ANDY GROOVES HIS WAY...
Giovanni | Chicago, IL | 08/16/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"through 21 of the hippest songs of the 70's on this new compilation from the good people at Sony UK, who have done more to keep us supplied with these vintage recordings from their best artists of the 60's and 70's than Sony here in the states EVER has. Everyone knows Andy dove into the "popular" music of the day and, while he may have hurt some of the older crowd, grabbed the attention of the "kids" by covering almost any hit he could get his great set of vocal chords on. He wasn't the only great vocalist to do this during those ever changin' times in the music world, but no one did it with more flair and verve. Andy takes The Partridge Family's "I THINK I LOVE YOU" and makes it his own, complete with the minor-chorded chorus behind him. "WHO WAS IT" also is another uptempo goody, written by Gilbert O'Sullivan (who also wrote and had a hit with the somber "Alone Again, Naturally") Other great uptempo tunes here include one of Neil Sedaka's earliest writings, "ONE DAY OF YOUR LIFE", and Andy hits every high note he can here with aplomb, and a cover of "HERE COMES THAT RAINY DAY FEELING AGAIN". The "medley" of "AQUARIUS" and "LET THE SUN SHINE IN" is Mr. Williams at his utmost grooviest. There are ballads here, the touching "WICHITA LINEMAN" which was a big hit for Andy's buddy Glenn Campbell, the Carole King hit "IT'S TOO LATE", the ever-confusing but big hit "IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND" and a great reading of the Bee Gee's classic "HOW CAN YOU MEND A BROKEN HEART?" Some may scoff at the arrangements, being so close to their respective originals, but I think it was just Andy's way of showing respect to the "new" artists and their "new" songs of the day. Andy is one of the greatest male vocalists of all time, and this is just one of those times he "got down" a little more! Buy this CD and enjoy....PEACE!"
Andy takes on the 1970s
R. Riis | NY | 12/13/2001
(4 out of 5 stars)
"A well-stocked and valuable anthology of Andy Williams' 1970's output, especially in lieu of his LPs of that period that have failed to make it onto CD. Classic material for crooners was harder to come by in the 1970s and it can be hard to separate many of these songs from the performers who originally recorded them. Still Andy does a typically fine job of tackling these songs in his inimitable easy-going style. Well recommended for AW and easy-listening fans as a suplement to the Greatest Hits compilations and his classic 1960s 2-LPs-on-1-CD collections."
Track Listings (21) - Disc #1