Blue Oyster Cult - Box Set - Video Review

Описание: The Columbia Albums Collection CD Box Set (2012)
16 CDs + 1 DVD - 40 page Booklet + 4 Live Concerts (download)

Many of the albums come with extra tracks. The Remastering is stunning especially on 'On Your Feet Or On Your Knees' and 'Imaginos"

It comes in a nice sturdy, glossy box and includes all the albums from the first one right through to Imaginos and also some discs with some Rarities on as well. It's quite expensive now. I managed to get it for about £50, but it really is worth tracking down if you're a Blue Oyster Cult Fan or want to really get a good feel for the band from the beginning of their career.

The box set also comes with something which is unique to this box, which is four live concerts which you can download using a code, you're only allowed to do it once.

The discs themselves all come in little miniature vinyl sleeves. The first album is what is known as the black-and-white period because they were all in black and white. Tyranny and Mutation, which has tracks on it like Hot Rails To Hell and the studio version of 7 Screaming Diz-Busters.

The first real classic album is Secret Treaties from 1974. A lot of the tracks on this album still appear in their live set, so Astronomy, Harvester of Eyes, Dominance and Submission, Subhuman, Career of Evil. These are all classic tracks, and the remastering is very good.

Talking of the remastering, that brings me to this. One of the definitive live double albums from the 1970s released in 1975. On Your Feet or On Your Knees by the Blue Oyster Cult is a classic double album. It's warts and all. It's a bit rough around the edges, I've got this on vinyl and the first issued CD, but this, the remastering on this particular version is absolutely stunning. When you hear The Last Days of May and the actual guitar sound on Harvester of Eyes, Subhuman, and 7 Screaming Dix-Busters, it's just absolutely phenomenal. To me, it was worth buying the box for the remastered version of this album. It really is that good. This summed up the whole of that black-and-white period, those first few albums. This is classic Blue Oyster Cult.

Then they became famous with Don't Fear the Reaper from the album Agents of Fortune, which I have to say comes with a little mini gatefold sleeve, but it didn't really do that much for me. I kind of never really engaged with this album that much. Obviously, I like that track, Don't Fear the Reaper, but it was the album after that, Spectres, where I really, really felt that the Cult were worth following. This has got some great tracks on it, Godzilla, Golden Age of Leather, R. U. Ready to Rock, and the absolutely emotive song about a vampire called I Love the Night and Nosferatu, absolutely brilliant track. The bonus tracks on Spectres are also very, very good.

Then comes another live album called Some Enchanted Evening. This comes with a DVD from the tour, so this is a double set. This comes with lots of extra tracks because the original album was a single album. They've enlarged it to be a double live album with the DVD. The DVD is worth watching historically, but to me, it's not quite as good as On Your Feet or On Your Knees, but it does sum up tracks from Spectres and Don't Fear the Reaper period.

Then with the resurgence of heavy metal in the UK, they came back with this, Cultosaurus Erectus, which has got some good tracks on it, The Marshall Plan and Black Blade.

Then they strayed more into AOR territory with Fire of Unknown Origin. There's some good stuff on here actually, really, really good, Veteran of the Psychic Wars. I mean what a name for a track that is and which obviously leans towards Hawkwind.

Then an album which a lot of people absolutely dismiss as being one of their worst, The Revolution By Night, but to me, this is brilliant, especially what was side one, Take Me Away, Eyes on Fire, Shooting Shark, Veins, Shadow of California. It's absolute classic to me, produced by Bruce Fairbairn. This is a fantastic Blue Oyster Cult album. It really is.

Imaginos started off as a solo album for one of them, and then it became a full-blown Blue Oyster Cult album. I've got this on vinyl, and it's way too long for vinyl. It's over a half an hour each side.  I bought it on CD, and it sounds really muffled. Then this was remastered, and this version is absolutely stunning. It's got to be one of the best albums they made.

Next to On Your Feet or On Your Knees, this is really, really heavy stuff, great riffs, fantastic playing with tracks like I Am the One You Warned Me Of, In the Presence of Another World, fantastic tracks. It even has a track called Blue Oyster Cult on it. There is a new version of Astronomy on it. It's a concept album, and it really is good. This, if you can't find the box set, find this. This is classic Blue Oyster Cult. It's one of the best rock albums from the '80s as far as I'm concerned. It really is that good.

Phil Aston | Now Spinning Magazine