Was the Camel box worth $200?

A more comprehensive review of the Air Born box set, following my dive into the new stereo mixes. Every Camel album is great, but did I need to buy them all again?
Hear some of my music at • The Time of Cruel Mira...
00:00 Intro
01:57 The previously unreleased songs
06:05 The booklet
07:31 The new masters
10:41 The live material

[@larsman9169]

This box is great for me, as I just have 'Mirage' through 'Moonmadness', and those are on vinyl; this way I complete my collection of all the earlier ones plus all that bonus material. BTW, in 1976, I got to see Camel for 3 nights in a row, 2 shows per night, at the Boarding House in San Francisco. Peter Bardens bought me a drink at the bar!

[@electricbrainelectricshado9490]

What a gentleman!

[@YellowfinGrouper]

I have been working my way through the box set and while I am enjoying listening to it very much, I share your ambivalence about whether it is a good use of my money. I kind of forgot about Camel between the 1980s and now and got back into them by steaming albums on Amazon Music. I much prefer having my own copies, however, so when this box set was announced I decided that it was a must buy. I pre-ordered it because I know from experience that stuff like this seems out quickly and is then difficult to get at a reasonable price. My main area of disappointment is the packaging. While the large sleeve does to an extent mimic the experience of vinyl I would much rather have has the original album CDs in miniature reproductions of the original sleeves plus new cardboard sleeves with Live Photos for the live stuff. There is also a lot of wasted plastic in this. Some of the CDs only have 40 minutes of music in them and the bonus tracks could have been saved up and out on a few extra CDs rather than having every album on a different disc if they werent going g to do new reproduction sleeves. Also, we get the original version of each album, then a separate new stereo mix then a blu ray disc for the 5.1. I haven’t listened to any of the 5.1 mixes yet so I can’t report on how much they add. However, when I originally read that there were going to be 5 blu rays I was expecting convert movies. In fact, apart from a disc of vintage live footage there is only one full length concert- Pressure Points. However, as it was filmed on videotape- which can’t be upgraded to HD- I can’t see the point of it sitting on its own blu ray disc- a DVD would have been fine. All in all I think this lot could have been fitted into about half as many discs. The book is a weighty tome- but there isn’t much in it. Overall this a treat for the ears and I enjoy listening to every disc. The sound quality of the live material is superb. However, I think most people would have been happier with a cheaper brighter package with less discs and more artwork.

[@electricbrainelectricshado9490]

I'd agree with that, yeah.

[@clivesilver463]

The first four Camel albums are fantastic, Mirage and The Snow Goose have always been in my top 10 prog rock of all time, the Snow Goose is a beautiful album and I never tire of it, Mirage is just bursting with energy, and along with the IST album and nude, we get 5.1 mixes which are superb, I actually saw Camel in 1976 I was 15 at the time and it was a great concert, I think it's tremendous value for money, when you compere it to other box sets, I only had Mirage and Snow on CD and the live album so lots of stuff yet to hear, Camel, are such a understated band they deserve so much more recognition.

[@CanadianJables]

You deserve more subscribers. I really enjoyed your videos on the King Crimson box sets and I'm excited to watch your Camel videos. You speak extremely well, make cogent points, and have an obvious love for the music you cover. I've followed your group on Bandcamp and look forward to seeing more of your videos. Keep up the good work!

[@electricbrainelectricshado9490]

Thanks so much for the kind words!

[@garymey4314]

But Hans…. 5 albums on blurays remixed in 5.1 surround sound makes this a more than a steal. You don’t even mention these. These are the golden nuggets of this box! And the best Camel experience ever!!

[@electricbrainelectricshado9490]

Yeah, that's a good point. I don't have a great way to put samples in the video so I don't usually mention those, but if you're a fan of 5.1 then you're right that it would change the calculation.

[@jamesuden5219]

Thanks for this! I bought the box set because I am really diving into prog but only owned one Camel album, so there's a lot to explore for the first time. But I love really detailed reviews like this anyway. Great work.

[@patbarr1351]

Don't ignore their later albums on the Camel Productions label. Some of Andy's best work!

[@YellowfinGrouper]

@@patbarr1351Thanks - that’s a helpful comment. I haven’t heard any of them. I hadn’t listened to Camel much since the 1980s but I decided to invest in this box set and it has really rekindled my love of the band. It’s a shame they don’t get the exposure of Yes etc.

[@patbarr1351]

@@YellowfinGrouper I bought the video of the Albert Hall concert from just before the lockdown era & it's about the best version of the band I've heard. They had 3 different vocalists & each had a unique sound.

[@larrysmith5249]

@@patbarr1351 - absolutely right. I love later day Camel. Some beautiful, expressive guitar work on those.

[@ianbrown3304]

Cracking review. I have all the reissues you mentioned. Camel have always been undervalued and certainly their later albums are IMHO way better than latter Pink Floyd (I know , heresy) . The box set looks nice and I can see why it would be an attractive purchase but I agree that the money may be better spenf IF you already have the 2002 masters Etc.

[@christophermosca4547]

I’m a big fan . I found it hard justifying the purchase . I have all of the most recent remastered reissues from 2002 on Universal and the 2010 Esoteric releases (and the Universal box.) Reading up on this , there are “only” 12 unreleased demos or outtakes , the remixes of 5 albums and those mixes on blu ray , and the hardcover book. I just felt it was too much to buy everything over , for essentially 12 outtakes . What I’d love to see are reissues of just eh albums that were most affected by this , individual releases of Camel - Moonmadness and Nude . All remixes and demos and outtakes are meant for those . This box seems like it would be better suited for someone who is new and wants to fully immerse themselves in the band . I passed it up .

[@trevorpugh6475]

I have to disagree almost entirely with your review in that, first of all, I am very pleased with the remastering, I found it fuller and clearer especially the bass guitar compared with the earlier remasters. Again regarding the remastering I found the live material sounded markedly better. As I posted previously, I am not impressed at all with the new remixes, I felt they added nothing (apart from volume!) All in all I am delighted with this box set and found the book and the packaging to be top notch and this comes from someone who already owns all Camel’s cd back catalogue. The only slightly negative thing I would say is it would have been nice to have had miniature cd album sleeves rather than the discs just slotted in but a minor point.

[@siljeff2708]

I am very happy with my purchase, especially not already owning Total Pressure in any capacity, or any physical copy of most of Camel’s albums (before these remixes were released, I had the albums on itunes). The live material is great for me too because I only had Live Album and the bonus tracks from Nude before this. What I hated was how much of a pain in the ass half of the albums were to rip onto itunes, iTunes simply couldn’t. The remix of Lady Fantasy from Mirage was corrupt no matter what I tried.

[@patbarr1351]

I put my order in. Yes, it's expensive, but I love surround sound & I've always found *Snow Goose* in stereo to be a bit murky in its original form. If the surround mixes were purchased from SDE (they've been doing a lot of 5.1 editions recently) at $35 USD each, those 5 albums alone would cost around $175 so not too bad. In a perfect world, we'd have each album done separately like the WB Jethro Tull editions (such gorgeous booklets!) even though they were DVD format or maybe the BeBop Deluxe or Al Stewart box sets (*Year of the Cat* was a bit overpriced and under designed, but the BeBops really rocked).

[@ledzep9501]

These are not remixes or even new mixes, these are straight remasters and the sound of every single disc is astonishing good... Only minus (but not a big one ) for me, is that they could have for every album the covers on cardboard sleeves. It could give more aesthetic results but still, its a great box. The book also is fantastic.

[@JIF882]

There are remixes

[@joshuak4372]

5 albums have new stereo and 5.1 surround mixes.

[@kngkrmson2179]

​@@joshuak4372Yes, but those are extra discs. The regular ones are also inside. The remasters.

[@ledzep9501]

Yes, but only on blu rays...

[@JIF882]

@@ledzep9501 No. On the cds has well

[@davidatkinson-Music-and-More]

"....the bottomless need for content for this channel...." Love the irony. 😁 Great review Hans. I was considering buying this myself, but like you, I've always thought the band's releases to be pretty good already. Your review serves as a warning to those with money burning a hole in their pocket. As an aside, when you mentioned the repeat of old photos, I thought of shots I took on the 'Moonmadness' tour, but they're frankly mediocre, and wouldn't have made the cut. Amazingly (to me) a set of my VDGG photos did make it into the Charisma Years set with a full page spread. A proud moment for this old Prog fan. Sadly, my Genesis one are still languishing in my archive, with only the occasional appearance in my KZbin videos keeping them 'alive'. 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@electricbrainelectricshado9490]

That's excellent about the Van der Graaf photos!

[@donaldanderson6604]

I was in the audience for a track on A Live Record plus the 76 Hammersmith show, and probably a few others so you may be able to hear me cheering loudly. That must be worth the price tag,.

[@styrmugnsell4560]

Really well done video!

[@rael2099]

Gosh, this band has been consistently treated poorly by Decca. They should let go of Camel's catalogue and let someone like Steven Wilson or Rhino give it a proper tratment. Every reissue of Camel seems like any reedition of From Genesis to Revelation. The packaging is nice although a bit depressing, and recycling the liner notes? That's being cheap bastards. No sleeve for the studio albums? Sigh! If only one company gathered all Camel's scattered catalogue and released it properly. If only... This band deserves much more recognition. Even Gentle Giant is doing it properly and gaining more fans.

[@MarcusVinicius-we2pg]

YES. Worth every penny of it!!! Please...Camel's fan like myself enjoy It..200 Bucks went in a good way!!!!!

[@JIF882]

Speaking of Esoteric, their reissue of I Can See Your House For Here has track-by-track credits. Are those replicated in the box set? Are there credits for the other albums that says who plays what?

[@electricbrainelectricshado9490]

There are some credits, but they're a bit compressed relative to the individual releases. I was hoping for more detail about which songs include Phil Collins in particular (there are several places that sound like him and it would be fun to have the hunch confirmed) but not for this set.

[@JIF882]

@electricbrainelectricshado9490 The original credits don't say that, because the band wasn't sure where he was used. The Esoteric booklet to I Can See Your House From Here has song-by-song credits. Are those in the big book? I believe that Raindances also has song-by-song credits

[@blockssonicwafers]

Nothing about the 5.1 mixes, that would be my whole reason for diving in ?

[@electricbrainelectricshado9490]

Quite fair point. For people who are into 5.1 that's another big selling point.

[@StephenWorth]

No mention of multichannel? That is the whole point here. Not just one album but five. Do you not have the ability to listen to the multichannel mixes?

[@timjonesvideos]

Well one thing is for sure- these sets are gone (unless they repress : )

[@kngkrmson2179]

I own Mirage and The Snow Goose. Both on CD. The 2002 remasters. Need some other albums of them too, but probably won't buy this box. Not because of the price, but of the format. I absolutely dislike boxes like this. Very unhandy. Also not a fan of disc slots; sliding them in and out will cause scratches at some point. Rather prefer clamshell boxes, in which each disc is individually packaged in a cardboard sleeve. And with a small booklet.

[@electricbrainelectricshado9490]

Yeah, I honestly usually listen to these big box sets on an iPod.

[@markgreene1162]

Not sure if I'm gonna pick this up because I ready have the reissues. Also I'm not a huge fan of those cut out sleeves. I just bought on the after market Megadeth peace sells but who's buy's 25th anniversary boxset with the same design and three of the five discs were out of the sleeves and badly scratched. Just want to know if you have any of the Camel SACD's and if there worth picking up. Thanks.

[@electricbrainelectricshado9490]

I don't, sadly.

[@merlinman7300]

Can't stand that each cd isn't in replica sleeves. Showstopper for me I'm afraid.

[@patbarr1351]

I understand that. I bought the box set from Sky including all their albums in cardboard sleeves & original artwork for a bargain price. No book or surround sound of course.

[@Yarin4ever]

I'm torn as hell about buying it for the same reason. I mean, we buy physical media so for the presentation and it's disappointing. But here the Audi material is so fantastic it might actually convince me to go for it

[@andrewarthurmatthews9990]

Yes it’s that old record company cynical cutting corners routine

[@LeeLucas]

The only thing that would have ever interested me about this boxset are the albums that have been given the 5.1 treatment, but no way would I pay 200 bucks just to get my hands on those.

[@Davy.J.Y]

If you are into prog rock, then this Camel box set is well worth buying. Yes, its worth $200 if you are a super fan .

[@lemming9984]

I wouldn't buy this because of all the wasteful 5.1 mixes. I don't want to hear (pay for) bastardised versions of albums that were meant to be stereo. Just like the VdGG set, this has horrible packaging for the CDs, and omits any original artwork - at this price I expect it. There's some great live stuff, but not worth the price of the overall package. I have all the original albums several times over anyway. Hard pass.