Star Time (album)

Star Time
Box set by
James Brown
ReleasedMay 7, 1991 (1991-05-07)
Recorded1956–1984
Genre
Length292:12
LabelPolydor
ProducerVarious
James Brown chronology
I'm Real
(1988) 		Star Time
(1991) 		Love Over-Due
(1991)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Robert ChristgauA+[2]
Entertainment WeeklyA[3]
Mojo
Q
Rolling Stone[4]
Uncut[5]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[6]

Star Time is a four-CD box set by American musician James Brown. Released in May 1991 by Polydor Records, its contents span most of the length of his career up to the time of its release, starting in 1956 with his first hit record, "Please, Please, Please", and ending with "Unity", his 1984 collaboration with Afrika Bambaataa. Writing in 2007, Robert Christgau described it as "the finest box set ever released... as essential a package as the biz has ever hawked, not just because it's James Brown, but because compilers Cliff White and Harry Weinger invested so much care and knowledge in it."[7] Its title comes from the question Brown's announcer would ask concert audiences, as heard on the album Live at the Apollo: "Are you ready for star time?"

Star Time's liner notes, written by Cliff White, Harry Weinger, Nelson George, Alan Leeds, and Brown himself, won a 1991 Grammy Award for Best Album Notes. The notes also include a discography and a one-page comic by Mary Fleener, a visual interpretation of the song "I Got You (I Feel Good)."

In 2003, the album was ranked number 79 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.[8] It was the second-highest ranking box set on the list. In 2012, it moved up to 75,[9] while in its 2020 revision, it moved to number 54.[10]

  1. ^ Huey, Steve. "Star Time – James Brown". AllMusic. Archived from the original on April 28, 2021. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  2. ^ Christgau, Robert. "CG: James Brown". robertchristgau.com. Archived from the original on March 14, 2021. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  3. ^ Aletti, Vince (March 31, 2007). "Star Time – Music Review". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on April 1, 2007. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  4. ^ Considine, J.D. (June 17, 1997). "Star Time – James Brown – Review". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 12, 2007. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  5. ^ "James Brown – Star Time". Uncut. August 1, 2004. Archived from the original on October 18, 2020. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  6. ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195313734.
  7. ^ "Robert Christgau: The Genius: James Brown".
  8. ^ "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time: James Brown, 'Star Time'". Rolling Stone. 2003. Archived from the original on October 22, 2012. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
  9. ^ "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time: James Brown, 'Star Time'". Rolling Stone. 2012. Archived from the original on August 11, 2018. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  10. ^ "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time: James Brown, 'Star Time'". Rolling Stone. September 22, 2020. Retrieved May 16, 2021.