£45 here: http://www.sainsburysentertainment.co.u ... rce=google

Fair enough JO'B. You made the is case for the "Complete" boxset and we'll either buy it or we won't. I just wish things were moving along faster. The 40th anniversary of the release of Roxy Music is happening now. As in June 16th. Seems strange to let it pass so uneventfully...

Sigh. Moan. Sigh.

Regarding the "Complete" set, the business wonk in me would be fascinated to learn exactly how many copies turn out to be sold/scanned in the first three months after the release. How much of a market is there among non-die hard fans for a boxset of this type? NDFs are the ones at the concerts who suffer through the deep album cuts like Amazona, etc. and get excited when LITD, DTS, JG, show up at the end to give the crowd what they want. How many NDFs who buy this boxset will listen to the b-side and alternate mix cds more than once? Just wondering...

I will buy it and will draw a certain amount of enjoyment from it. My only criticism is the 'recycled' packaging which, in my opinion - and with the greatest respect, perpetuates the paucity of ideas that has pervaded much of the artwork In recent years.

A waste of money in my opinion!
Give it six months and it will be out there for around £20.00
As for the cover? From what I can see so far it looks very dull, un celebratory and offers little encouragement in drawing the potential purchaser to take a look.

Where is the live 2011 dvd/cd got to? I really enjoyed the 2001 releases and was looking forward to this. But more than a year has gone by so I fear it won't happen now.

Thanks John for such a detailed explanation of the thinking behind the release. I just wonder who they think is going to buy this, other than the Roxy completist. The casual fan who maybe went to last year's tour and only knows the hits isn't going to fork out this sort of money for a boxed set - a single album "Best of" compilation (and heaven knows there have been enough of those over the years) will suffice for him. So it's hard to see it generating enough revenue to in any way fund the release of the individual deluxe-edition-plus-outakes-demos-and-bonus-tracks of each album that is what I for one am eagerly awaiting.

It all seems to take so long, even to release archive material that, barring re-mastering and packaging decisions, is surely all set in stone. As you said, John, it is what it is - this is what they released. Almost as long as it takes to finish off a studio album of new material under any banner, solo or group.

It's easy to say "if you don't want it,don't buy it!" but nothing would change if nobody said nothing ! This is a Forum for people to express opinions and ideas,good and bad. One man's meat is another man's poison. The content is no suprise,so nobody should have any complaints. It could have had a better cover,but apart from that,it is what it says it is! But seriously,have we not had enough of all this now ? We've had a Greatest Hits in 1977, The First Seven albums in 1980, The Atlantic Years in 1983,,Street Life 20 Great Hits in 1986, The Ultimate Collection in 1989,. The Thrill of it All Box Set in 1995, More Than This in 1995,The Early Years in 2000, The Best of in 2001, Collection in 2004, a newspaper freebie in 2010 and now this. I make that 12 compilation albums for a band that only released 8 studio albums ! Can they milk us even more ?!?! What next ? The Later Years (74 -82),The Live Recordings,The B Sides, The Remixes, The Extended Versions etc,etc

I agree that the audience for this is pretty narrow and beyond die hard fans it's likely to have fairly limited appeal. Even fans are invariably divided about the different Roxy incarnations so is the more casual listener going to be sufficiently interested in their total output to invest in this? Hard to envisage. I'd have thought something as comprehensive as The Platinum Collection (to add to your already lengthy list Ian - along with Slave to Love - we'll generously miss out The Best of Bryan Ferry given that was entirely solo!) Would have satisfied people who fall into this category.

I do still welcome the release, but adding to Ian's list just serves to underline what we all know already about the extent to which this has all been re-made and re-modelled (with ever decreasing returns) in the past.

J.O`B wrote:
"The deluxe editions of the albums will include the rarities that we are looking for"

"There will be people who moan", so here we go:

Are there gonna be more than one? If so, it will take a lot of time to cover all the 8 albums; years and years! They`ve always dispensed their goods like food during wartime.

After all, this is not The Beatles. Even by their standards, I find the worth of their Antology series doubtful. I bought it, but I almost never play it. It was exciting to hear the moment it came, but if I want to hear something by The Beatles today, I allways reach for the original albums.

Just a cautionary note (from one who imports far too many CDs!) for those who are planning to order the set online...

I have confirmed by phone that sainsburysentertainment.co.uk, like hmv.com and play.com, despatches its goods from the Channel Islands (Guernsey in this case) and this set would, in theory, not be duty free to UK buyers.

A few months ago the UK government closed off that perceived loophole and the Channel Islands are now treated like any other non-EC country, i.e. the maximum value for duty free imports is now only £15.

If you order this set from the aforementioned companies, you may get stung for VAT on anything above £15 plus a flat rate Royal Mail release fee of £8!

I've re-confirmed this by phone with both Royal Mail and HMRC, but, worryingly, (a) Sainsburys knew nothing about it and (b) HMV is still telling customers that all VAT payments are already included in the online price!

Of course, you might be lucky and your package might sneak past on the blind side of UK Customs, but otherwise your £45 set may end up costing you around £60. That said, HMV thought that the in-store price for this set might be as high as £78...

On the plus side, Amazon still despatches most of its packages from Scotland (unless the item is noted as coming from its Jersey subsidiary Indigo Starfish) and has reduced its pre-order price for this set to £47.67.

That just leaves damage in transit by Royal Mail to worry about!

Sorry to sound like the prophet of doom, but the info might save you a few pounds or at least influence your choice of supplier.

Very useful info Smudge - thank you. Always seems at best a grey area and something of a lottery in terms of falling foul of the rules. From what you say, Amazon looks by far the best option right now.
Thanks again