AT2 / The Boot on E-Bay

[GubGub (Al)]

Cropredy Capers just never did it for me, I'm afraid.  Like, sadly, all of those Free Reed box sets, with the possible exception of the Sandy one, but that's another topic I guess.

The Sandy box wasn't Free Reed.  Actually I really like Cropredy Capers, but most of the Free Reed boxes are flawed usually because of difficulty and expenses accessing officially released material.  Most of the boxes tend to be more akin to official boots, with all the shades of quality that implies.

Jules

I like Cropredy Capers too and there is more good stuff than bad on the RT box but I agree that a lot of Unconventional is pretty hard work.

[davidmjs]

Cropredy Capers just never did it for me, I'm afraid.  Like, sadly, all of those Free Reed box sets, with the possible exception of the Sandy one, but that's another topic I guess.

The Sandy box wasn't Free Reed.  Actually I really like Cropredy Capers, but most of the Free Reed boxes are flawed usually because of difficulty and expenses accessing officially released material.  Most of the boxes tend to be more akin to official boots, with all the shades of quality that implies.

Jules

I like Cropredy Capers too and there is more good stuff than bad on the RT box but I agree that a lot of Unconventional is pretty hard work.

That explains the Sandy Box then...!  The Free Reed boxes are flawed for me a) because of the hugely variable sound quality and sometimes truly amateur editing and balancing work, but even more importantly (after all I love a lot of boots) for me is the themed nature of the discs.  It just doesn't work for me....give me an historical narrative approach any time.

[Nick Reg]

Cropredy Capers just never did it for me, I'm afraid.  Like, sadly, all of those Free Reed box sets, with the possible exception of the Sandy one, but that's another topic I guess.

The Sandy box wasn't Free Reed.  Actually I really like Cropredy Capers, but most of the Free Reed boxes are flawed usually because of difficulty and expenses accessing officially released material.  Most of the boxes tend to be more akin to official boots, with all the shades of quality that implies.

Jules

I like Cropredy Capers too and there is more good stuff than bad on the RT box but I agree that a lot of Unconventional is pretty hard work.

That explains the Sandy Box then...!  The Free Reed boxes are flawed for me a) because of the hugely variable sound quality and sometimes truly amateur editing and balancing work, but even more importantly (after all I love a lot of boots) for me is the themed nature of the discs.  It just doesn't work for me....give me an historical narrative approach any time.

But at the end of the day its got to be the quality of the music that matters . Would you sooner listen to a Free Reed Box or Mariah Careys greatest hits?

[davidmjs]

Cropredy Capers just never did it for me, I'm afraid.  Like, sadly, all of those Free Reed box sets, with the possible exception of the Sandy one, but that's another topic I guess.

The Sandy box wasn't Free Reed.  Actually I really like Cropredy Capers, but most of the Free Reed boxes are flawed usually because of difficulty and expenses accessing officially released material.  Most of the boxes tend to be more akin to official boots, with all the shades of quality that implies.

Jules

I like Cropredy Capers too and there is more good stuff than bad on the RT box but I agree that a lot of Unconventional is pretty hard work.

That explains the Sandy Box then...!  The Free Reed boxes are flawed for me a) because of the hugely variable sound quality and sometimes truly amateur editing and balancing work, but even more importantly (after all I love a lot of boots) for me is the themed nature of the discs.  It just doesn't work for me....give me an historical narrative approach any time.

But at the end of the day its got to be the quality of the music that matters . Would you sooner listen to a Free Reed Box or Mariah Careys greatest hits?

Strange question!

Place it in a too challenging context and even the best music can get lost.  And for the reasons I have stated I find the Free Reed boxes too challenging...but I still listen to the odd song or two, just not a disc at a time...

[Neil]

But at the end of the day its got to be the quality of the music that matters . Would you sooner listen to a Free Reed Box or Mariah Careys greatest hits?

This is not necessarily true, regardless of the quality of the music if the listening experience is difficult because of lack of attention to different recording levels or in the case of Fairport changes in style it can cause a jarring and less than enjoyable experience. As a listening experience Mariah may be less difficult than a Free reed box. Interestingly this problem is not as evident on the Thompson box.

[davidmjs]

Interestingly this problem is not as evident on the Thompson box.

There's a couple of real jarring sound level edits though, where material from different eras come out of the speakers at wildly different volumes.  You're right though, overall, the sound quality is better...the thematic approach isn't though.  For all of the afore mentioned reasons, sadly I never bought the Dave Pegg box...I know it will annoy me something rotten, but I still want it.  Ever the completist...  

[GubGub (Al)]

Interestingly this problem is not as evident on the Thompson box.

There's a couple of real jarring sound level edits though, where material from different eras come out of the speakers at wildly different volumes.  You're right though, overall, the sound quality is better...the thematic approach isn't though.  For all of the afore mentioned reasons, sadly I never bought the Dave Pegg box...I know it will annoy me something rotten, but I still want it.  Ever the completist...  

Points taken with all of the above. I don't tend to listen to the boxes in order or even entire discs. Mostly the tracks pop up at random on my I-Pod or music server. The "sound check" feature is enabled so the problem isn't as noticeable and the quality of the songs and performances stand on their own. I don't tend to look at boxed sets generally a chronological listening experiences. They are just collections of tracks that I want to hear.

[Nick Reg]

But at the end of the day its got to be the quality of the music that matters . Would you sooner listen to a Free Reed Box or Mariah Careys greatest hits?

This is not necessarily true, regardless of the quality of the music if the listening experience is difficult because of lack of attention to different recording levels or in the case of Fairport changes in style it can cause a jarring and less than enjoyable experience. As a listening experience Mariah may be less difficult than a Free reed box. Interestingly this problem is not as evident on the Thompson box.

Music ceases to be enjoyable when you analyse it too much. I like what I like , I dont need to analyse it. Chill!!

[Neil]

But at the end of the day its got to be the quality of the music that matters . Would you sooner listen to a Free Reed Box or Mariah Careys greatest hits?

This is not necessarily true, regardless of the quality of the music if the listening experience is difficult because of lack of attention to different recording levels or in the case of Fairport changes in style it can cause a jarring and less than enjoyable experience. As a listening experience Mariah may be less difficult than a Free reed box. Interestingly this problem is not as evident on the Thompson box.

Music ceases to be enjoyable when you analyse it too much. I like what I like , I dont need to analyse it. Chill!!

No analysis involved just an uncomfortable move between styles and sound qualities. Happy to Chill though

[Jules Gray]

Interestingly this problem is not as evident on the Thompson box.

There's a couple of real jarring sound level edits though, where material from different eras come out of the speakers at wildly different volumes.  You're right though, overall, the sound quality is better...the thematic approach isn't though.  For all of the afore mentioned reasons, sadly I never bought the Dave Pegg box...I know it will annoy me something rotten, but I still want it.  Ever the completist...  

I agree that the Thompson box suffers less than the others.  His work seems to have its own sense of cohesion.

I too am of the opinion that the thematic approach doesn't work too well, and I also would prefer a chronological approach.  In fact I rearranged the Unconventional set in such a way.  What this tends to highlight though is gaps in the story and  I appreciate that the thematic approach may have suited Free Reed's needs best given the material they had at their disposal.

There's no excuse for the differing sound levels though - even I, a rank amateur, could have sorted that one out!

And actually, David, you should rethink getting the Pegg box.  It's one of the better ones, and certainly more cohesive than Unconventional.  And once again, it's not strictly a Free Reed box, but a Matty Grooves box!

Jules

[Andy]

For those who wish to make thir own adjustments to the track volumes, back the CD's up to MP3 and then goto http://mp3gain.sourceforge.net/download.php (for Mac or PC). You can then reburn the tracks to CD with equalised volumes.

There's an AAC version for those that prefer that format.

[davidmjs]

Both CD sets are up again on eBay now.  The seller (vinylnigel) clearly hasn't got a sense of humour though...they both start at £75 a shot.

[Chris]

Cropredy Capers just never did it for me, I'm afraid.  Like, sadly, all of those Free Reed box sets, with the possible exception of the Sandy one, but that's another topic I guess.

The Sandy box wasn't Free Reed.  

David Suff at The Bees Knees released that, I think.