5 Classic Albums Plus

All the greats are here plus others that have not been released some when you listen for obvious reasons. On this mixing the vocals are clear and you can hear the words clearly, On the early recordings the bass is a bit thin and the guitar is slightly out of tune, How High The Moon a prime example but the voice is cool and smooth, lyrics flow and the tracks really swing. Would have been good if House Of Blue Lights was included from 1957 as this appears on other compilations. Wee Wee Hours sounds like an alternate take or a demo compared to the version I already have. Sweet Little Sixteen starts off the same as track 19 but the instrument backing is some how brighter on track 19. Low Feeling is the same as Blue Feeling slowed drunkenly down.. The sound is quite repetitive, Though there is quite a lot of blues and a bit of jazz in here which is where his heart was really at, and Mr B once on a theme was quite relentless,, No notes as to who played what (Fred Below/drums, Willie Dixon/Bass and Johnnie Johnson on Piano) or any writing credits, a nice chunk of history though..

On the plus side, this is one of the most affordable comprehensive anthologies of Chuck Berry's earliest output and the sound quality is generally excellent, but what prevents a 5 star review is the omission of the hit version of 'Sweet Little Sixteen' and the unfortunate digital glitch that blights 'Do You Love Me' on disc 2.If only just a little more care had been taken by Reel to Reel, the release would've been rated as an essential purchase for those with a limited budget seeking the best of Berry's 1950s output.

What can you say about Chuck Berry that hasn't already been written. He has had such an impact on popular music. He has written some of the greatest rock n roll songs of all time. And they have been covered by well known artists like the Beatles and The Rolling Stones. This is an excellent collection of all the very famous Chuck Berry hits and my other obscure ones as well. This is a must go and buy box set. And at an amazing price as well.

Having been really impressed by the quality of the Real Gone Duane Eddy set, I bought the Chuck Berry set and was really glad I did. 88 tracks in Superb quality, all the greats, plus loads of rarities. Particularly interesting is track 12 on disc 1 'Deep Feeling' which the inspiration for Fleetwood Mac's 'Albatross'. I would have liked some sleeve notes that explain who on earth Joe Alexander & The Cubans and The Ecuadors were. I guess Chuck played with them, but why? I may move on to the Buddy Holly set next.

Good collection and great value but someone messed up. The two versions of 'Sweet Little Sixteen' are identical and neither is the popular single version.

Overall sound quality and price of CD excellent only draw back their lack of information pictures and background to the albums and to the artist. Explains the price.

Multiple versions of the same songs and a lot of filler I could have lived without.

EXCELLENT SOUND AND CONTENT. A LITTLE SHORT ON SLEEVE INFORMATION-A SIMPLE COPY OF THE ORIGINAL REAR COVERS WOULD BE USEFUL BUT CANNOT FAULT ON CONTENT