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Gifts for the Audiophile

Box sets from '60s icons, dashboard hula girls, and CD encyclopedias

by Christopher Muther

There's nothing more disappointing for a music fanatic than racing down the stairs Christmas morning, tearing into the gifts, and finding underwear, shirts, a set of bowling balls, and an Elvis telephone -- everything but the hoped-for CDs and music-related paraphernalia.

Though it may seem as if the music lover on your shopping list already has more CDs than Tower Records, the truth is that new, must-have discs are coming out every week. And this time of year, record companies up the ante with an onslaught of box sets.

To help prevent an epidemic of depressed music junkies, we've compiled a list of some of the season's hottest musical offerings. We'll walk you through a vast selection of CDs, books, and other gifts that will leave your favorite fan smiling instead of crying in the eggnog on Christmas Day.

Multidisc Collections

The rule of thumb this holiday season is that everything old is almost new again. The 1960s are back with a vengeance in a slew of box and multidisc sets that chronicle the era's excesses and innocence. One of the most intriguing offerings from the avalanche of oldies is the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds Sessions (Capitol, $61.98). Pet Sounds was the best album the band recorded and one of the most influential American recordings ever made. The album signaled the beginning of the era in which musicians looked at an album as an entire work rather than a collection of singles. In one of the many interviews included in the set's extensive documentation, Beatles producer George Martin confirms what many of us have always suspected: "Without Pet Sounds, Sgt. Pepper wouldn't have happened."

Delayed a year (the set was originally scheduled to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the original), the box is a fascinating deconstruction of the musical landmark, culminating with the first-ever stereo mix of the album, supervised by Brian Wilson. When Pet Sounds was released in 1966, Wilson and the Beach Boys had reached a turning point in their careers. Wilson, who'd suffered a nervous breakdown the previous year, ceased touring with the band and spent his time in the studio crafting mini-symphonies in the form of pop songs.

With the help of Tony Asher and a stable of the best studio musicians in Los Angeles (the only members of the band who actually play instruments on the album are Brian and Carl Wilson, and that's only on one song), Wilson crafted an excruciatingly perfect album. The Pet Sounds Sessions breaks down the studio sessions into sections such as "highlight from tracking date," "stereo backing track," and "stack-o'-vocals" that allow the listener to glimpse the maniacal genius of Wilson's production technique.

Be warned that this set is not for the casual Beach Boys fan. The original album contains 13 songs; the box set has 90, all of which are derived from the original 13, with the exception of "Good Vibrations" (it was in the working stages during the making of Pet Sounds, but wasn't completed in time to make it onto the album). Two early incarnations of "Good Vibrations" are included on the set.

But for anyone who recognizes Brian Wilson's genius, or who acknowledges the importance of Pet Sounds, the box is far from frivolous. The most fascinating aspect of the album has always been the way Wilson strikes a balance between the band's fun-loving image and his inner torment on songs such as "God Only Knows" and "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times." Best of all, we finally get to hear the outtakes from the barking dog sessions.

Simon and Garfunkel get the box treatment on Old Friends (Columbia/Legacy, $49.98), with three CDs documenting the duo's career from their start as Everly Brothers clones in the late 1950s (under the moniker Tom and Jerry) through their messy breakup in 1970. The box contains Simon and Garfunkel's biggest hits, such as the breakthrough "Sounds of Silence" and the sweeping "Bridge over Troubled Water." But the finest moments are the long-forgotten gems that have been dusted off and remastered. The simplicity of a previously unissued demo of "Bleecker Street" shows Paul Simon's songwriting mastery at the early stages of the act. The set also includes rare Simon solo folk staples such as "Pretty Boy Floyd."

Although Simon and Garfunkel's partnership lasted just six years, it's easy to spot the origins of their later career paths on Old Friends: Simon's love of world music, for example, emerges in songs such as "El Condor Pasa," an Andean folk tune the duo recorded with the Peruvian group Los Incas. The "undiscovered" song of the set is a remake of Jackson Frank's "Blues Run the Game," a song that sat in the vaults for 30 years after it was recorded for the Sounds of Silence album in 1965.

Also saved from the vaults is a never-released Jim Morrison song, "Orange County Suite," that turns up on the new Doors Box Set (Elektra, $69.98). The four-disc set documents the Doors' beginning as a theatrical garage band in previously unreleased demos such as a rough-around-the-edges cut of "End of the Night," recorded in 1965. Released in honor of the 30th anniversary of the band's debut album, the Doors Box Set does not yield a wealth of new discoveries beyond the Morrison song, but it does offer nearly two discs of live material recorded at various stages of the California quartet's short life. The set gives a fuller picture of Morrison as a performer by including highlights of the band's hazy last concert at the Isle of Wight in 1970 and previous shows at the Matrix and the Aquarius Theater, in San Francisco.

It's almost criminal that The Dusty Springfield Anthology (Mercury Chronicles, $48.98) is the British singer's first US career overview, although a British box set was released nearly three years ago. At a time when Weird Al Yankovic somehow merits a box set (we're not lying), Dusty -- the very portrait of cool British style, innocence, and sexiness -- remains neglected on this side of the Atlantic.

The Dusty Springfield Anthology falls short of the longed-for box set, but its 77 tracks trace how Dusty evolved from the alto in the folk-pop trio the Springfields ("Silver Threads and Golden Needles") to the toast of London's swinging mod scene of the mid-'60s ("In the Middle of Nowhere") to rootsy soul singer ("Son of a Preacher Man") to the comeback queen of the late 1980s ("What Have I Done to Deserve This?"). The range of styles she tackles is mind-boggling, but what's truly amazing is that she sounds great in whatever genre she takes on.

The three-disc set, packaged with a 36-page book chronicling Springfield's 37-year career, is short on rarities (Dusty fanatics should check out the 1996 import Something Special for those), but it does include 11 songs not available on any album and several later numbers, such as "Where Is a Woman to Go?" and "In Private," that had never before been released in the US.

If Dusty's back catalogue has been mostly ignored until now, there has been no shortage of reissues for arena-rock giants Led Zeppelin. The latest in the long run of Led Zep retreads is The BBC Sessions (Atlantic, $24.98), a compilation of live performances recorded for British radio between 1969 and 1971. (The first of the two discs draws on live performances recorded shortly after the group formed from the remains of the Yardbirds, which disintegrated in '68.) Some of these tracks were included on the band's 1990 box set, but they seem to take on new life in the concert context.

Songs like "Communication Breakdown" and "What Is and What Should Never" are prime examples of the volatile nature of the band's music. Jimmy Page, he of the deadly, scorching guitar riffs, is even deadlier live. In some cases, the live renditions hardly resemble their studio cousins, especially when Robert Plant plays hopscotch with the lyrics and sings new or unrecognizable verses to classic songs.

There are times on The BBC Sessions when you have to wonder if these guys are truly brilliant or just a bunch of showoffs who knew how to whip a crowd into a frenzy. The 13-minute dinosaur version of "Whole Lotta Love" finds Plant bringing the song to new highs and lows, with Page shifting from heavy-metal thunder to rockabilly in a single bound. For die-hard Zep collectors, the discs include two previously unreleased tracks, Eddie Cochran's "Something Else" and "The Girl I Love."

Last year the Smashing Pumpkins packaged their box set in a handy carrying case designed to look like those cool boxes that held 45s back in the '60s and '70s. This year, the record label Rhino takes the concept a step further with Beg, Scream & Shout ($99.98), a definitive set of 144 soul classics on six CDs packaged to look like a box filled with 45s. The CDs are placed in sleeves, and the box even includes trading cards with information about the artists.

Aside from the way-cool packaging, Beg, Scream & Shout is a treasure trove of classic R&B songs from the 1960s. The decade's heavy hitters are well represented with entries from the Supremes, James Brown, Aretha Franklin, and Otis Redding. But the joy of the collection comes from the forgotten stars of the era, such as Joe Simon, Tyrone Davis, and Otis Clay. More than 20 of these songs had been unavailable on CD until now. And several one-hit and no-hit wonders are finally receiving their due for songs -- such as "Tainted Love" (Gloria Jones), "Mustang Sally" (by its author, Sir Mack Rice), "Piece of My Heart" (Erma Franklin), and "He Was Really Sayin' Something" (the Velvets) -- that were turned into hits by others.

Then there are the hellions from AC/DC, who have been rocking longer than many of their fans have been listening to music. Metal lovers will cherish the first disc of the Bonfire set (Atlantic, $69.98), which includes a live album recorded in 1977 and distributed only to radio for promotional play. The live album, recorded at Atlantic studios, includes such legendary tracks as "Problem Child" and "Dog Eat Dog."

The four-disc set is dedicated to the memory of the band's original singer, Bon Scott, who died in 1980 as a result of a London drinking binge, but the material is split evenly between Scott and his replacement, Brian Johnson. Discs two and three are filled with previously unreleased material, along with live tracks and the soundtrack to the band's 1977 film Let There Be Rock. Though disc four consists simply of the band's breakthrough 1980 album Back in Black, the remainder of the set has enough rarities to keep AC/DC fans from noticing.

Accessories

It's not just the sounds of the '60s that are filling the shelves of retail stores these days; some of the year's hippest gifts also look as if they come directly from the era of incense and peppermints. Urban Outfitters (stores at 11 JFK Street, Cambridge, 617-864-0070, and 361 Newbury Street, Boston, 617-236-0088) has one of the trendiest radios around, a two-tone transistor that could have been lifted from the set of Beach Blanket Bingo.

The Beach Boy transistor ($20) has an earphone jack and a convenient handle that doubles as a stand; best of all, it comes in red or blue with chrome accents. The same company also makes a desktop model, the TransAtlantic Spirit suitcase radio ($29), available at the Museum Company (800 Boylston Street, Boston, 617-267-0071), that looks as if it's been sitting untouched in someone's attic for the past 40 years. The burgundy radio has a front panel that lifts to reveal a hidden lighted control board and oversize knobs to tune in to AM/FM stations.

To complete the swinging atmosphere, Urban Outfitters sells a set of four galaxy glasses ($24), hip cups with wild space-age designs (picture them sitting on your parents' old Formica table and you've got the idea). Place your galaxy glasses on retroactive coasters (set of four, $14.99), foam coasters adorned with mechanical monsters from 1950s sci-fi horror flicks available at Newbury Comics (stores at 332 Newbury Street, Boston, 617-236-4930, and 36 JFK Street, Boston, 617-491-0337).

During the dark days of winter, there's nothing like a reminder that warmer climates exist. So do what your dad did and buy one of those plastic dashboard hula dancers (Newbury Comics, $8.99). She'll groove to whatever is blasting out of your car speakers, and no matter how cold it gets, she'll never complain that she's wearing only a grass skirt and coconuts.

Even if you don't know anything about music, you can easily impress the most rabid music fan with a gift of one of Frank Kozik's concert posters. Kozik reclaimed the lost art of creating concert posters by corrupting cartoon characters and placing them in compromising situations. Reproductions of the posters -- performers range from Iggy Pop to the Beastie Boys -- can be bought for $15 to $25 through Tilt Works, in San Francisco (415-788-2211, or via the Web, http://tiltpix.com/tilt/dist.html). The company also sells a book of Kozik's posters called Man's Ruin (Small Press, $24.95).

The Written Word

There's even more history to be found in this year's bumper crop of biographies of key figures from '60s pop, soul, and country music. The authorized biography Many Years from Now (Holt, $27.50) doesn't shed any new light on Paul McCartney, but author Barry Miles does extract some interesting tidbits, such as Paul's Sgt. Pepper revelations on a flight home from Africa. For those who prefer a little dirt with their reading, there's Get Back: The Unauthorized Chronicle of the Beatles' Let It Be Disaster (St. Martin's Press, $24.95). The book is a blow-by-blow account of the volatile recording of the Fab Four's last album.

The original man in black, Johnny Cash, tells his story in Cash (HarperSanFrancisco, $25), from his days with Elvis and Jerry Lee Lewis at Sun Records to the hipper-than-thou status he enjoys today. Gladys Knight doesn't hold back in her autobiography Between Each Line of Pain and Glory (Hyperion, $24.95), telling of her husband's drug dependency, her struggle to overcome a gambling addiction, and her band's battles with Motown.

One of the season's best bios is Yale professor John Szwed's thoughtful Space Is the Place: The Lives and Times of Sun Ra (Pantheon Books, $20.97). The jazz musician was probably best known for his outlandish statements (he claimed he was from Saturn) and wardrobe, but Szwed carefully explains Sun Ra's bizarre tendencies without losing sight of his immense musical talents.

Books on recent music history are less compelling. David Dalton's biography of Sid Vicious, El Sid: Saint Vicious (St. Martin's Press, $21.95), is simply a retelling of Vicious's story, but the tale has already been told better by Johnny Lydon. Horror novelist Poppy Z. Brite tries to get into Courtney Love's head with Courtney Love: The Real Story (Simon & Schuster, $25) and mostly comes up empty-handed -- except for such disturbing childhood stories as the tale of Love's first acid trip at age four, administered by her father.

It's best to stay away from David Lee Roth's memoir Crazy from the Heat (Hyperion, $23.95) unless you have someone on your list who just can't get enough of Diamond Dave, or someone you can't stand. The man comes across as crazed, and not in a good way. What Roth needed was therapy to get over his Van Halen days, not a book to help him dwell on them.

A must for music know-it-alls is The All Music Guide to Rock (Miller Freeman Books, $26.95). Not only does this massive guide give summaries of nearly all major acts, it also offers reviews of the bands' discs and tells which ones are worth owning and which are better avoided. The book concludes with histories and "family trees" of nearly every style of rock and R&B, from doo-wop to drum 'n' bass.

And finally, our favorite gift pick: computer software that helps music collectors get their CDs, vinyl, tapes, and even eight-tracks in order. Audio File (Doubleware Publications, $39.95) is a program that keeps track of a music collection by artist, by song title, by album title, by genre -- even by the year the album was purchased. The tedious part is entering the information, but the program (compatible with Windows only -- sorry, Mac owners) makes it easy. And once it's in, there's no more searching in vain for "that Depeche Mode song about shoes." Audio File is available at Tower Records (stores at 360 Newbury Street, Boston, 617-247-5900, and 95 Mount Auburn Street, Cambridge, 617-876-3377) or by calling (800) 871-3136.

Christopher Muther is a freelance writer living in Boston.