To review this cd collection is simple - short and sweet it has all the hits plus some added extras and the remastering is pure perfection. It seems that with every new collection that came out Richard tinkered with the orchestration, vocal intensity and the songs over time lost all their essence of beauty and power that was there when first recorded.

These songs are all great due to the wonderful arrangements by Richard, the excellent song selection but foremost the rare vocal ability that Karen possessed. Her voice was always so pure with open, honest emotion and an ever constant tinge of melancholy/sadness. To change this in any way denies us of the gift that is Karen Carpenter. Her voice is one of the best of all times. Perfection cannot be enhanced as those other collections tried to do.

These songs I can guarantee are the original versions remastered perfectly and it is very emotional to hear that voice come out so clear, so pure - the voice of an angel. These are the original songs in their original form as you remember them.

All Carpenter fans - this cd will be a dream come true. Purchase it and Karen will live on for you forever.

Reading the reviews already written for this collection, I can see there's some confusion. Some say the collection includes "Goofus", some say it doesn't. Some say it uses the original mixes, rarely used on CDs, others suggest no.

Here's the answer: A 3 disc version of this collection, The Ultimate Collection, was issued in The Netherlands that A) contained Goofus (among other substitutions) and B) used all the original mixes. (The 3rd CD, included as a bonus, added 7 tracks from Karen and Richard solo efforts.)

This Dutch version of The Ultimate Collection was quickly deleted from the catalog, and it is widely believed that that occurred because he Richard Carpenter did not authorize a collection using the original mixes. (Richard has remixed many of the Carpenters tracks for the CD age, sometimes multiple times, and those who grew up with the original versions do not necessarily consider this a plus).

Subsequently, another Carpenters collection, also titled "The Ultimate Collection", was issued in Europe and other parts of the world. THAT'S the collection listed here. In place of Goofus, it substitutes Sandy, and there are a few other track substitutions as well. This collection uses the CD era mixes for songs that have been used on basically every other Carpenters collection issued in the CD era.

While the Dutch "Ultimate Collection" is desirable for the uncommon original mixes, this collection is no better or worse than the many similar 2CD best-ofs that are available. The material is excellent and the mixes are modern (for good or bad).

For those curious, here's the track listing for the original Dutch "The Ultimate Collection". These were all the original mixes, and by comparison to the track listing for the CD being sold here, you can determine the handful of song differences:

Disc 1:

1. Ticket to Ride

2. (They Long to Be) Close to You

3. We've Only Just Begun

4. For All We Know

5. Rainy Days and Mondays

6. Superstar

7. Bless the Beasts and Children

8. Hurting Each Other

9. It's Going to Take Some Time

10. Goodbye to Love

11. Top of the World

12. I Won't Last a Day Without You

13. Sing

14. Yesterday Once More

15. This Masquerade

16. Jambalaya (On the Bayou)

17. Please Mr. Postman

Disc 2:

1. Desperado

2. Only Yesterday

3. Solitaire

4. There's a Kind of Hush

5. I Need to Be In Love

6. Goofus *

7. All You Get from Love is a Love Song

8. Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft (The Recognized Anthem of World Contact Day)

9. Sweet Sweet Smile

10. I Believe You

11. Touch Me When We're Dancing

12. (Want You) Back In My Life Again *

13. Those Good Old Dreams

14. Beechwood 4-5789

15. Now

16. Make Believe It's Your First Time *

17. Tryin' to Get the Feeling Again

Disc 3:

1. Lovelines (Karen Carpenter)

2. If I Had You (Karen Carpenter)

3. Still Crazy After All These Years (Karen Carpenter)

4. When Time Was All We Had (Richard Carpenter)

5. Calling Your Name Again (Richard Carpenter)

6. Sandy (Richard Carpenter)

7. Karen's Theme (Richard Carpenter)

Here's a link to the original Dutch issue on Amazon. It's out of print, but a used copy might eventually show up. Be very careful, if one does, to contact the seller first to ensure they have not mis-listed the CD based only on title...

Richard Carpenter has been compared to George Lucas... a backhanded compliment acknowledging his artistic and technical genius but lamenting his inability to get out of his own way. Case in point: his (apparent) squelching of this outstanding and unique compilation after learning that Dutch Universal had used the ORIGINAL ALBUM VERSIONS, taken from the same digital masters as the "Remastered Classics" series. This version of "Ultimate Collection" was quickly pulled from the market and re-released with a different track listing and with Richard's latter-day remixes.

So, if you want the airplane sound at the end of "Yesterday Once More" the long false end to "Close To You" and all the songs as originally released on album before RC started re-recording piano and bass parts and drenching the vocals in reverb, you have two choices: track down all the discs in the Remastered Classics series (super-difficult and expensive, as many of those discs are also currently out-of-print), or hunt down a copy of this set. Make absolutely sure you confirm with the seller that you're getting the correct version - the easiest way is to ask if the song has "Goofus" as track 6 on disc 2.

Karen Carpenter had a great voice,and here is a big collection of songs from this brother and sister team.To name the best songs from this duo is difficult because there is so many to choose from.But a definite favorite is Top Of The World.I love that tune.

But a song that realy established them was (They Long To Be) Close To You.That song is about their most known song and i love it.There is a great assortment of songs here like We've Only Just Begun.I wont go through all the songs as The Carpenters were consistently good.

After all the retinkering and remixing done, I'm a little surprised that Richard Carpenter would allow this to be released, but here it is - the Carpenters hits in their ORIGINAL mixes. There are, of course, a few caveats. "Yesterday Once More" is taken from the album master, which doesn't fade cleanly, there are explosive sounds at the end, a segue to the next track from the Lp. Also, "Top of the World" is the original album version, not the re-recorded version released as a single in 1973, and which drove "The Singles 1969-73" to be their only Number One album. I would also like to know what CD Musicluver31 was listening to when they listed songs that were omitted - four of the choices - "Goofus", "(Want You) Back in My Life Again", "Beechwood 4-5789", and "Make Believe It's Your First Time" - are indeed on this collection. There could have been more songs included - the Carpenters collection CDs have historically been a bit skimpy as a rule - but having the original mixes of these songs surely makes up for that, after hearing them in adulterated versions for years. A fine collection that I recommend without hesitation.