Al Stewart Album: “Definitive Pop [Remaster]”

These packages never do justice to the artist. Ultimately you have to get his albums and listen to all the tracks. His masterpeices such as "Carol," "Roads to Moscow," "Valentina Way" (which I saw Al perform live with a full band including Peter White before the Time Passages album was released, and it was incredible), "Sand in your Shoes," "What's Going on," "The Dark and the Rolling Sea," and of course "Modern Times," and on and on - they need to be discovered if the record companies choose not to bundle them in these packages. And these are all accessable tunes, not unlistenable folk prose.

Al surrounded himself with the best musicians, notably Tim Renwick, who is/was one of the best sessionists and also toured with Pink Floyd. For you electric and acoustic guitar enthusiasts, load up MODERN TIMES and crank up the volume and enjoy the guitar virtuosity on just about every track - including incredible solos on the bookending tracks "CAROL" and the title track at the end. If the Rhino edition of Modern Times is still available, read Al's funny story about mixing the title track, AFTER you listen to it.

I am a new Al Stewart fan. I just discovered him a few weeks ago, actually. But I really do like him. 'The Definitive Pop Collection' features 2 CDs worth of some of Al's best, and includes mostly everything a casual fan will need, really. Sure, you get 'Year of the Cat' and 'Time Passages' here, but you also get several other gems, including the early 'Bedsitter Images' (from 1967), and 'Lord Grenville' from the classic 1976 album 'Year of the Cat' (where the famous title cut comes from).

This is a great set, and it's very well-compiled. However, if you listen to it, it's been what you might say "over-remastered." Yes, it's loud, and at times it sounds somewhat distorted. Everything has been enhanced somewhat, but too much of something isn't always good, if you know what I mean. Al Stewart is a very talented artist and an incredible songwriter, and should be appreciated. But do yourself a favor and buy an earlier set (c.1993 to 1994) where the remastering was still great, but not overdone like this set.

Overall, if you are a budget minded fan who wants some Al Stewart for their iPod and is not an audophile (which I confess, I am), then 'The Definitive Pop Collection' is all you'll need. You get the bulk of Al's classics on two CDs stuffed with music. If Rhino had done less remastering, this could have been an easy 5 stars. However, as it is, I am going to say this: a million stars for the music, two-and-a-half stars for the remastering. For purposes of Amazon's rating system, let's average this down to about 3.5 stars.

If you are an audophile, try Arista's 1992 'The Best of Al Stewart: Songs from the Radio' (which is the same as an earlier album, 1986's 'The Best of Al Stewart,' but remastered -- and perfectly, might I add), which has a crisp and clear sound that still sounds great today, in 2011. However, that one has been out of print for years, so if you want a readily available Al Stewart compilation, 'The Definitive Pop Collection' should satisfy your needs just fine.

Recommended for a curious Al Stewart fan and a non-audophile.

the quality was excellent brand new in packaging the discs were flawless and the music chosen was of the best quality

Sound quality good,price was right.But the track listing was completely different than advertised.Buyer beware of what you receive.A good collection none the less.