Sent: Thursday, 26 April 2007
From: Randie
[Many, many compliments deleted here for the sake of this blog’s attempt at appearing modest.]
I have been looking all over for a correct version of the S&C “All I Ever Need Is You” album, since it has a lot of my favorite songs on it and it’s been killing me that I don’t have a copy. For whatever reason, there is a version on amazon.com that isn’t the Real Thing. It’s some sort of compilation with a few live songs—cool, but not what I want. (I’m a little baffled why they would release an album with that name if it’s not the actual album…luckily the cover art tipped me off.) Of course, everytime I search for this album on ebay, it’s the different version that amazon has released. So, anyway, my question is, would you have any idea where I could find the correct version? I understand it’s never actually been released on CD, but anywhere that I could find some sort of bootleg or anything? Yours, Randie
T
his reproduction of All I Ever Need Is You from the early 90s really irks me…on many many levels.
- It’s not a reprint of the original 1972 studio album. It’s just another Sonny & Cher compilation album stealing the old name, diluting the brand of that great album, and generally causing confusion among many Cher fans and music scholars.
- It claims to have a live track of the song “United We Stand” but it’s just a misprint. I got very excited about the prospect of hearing that song live when I was suckered into buying this album at Tower Records in Westchester New York back in 1995. I was sorely disappointed.
- It’s not even a good compilation album as they go.
Here is the amazon link to the miscreant compilation album.
Here’s the track listing for this imposter:
- All I Ever Need Is You
- A Cowboy’s Work Is Never Done
- When You Say Love
- Mama Was A Rock And Roll Singer And Papa Used To Write All Her Songs
- You Better Sit Down Kids – Sonny
- Crystal Clear/Muddy Waters
- The Beat Goes On – Live
- I Got You Babe – Live
- United We Stand – Live
- Bang, Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down) – Live
Here’s the amazon link to The Real Thing.
Here is the track listing to the Real Thing:
Note: this album has never been officially released on CD. You can only buy the album as a used vinyl record at a used record store (I’ve seen copies at Amoeba Records in LA), or used on Amazon, eBay or make your own bootleg (details below).
Side 1
- All I Ever Need is You
- Here Comes That Rainy Day Feeling
- More Today Than Yesterday
- Crystal Clear/Muddy Waters
- United We Stand
Side 2
- A Cowboy’s Work is Never Done
- I Love What you Did With the Love I Gave You
- You Better Sit Down Kids
- We’ll Watch the Sun Coming Up
- Somebody
More details on the album
- More about the album can be found here
Finally, Allmusicguide, supposedly music experts, have it wrong as well. In fact, I wrote to them about this 6 years ago and they still haven’t changed it all these years later.
Do me a favor, click on that link above and give them some sh*t about it. In the lower left corner, click on “Corrections to this Entry?” and give them some correct information.
Bootleging empowerment
You can always get a Radio Shack turn-table that converts your LPs to CD (for about 100 bucks) and you can make your own bootlegs from now on.
What I really don’t understand is why this album hasn’t been released on CD yet. Because when it comes out, all Cher fans will buy it again ‘cause it will have awesome liner notes and chart information. I really don’t understand why, 10 years after Sonny Bono’s death, we haven’t seen re-releases of all his work on CD.
there was a video on YouTube from the Mike Douglas show of Sonny&Cher
performing live a medley of
“United We Stand”/(Nilsson’s)-“I can’t live without you”.
it was very good and stuff like that should be put on a gt.hts. video package in the special features section.
Hey Mary!
My mom bought this album for me for Christmas, and as a joke she put “FROM: Sonny & Cher” on the gift label… Well, I was too young and didn’t get the joke, and I actually thought that Sonny & Cher had given the album to Santa to give to me on Christmas Eve! I was so excited, I fainted!
And yes, that back cover photo (“wooden soldier” cheeks and all) used to amaze me… I thought it was the greatest photo ever, and I was so in awe of how beautiful she was…
Oh, and I sent a correction to AllMusicGuide — that compilation is a piece of crap. The only good thing about it is that it’s super cheap, so completists won’t have to spend much… If only it actually did have a “live” version of “United We Stand”, then it would’ve at least been worth the $5.99 or whatever that I paid… but since it’s actually just the album verrsion, it’s pretty much worthless…
I actually contend that there are three mixes of Somebody.
And I love this album cover and those puppet-circles on Cher’s cheeks – I sincerely do. My parents had this album in their own record collection – and the whole packaged got me hooked!
I’m still intrigued about your revelation, Mary, that there are two different mixes on “Somebody.”
One of the links you included in this blog entry questions the photos on front and back cover of ALL I EVER NEED IS YOU (which I got for my 10th birthday from my brother and sister-in-law, mere weeks after its release!). Indeed, an entire essay could be written about Sonny’s album cover photo essays of the early 70s, all of which send the covert message, “See, folks? We made it back on top and now we live in a mansion and dress like zillionaires!” Need examples? Look at the covers of both the Kapp studio S&C albums, and especially at the inside gatefold photo from 1972’s THE TWO OF US.
I rest my case.
R Pela