Does anyone know if the Collectors Choice Four Seasons two-fer that includes Genuine Imitation Life Gazette includes the original newspaper style artwork? The packaging for the original release was as ambitious as the music in the album itself, with a very involved newspaper layout and even a color section with comics. It predated Thick as a Brick by quite a few years.

Collectors Choice is usually pretty skimpy when it comes to album art. While I'll probably buy this CD anyway I'd really love to see the art reproduced with some integrity.

Here's a scan of the front of the jewel case from an eBay listing, if it helps at all:



(I just tend to doubt that they reproduced the newspaper artwork in full, in this little package.)

I have had the 'GILG' two-fer for some time now having bought it direct from CCM.

I will have to wait til I get home to see for sure, but I think they did a fair job of reproducing the newspaper. I just can't remember if they reproduced all of the pages.

If one doesn't have these albums in their collection and they are even remotely interested in the work of The 4 Seasons, this is certainly a two-fer worth having.

Also, as an addendum to my previous post, the ACE reissue of a few years back (it is out-of-print) did reproduce the entire newspaper. It focuses on the 'GILG' album with appropriate bonus tracks ("Electric Stories", "Raven", etc.) and is re-mastered by Bill Inglot as well.

Worth checking out.

Thanks Barry. I have a Rhino edition on CD from way back and they reproduced quite a bit of the newspaper, though not all. Hmmm, with Bill Inglot involved, I wonder if the ACE reissue is the same as the Rhino....no bonus tracks on the Rhino though.

The CCM release only reproduces three pages of the newspaper, and, does not inlcude any reproduction of the Sunday magazine style insert that also came with the original vinyl release.

THe ACE reissue (CDCHD 628 good luck finding one - try ebay) contains the entire newspaper/Sunday magazine reproduced as well as the front page of the Sunday magazine as the cover of the cd booklet.

The ACE cd bonus tracks are:
Watch The Flowers Grow
Raven - one of my favorite non-LP B-sides
Will You Love Me Tomorrow
Electric Stories

Thanks Barry. Sounds like the ACE reissue is really worth seeking out.

Amazon's third party dealers have two copies of the Ace CD in stock, but the prices are sky high ~ waiting on eBay might be a better bet.



Amazon USA
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000007YYL/?tag=imwan-20

Amazon Canada
https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B000007YYL/?tag=imwanca-20

Amazon UK
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000007YYL/?tag=imwan-21

Thanks Linda -- I checked Amazon UK for the ACE set and, wow, "78 English Pounds" (shouted with Pete Townshend's voice, please) is the lowest I saw there. My little Rhino version starts at about 8 bucks.

Why, oh why, did I wait so long? Why, oh why, do I ever wait so long?

I settled for the Rhino reissue. If only I'd known!

Didn't this album pre-date Thick as a Brick by a few years? Great covers but I guess not the easiest to reproduce in CD size packaging.

Yeh, it was released in 1969. The package is just screaming for a Japanese mini LP version, isn't it? Not that the newspaper could even be read at that size, but still ...

It would be especially hard to do the crossword puzzle

I realize this is absolutely anal on my part but I have a burning desire to let the world know that if you combine the booklet for the CCM Genuine Imitation Life Gazette release with the booklet from the Rhino release you'll have the entire contents of the original vinyl format's artwork!!!!

The words are really tiny though.

Do you know if Collector's Choice plans to release more FV &/or 4Seasons reissues?
Valli's mid 70's solo albums for Private Stock come to mind

If past behavior on the part of The Four Seasons Partnership (basically that's Frankie Valli and Bob Gaudio through their attorney, a Pete Bennett) is any indication, I doubt we will see much else. They just don't seem to be inclined to reissue the entire catalog of recordings.

I'd like to see official reissues of both The 4 Seasons and Valli solo recordings for Motown, Private Stock, Warner Bros and MCA.

That being said, I didn't think we'd see reissues of 'Helicon' or 'Streetfighter' either.

That's precisely the reason why I asked.
On the other hand, the recent two-fer reissues are non-chronological, which is not a good sign. A plan for further reissue should have logically led to pair "Helicon" with "Who Loves You" instead of "Half & Half".

Iceman,

And that past behavior of The Partnership exhibits itself in this latest haphazard way they have licensed their recordings to CCM.

I agree with your comment; I would not have paired up these albums nor, no matter how desirable, would I have included the 'Live On Stage' release that's hardly live and severely lacking in quality (especially compared with the other options they had available to them - geez, the 'Dawn' album or 'New Gold Hits' would have been more preferable).

For a major act (anyone who has overall sold this quantity of recordings is major), they either don't know what they're doing or don't care.

Reality is that they are one of those major selling acts that ultimately won't stand the test of time (it may be arguable, but I don't think I am too far off the mark here). They should get the product out there while there's still a modicum of interest.