I don't care to search back for the exact timing, but around a month ago, I pushed back on the idea of the December Anthology being Stax because I thought it would be a bad idea, or at least poorly handled by VMP. Seeing what's likely going to be in it and how it's being marketed, I stand by that. The 'curation' suffers from so many notable albums already having received recent pressings. While there are going to be a couple that longtime collectors have been waiting on, these are hardly the albums someone would choose to tell "the story of Stax" if given a blank slate.
Even though I bought it, and only slightly regret it due to the label offering up their own pressings so quickly, the Ghostly Anthology suffered from the same issue. They've been good about going through their back catalog the last few years for a number of albums that would be most representative if you're telling their history, and all the recent albums are in print. That doesn't even get into the shoddy, essentially non-existent "community"/bonus aspects that are supposed to justify a VMP Anthology's cost beyond that of a normal box set.
I think everyone is largely in agreement that aside from the non-early bird pricing, the Women of Motown worked because the execution matched the concept. For two sets in a row now, the concept is suffering and VMP is selling it as something it can't be, and that deserves discussion. It isn't meant as an attack on anyone who does buy an Anthology. I love Stax, own a lot of the pressings, and would have loved to buy this one. For me, the cost and the records involved aren't justified.
️
