looking forward to this one. Tony has many albums not in print.

 

If Sony does a job like they did with their big box of the Sinatra Columbia recordings, you may get your wish.

 

It seems to me that a lot of artists are going for one huge cashgrab lately.

 

I believe Bear Family wanted to do a set of Tony boxes like their Doris Day and Rosemary Clooney sets but Danny Bennett turned them down.

 

He's 85, maybe he simply wanted to get the most money now for his estate. $10 million doesn't seem like so much, especially when you consider how Sony will license song after song for film, TV and commercials well into the future.

 

They surely will.

His son probably had some significant hand in negotiating that deal. He pulls the strings on Tony's business affairs, now.

 

If Tony Bennett doesn't sell the masters to Sony, the Europe labels might just start releasing the music. Anything over 50 years, goes to cheap European labels. The artist would probably get nothing from Europe.

 

Curious, since this box set might be similar to the Miles Davis 70CD box set. Did Tony Bennett outsell Miles Davis?

Seems like Miles Davis had a lot of CD Box sets after his death.

 

Talking about in the 50's and 60's? Yes, absolutely. Tony could shift a million units, Miles, in the thousands. Though by the time of Miles' highest popular popularity, maybe in the early 1970's his sales might have been on a par, or exceeding a Tony Bennett, who was selling less.

 

The stereo mixes tended to have more reverb and treble boost, the monos, less so. I assume much of this will be in stereo when available. The reissues in the 90s seemed to have a lot of noise reduction, hopefully, this set will be spared that treatment.

 

My guess is that although this is true, in more recent decades there are enough jazz afficionados curious about Miles's session tapes for the Miles box sets to break even, while "the complete outtakes of Tony Bennett" would attract fewer listeners. Also, Bennett is still around to hold up the release of that type of set whle Miles isn't.

 

Tony & Sony released a box just 4 years ago! This one