Product Description
Average White Band are widely and rightly regarded as one of the best ever soul and funk bands. Although probably best known for their global hit, the US #1 single ‘Pick Up The Pieces’, this extensive anthology delves back into their musical history, from the early sessions in 1971, right up to the most recent studio album released this millennium. ‘All The Pieces…’ features the band’s entire catalogue of recorded material on a 19CD box set, which includes all of the original studio albums (and ‘spoilers’ ‘Put It Where You Want It’ and ‘Volume VIII’) in mini-vinyl replica wallets, alternate versions and selected mixes, in this 172-track collection. The box set includes the collectable re-packaged debut album ‘Show Your Hand’ - ‘Put It Where You Want It’ – whilst ‘Person To Person’ is packaged as a 2 disc gatefold wallet – to reflect the original 2LP set, ‘Feel No Fret’ is packaged as a gatefold release. The bonus CDs wallet artwork has been created by the legendary John Pasche, who designed the iconic AWB logo. AWB’s repertoire has been a source of inspiration for many R&B acts, who have sampled their material and who cite AWB’s grooves as a major influence. The 52-page booklet includes an 11,000+ word liner note by US musicologist, Justin M. Kantor and includes recent historical recollections undertaken with Alan Gorrie and Hamish Stuart.

[tracklisting]CD01 SHOW YOUR HAND (1973)
1. The Jugglers 4.51
2. This World Has Music 5.58
3. Twilight Zone 5.28
4. Put It Where You Want It 5.17
5. Show Your Hand 4.30
6. Back In ’67 4.12
7. Reach Out 4.04
8. T.L.C. 8.07

CD02 HOW SWEET CAN YOU GET? aka The Clover Sessions (2003)
1. Person To Person 3.23
2. Keepin’ It To Myself 3.10
3. There’s Always Someone Waiting 5.02
4. McEwan’s Export 4.48
5. Got The Love 3.42
6. Work To Do 3.42
7. Just Want To Love You Tonight 4.43
8. Pick Up The Pieces 3.57
9. I Just Can’t Give You Up 3.45
10. How Sweet Can You Get? (first version) 3.41

CD03 AVERAGE WHITE BAND (1974)
1. You Got It 3.30
2. Got The Love 3.47
3. Pick Up The Pieces 3.55
4. Person To Person 3.36
5. Work To Do 4.20
6. Nothing You Can Do 4.04
7. Just Want To Love You Tonight 3.54
8. Keepin’ It To Myself 3.57
9. I Just Can’t Give You Up 3.27
10. There’s Always Someone Waiting 5.27

CD04 PUT IT WHERE YOU WANT IT (1975)
1. How Can You Go Home? 3.05 *
2. This World Has Music 5.58
3. Twilight Zone 5.28
4. Put It Where You Want It 5.17
5. Show Your Hand 4.30
6. Back In ’67 4.12
7. Reach Out 4.04
8. T.L.C. 8.07

CD05 CUT THE CAKE (1975)
1. Cut The Cake 4.05
2. School Boy Crush 5.00
3. It’s A Mystery 3.56
4. Groovin’ The Night Away 3.43
5. If I Ever Lose This Heaven 4.59
6. Why 4.06
7. High Flyin’ Woman 3.47
8. Cloudy 4.21
9. How Sweet Can You Get? 3.59
10. When They Bring Down The Curtain 4.43

CD06 SOUL SEARCHING (1976)
1. Overture 2.14
2. Love Your Life 4.52
3. I’m The One 4.19
4. A Love Of Your Own 5.34
5. Queen Of My Soul 6.05
6. Soul Searching 3.17
7. Goin’ Home 4.39
8. Everybody’s Darling 3.34
9. Would You Stay 5.34
10. Sunny Days (Make Me Think Of You) 3.19
11. Digging Deeper (Finale) 2.44

CD07a & CD07b PERSON TO PERSON (1976)
1. Person To Person 7.04
2. Cut The Cake 5.05
3. If I Ever Lose This Heaven 8.10
4. Cloudy 6.36
5. T.L.C. 14.19
6. I’m The One 4.42
7. Pick Up The Pieces 18.34
8. Love Your Life 5.08
9. School Boy Crush 7.38
10. I Heard It Through The Grapevine 9.56

CD08 BENNY AND US (1977)
1. Get It Up For Love 4.34
2. Fool For You Anyway 5.39
3. A Star In The Ghetto 7.01
4. The Message 5.18
5. What Is Soul 4.34
6. Someday We’ll All Be Free 5.14
7. Imagine 4.57
8. Keepin’ It To Myself 4.29

CD09 WARMER COMMUNICATIONS (1978)
1. Your Love Is A Miracle 6.07
2. Same Feeling, Different Song 5.19
3. Daddy’s All Gone 4.39
4. Big City Lights 4.56
5. She’s A Dream 5.36
6. Warmer Communications 4.12
7. The Price Of A Dream 4.03
8. Sweet And Sour 4.50
9. One Look Over My Shoulder (Is This Really Goodbye?) 3.58

CD10 FEEL NO FRET (1979)
1. When Will You Be Mine 4.26
2. Please Don’t Fall In Love 3.44
3. Walk On By 3.59
4. Feel No Fret 6.24
5. Stop The Rain 4.30
6. Atlantic Avenue 3.16
7. Ace Of Hearts 3.51
8. Too Late To Cry 4.00
9. Fire Burning 3.29

CD11 SHINE (1980)
1. Our Time Has Come 3.36
2. For You, For Love 3.53
3. Let’s Go Round Again 4.57
4. Whatcha Gonna Do For Me? 4.10
5. Into The Night 4.00
6. Catch Me (Before I Have To Testify) 5.00
7. Help Is On The Way 4.19
8. If Love Only Lasts For One Night 4.39
9. Shine 3.56

CD12 VOLUME VIII (1980)
1. Kiss Me 3.49
2. Love Won’t Get In The Way 5.08
3. Love Gives, Love Takes Away 4.05
4. Growing Pains 4.28
5. Pick Up The Pieces 3.55
6. Person To Person 3.36
7. Cut The Cake 4.05
8. A Love Of Your Own 4.01
9. Queen Of My Soul 4.34

CD13 CUPID’S IN FASHION (1982)
1. You’re My Number One 3.23
2. Easier Said Than Done 4.07
3. You Wanna Belong 4.27
4. Cupid’s In Fashion 4.22
5. Theatre Of Excess 4.26
6. I Believe 4.31
7. Is It Love That You’re Running From 4.15
8. Reach Out (I’ll Be There) 3.52
9. Isn’t It Strange 3.25
10. Love’s A Heartache 4.48

CD14 AFTERSHOCK (1988)
1. The Spirit Of Love 4.05
2. Sticky Situation 4.29
3. Aftershock 4.07
4. Love At First Sight 4.47
5. I'll Get Over You 4.32
6. Later We'll Be Greater 3.52
7. Let's Go All The Way 5.53
8. We're In Too Deep 3.54
9. Stocky Sachoo-A-Shun 1.38

CD15 SOUL TATTOO (1996)
1. Soul Mine 4.25
2. Back to Basics 3.59
3. Livin' On Borrowed Time 4.13
4. Every Beat Of My Heart 5.46
5. When We Get Down To It 4.03
6. Oh Maceo 3.39
7. Do Ya Really 4.26
8. I Wanna Be Loved 4.33
9. No Easy Way To Say Goodbye 4.28
10. Love Is The Bottom Line 4.04
11. Welcome To The Real World 4.16
12. Window To Your Soul 5.05
13. You Shoulda' Known 0.00

CD16 LIVING IN COLOUR (2003)
1. Check Your Groove 4.59
2. Down To The River 5.26
3. Living In Colour 4.54
4. One Of My Heartbeats 5.06
5. Close To You Tonight 5.02
6. Half Moon In The Crescent City 5.13
7. Think Small 6.15
8. I Can't Help It 4.37
9. I'm Gonna Make You Love Me 4.52
10. Love Won't Let Me Wait 3.43

CD17: ALTERNATE VERSIONS & RARITIES
1. Reach Out [first version – recorded 1971] 4.04
2. The Jugglers [first version – recorded 1971] 4.06
3. It Didn’t Take Me A Minute (recorded 1971 2.25
4. In The Beginning (recorded between 1971/1972) 3.46
5. Look Out Now (recorded between 1971/1972) 2.14
6. White Water Dreams (recorded between 1971/1972) 4.00
7. Walk Tall - Recorded live in 1976 (first released in 2005) 5.28
8. I’m Gonna Make You Love Me - Recorded live in 1976 (first released in 2005) 5.53
9. Wasn’t I Your Friend 6.16
10. Miss Sun - Recorded 1980 4.14

CD18: THE MIXES
1. Back In ’67 [first version - Recorded between 1971/1972] 4.05
2. The Spirit Of Love (Radio Short Version) 4.05
3. The Spirit Of Love (Dance Mix) 7.28
4. Let’s Go Round Again [The Brothers Mix] 6.45
5. Livin’ On Borrowed Time (DJ Slok Remix) 5.21
6. Things (DJ Philly P & Joey M Remix) 7.44
7. Stop The Rain (Supreme One Mix) 4.08
8. Let’s Go Round Again (Cosmic Village Mix] 7.26
9. Let’s Go Round Again (12” Version) 6.27[/tracklisting]
Amazon USA
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Amazon UK
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00KJJSFU4/?tag=imwan-21

Received this yesterday from amazon.co.uk after ordering it at a decent price (everything to include VAT & shipping came to £41.41). The box itself is almost identical in size to the recent Frankie Valli & The 4 Seasons box set.

As I haven’t opened it yet (still haven’t played either the 4 Seasons or the Frankie Valli solo boxes either), I’ll provide more information once I give it a listen (my fingers are crossed that it’s not brick-walled).

BTW – has anyone noticed the cathedral-type echo on the CSNY Box Set recordings? While I love the music (saw them during their ’74 at Bill Graham’s ‘Day on The Green’), the echo reminds me of what was done as part of the 2-CD Allman Brothers Fillmore East Deluxe Edition that came out in that slip-case. It's also really noticeable on the Starbucks Edition with the acoustic tracks. Otherwise; excellent.

Thanks,

BG

I can't wait to hear your thoughts on the sound quality - especially the albums through Cut The Cake. I really feel like those were the worst of the 2009 Edsel remasters, with bad EQ and copious noise reduction applied. Things got better (but still not great) from Soul Searching on. Really curious if this set uses the 2009 remasters at all.

Here's an unboxing video done by Fred Vigdor, AWB's saxophonist:

I always thought these guys were a one or two-hit wonder until I picked up the two-CD Ultimate Groove Collection a few years ago. Great stuff! This set is out of my budget but it's nice to see AWB getting this treatment.

Finally had a chance to start listening to this set. Package-wise, the box is excellent with quality Mini-LP Sleeves including Gatefolds for ‘Person to Person’, ‘Feel No Fret’ & ‘All The Pieces’. All that’s missing are the original Atlantic Logos that were on the Vinyl LPs.

The first disc I’ve played so far is ‘Soul Searching’. After running the tracks through Sound Forge, the Mastering appears to be slightly hot volume-wise but nowhere near the extent of a digital brick-wall. ‘Queen of My Soul’ in particular sounds great. Since my only other reference for that title and the others are the original Vinyl LPs that I purchased during the height of the PVC crisis in the seventies (my copies from Tower were [& still are] horrible, I have to initially rate this as a quality release.

I’ll continue with each disc & update only if I come up with anything else significant. Otherwise; highly recommended.

P.S. … My copy of the Allman Brothers Fillmore East Mega Box just shipped from the U.K.(!!!)

Man, I'm dying to hear actual clips from this set.