A package of Pure delight so

Boxed sets of CDs make for great space savers and provide collectors with the best music from a particular artist or music genre. They are also easy on the budget. This is because for those who might not be able to buy all the albums recorded by their favorite star, they can usually get all the hits in boxed collections. More so if you come across the Pure boxed set series from Sony.

Pure… is all about the music. Hence, when the title says Pure… Hip-Hop, you do not get only the hits of Jay-Z like Hard Knock Life (The Ghetto Anthem) or DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince’s Girls Are Nothing But Trouble or Outkast’s So Fresh, So Clean. You also get nearly all the big hits representing the biggest names in hip-hop in four CDs. And take note, retail price is only P250. So unless, you are the type who goes into analyzing what went into the making of an album and how the songs go together, then this is the CD for you.

The Pure… series has 17 titles available in the stores and each one presents a cross-section of the best from a certain type of music, artist or era. Aside from Pure… Hip Hop, there are Pure…Celtic; Pure…Disco Funk; Pure…Brazil; Pure… Psychedelic Rock; Pure…Divas; Pure…Mediterranean; Pure… Movies; Pure…Hard Rock; Pure…America; Pure…Summer; Pure…Country; Pure…Crooners; Pure…Jazz; and Pure…Cuba.

Presented in three separate boxes are Pure… 70s Dance Party, Boogie Wonderland by Earth, Wind & Fire; Pure….80s Dance Party, I’m So Excited by the Pointer Sisters and Pure…90s Dance Party, Baby One More Time by Britney Spears. Those last three are pretty self-explanatory with one hit dance track after another from a particular period. The others though are more interesting than they seem to be.

I think that Pure… Country should be a must with local buyers because we only get the pop crossover country albums here. This set is a good sampler of country hits we seldom hear about. Of course, Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson are there, but so are Roy Rogers and The Sons of The Pioneers with Stampede; Gretchen Wilson with Redneck Woman; George Hamilton IV with Abilene; Porter Wagoner with A Satisfied Mind and others. Well, they missed out on Reba McEntire but then this country music diva deserves to be heard from an entire album

I also like Pure…Celtic because you really have to go out of your way to get copies of these songs. Buying the albums abroad is the best way or buy by the downloads, piece by piece. If I remember right, the only Celtic artist whose album was released locally was The Celtics. But here you get the best of these soft, soothing, meaningful airs in four CDs. The Rose of Tralee by Nightnoise; The Shores Of Swilly by the New Age Chamber Orchestra; Danny Boy by Kate Smith & the Boston Pops Orchestra; and Foggy Dew by The Young Dubliners.

Pure… Mediterranean is Latin influenced music but from Europe. Think Italy, Spain, Greece, Portugal and other countries that share the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. This is a varied mix of rarities to the local buyers. The artists range from the legendary beauty Sophia Loren who has nice vocals in, Che M’e ‘Mparato A Fla to Julio Iglesias, Volver A Empezar and Munasterio ‘E Santa Chiara by Vittorio de Sica, who might also be the famous movie director; and the songs go from the famous like O Sole Mio by Ferruccio Tagliavini and Macarena by Los Del Rio to some beauties you will hear for the first time.

Of course, because I love movies almost as much as music, I also like Pure…Movies. This one is cheesy but also lots of fun. Again, I am thankful this is not your usual songs from the movies compilation. In fact, one CD is made up of assorted themes performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Mission Impossible, Jaws, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, The Lord of the Rings; Ben Hur; Schindler’s List, The Deer Hunter and Titanic. You will also get The Good, The Bad And The Ugly by Hugo Montenegro with Orchestra and Chorus, Blue Velvet by Bobby Vinton, Pretty in Pink by the Psychedelic Furs and others.

Get the whole set for yourself if you can or you can keep the Pure… series in mind while shopping for presents. Remember, 2011 is half over, that means you have only four months to go until December. Time flies faster as the year nears its end.