Promissed Away

Rod McKuen's complete 1960s RCA Victor recordings are compiled in a lavish boxed set of 7 compact discs. Rod McKuen's books of poetry have been published in eleven languages, sold 65 million copies, and placed him securely among the most popular poets of all time. These 195 recordings represent Rod McKuen at the peak of his mid-to-late 1960s popularity and include his Gold album Listen To The Warm. Features dozens of unissued performances, with most tracks never before released on CD anywhere. The large format hardcover book extensively documents this period of McKuen's life and includes many rare and unpublished pictures from Rod's collection.

Two CDs devoted to the Springfields is probably a bit much for casual fans. This set could likely have been trimmed to one 70-minute CD, leaving out "Silver Dollar," "Row Row Row" and some of the other lesser material from their first album, although it is strange in an enlightening way to hear Dusty singing the latter, a pre-World War I standard more suited to the likes of Ruth Etting. What's good is that none of the high spots are left out, including "Allentown Jail," the ethereal "Far Away Place," "Silver Threads and Golden Needles" (natch), the delightful "Little Boat" (the best of their international numbers), and the gorgeous, near-British beat style "Come On Home," where Dusty starts to show off some of the soulfulness that would later identify her voice. The notes are well detailed, and the mastering is flawless.