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Product Description
Review
Music and memory have an unbreakable bond. And memories will ultimately pass judgement on this compilation from the Stock Aitken Waterman stable, released to coincide with the now-cancelled Hit Factory Live event.
Fond recollections of SAW’s chart dominance will lead to smiling faces all round as Kylie’s I Should Be So Lucky, Rick Astley’s immortal Never Gonna Give You Up and Mel & Kim’s Respectable comprise the first three cuts. All were number one hits, between the summer of 1987 and early 88. All were taped from the radio (at least) hundreds of times.
Dancing in front of the mirror, hairbrush in hand; riding in the back of dad’s car on the drive to a caravan holiday in the West Country; crashing home after an afternoon spent building BMX tracks in the woods. Such flashbacks are likely to be accompanied by hits like these, assuming the listener was of an impressionable age – say, between seven and 17 – when the SAW machine was becoming a pop-market production line comparable, commercially, with Motown’s success.
Personal affections and shameless nostalgia aside, though, many tracks simply haven’t stood up to the test of time. The more affirmative efforts – Mel & Kim’s cuts, The Reynolds Girls’ playful I’d Rather Jack, Pepsi & Shirlie’s Heartache – display a soft-edged angst veiled by bubblegum accessibility. But slushy sing-alongs like Kylie and Jason’s Especially for You – the best-selling SAW single of all time – are too dependent on their at-the-time celebrity factor to appeal to today’s pop pickers.
There is a refreshing innocence to much here that’s at odds with the hyper-sexualised content of many contemporary chart-toppers. In that respect, The Hit Factory is an interesting time capsule – its songs are full of downplayed emotions rather than brazen, give-it-all-up aggressiveness. Steps, featured twice, are perhaps the last outfit to offer this sort of material – and CD1 closer Heartbeat is actually rather affecting for its subtlety and sweetness.
Ultimately it doesn’t much matter that several songs haven’t aged well. If you ever bounced around your bedroom to Brother Beyond or Bananarama, you already know this one’s for you.
--Sean Egan
Find more music at the BBC This link will take you off Amazon in a new window
CD Description
Pete Waterman Presents The Hit Factory is a special release for the ‘Hits Factory’ tour. filled with the 'soundtrack to a generation' this CD compiles the top pop treats including tracks from Sinitta and Pepsi & Shirlie.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
By Mr. D
TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
This review is for: Pete Waterman Presents the Hit Factory (3CD edition, but also covering the 2CD edition)
I am a huge Stock Aitken Waterman/PWL fan, so I pre-ordered the 3CD edition. I was shocked to see it go out of print so fast because there was no warning that this was a limited edition. Now I see the price escalating, so I figured I would write a review to tell people exactly what is on the discs, so you can decide whether it really is worth tracking down at the high prices now being asked, or whether the 2CD edition is good enough.
The 3CD set contains the exact same tracks on the first 2 discs as the 2CD edition. These are the hits that the fans will already have multiple times, but if you don't have them already this may be sufficient (However, before buying the 2CD edition, I would say it is worth first looking at the track selection on Stock Aitken Waterman "Gold", which in my opinion is stronger, particularly because it includes the Donna Summer hits which are missing here. Plus you get a disc of 12" mixes without a crazy price tag).
There are 2 things of note on the first 2 CD's
1) the version of Mel & Kim's "Showing Out" is the 4:50 Vocal edit used for the Japanese 7" and included on the U.S. 12" single. To my knowledge, this has never appeared on CD before.
2) the "WIP 2 Tribute Mix" is in my opinion a waste of space. It only has 4 tracks and these don't even go together well: Loveland "Let The Music Lift you Up", Rick Astley "Never Gonna Give You Up", Stock Aitken Waterman "Roadblock", Steps "Better The Devil You Know".... Read more ›
I am a huge Stock Aitken Waterman/PWL fan, so I pre-ordered the 3CD edition. I was shocked to see it go out of print so fast because there was no warning that this was a limited edition. Now I see the price escalating, so I figured I would write a review to tell people exactly what is on the discs, so you can decide whether it really is worth tracking down at the high prices now being asked, or whether the 2CD edition is good enough.
The 3CD set contains the exact same tracks on the first 2 discs as the 2CD edition. These are the hits that the fans will already have multiple times, but if you don't have them already this may be sufficient (However, before buying the 2CD edition, I would say it is worth first looking at the track selection on Stock Aitken Waterman "Gold", which in my opinion is stronger, particularly because it includes the Donna Summer hits which are missing here. Plus you get a disc of 12" mixes without a crazy price tag).
There are 2 things of note on the first 2 CD's
1) the version of Mel & Kim's "Showing Out" is the 4:50 Vocal edit used for the Japanese 7" and included on the U.S. 12" single. To my knowledge, this has never appeared on CD before.
2) the "WIP 2 Tribute Mix" is in my opinion a waste of space. It only has 4 tracks and these don't even go together well: Loveland "Let The Music Lift you Up", Rick Astley "Never Gonna Give You Up", Stock Aitken Waterman "Roadblock", Steps "Better The Devil You Know".... Read more ›
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By Eddie Davis
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Was mine the only one missing the Dolly Dots track on Disc 3? I'm surprised no one else has mentioned it, so made me wonder.
Otherwise, PHENOMENAL compilation. There are definitely some on here that have been on multiple previous sets, but they all sound terrific and being from the US, some of these tracks are not so readily available!!
Personally, Disc 3 is worth the price of the set by itself but I sure did love that Dolly Dots track.... :(
Otherwise, PHENOMENAL compilation. There are definitely some on here that have been on multiple previous sets, but they all sound terrific and being from the US, some of these tracks are not so readily available!!
Personally, Disc 3 is worth the price of the set by itself but I sure did love that Dolly Dots track.... :(
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Deluxe editions of albums are now relatively common, but a deluxe edition of a back catalogue compilation is something I've not encountered before. The PWL/Stock-Aitken-Waterman production sound dominated the charts in the latter half of the 80s and there's a wealth of released and rare material to pick from. Sadly, the deluxe edition follows the conventional route of new releases and adds a bonus disc - which seems like a missed opportunity. Casual listeners will be catered for with the standard two disc release, whereas the deluxe edition could have worked harder in terms of offering up the rarer tracks and mixes. And ultimately that's what most people buying this deluxe edition want - along with liner notes and decent artwork (for a deluxe edition CD it feels remarkably cheap with no booklet and all the credits underneath each disc).
CDs 1 and 2 offer a 39 track retrospective, the third such outing in 12 years. A lot of the same tracks are dragged out again, and it's questionable how many people really needed `I'd rather Jack' after its inclusion twice on the `Gold' compilation. Similarly Steps - who were neither signed to PWL or produced by S/A/W - notch up two appearances. Bafflingly, Lonnie Gordon also has two cuts across these CDs - the same as Bananarama and Hazell Dean - despite the fact that `Beyond Your Wildest Dreams' never bothered the Top 40. Donna Summer's work is missing in action, presumably because of her recent passing. A track by Loveland and a pointless megamix also pad out the first two discs, meaning that CD rarities like Carol Hitchcock, Sequal, and Dolly Dots are absent. One pleasant surprise is that Kylie's version of `Better the Devil' is absent in favour of `Hand On Your Heart' - but sadly not the video mix, which has yet to make it on to a CD release.... Read more ›
CDs 1 and 2 offer a 39 track retrospective, the third such outing in 12 years. A lot of the same tracks are dragged out again, and it's questionable how many people really needed `I'd rather Jack' after its inclusion twice on the `Gold' compilation. Similarly Steps - who were neither signed to PWL or produced by S/A/W - notch up two appearances. Bafflingly, Lonnie Gordon also has two cuts across these CDs - the same as Bananarama and Hazell Dean - despite the fact that `Beyond Your Wildest Dreams' never bothered the Top 40. Donna Summer's work is missing in action, presumably because of her recent passing. A track by Loveland and a pointless megamix also pad out the first two discs, meaning that CD rarities like Carol Hitchcock, Sequal, and Dolly Dots are absent. One pleasant surprise is that Kylie's version of `Better the Devil' is absent in favour of `Hand On Your Heart' - but sadly not the video mix, which has yet to make it on to a CD release.... Read more ›
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
We in the U.S. did not get the 3rd CD to Pete Waterman Presents "The Hit Factory". So tryed my luck in the UK. Finally Sucess!! I will enjoy this gem of a CD for years!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By S. Tranter
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
this cd is br i illiant,im dancing around the living room too this,its pure cheeeesy pop at its best,i wouldadvise people too buy this
9 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Love them or loathe them, there is no denying that the SAW team changed the face of pop in the 80's with their trademark sound.This is a great collection of thier finest moments along with some scarce mixes, the standout for me being Dead or Alive's 'You Spin' in it's Buzzing Bees Mix, which was the stuff of folklore!(If what I'm told is correct, it was also known as the T.D.F mix, if you want to know what TDF stands for do some investigating!)). It's about time these guys were given some respect for their contribution to pop, at least their tracks were proper songs, unlike most of today's garbage! Highly recommended, and if you're too young to remember this music, buy it, and see what you missed!
By takethatfan
Format:MP3 Download|Amazon Verified Purchase
This brings back great memeories of my childhood listening to cheesy pop music.i used to spend all my pocket money on 7" singles which I no longer have :( had to buy this and it is great.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Greatest Hits of SAW
As soon as the CDs start spinning (round, round like a record), you find yourself transported back to a time in your life that you've never really forgotten. Read more
Published 1 month ago by David Stodd
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good collection if you don't have the original Hit Factory discs
As above good selection of tracks if you don't own any of the original hits collections :o) feels a bit of a cash cow for those who have them already.
Published 3 months ago by Mr. R. M. Meaker
5.0 out of 5 stars
It's Fab!!
Its got all the songs on I used to love and reminds me of the Cristmas Cracker show at the o2 on December 21st. I think it's my favourite cd so far and I listen to it most days.
Published 4 months ago by Jenni Field
4.0 out of 5 stars
Pete Waterman presents the Hit Factory cd
This cd is an good cd but not as good as Stock Aitken Waterman Gold, why i am saying this is because they have copied most of the songs from the Gold album and and the songs they... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Graham Rawlins
5.0 out of 5 stars
the hit factory
Fantastic!
Memories,of the 80's!
A must have,in all collections! A musical journey,the 80,s classic pop! I should be so lucky!!!
Memories,of the 80's!
A must have,in all collections! A musical journey,the 80,s classic pop! I should be so lucky!!!
Published 4 months ago by Jameson Wisdom
5.0 out of 5 stars
great value
value for money, better than expected was the documentry, will buy again if i see any i like, thank you
Published 6 months ago by Mr. Mark Clawson
5.0 out of 5 stars
great
what can i say - brilliant brings back good memories/all the great hits on. would recommend for nostalgia/good old days
Published 6 months ago by ck
3.0 out of 5 stars
We need a rarities CD, not just more of the same
SAW productions were the soundtrack to my younger days and I loved them. Sure, there were similarities running through the hits they notched up, but that was the point. Read more
Published 9 months ago by txacoli
5.0 out of 5 stars
fab album!
Great album. arrived a day later than expected which normally wouldn't be a problem but it was the day of the Hit Factory concert (which then got cancelled! Read more
Published 10 months ago by Mudge
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