A romantic and musically satisfying album.
Laura Pinto | St. Petersburg, FL United States | 11/20/1999
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Neil Sedaka's "Tales of Love" evokes images of an earlier era, of a romantic Sinatra crooning his soft, seductive entreaties while lovers embraced and danced. This collection includes some fine remakes of some of Neil's earlier recordings (for more examples, grab a copy of "Tuneweaver") as well as his versions of classics such as "My Funny Valentine" and "I'll be Seeing You." The smashing duet with daughter Dara on "The Very Thought of You" is worth the price of the CD. "One More Ride on the Merry-Go-Round," a wistful, Peggy-Lee-like saloon song of longing for lost youth, will bring sighs from the young, a tear or two from the older. The newest song in the collection, a showstopper wisely saved for the last track, is "Turning Back the Hands of Time," which was originally recorded with full orchestra on "Classically Sedaka" and features Neil's excellent lyrics married to the music of Puccini's "Nessun Dorma." In between are some fine standards intermingled with complementary Sedaka compositions, the result being a lovely and romantic compilation for both longtime Sedaka fans such as myself and the uninitiated. I highly recommend this CD for romantics and Sedakaphiles everywhere."
Musical Gems
Cynthia M. Strom | Portland, Oregon | 03/21/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
""Tales Of Love" is a wonderful example of Neil Sedaka's outstanding and evolving musical gift. His singing and playing are superb and renders the songs exciting and colorful. This CD is brimming with musical gems like the beautiful duet with his musically talented daughter Dara Sedaka in "The Very Thought Of You", the powerful emotion in "I Let You Walk Away", the catchy snare drum rhythm in "Inseparable" and the joyous melodies and poly-rhythms in "Pray For Rain". For listeners searching for extraordinary music, "Tales Of Love is a must-have."