Phil Collins / No Jacket Required and Testify deluxe editions.

So far i’ve purchased them all, now waiting for “But Seriously” I’m very happy with the sonics and all these reissues having popped down $30 for all the GOLD Audio Fidelity releases which are of inferior quality. (Same with the Gold Cars reissues, the box sounds so much better). Never buying Gold Reissues for any albums anymore. Let’s keep up the excellent remastering work.

Man are these compressed. Is Nick Davis hard of hearing? What the heck is up with him applying so much compression to these remasters? By doing he makes these (along with a lack of b-sides, small amount of demos) even LESS essential.

”No Jacket Required” CD 2 – Live tracks:

1: Sussudio (”Seriously Live In Berlin” DVD)
2: Don’t lose my number (“Live And Loose In Paris” DVD)
3: Who said I would (“No Ticket Required”)
4: Long long way to go (“Live And Loose In Paris” DVD)
5: Only you know and I know (The Both Sides of the World Tour ’94/’95)
6: Easy lover (“Live And Loose In Paris” DVD)
7: Inside out (”Seriously Live In Berlin” DVD)
8: Doesn’t anybody stay together anymore (”Seriously Live In Berlin” DVD)
9: One more night (”Seriously Live In Berlin” DVD)
10: Take me home (”Seriously Live In Berlin” DVD)

”Testify” CD 2 – Live tracks:

6: Come with me (“Finally… The First Farewell Tour” DVD)
7: It’s not too late (“Finally… The First Farewell Tour” DVD)
8: Can’t stop loving you (“Finally… The First Farewell Tour” DVD)

Thanks you

Like Peter Gabriel before him (the “So” box set) here we have an artist who wants to curate to his own understanding and development of an album, rather that the commercial life of it. He said this in advance – that this was what was coming out – so no one should be surprised each time another set (here the 5th and 6th out of 8) arrive.
Yes, I’d like to see all the tracks mentioned above to finally be released on CD – the terrific b-sides (regardless of recording origin – I’m comfortable with release dates etc. as a guide). Remixes (not only all of them that were on the “12’ers” EP, but what about the Japanese edit of “Take Me Home” – shorter than the domestic 12″ extended, but unique itself…. the slightly touched up remix of “We Said Hello, Goodbye” from the movie PLAYING FOR KEEPS). Non-album cuts (“Easy Lover” would be great, not to mention “Against All Odds”, or even “Separate Lives” w/Marylin Martin) etc etc.
What really makes me upset is that there are no details on when these live recordings (or for that matter – the demos) were recorded…. who’s playing on them? And every liner note is copy-and-paste with the exception of specific notes on a few new tracks…. Very frustrating.

No Jacket Required would enable a SuperDeluxeEdition: The 12″ers, the complete concert video (DVD/BluRay) recently broadcasted on 3sat, the Live Aid performances, tv appearences, unplugged versions (especially Lady Madonna / Sussudio), Easy Lover 12″ and many more.

when “no jacket required” was released, there was an accompanying music video release that i bought along with it (on betamax no less!)… the “no jacket required” music video ep (released in the usa by atlantic records) included “sussudio,” “one more night,” “who said i would,” “don’t lose my number,” and “take me home.” it would have been really, really great if this “njr” re-release included an accompanying dvd that had those videos on it.

these record companies are really missing the mark on these delux re-releases… i was equally disappointed with the gogo’s recent re-releases because they had no dvd of music videos. i can’t imagine the record companies would just let these things sit in a vault and not want to try to make money off them….

BOYCOTT !!!

New cover images? Outrageous. Has anyone else ever done that with reissues? Like most others here I’m fussy about deluxe/expanded editions, maybe more than others, because that has put me right off.

I like to think that there may well be enlarged sets of individual albums down the line, perhaps, but it will really depend on demand. I imagine it was a no-brainer for Floyd and Zep to do an array of SDE’s that cost a “ton” a piece, because they were very confident that there was a sizeable audience who would absolutely splash out and make the investment worth it. Right now, you get the impression that the Phil camp are not entirely sure of the same. It’s not like it’s not doable, as everyone knows how much archive material he has, but a big stumbling block, I reckon, is Phil’s attitude to the albums in question. One of the more eye-opening details of recent promotional interviews is that he doesn’t have much love at all for No Jacket Required – ironic, given its his biggest success. That in itself may inform the content of the extras disc we’re getting now. Maybe he just doesn’t like the remixes of songs he doesn’t have a lot of love for… who knows? As far as But, Seriously… is concerned, I just really, really, really want “That’s How I Feel” on CD at long, long last.

“We Said Hello Goodbye” used to even get radio play in the NYC area.
This album (along with Crowded House and Capitol Records’ “CD XTRA TRAX PAX” marketing hooey) was one of the earliest to use that bonus track on CD only thing as a marketing effort.
Howard Jones’ “Dream into Action” album too!

At least Testify won’t have that copy protection crap on it this time around like it did on it’s original release in Europe anyway.

While it’s a boundless pleasure to finally have a Phil Collins box-set – and I am certainly enjoying the remasters of the albums – I think the bonus material has unquestionably been defined by a severe sense of hesitancy, as if Collins perhaps felt that no one would be interested in receiving a more complete overview. Moreover, it’s absolutely aimed at the casual fan who might want “a little more” – which is fine. Certainly, there’s nothing wrong with Collins approach – and he’s absolutely not wrong in that there it’s genuinely interesting to see how songs develop in the live arena – but the issue, if you’re an outright devotee of his work, is that the rarity value is pretty much nil. It’s genuinely disappointing not have a full array of B-sides for each album – let alone the remixes, which for NJR merited their own release – and, if you know your bootlegs and live releases, it’s abundantly easy to know where this live material comes from. I do think there should have been a greater sense of confidence, as you could have at least done sizeable SDE’s of the first four albums and they surely would have sold. However, Collins is clearly not a fan of the “everything and the kitchen sink” approach to reissue material, which so many SDE devotees are, which is his prerogative, I suppose. Ultimately, I don’t think you can call this campaign a failure by any means – it’s a tailored approach that’s not for the hardest of hardcore fans. That doesn’t mean that this won’t happen down the line, though. More than anything, the TALAMN campaign is really testing the waters of current interest in Collins, so you can appreciate that they would take a measured approach and not release an uber-set that wouldn’t do anything commercially.

Who would waste their time and money on another 2-channel “already-been-there-done-that” MUSIC COMPANY (Warner Bros Music in this case) money grab dressed up as a Super Deluxe Edition?

WHERE ARE THE DISCRETE 5.1 surround mixes!!!???

…completely disgusted with Warner Bros Music who have FAILED (once again) to provide lossless, discrete 5.1 tracks — this time on Phil Collins’ signature solo release: “No Jacket Required.”

We must BOYCOTT all music companies who fail to offer discrete surround tracks on all reissues where the MASTER TAPES are present and viable.

There is simply no argument as to the absolute best way to enjoy these (musical) arts!

When I heard that Collins was planning on reducing “Going Back” from 18 songs to 13 (for the upcoming reissue), I did the obvious thing: I bought the 18-song version while it is still available. I found a clean used “Going Back” CD for $3. Now, “Testify” is the only Collins CD that I don’t have in my collection.
The “Going Back” CD is excellent. If you don’t already have it, grab the 18-song version while you can.

In the era of b’sides and tracks from compilations, soundtracks, remixes, etc., it is surprising that NJR deluxe basically sucks.
As for possibly dropping the number of tracks on Going Back, would put it passed Rhino/Phil to use whatever was dropped as the bonus tracks on the second CD. Not much of a huge choice unless there are demos or unreleased tracks as there was no touring to speak of. Unless they throw in the 4 extra tracks off the DVD.

I have bought the vinyl versions released so far and I’m very happy with the quality. Top notch package all the way, and the sound is perfect. So if you’re into vinyl, I really recommend getting these since I think that this is one of the better reissue series on vinyl that I have come across.
Thanks for the info Paul!

It has been more or less confirmed in interviews with Phil since January that a singles collection will be coming out at the end of the year as well as an anthology of people Phil has worked with Eric Clapton, John Martyn etc I don’t know if these are the same or separate releases. So it looks like he his holding back certain songs for this release, Man with the horn, that’s how i feel etc….

I’m a PC fan. Not the hardcore one. But I like 12″/7″ remixes, dub etc. Now the tracklistings I’ve seen so far are disappointing. Like I’ve said before: the new covers are scary. And I’m agreed with Ern. Remasters/reissues should have the original covers or perhaps unused photos from the same cover photo shoot instead of these new covers. A CD cover should represent the CD content. New cover for new recording or re-recording. Perhaps the “new cover” on the inner side or as flip side of the original cover.

I don’t mind to pay for the remastered expanded editions with most 7″/12″/dub. And perhaps after the reissues then again for a 2 or 3 CD set with Remixes (of course with some unreleased gems from the vault)! Warner/Rhino, feel free to take my money, just give me/us what I/we want.

We Said Hello Goodbye will be on the CD. Phew! I was nervous it wasn’t going to be on there, especially when I heard Going Back is going to Morrissey-like and change completely (new track order, completely new artwork). I did hear that Phil demo’d Sun Aint Gonna Shine Anymore during Going Back on Ken Bruce’s show yesterday. Hopefully thatll appear on its bonus disc.

I wish the “No Jacket Required” B-Side “Man With The Horn” would have been included on the 2nd disc.

10 years from now, Phil won’t look like he does on the new covers. And the new covers don’t reflect how he looked at the time he made the recordings. We’ll look back on this later and think, “Well… that seemed like a rather random idea from Phil!” Maybe in ten years’ time, we’ll get another reissue. Same content, but updated photos for how Phil looks in 2026.

I hope there will be a comprehensive remastered singles collection/greatest hits album (a double-CD set, possibly) after the reissue series is complete. Including the non-LP tracks which weren’t and will not be included in the remasters (Against All Odds, Separate Lives, Two Hearts, Groovy Kind of Love, True Colours, Son of Man, You’ll Be In My Heart, Look Through My Eyes, Hero with David Crosby, No Way Out) would be a particularly wise decision.

I’ll be very disappointed if the NJR live tracks are from his Hot Tub Club performance in Melbourne, which is widely bootlegged and a very good soundboard recording in its own right.

The updated cover for NJR is just plain creepy!

This is the third set of releases of Phil’s albums and it’s time to comment. I was really looking forward to these reissues but I’m bitterly disappointed.
The track selection on the bonus discs, as many have already commented, is dire. The sound quality of some of them is poor to say the least. I know the source of these tracks maybe to blame, but we’re talking about remasters here. I also dislike the new covers. I don’t know of any band or artist that has done this before.
The inner sleeve notes are repetitive. I think that most people will want the whole series (hence the box) so to use the same explanation of why he’s done these re-releases, on each, with little or no info about the bonus tracks is a shame.
I would have been satisfied if they had been released similar to Peter Gabriel’s albums a few years ago. That is, the original album with a budget price. A missed opportunity.

I believe the true colours rehearsal was previously released on the love songs compilation.

and I will echo everyone else with disappointment over no jacket required and the incompleteness of all the other ones (though hello I must be going actually does seem to have all it’s b-sides)

I always stand by artist’s choice (if only because all too often that is NOT the case. The artist is left out in the cold, with their work spwed out with little care.) Still it is a bit of a bummer that so much of the recorded output of NJR is not on these reissues. They even released an EP of remixes (“The 12’ers”) from that album. “We Said Hello, Goodbye” was the “original” bonus track on the CD edition of the album here in the states, happy to see it included here as part of the set.
I look forward to the few demos here, as that really does the job PC keeps referring too in the liner notes (note to all, half the write-ups in each album are the same, and a few specific details per album are included). The whole idea he has was to showcase the development of a song from writing, to album, to live. A pity there is no inclusion of performance credits to his touring bands, what date the tracks were recorded, and venue site. :(
As for the remixes – you have the 6 from “12”ers”, but also “Easy Lover”, the vinyl Japaneses edit of “Take Me Home” (shorter, but unique to itself). Even the remix of “We Said Hello, Goodbye” from the soundtrack PLAYING FOR KEEPS.

Again, utter crap from Phil Collins. The bonus tracks on these reissues are completely worthless. I hope they commission Paul to do with NJR what he did with Tears For Fears’ The Big Chair. A beautiful box set with ALL the remixes, early mixes, 7″ mixes, b-sides, radio sessions and live material. This is disgusting!!

In this Billboard article, Phil states that he plans to remove some tracks from Going Back:

http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/6874147/phil-collins-making-major-changes-to-going-back-reissue

I haven’t been a fan, and only own 2 albums, so:

I love the box, the new covers are a great idea, the sound on this new versions is fantastic, the live bonustracks are nice, the deluxe packages look great. No complaints at all!!
I’m going to buy the whole set, and can’t wait til NJR is released.
I also bought HITS because of the missing hits that are not included.
As a non hardcore fan I’m not interested in 12″ mixes or b-sides. Maybe there is a reason why Phil didn’t want them to be released again.
Real fans might already have all the songs on different CDs, LPs,…

NO Purchase REQUIRED!!
The tracklist is scary – like the cover picture.
Where is an Expanded Edition of 12″ers ?
This is what I want. All 12″ mixes, 7″ mixes, b-sides and maybe
unreleased dub mixes, alternate mixes.
TESTIFY !!

again… where’s the bonus dvd with the music videos from “no jacket required”???

What do people think of the sound quality of the remasters?

To me it’s a cleaner sound but there seems to be less bass than the previous releases.

I’m no fan of Phil Collins, but hats off to him for updating the cover photos. A very brave move. Due to the lighting, No Jacket Required isn’t as scary as previous ones, and the reasonably short time-frame (14 years) between the original and new Testify means that that one looks OK too.

Just reading other comments, I do hope these missing B sides and extended versions and the Drawing Board demos and non album singles appear on some sort of compilation, like an extended, remastered Hits package? We all would buy them! Warner should take heed and release what we want. At the end of the day, there is a difference between artist’s choice and what will sell, and 80s reissues done right, sell. This site is proof of that cos we all buy these reissues. Thats why we’re here!

With the first 4 reissues I have been very kind, and I do think they were fantastic. I think Testify’s tracklisting is perfect, and whilst I hate to moan about Mr. Collins’ decision with No Jacket Requird with the tracklisting (I mean, no I Like The Way?? Phil-you have included B sides on Dance, Both Sides and Testify, why not your BIGGEST selling period??) I do like the tracklisting to No Jacket, in terms of live and demo material, and I do like the covers re-shot, especially as part of the Take a Look at Me Now box. As a superfan, I have the original 80s vinyls and CD’s from yesteryear so have “original” masters and artwork any. I will buy these and I very much look forward to owning a remastered No Jacket and some of the B sides from Testify I have never heard so that’s good.

I am terrified now about But Seriously… He seriously (ahem) needs to include Thats How I Feel and Youve Been In Love, otherwise, we riot!

And when is Tarzan deluxe coming out…

It seems rather perverse that so many extended versions and b-sides are being left off.

I’m left to assume that either an odds and sods collection is intended for release after the albums proper, or this is being rather seriously mismanaged.

Still, I have enough love for Phil the musician that I want to pick these up and give them a proper chance.

Fingers crossed my first guess is the correct one.

Also, is it just me, or is the new No Jacket Required picture a little… ghoulish? He looks very unwell from that angle in that lighting. Testify is far better overall.

now that testify is to pre order i can do my combo :

dance into the light 2LP+testify 2LP on amazon

though I already have the dance into the light original LP,
but since it was released on a single LP… I can throw a few euros for a better sound

maybe he’ll release an expanded edition of 12″ers with non album singles,complete 12 mixes,missing b sides (drawing board),etc etc? fingers crossed !

Absolutely no interest.
I have the repackage, I find the setlist totally incomplete and useless. No Jacket Required should have come at least with 1 CD of mixes and 7″ edits…

I’m a bit amused by these reissues. The opportunity to package all tracks related to each album has now been wasted. The live tracks just to fill up disc 2 is of no use to most Phil Collins fans, that’s what the live concert dvd is for. If Mr Collins or the record company were afraid to put out a second CD with only 5 or 6 tracks on it, it did no harm to the Queen CD Reissues when they came out. Again, one can argue that those extra tracks could fill up the rest of the first CD and no need to produce a second disc but that is a discussion for another day.

As for the new album cover image, it would only make sense if the albums were re-recorded.

This has to be one of the worst reissue programs I have ever come across, not unless you know of other reissues as bad as this campaign.

Sorry to buck the trend but I am really enjoying these so far, apart from the sound quality of some of the Both Sides live tracks. The remastering on the original albums is spot-on to my ears. Maybe the non album ‘hits’ are being saved for a best of at some point. I really like the packaging as well, quality.

Though I don’t plan to buy either of these sets, I certainly wouldn’t miss “We Said Hello Goodbye”. I always felt it was a weaker track, and rarely listened to it when playing the album. And it’s certainly possible that its inclusion as an extra track was the record company’s decision, as the CD was still a fairly new format, and extra tracks were often added to give record buyers incentive to opt for the new (and, at the time, more expensive) format.

A similar precedent is David Sylvian’s Weatherbox set from 1989, which collected his first three LPs, the previously cassette-only Words with the Shaman, and (inexplicably) the two b-side tracks from his then-new non-album single, “Pop Song”. The version of Secrets of the Beehive included in this set omitted the extra track from the original CD release (the 1984 b-side, “Forbidden Colours”), so that the album naturally ended where Sylvian had originally intended it to end. Although, interestingly enough, when Secrets of the Beehive was remastered and reissued in 2003, “Forbidden Colours” was replaced by “Promise (The Cult of Eurydice)”, a bonus track which originally replaced “Forbidden Colors” on an otherwise unremarkable 1991 Japanese reissue of the album…

Maybe there’s going to be an extras set similar to the ones included with the Genesis box sets. He could easily include the 12″ ers album and single only tracks with that.

Sorry but I don’t understand why updating images. No Jacket Required, my favourite, looks so different now. Music is always good but I won’t buy it with that images that scares me.

In the US, in the eighties, the 12″ single of “Sussudio” was massive. Sucks that it isn’t here. Doubt he’ll re-issue that 12″ collection. Was hoping for a set for “No Jacket Required” close to what James did with “Laid”/”Wah Wah”

It’s almost as if Collins is intentionally trying to alienate his fans and sabotage his own comeback so that there will be no demand for new recordings or concert performances. Have it your way, Phil.

Perhaps he has lost track of the original masters? Or the original sounded terribly? I DONT THINK SO !!!

ill stick with my 12 inchers cd until a proper reissue is done

What a SHAME!! This way that Phil is NOT including the B Sides from NO JACKET is a real shame !!! I was wondering if he could have included some at least… as “Rad Dudeski” from Both Sides that wasn’t included… Another release that will play only in Spotify, a really waste of time and effort… I feel completely pissed off… Or perhaps we will have to wait until Phil dies ?

So far, the ONLY appealing thing has been the new covers…. Yes a bit odd but hats off to exposing yourself through age. No Jacket Required track listing and new cover shot are all rubbish. Sorry, this is just one absolute mess. I’m all for artists being involved in their releases but at least seek what the fans want and stop being blindsided by your own ego.