Dusty was maybe the most American sounding of the British Invasion, and she and Bill Medley were the personification of so-called Blue Eyed Soul. She was never better than she sounded on these cuts. To my ear, the seminal cut here is "Son of a Preacherman", and the breathless innocence with which she starts this cut turns quickly to an earthy sensuous power.

That sensuousness comes through loud and clear on "Breakfast in Bed" and "So Much Love", which are also classics which somehow never made it to Top 40 radio. "Windmills of Your Mind" was, to my thinking, the most under-appreciated song she ever recorded, and is as cool as the other side of the pillow. The bonus tracks include "That Old Sweet Roll" (Hi-De-Ho), made popular by Blood Sweat and Tears. She gives this her own personal stamp.

A needed addition to any collection. Just the thing to have on a sultry summer afternoon with either a pitcher of cold margaritas, or in front of a cozy fireplace in mid-winter.

Great stuff.

Assuming I'm preaching to the converted and you're wondering whether you need to own YET ANOTHER CD reissue of DIM, the short answer is "YES", but please read on to know why. Dusty fans would likely already have two versions, Rhino's original 1992 release (with 3 bonus tracks) and the more recent 1999 deluxe reissue which includes multiple bonus tracks from unrelated Atlantic sessions. British diehards will have three versions, the original Philips release from 1990, Mercury's reissue with bonus tracks in 1995 and this, the ultimate and definitive reissue.

Until seven years ago, fans had to make do with the general hissiness of DIM. Sonically, there was little, in my opinion, that differentiated between the two earlier releases from both sides of the pond. Then in 1995, Mercury (UK) released a sonically superior version of DIM which had been subject to 20 bit digital remastering but foolishly played havoc with the track sequencing by flipping the order of "I Don't Want To Hear It Anymore" (originally Track 4 on Side 1) with "In The Land Of Make Believe" (originally Track 3 on Side 2). Insiders claim that this bizarre track sequencing was the exact one Philips had used in the original cassette release of DIM in 1969 to balance out the playing time on both sides of the cassette.....though this simply begs the question "why ?..when the CD medium poses no such constraint ?"

The 1999 deluxe reissue by Rhino isn't, to my ears, sonically superior to the earlier releases. The bonus tracks from Dusty's other Atlantic sessions are great or not great to have, depending on whether one is a purist and want ONLY the original album tracks or belongs to the "more is more" camp (like me) who are deliriously happy about finally getting the unreleased Philly and Jeff Barry produced tracks from the vault.

This current deluxe reissue on import from the UK has to be the reissue to end all reissues. Sonically, it's close to perfection. Even the three hissiest tracks ("I Don't Want To Hear It Anymore", "Breakfast In Bed" and "No Easy Way Down") are quiet. Thanks to the use of cutting edge technology, we get the best sound ever. Mercury (UK) shows alot of respect this time around. No bonus tracks. No monkeying around with the track order. Even the mono mixes (from US singles releases) are presented chronologically and in A side/B side order. Besides, you get a power packed booklet of rare b&w/colour photos and specially written and insightful liner notes by the three legendary producers (Jerry Wexler, Arif Mardin & Tom Dowd) and admirer Elvis Costello. What more can a Dusty fan ask for ?

I promise you. This will be the last time you need to shell out for DIM if you buy this UK import. I own 5 CD versions of DIM. I won't be looking out for the sixth.