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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Has it been 20 Years already?, 20 Mar 2003
It's amazing to have in my hands this great box set. It is interesting to see the evolution or should I say e-boy-lution of a great artist and a great band through the years. I bought my first Culture Club record when I was 15 and have been a dye hard fan since 1982. Here you will witness the sound from raw and tribal to reggae and Soul Rythem and Blues , to pop and dance and finally to glam rock and touching soft balads. All from one artist who is not whilling to be labeled in one style of music but to be recognized in many for his creativity . It's fun to hear the first demos such as Put It Down were they were searching for the sound and style, we now know.
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9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Whose Affair Is This, Anyway?, 19 Dec 2002
At first hearing word of a Culture Club boxset I was immediately intrigued by hearing all the unreleased material that's been locked away in some record label's vault--not to mention the prospect of finally having all the 12" mixes that have yet to appear on compact disc (the complete "Gusto Blusto", "White Boy", "Don't Go Down That Street", "Heaven's Children"...) finally preserved on CD. Well, I was half correct in my assumptions: There is a sampling of demos (both earlier and later, and songs that have been unheard until now) but no 12" versions of those hayday Culture Club tracks. The demos are of particular interest, and are this collections most valuable inclusions, simply because they sound so solid. Familiar tracks like "I'm Afraid Of Me" and "Do You Really Want To Hurt Me" sound like finished product in their less complex pre-studio steriod states. Ardent Club fans (myself included), however, may be a bit disappointed with the presence of so much Boy George solo material. Before the middle of Disc 2 George's solo material begins (not even beginning with Sold material, but with The Martyr Mantras material), seemingly having gotten the Culture Club requisites out of the way too soon. Sold is merely represented with a new mix of "Everything I Own", while the inferior High Hat--but still neglected--is given minor notice here with a new mix of "Kipsy". If such a sampling of George's solo recording was going to be on this compilation at all there could have been better and more obscure material chosen (his b-sides "I Pray" and "Use Me" come to mind). George has cleaned his solo vault twice in the past few years (The Unrecoupable... & U Can Never...), so almost half of this collection devoted to his material was simply unnecessary. I would have slapped down the price of another four disc collection if he were to release one of his own, rather than compromise this one. Besides, the inclusion of solo careers is a lopsided affair here, since Mikey Craig and Jon Moss (Heartbeat UK) both released records after Culture Club, as well. Where are those curiousities? Overlooked, also, is the often--and criminally--underrated From Luxury To Heartache album. No alternative versions, no demos, nor unrealeased tracks from those sessions? I also would have like to have heard the Peter Asher demos that are mentioned in George's autobio...but they're not included. In place of any of that we get yet another remix of "Love Hurts" and four versions of "Do You Really Want To Hurt Me". Lacking also are this collection's liner notes. Other than producer credits there is no track annotation--and frustratingly so! Shots of Roy Hay, Mikey Craig, and Jon Moss make up less than half of the photos included (guess who makes up the rest?), and you'd be challenged to find the names of these bandmates listed in these resplendently photo-filled pages. Although, the singer's is listed under his innumerable quotes that are peppered throughout. After listening to the music, seeing all the photos, and reading all of the words, it's clear that this was an unbalanced event. While I've an ardent fan of the band's and of George's on his own, there were three guys who played behind him. I would have enjoyed this set much more had every track included been a Culture Club track. If you've been left wondering why these four guys had such a difficult time getting along, this mistakenly truncated Culture Club Boxset (for the sake of Boy George's solo career) and Disc 1 Track 19 are answer enough. Limited and disappointing.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Exotic like a box of Turkish Delights, 19 April 2003
The 4cd Boxset is a treasure trove of tracks from the first demos George ever put down to recent tracks, all showing the range,changes,gradations in his voice over 20 years now. One reveiwer complains about the solo-George-material featured but for any true George fan its all part of the culture club with a small c that is the life,times,songs of BG.Its all his Music which is the culture club, not just the group!
my favourite track is 'Masheri' on cd3 which starts with the scary lyrics (in George's mouth anyway): 'I've got a gun and i swear i will use it'. Masheri, like 'Hiroshima' on cd4 has an Eastern exotic flavour, japanese at times, as does 'Moghul Tomb' which has very positive lyrics but also notes; 'the spiritual world is a mystery'. this oblique quality of the spiritual world, where you come up against access and non-access at the same time is something George knows and has learnt the hard way: i.e.'Love is lonely' on cd2 is breathtaking in its lyrical and musical symplicity yet tugs at the heart through the vocal,tinged with experience of loss and absence of the loved one.
I would also recommend the boxset for the accompanying inside booklet which is a visual handmaiden to the music. My favourite is the long-blond-haired BG circa Sept. 1984 with MAN LOVE FIRE lipsticked down the side of his face. The sleevenotes and photos have the imprint of George all over them but Mikey,Roy and Jon get their share of the limelight but hey! when George is doing all of the hard work these days I'm perfectly happy to see everything Culture-Club related through the rainbow-spectrum of his eyes.
It would have been nice to have song lyrics cos there are still a few bits on Masheri i still havent deciphered but most of the time BG aims at musical clarity so sleevenotes are/would be a bonus.Maybe next time.I also like the covers of the discs themselves: Georges eyes and lips,pink and red. Finally , for any disco divas out there like myself there are tons of great dance music,most especially the brand new 'If I were you' on cd3 which is simply just fabulous.A real contemporary track which should have been a single, a bit pet-shop-boys-human-leaguey in the way it uses the female voices too. If you like your music a bit exotic, red,gold and green then this is the perfect box of musical turkish delight, all covered in soft fluffy sugar/snow that you're gonna get to hear for a while.
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