Search - Frankie Laine :: Greatest Hits

Good--as far as it goes, that is (three and 1/2 stars)

Matthew G. Sherwin | last seen screaming at Amazon customer service | 04/24/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Frankie Laine's Greatest Hits is a fair to middling CD that is currently out of print. This may not cause too much of a problem, though, because it's hard to take just twelve numbers and refer to them as Frankie Laine's "greatest hits." This is certainly not a complete package and that disappoints me. However, the sound quality is very good and the artwork is very thoughtfully done.



"Moonlight Gambler" starts the CD; and Frankie Laine sings this like the pro he always was! Frankie's uncanny sense of timing enhances his performance and the percussion helps to mark the beat, too. "Jealousy (Jalousie)" is a beautiful ballad when Frankie Laine sings this with all his great sensitivity; and the brass helps make the melody very pretty. "Jealousy (Jalousie)" is easily a highlight of this album; Frankie sings it all THAT good.



"High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me)" puts Frankie Laine squarely in the spotlight; and he certainly doesn't shy away from that position! Frankie does this up right and he never sings a superfluous note. "High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me)" shines beautifully when Frankie sings it. In addition, Frankie Laine performs "Your Cheatin' Heart" with a lot of passion; his heartfelt emotion on "Your Cheatin' Heart" sounds wonderful and this country flavored ballad works so well.



"I Believe" showcases Frankie Laine's fine ability to deliver a song right alongside the best of them; the background chorus enhances the melody and they bolster Frankie's performance as well. "Jezebel" gets a fine treatment from Frankie Lain and the guitar work couldn't be better! The percussion is great and overall "Jezebel" is an excellent song by Frankie Laine.



"That Lucky Old Sun" is a ballad I first heard when Ray Charles recorded it; but Frankie also makes this tune very beautiful by playing just a bit with the tempo and keys. Frankie does this to also put his own stamp on this number and he pulls it off very smoothly. "Rose, Rose, I Love You" is another love song with a country flavor added into it for a great effect! "Rose, Rose, I Love You" is a catchy, upbeat ballad and Frankie never skips a beat.



"That's My Desire" showcases Frankie's ability to sing a very mainstream love song--he delivers this well as he swings slowly to make this number stand out. The CD also ends nicely with Frankie Laine performing "Answer Me (Mutterlein)." Great!



Frankie Laine could really bat out different types of songs; we get ample proof of that on this CD. However, this cannot be considered a true "greatest hits" compilation because it's too short; for that I would suggest the CD called I Believe: 20 All-Time Greats and diehard fans will also want CDs like The Frankie Laine Collection: The Mercury Years in their collections.

"