Bob-Dubery I have a friend who has EVERY Jethro Tull recording, plus any solo works that Ian Anderson has issued, plus Martin Barre's albums, plus a bootleg or two. Oh... and the DVDs. I myself own 50 something titles by or involving Richard Thompson. The early Fairport Convention discs on which he played, the Richard and Linda stuff, the "official bootlegs" that he sells from his web site.... blah diddy blah diddy blah. Only one bootleg - and that's a copy so whoever is hoiking that never got a cent out of me (and besides the recordings were pinched from Gerry Rafferty). Given that there's a couple of double disc sets in all of this and a 6 disc compilation I probably have 70 plus actual discs in this stack. And I don't have it ALL. Most of his soundtrack stuff isn't there (at least one of these is out of print) and there's a couple of Greatest Hits style complilations that I'm short of (though I think there's only of these that has an actual version of a song that I don't already have). I just bought his latest disc. It's a good 'un. But I would say that, wouldn't I? And now there's a new disc out that all us Thompson completists (I believe we're known as "Dick Heads") will just HAVE to get. A re-issue of his 1982 album Shoot Out The Lights (all right-thinking people own at least one copy) packaged with some live tracks from that year's "tour from hell" in which the newly divorced Richard & Linda Thompson went on the road to support their best selling album in years. Sound bites available on the record label's web site suggest that the original disc has been remastered or remixed or something - which may not be a bad thing. Available ONLY from the label (Rhino). Not at Amazon. Not at your friendly local real world shop. You take it from Rhino and at Rhino's prices ($39, excluding shipping) or you don't take it at all. I of course have the original album, but how can I ignore those live tracks? I am a slave. And Rhino records know it. Anyhoo... is there any need for a "Completists Anonymous"? Anybody else out there collecting entire catalogs of somebody or other? You are not alone! Stand up, introduce yourself and join the circle.
Squonk I can only confess as ex completist, but nothing in your scale of completism. I did collect every single Beatles Album up untill 1978, but that was on a 'Pocket Money" budget, I even got Badfinger albums because they were released by Apple, got all the albums that John guested on including Nilsson and Bowie's Fame and numerous others. Got all the solo albums up untill that point including "Two Virgins" and George's first album, all very nasty indeed. I started doing the same with Genesis, I had all the albums up untill 'Abacab'(1981) , realized that Phil Collins was living out his 'White' version of 'Earth, Wind and Fire" and gave up. But I did have a huge amount of albums that featured Phil Collins(Brand X etc), Peter Gabriel, Tony Banks, Steve Hackett etc. I even ordered obscure albums from Hilbrow Record Centre that were terrible but at least had some kind of "Genesis" involvement. But I have been cured ?
AlanRatcliffe I did the completist thing with Pink Floyd up until Waters left. Zappa I stopped after sixty-odd albums, as the newer releases lack much of the magic and I never bothered with the few bootlegs. My wife has every Dylan album (+/-50, at a guess), including many of the unoffical releases. Still, she has nothing on the true Dylan fanatics (we know one), who bootleg and share every single live performance (no mean feat when you consider he gigs like a maniac with up to 300 performances a year).
Riaan I did the completist thing with Pink Floyd up until Waters left. Me too...including many bootlegs and rarities from Syd's time.
