Search - Maureen McGovern :: Maureen McGovern - Greatest Hits

Great, but not her greatest

07/08/1999

(3 out of 5 stars)

"How come 2 of Maureen Mcgovern's great songs like We may never love like this again(from the movie The Towering Inferno) and We could have it all are not included in this album?"

Very good--as far as it goes, that is (three and one-half st

Matthew G. Sherwin | last seen screaming at Amazon customer service | 05/18/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Maureen McGovern - Greatest Hits is yet another mediocre and somewhat disappointing CD that purports to give us the "greatest hits" of Maureen McGovern. Unfortunately, we don't get enough of her great songs on this CD. Sure, the songs that we do get are wonderful; but it just isn't long enough to be a legitimate "greatest hits" collection. They could have--and should have--included at least a couple more songs on this disc. That's Curb Records for you! The quality of the sound, however, is very, very good although the artwork is just about par for this CD series.



The CD starts with one of Maureen's best song ever, "The Morning After;" this, as you probably know, comes from the movie The Poseidon Adventure. Maureen sings this with all her heart and soul; and just one listen proves it. The strings are used to great advantage and Maureen sings this through without a superfluous note. It's very impressive and it always makes me remember the movie when I hear it. "Different Worlds" has a more upbeat, catchy melody that Maureen McGovern handles with panache; she aces this easily and she handles the subtle tempo and key changes like the pro she always was! "Different Worlds" is an excellent tune and I predict that you'll like it very much; I always enjoy hearing this tune.



"I'm Happy Just To Dance With You" is a cover of a song by The Beatles; although some may not like this I think Maureen McGovern's disco treatment for this song really works rather well. Sure, she's not The Beatles; but she ain't half-bad, either! Maureen sings "I'm Happy Just To Dance With You" with a lot of positive energy. In addition, "Carolina Moon" gets a much slower country flavored tempo that impresses me with its beauty; Maureen's voice is as clear as a bell and that's absolutely wonderful. What a great songbird Maureen McGovern was and still remains!



"He's A Rebel" is another cover of a song by one of the `60s girl groups called The Crystals; and when Maureen McGovern sings this it truly takes flight just as well as the original version did! The horn solo is very snazzy and Maureen sings this with great sensitivity; she also delivers this with lots of energy to make this number shine! "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" is also a cover of a song by Frankie Valli; when Maureen McGovern sings this it truly shines just as if it were fresh and new all over again! The disco beat is very typical for the `70s and Maureen sings this flawlessly--this is great music for dancing.



"In Too Deep" puts Maureen squarely front and center--right where she belongs! The CD also ends well with Maureen McGovern performing "Can You Read My Mind." "Can You Read My Mind" is a tender ballad and it makes a strong ending for this album.



All in all, Maureen McGovern could really sing out a tune and make it sparkle with her natural talent! It's such a shame that Curb Records is so stingy as to assert that a mere ten tracks can actually encompass "the greatest hits" of this remarkable songbird. This may be best suited to the casual fan; more diehard fans should seek out more substantial CDs available for sale on this website.

"

Missing Hits

A. Russo | Cambridge, MA United States | 01/09/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Between the years 1973-1981, Maureen McGovern became the Queen of Disaster film scores reaching #1 with her first single The Morning After. The Oscar winning song was from the disaster film The Poseidon Adventure by Irwin Allen. Although she had 2 top 40 hits, she had 11 AC hits which only 4 are on this CD collection.







Paul Williams' I Wont Last A Day Without You was the follow up to Morning After and charted #89 pop and #14 AC charts, and missing here. Following that hit was Nice To Be Around from Cinerella Liberty, #28 AC #101 pop, and not included here. Following that hit was the #12 AC and #71 pop hit Give Me A Reason To Be Gone, also not included. Then came We May Never Love Like This Again from Irwin Allen's Towering Inferno in which Maureen actually sings in the movie. The song charted #20 AC & #83 pop and won another Oscar, but still...not included here!







Other hits include Love Songs Are Getting Harder To Sing, #24 AC hit not included. Can You Read My Mind from Superman which reached #5 AC & #52 pop and is finally included here...lol.

Then came the upbeat Different Worlds from the Angie TV series and became #1 AC & #18 pop hit which you may find here! She did a remake of Franki Valli's Can't Take My Eyes Off You. The single was backed with Very Special Love, both included on here and reached #27 AC. Finally, the last 2 missing are We Could Have It All from The Last Married Couple In America (#16 AC) and Halfway Home from The Earthling (#24 AC)in 1981.







After this time period, Maureen went on to sing and star in Broadway productions and is still singing. This CD should fairly represent her beginnings, but falls short. I hope that someone hears what I'm saying and a new revised edition will be on it's way."