James Brown - Live At The Apollo Volume II: Deluxe Edition (320kbps)

James Brown - Live At The Apollo Volume II: Deluxe Edition ripped in 320kbps w/ artwork.
1. Introduction to the James Brown Show - (with Frankie Crocker)
2. Think - (with Marva Whitney)
3. I Wanna Be Around
4. James Brown (Thanks)
5. That's Life
6. Kansas City
7. Sweet Soul Music - (with Bobby Byrd)
8. It's A Man's Man's Man's World / Lost Someone / When A Man Loves A Woman
9. Caravan - (with The James Brown Band/The J.B Dancers)
1. Introduction to Star Time! - (with Frankie Crocker/Sad Sam)
2. Money Won't Change You / Out Of Sight
3. Bring It Up
4. Try Me
5. Let Yourself Go
6. There Was a Time
7. I Feel All Right
8. Cold Sweat
9. Prisoner of Love
10. My Girl - (Instrumental Interlude instrumental)
11. Maybe the Last Time
12. I Got You (I Feel Good)
13. Please, Please, Please
14. Bring It up (Finale)
The 2004 Deluxe Edition of James Brown's Live at the Apollo (recorded in October of 1962 and issued in 1963) really is a deluxe issue. For starters, it was taken from the same undubbed stereo master as the 1990s version, keeping it separate from previously issued versions with overdubbed applause and "fixed" sequences. Because the technology of transferring analog tape to digital has improved greatly in the last decade and a half, the amount of information that can be moved from one source to another is far greater, translating into higher fidelity. The way this evidences itself here is in the feel of the room on this set. One can actually feel the Apollo as a room. It's as if the listener is on the stage rather than in the audience, soaking up the same atmosphere as the band. It's almost beyond live. Secondly, the crispness of the guitars and horns on this version has to be heard to be believed. It's not harsh, not shrill, just immediate and crystal clear. And on headphones, Brown's vocals and those of his backing band are literally in your face. As for the bonus material, the producers have included the single mixes of "Think" with the overdubbed crowd noise and an abridged version of the medley at the heart of the set. Here it omits "Please, Please, Please" and "You've Got the Power" (presented in their opening original stereo form on a version of the medley earlier on the disc). The rest of the tunes, "I Found Someone," "Why Do You Do Me," and "I Want You So Bad," come off as the rawest single ever issued. In addition, the 45s of "Lost Someone" and "I'll Go Crazy" are included. These were issued after the album took off like a rocket to the complete surprise of everyone but Brown. If you can only own one James Brown disc, forget the greatest hits; this one has all the magic and makes the most compelling argument yet for rebuying something already purchased on CD. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide
Thanks to the paradigm-shifting success of his first Live at the Apollo LP from 1963, James Brown and the famed Harlem theater were all but synonymous in the '60s. By the time Brown recorded there again in early summer of 1967, his music had undergone tremendous changes, as revolutionary for R&B as John Coltrane's sheets-of-sound approach was for jazz. This second Live at the Apollo caught Brown giving full stick to both his classic soul-ballad style and the funk his band was developing practically in front of the crowds' ears. Even better than previous issues is this terrifically remastered version. It adds nearly 25 minutes of previously edited tape, most significantly the pivotal "Let Yourself Go"/"There Was a Time"/"I Feel All Right" funk workout and an "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" that extends to a third of an hour here. The revisions add to the you-are-there feel of one of Brown's must-own albums, as do photos and credits that acknowledge everyone from stellar players like Maceo Parker and Clyde Stubblefield to the troupe's hairdresser and Learjet pilot. --Rickey Wright, Amazon.com