Buddy Holly "The Buddy I Knew" 2000 - Vol 5

This is an interesting set; again, a must for the serious collector. There is much overlap between this set and many other bootlegs; indeed, each disc states in large letters "Tex-Mex Music Company Presents The Buddy Holly Showcase".

This set is roughly the equivalent to Polygram's Hank Williams box of the late '90s, in terms of what it does with Buddy Holly's music, except that it is a bootleg and, thus, lacks certain packaging amenities. Since MCA Records has been dragging its feet for years getting its Complete Buddy Holly box onto CD, it was only a matter of time before some enterprising anonymous producer went ahead and did this set or one like it. The result is seven CDs, 216 tracks consisting of finished songs, outtakes, mix-downs, home acoustic demos, and related recordings, starting with songs that Holly cut on a wire recorder with Bob Montgomery at around age 12 in 1948, and ending with newscasts about the February 3, 1959, plane crash that killed him. It's nearly 500 minutes of material, which sounds impressive (and is) until one discovers that it's also a bit of a mess. The producers have tried to follow a kind of chronological order, near as one can tell, although even there a certain sloppiness intrudes because they've flipped the song lineup lists on the first and second CDs; they've also included no annotation whatsoever, leaving it up to the listener to figure out the recording dates, chronological relationships of adjacent songs, and the general significance and origins of each track. Annotation would have helped, but it's not essential to enjoying the set or the music. The hits are all interspersed with the outtakes; it's hard to tell which version of, say, "Bo Diddley" is which among the half-dozen scattered throughout. Additionally, it's difficult to imagine that any but the most serious fans will want to plunge too far into the multiple overdubbing that some of these songs were subjected to, though Holly devotees, rockabilly fans, and rock & roll enthusiasts may love it. The sound quality is variable, in keeping with the sheer diversity of sources involved, but is generally acceptable or better, especially if one allows for the fact that a big chunk of this set is made up of tapes that were never intended to be heard by the public. The very personal essay by Holly's brother Larry Holley is extensive and informative, though not really about the music so much as about Holly's pursuit of a career and his private and spiritual life. - AllMusic Review by Bruce Eder

trax:
1. That'll Be the Day (Take 1) - Buddy Holly & Three Tunes 2. That'll Be the Day (Take 2) - Buddy Holly & Crickets 3. That'll Be the Day (Take 3) (Live) - Buddy Holly & Crickets 4. That'll Be the Day (Take 4) (Live) - Buddy Holly & Crickets 5. That'll Be the Day (Take 5) - Buddy Holly 6. That'll Be the Day (Take 6) - Buddy Holly 7. Blue Days Black Nights (Take 1) - Buddy Holly & Three Tunes 8. Blue Days Black Nights (Take 2) - Buddy Holly & Picks 9. I'm Changing All Those Changes (Take 1) - Buddy Holly & Three Tunes 10. I'm Changing All Those Changes (Take 2) - Buddy Holly 11. Maybe Baby (Take 1)(Rare Version) - Buddy Holly 12. Maybe Baby (Take 2) - Buddy Holly & Crickets 13. Maybe Baby (Take 3) - Buddy Holly & Crickets 14. Maybe Baby (Take 4)(Rare Master) - Buddy Holly & Crickets 15. Rock Around With Ollie Vee (Take 1) - Buddy Holly & Three Tunes 16. Rock Around With Ollie Vee (Take 2) - Buddy Holly & Three Tunes 17. Rock Around With Ollie Vee (Take 3) - Buddy Holly & Picks 18. You Are My One Desire (Take 1) - Buddy Holly & Three Tunes 19. You Are My One Desire (Take 2) - Buddy Holly & Picks 20. Modern Don Juan (Take 1) - Buddy Holly & Three Tunes 21. Modern Don Juan (Take 2) - Buddy Holly & Picks 22. Oh Boy (Take 1) - Buddy Holly & Crickets 23. Oh Boy (Take 2) - Buddy Holly & Crickets 24. Ting-A-Ling (Take 1) - Buddy Holly & Picks 25. Love Me (Take 1) - Buddy Holly & Picks 26. Don't Come Back Knockin' (Take 1) - Buddy Holly & Picks 27. Midnight Shift (Take 1) - Buddy Holly & Picks 28. Girl On My Mind (Take 1) - Buddy Holly & Picks 29. Peggy Sue Got Married (Take 1) - Buddy Holly 30. It Doesn't Matter Anymore (Take 1) (Stereo) - Buddy Holly 31. True Love Ways (Take 1) (Stereo) - Buddy Holly 32. Raining In My Heart (Take 1) (Stereo) - Buddy Holly 33. Love Is Strange (Take 1) (Stereo) - Buddy Holly 34. Learning the Game (Take 1) (Dubbed Stereo) - Buddy Holly 35. Because I Love You (Take 1) (Dubbed Stereo) - Buddy Holly
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