The Zombies Album: “Decca Stereo Anthology”

When I first learned of this release forthcoming, I just crossed my fingers and hoped the stereo remixes would not be butchered, as had been the case a few months earlier with the remix of The Who's first album. Well, no need to worry: For the most part, these tracks have received the royal treatment this brilliant quintet deserves. The advertisement that each track was freshly rremixed is not quite correct: The time-trained Zombies fan's ear can pick out at least four exceptions (most notably "Kind Of Girl" and "She Does Everything For Me," both distinct drop-offs in quality and stereo separation from the tracks around it), but you will still get most everything you expect from this set. Well over a dozen of these songs are in true stereo for the first time ever, including absolute gems like "She's Coming Home," "Remember You" (single version), "Gotta Get Hold Of Myself," and the undubbed masters of "I'll Keep Trying" and "She'll Be For You." The musical intro to "I Love You," completely amputated from the old stereo mix, has been fully restored--but sadly, the "hey hey hey"s omitted from the old stereo mix of "Is This The Dream?" still are. One thing the chronological placement of these recordings does, particularly on disk two, is bring into stronger focus the rapid growth and maturation of Chris White's songwriting: Heartfelt ballads like "I Must Move" and "Don't Go Away" rank up there with any works of his British writing contemporaries. It's not at all surprising that, just a short time later, it would be White who graced the masterpiece "Odessey & Oracle" with seven of his compositions, and with the exception of Argent's "Hung Up On A Dream," White's songs really gave that album its more haunting, ethereal qualities. As for this two-cd set, even with the small holes I mentioned (and a couple I did not), it is a quintessential must-have for all fans of British pop music--or great music in general, as this band managed to incorporate so many elements of popular music. Indeed, if you have this set, along with "Odessey & Oracle 30th Anniversary Edition" and the "Zombie Heaven" boxed set, you've got it all by this band--and every penny you've spent will be well worth your while.

Although I rarely dip into the musical past, the Zombies music still haunts me after all these years. This brilliant band from the 60's recorded some amazing music that never got the recognition it deserved. Unlike a lot of music from that era, much of what the Zombies did still holds up today. Their originals and covers both offer a unique style even now. This collection offers the best sound quality available that helps make their music sound as good today as I remembered it to be. Although I own a few of their other collections, this one is it. Buy it now! There are 48 cuts on the two CDs, so pick 20 or so of your favorites and create the best Zombies collection one could hope for. The only essential missing link from this collection is "Time of the Season" and you can get that elsewhere and add it to your mix..

While I highly recomend the "Zombies Heaven" Box to purchase first as the best overall Zombies collection, this new CD is the best sounding collection of all the Decca-era recordings.

Some of these recordings have been reissued in true stereo before, but they were quickly done mixes done without the band's supervision by a Decca staff engineer in 1969 for a budget compilation album. These inferior mixes have wound up on many Zombies compilations over the years from poor quality master tapes.

Fanstasic "You Are There" sound quality (headphones are a must) and every song was remixed to sound as close to the original mono mix while opening up dimensions never heard before in true stereo. Colin Blumstone's one-of-a-kind breathy voice stands way out in these new remixes.

Theres also a few instrumental bonus tracks that show how tight and brilliant this group was. Give away or sell off your other Zombies CD's (except for "Oddessy and Oracle - 30th anniversary", and "Zombies Heaven") and pick up this one!

This new Decca Anthology is a superb companion to Zombie Heaven - remixes of 48 tracks in glorious, shimmering stereo! The best of the Brit bands - pure genius.

More Zombie Heaven.

The Zombies wrote and performed some of the best [and best-known] songs of the '60s-- "She's Not There," "Tell Her No," and "Time of the Season." The third of these was released on another label, after British Decca had cut the group loose, and comes from the group's final period, well-documented on "Odessey and Oracle" [especially in the version from German label Repertoire]. This two-CD compilation comes from the group's early and stronger period. Elements of jazz, pop and rhythm and blues are all apparent, both in strong originals like those mentioned above and in cover versions such as "Summertime" [a smoky jazz performance utterly unlike the later version by Janis Joplin/Big Brother, which is probably the version most familiar to rock audiences], "You Really Got a Hold On Me," and particularly the driving and flawless "Roadrunner", which holds its own with any of the R&B performances of the much more blues-based Animals and Yardbirds. The best of these songs, and there are a LOT of them, are intricate, crisp, dramatic and intelligent. Fans of "pure pop", "power pop" and '60s Britpop can hardly go wrong with this marvelous collection.