Carly Simon - Moonlight Serenade
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CD Details
Artist: Carly SimonBrand: Columbia
Edition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 2005-07-19
Music Label: Sony
Soundtracks:
- Moonlight Serenade
- I've Got You Under My Skin
- I Only Have Eyes For You
- Moonglow
- Alone Together
- In The Still Of The Night
- The More I See You
- Where Or When
- My One and Only Love
- All The Things You Are
- How Long Has This Been Going On
Music reviews of Moonlight Serenade
Music Review: A Lovely "Serenade"
Rating: 4 Stars
I'm not a Carly Simon fan. I've never really enjoyed music from the 1970's (sorry). I rarely listen to rock music from the decade, unless of course I'm forced into it. And yes there have been times I have been. So why did I buy this album you're asking. Well I bought after reading a positive review in the New York Times by Stephen Holden, my favorite critic on the paper. I was also intrigued because I love the song selection. While I admit I'm not familar with Simon I do know these songs better than the back of my hand. Cole Porter tunes such as "I've Got You Under My Skin", "In the Still of the Night", Gershwin's "How Long Has This Been Going On" and Rogers and Hart's "Where or When" are all songs I've grown up listening to.
My previous knowledge of Carly comes from the Oscar winning song "Let the River Run" from Mike Nichols' "Working Girl". I believe that was the first time I heard her. She also has a delightful cameo as Brittany Murphy's idol in "Little Black Book". Other than that I know nothing about her.
Now for the album itself. It is despite what other amazon viewers are saying enjoyable. What is so difficult from a marketing viewpoint about this album is who is going to buy it? True Carly Simon fans may not want to hear her sing these songs. In fact many of them may not be that familar with them. And if you're not familar with Carly Simon, why are you buying this album? But as we get past this problem I have to give Simon credit. Many of the arrangements work.
My favorite track on the album is "Alone Together" which is done to a bossa nova tempo. The song goes back to the 1930's. I think the oldest song on here is from 1945. It is Harry Warren's "The More I see You" written for the musical "The Diamond Horseshoe". "I also enjoyed the title track, "Moonlight Serenade", "I've Got You Under My Skin", Jerome Kern's "All the Things You Are" (also given a bossa nova beat), and "Moonglow".
Many of the arrangements try to match the feel of the songs. Simon doesn't really try to update all of them. Which I appreciate. I hate modern readings of these classic American songs. I once heard Johnny Mathis sing "Night and Day" to a disco tempo! But there is one arrangement I felt was bad. Simon makes the common mistake most people make. Her reading of "I Only Have Eyes For You" is for me terrible. The arrangement resembles that of the acappella groups that sang it. Most people think such songs as "I Only Have Eyes For You" or "Blue Moon" were written in the 50's, they weren't. They were written in the 1930's. And "I Only Have Eyes For You" was written in 1933 to be exact for the Warner Brothers musical "Dames". Simon sings it in the manner a 1950's acappella group would. I found it disappointing. She should have sung it as a jazz ballad the same why she does some of the other songs on here.
We are now back to where we started. Who should buy this album? If you like Carly Simon but do not know these songs I'd suggest you'd skip this one. But if you're not a Simon fan and enjoy these songs I think it's worth a listen. Simon, while not a great singer, could become a passable jazz vocalist. I don't think she has mastered these songs yet but you know the old saying; practice makes perfect. For example her arrangement of "I've Got You Under My Skin" is not bad, but how can we listen to it and not think of Sinatra's version? Many people identify that song not as a Cole Porter tune but a Frank Sinatra tune. So again Simon fans pass this one unless you appreciate these songs. Only those you do appreciate this material should buy the album.
Bottom-lone: Good recordings of classic songs by a "modern artist" or someone not associated with these songs. Many of the arrangements work and only one disappointed me.
Description of Moonlight Serenade
Carly Simon's brand new album of romantic songs features 11 new tracks in collaboration with her old friend and hit producer Richard Perry. All of the songs are upbeat in a "fox-trot" kind of style, and Carly's heartfelt vocals are simply divine. There is no doubt that the Simon/Perry magic that worked so well in the 1970's is very much alive and well in 2005. The CD side of the DualDisc edition features the full new album Moonlight Serenade. In addition, The DVD side features: - The entire album in Enhanced Stereo
- Exclusive new footage of Carly at-home
- A "making of the album" documentary including in-the-studio footage, photos, and interviews with Carly Simon and Richard Perry.
Carly Simon could spin vintage Black Sabbath into the musical equivalent of buttery, well warmed comfort food. Not surprisingly, much like her earlier trio of classics from the Great American Songbook (1981's Torch, 1990's My Romance, and 1997's Film Noir), Carly positively nails the 11 standards collected on Moonlight Serenade. If there appears to be a little more magic on Moonlight that is missing from the others, you can credit her collaborator Richard Perry. As arranger and producer, Perry bends these songs in a direction that calls to mind the Simon/Perry classics from the early 1970s, No Secrets and Hotcakes included. Confident interpretations and respectable playing aside, what you hear on Moonlight Serenade is naturalness and joy, a spirit that bespeaks Simon at her peak. That spirit's power to transform ballads and soft rock songs into instant classics grabbed the 70's generation by the collar. With Moonlight Serenade, we thankfully see that spirit sweeps across a ballroom with the same fullness and fire. --Tammy La Gorce
Recommended Carly Simon Discography
 No Secret |  Hotcakes |  Reflections: Carly Simon?s Greatest Hits |
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