[elalmhicabalp]

I like listening to the Cruel remix w/ Beekeeper tracks. It seems to fit with that era more (in other words, it sucks, it's half the song the original is)

[vladekad]

TORI AMOS
A PIANO: THE COLLECTION
(RHINO)
Released: September 2006

A

• Leather (Alternate Mix)
• Precious Things (Alternate Mix)
• Silent All These Years
• Upside Down
• Crucify (Unedited Single Version)
• Happy Phantom
• Me and a Gun
• Flying Dutchman (Alternate Mix)
• Girl
• Winter
• Take To The Sky (Russia)
• Tear In Your Hand
• China
• Sweet Dreams
• Mother (Alternate Mix)
• Little Earthquakes

B

• Cornflake Girl
• Honey
• Take Me With You
• Baker Baker (Alternate Mix)
• The Waitress (Alternate Mix)
• Pretty Good Year
• God
• Cloud On My Tongue
• Past the Mission (Alternate Mix)
• Bells for Her
• Yes, Anastasia (Alternate Mix)
• Blood Roses
• Mr. Zebra
• Caught a Lite Sneeze (Alternate Mix)
• Professional Widow (Merry Widow Version – Live)
• Beauty Queen / Horses
• Father Lucifer
• Marianne

C

• Walk To Dublin (Sucker Reprise)
• Hey Jupiter (Dakota Version)
• Professional Widow (Armand’s Star Trunk Funkin’ Mix)
• Putting The Damage On
• Bliss (Remixed Version)
• Suede
• Glory Of The 80s
• 1000 Oceans
• Concertina (Single Remix Version)
• Lust
• Datura
• Sugar (Live from sound check)
• The Waitress (Live)
• Snow Cherries from France
• Doughnut Song (Remixed Version)

D

• A Sorta Fairytale
• Not David Bowie
• Amber Waves
• iieee (Remixed Version)
• Playboy Mommy (Remixed Version)
• The Beekeeper
• Jackie’s Strength
• Zero Point
• Sweet the Sting
• Ode To My Clothes
• Spark
• Intro Jam / Marys of the Sea
• Cruel” (Remixed Version)
• Dolphin Song
• Gold Dust

E

• The Pool
• Never Seen Blue
• Daisy Dead Petals
• Beulah Land
• Sugar
• Cooling
• Bachelorette
• Black Swan
• Mary (Tales Version)
• Peeping Tommi
• Toodles Mr. Jim
• Demo Medley:
• Fire-Eater’s Wife/Beauty Queen (Demo)
• Playboy Mommy (Demo)
• A Sorta Fairytale (Demo)
• This Old Man
• Purple People
• Here. In My Head
• Hungarian Wedding Song
• Merman
• Sister Janet
• Home On The Range
• Frog On My Toe

Any time you get an opportunity to put something out, I’m in the mind that you seize the project with both hands. And I’m not one to give the record company my blessing and do what [they] think is best. I don’t think that anybody knows what’s best except the composer or the midwives of the songs themselves. I had access to all the material since 1990, and my goal was to try and retain the integrity of everything. When you’re putting together a work of this magnitude, [the songs] all have to work together. I wanted to have some kind of story—a payoff denouement for each record. ____

[r5YOPDyk]

I remember buying this and spending all day looking at the hardcover booklet and spending time with each of the discs. This is an excellent compilation.

[WoCTrt0X]

probably one of my favorite releases of anything I own.

I had her sign the booklet for me...

[DesautocaD]

I love it. But that being said, I have lots of criticism for it.

88 keys on a piano. 88 songs on the collection would have been a nice touch. So close.

Stop. Stop already with the Prof Widow remix.

I love how LE sounds. I was so happy to hear the new material. Take me with you is so freaking awesome. I like hearing demos. That little bit of playboy Mommy was beautiful. I wish she wouldn't be so afraid of demos not being finished enough.

Can we say for sure now that Melusine that she referred to as writing is Dolphin Song?

The omissions for this set make me crazy. Garlands. Peter Pan. MOUNTAIN. All the soundtrack songs. I don't think we needed live versions of songs that we already had. If tales is considered a collection, then why is the collection then on another collection (mary, snow cherries)? At least give us a Tales version that didn't make the album (wasn't Putting the Damage on a free download, but didn't make the disk?)

It would be nice if they kept making additions to it. Like release another disk now with ADP, AATS, and MWG stuff.

[WoCTrt0X]

^I don't know about that... I noticed some of Rhino's recent releases along with this are now out of print. Economy related? who knows...

[kristloken]

The omissions for this set make me crazy. Garlands. Peter Pan. MOUNTAIN. All the soundtrack songs. I don't think we needed live versions of songs that we already had. If tales is considered a collection, then why is the collection then on another collection (mary, snow cherries)? At least give us a Tales version that didn't make the album (wasn't Putting the Damage on a free download, but didn't make the disk?)

I think most of the soundtrack songs had to be left out for legal or licensing reasons unfortunately. Garlands, OPP, Mountain etc. were also probably left off because Rhino only had rights to Tori's Atlantic catalog and had to pay to use the Epic era songs, so we only got a few on this collection. Now why Amber Waves and Marys made it on instead of those tracks, you'd have to ask Tori.

I think A Piano is one of Tori's best releases. Beautiful packaging, an informative booklet, great remasters, and some very nice unreleased tracks and demos. Pretty much everything I'd want in a box set.

I do wish they had just put all of UTP on here so it would all be remastered. All of the tracks gained so much from it, I'd love to hear a remastered Icicle, Space Dog, and Wrong Band. It also would've been nice to get just a few of Tori's covers on here, they're a big part of her career and songs like Teen Spirit, New Age, Famous Blue Raincoat, etc. are some of her best work.

[DesautocaD]

I think most of the soundtrack songs had to be left out for legal or licensing reasons unfortunately. Garlands, OPP, Mountain etc. were also probably left off because Rhino only had rights to Tori's Atlantic catalog and had to pay to use the Epic era songs, so we only got a few on this collection. Now why Amber Waves and Marys made it on instead of those tracks, you'd have to ask Tori.

I'm sure you're totally right as to why, but my thoughts are like "if you're not going to do it right, don't do it." Like you said, put Garlands and Mountain instead of AW and MATS (although I love that intro jam!) Seeing spots where stuff COULD have gone, knowing there is stuff TO put on, just makes me sad. The omissions make me crazy, but I am still very happy with the overall product.

[anfuckinggs]

It's a very cohesive collection of Tori's work, but as time progresses and Tori releases new material, it leaves you wanting more as a completest. And what a majorly missed opportunity by not putting "Mountain" on there.

[pumpineemob]

I love it except for the lack of a few rarities that I really would have liked to seen (Mountain, Studio Purple People!).

I think it would have been even better if some of the material (like maybe the Little Earthquakes disc) was re-recorded and remixed (as they did for Sweet Dreams and Mary on Tales).

[vladekad]

Take Me With You is one of my favourite things she has ever done.

I think this is a great box set.

[jhkjurter]

^ I'm also a big fan of Take Me With You, and don't understand why it doesn't seem to be too popular among the fans.

[GeorgeEckland]

It's a great collection, but honestly, Pink and Pele got screwed. There were so many songs left off that shouldn't have been.

[pumpineemob]

^Yeah. I honestly think that A Piano could have just been a 3 disc set with 2 discs of B-sides and unreleased content and a disc of unreleased live recordings. By that time Tori's back catalog was just too enormous for a greatest-hits type box set (unless it was going to be 8 discs and cost $130).

[favwebbb]

What's amazing is that my friend likes Tori and she specifically loves Walk to Dublin (A song in which her voice is at it's whiniest and most annoying if you ask me).

Quoted form the Joanna Newsom's subforum in response to Menju.


I don't find at all Tori's voice annoying in that song. I think it's powerfull. The first time I heard Walk to Dublin I bet my eyes were sparkling with amazement.
She so nails that song.
I love it deeply.

[vladekad]

In the UTP listening party thread there was an idea from Scarlet along the lines of 'what would you have done differently in A Piano?' So, what would you have done differently?

I think some omissions will have been down to contractual issues but I would have liked all of the b-sides on there, that's the one thing I can think of.

[sbrscnds]

First of all, LE, UTP and Pele should have all been in there in complete, remastered form. Those albums needed it the most. A remastered version of Sweet the Sting, one year later after being originally released, for instance, was completely unnecessary.

[r5YOPDyk]

I think with StS though, she wanted more to include a TBK single than she wanted to present a new remaster.

I'm probably biased because I got A Piano at the peak of my fandom and love it to pieces, but there isn't much I'd change. However, I would have loved remixes of the Venus tracks instead of simple remasters, particularly Lust, Spring Haze, and Juarez.

[connandoilee]

I think A Piano was one of the nicest outputs of Tori lately, all post-Scarlet releases included. So many remasters, rare tracks, new tracks...
With that said I have many issues with it, under this spoiler.

First, I would have loved complete remasters of the first five albums. But I can see that it was not the intention. Icicle is in dire need of remastering. And imagine the backing vocals in Space Dog with a clear and crisp remaster!

Second, concerning the album sequencing, Beekeeper and Choirgirl DO NOT go together, Fori! And why chop Pele into two albums?

Third, it's obvious that A Piano was intended for the more hardcore fans, while TAOL was for the masses. So I understand including the remix of ProWidow on TAOL, being a greatest hits album and all - even though it has no place on the record. But why put the ProWidow remix again on A Piano?

Fourth, the omission of some very old b-sides that are almost lost and could benefit of some remastering, Ode to the Banana King, Thoughts and Song for Eric mainly. But then again, why the Venus version of Purple People was added instead of the studio one baffles me.

Fifth, I i e e e and Cruel. What happened.

I will stop. Otherwise I will be trashed and branded as negative

[sbrscnds]

I think with StS though, she wanted more to include a TBK single than she wanted to present a new remaster.

No shit.

That's the whole idea - she wanted to put out a boxset which showcased her entire career up to that point, perhaps geared towards people who aren't extremely familiar with her work. Honestly, it was clear from the start that only hardcore fans would buy it, and from where I stand, it should have catered more to their (our) needs. In that sense, I think it should have included her first three albums in full (as those really needed remastering), as many b-sides and rarities as possible, more songs from the vaults, tracks previously unavailable in CD quality (Garlands, Mountain) etc.

eta - that's what happens when it takes you an hour to make a post - Rabih addressed all those things before I hit submit.

Still, I don't think Choirgirl and Venus need remasters at all. That's why I don't mind the iieee and Cruel remixes - we already have excellent sounding versions of the originals.