'Philadelphia Classics' vs. original versions

[musiquelover]

The Philadelphia Classics CD has become my favourite disco album so far although in my opinion "Don't Leave Me This Way" should have been a little bit longer before fading out.

Up to now I only have these newer versions but I don't know the original versions of the songs (with the exception of "Love Train").
So I wondered what others think about these Tom Moulton mixes. Are they better or worse than their original recordings? Are they too long or too short? And do you think they would have replaced the original versions in the discos at that time if they would've been available right from the start?

[eddie]

All of those songs are only elongated with a few extra repeats of the chorus and instrumental sections. I don't believe there was any additional new music added to these mixes. A PIR classic that you must have the 12" for is McFadden and Whitehead's "Aint no stoppin' us now" because it has additional music added to the mix.

I honestly think elongated a song without changing the music with additional chord progressions is pointless for the most part. I have the CD and its nice but not overly essential.

[ol'skinflint]

Originally Posted by musiquelover

The Philadelphia Classics CD has become my favourite disco album so far although in my opinion "Don't Leave Me This Way" should have been a little bit longer before fading out.

Up to now I only have these newer versions but I don't know the original versions of the songs (with the exception of "Love Train").
So I wondered what others think about these Tom Moulton mixes. Are they better or worse than their original recordings? Are they too long or too short? And do you think they would have replaced the original versions in the discos at that time if they would've been available right from the start?

I like the mixes on "Philadelphia Classics" a lot, but I have a dynamite 10:45 12" version of "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" and I sure wish it was on there, regardless of who mixed it. As for "Don't Leave Me This Way", it's one of the few instances where I enjoy the remake more than the original. And why did they change the cover? The original 2 record set has a totally different cover....

[musiquelover]

Originally Posted by ol'skinflint

I like the mixes on "Philadelphia Classics" a lot, but I have a dynamite 10:45 12" version of "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" and I sure wish it was on there, regardless of who mixed it. As for "Don't Leave Me This Way", it's one of the few instances where I enjoy the remake more than the original. And why did they change the cover? The original 2 record set has a totally different cover....

I just ordered a CD with the 12" version of "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" on it as I'm really curious about it compared to the original version.

Regarding "Don't Leave Me This Way": I prefer the HM&TBN-version, probably because of Teddy Pendergrass' strong vocal performance.

[ashley_k]

Originally Posted by ol'skinflint

And why did they change the cover? The original 2 record set has a totally different cover....

Well the original CD re-issue of Philadelphia Classics had the LP artwork, but the original LP artwork looked a bit small when reduced to CD size, and as it’s a new re-mastered re-issue with the added bonus track of People's Choice “Do It Any Way You Wanna”, it make’s sense to update the CD cover too.

I quite like the extended versions, it’s always nice to have an alternative version to play rather than just the standard version, I’m going to have to get around to getting a copy of the new re-mastered version of Philadelphia Classics as I’m interested in finding out what sort of job they made of re-mastering it, when compared to old CD version.

[Disco Funk]

I really love the Philadelphia Classics album. As I've stated before, I think this was the first time the Gamble & Huff Philly recordings were remixed in extended form. Up until that album, the album version was the only long version you could get, and the mix was the same as on the 12". Tom Moulton did a great job of preserving the feel of the original recordings. I don't know if he was allowed to really do anything daring with breakdowns and such, but he did strip down Love Train, so I don't think G&H restricted him. This album was way better than his Trammps remix album entitled Disco Champs. I really dislike the remixes on that album. I notice that Moulton didn't do any other projects with Philly International after that mess.

I have the old release of the CD with the old artwork. I didn't bother with the new one because I heard Do It Anyway You Wanna, and it sounds like a re-edit, rather than a remix, and I'm guessing it was done recently.

You can hear distinct differences between the originals and the Philly Classics mixes. I don't recall if there were extra vocal sections that were included that weren't in the original versions. I think the only thing Moulton could do is mix out vocals and include instrumental sections to lengthen the tracks. There must have been some overdubs because tracks like TSOP and Love Is The Message contain extra instrumentation that wasn't in the originals, like the tambourine in the former, and the vocals (maybe they were on the master tape of the original but mixed out on the released version?) and long piano solos in the latter.

Ain't No Stoppin Us Now's LP and 12" mixes are similar. The difference is in the editing of the tracks. The LP version edited out that section where the song stops, but they keep singing 'no stoppin' and the electronic drums keep playing. Interestingly, the outro of the LP version plays longer than the outro of the 12" mix. I'm referring to the ride cymbal drums. The 12" fades out just as the drummer shifts from hi-hat to cymbal, but the LP mix keeps it going for a number of seconds. I think what needs to be done is an edit of those two versions to make an even longer version, which would run past the 11 min mark.

Disco Funk

[Nano]

I like the original versions better, but this is a very good album. And I like "I'll always love my Mama" so much that a 10-minute version is like honey for my ears

I didn't know there was a 12' version of "Do it any way you wanna" (I have the old CD version of Philadelphia Classics and the People's Choice LP). I guess Disco Funk is right...

[thommy2458]

I have a TSOP cd comp I bought a few years
ago because of a new Peoples Choice "Do It"
mix-credited to Tom Moulton.It doesn't sound
like an edit,but more of an extension.Similar
to the Classics lp,which I think is just that- a "classic".The "Love Is the Message" mix alone
is listed by many as their favorite disco track
of all time.This CD would definitely go in my
"time capsule" of desert island picks.

Thom

[kdavid13]

One of my all-time best.

With TOM MOULTON's "A Tom Moulton Mix" and the relatively new DEEP DOWN & DISCOFIED on DEFECTED RECORDS.