Steve Lawrence - Winners / On a Clear Day

Winners / On a Clear Day   (Two Albums On One CD) By   Steve Lawrence Very Good Condition A Columbia album and an RCA album on one disc? This unusual arrangement is possible because Steve Lawrence owns his master tapes and can do with them as he pleases. As a result, his label, GL Music, paired the 1963 Columbia album Winners! with On a Clear Day, a non-charting RCA Victor album from 1970. Winners! boasts the number one hit "Go Away, Little Girl," a contemporary song bordering on teen idol pop that isn't representative of the rest of the album. Apart from the incongruous pop-folk of "Cotton Fields," the prevailing sound is that of the traditional pop era as Lawrence sings songs old and new with strings and a big band. Winners! blends seamlessly into On a Clear Day, despite having been recorded several years earlier. On a Clear Day finds Lawrence applying his Frank Sinatra-influenced pipes to 11 songs from Broadway using a team of arrangers that includes Don Costa. "Mama, A Rainbow," a showstopper from the musical Minnie's Boys on which Lawrence delivers a soaring vocal performance, became a Top 40 easy listening hit. The disc was mastered from the original tapes, features brief liner notes by Lawrence himself, and is available through Lawrence's website at a premium price. ~ Greg Adams, Rovi A Review: This is an excellent CD from Steve Lawrence that has all of the numbers from two of his record albums entitled Winners! and On A Clear Day Steve Lawrence Sings Up A Storm. Steve's voice sounds just great; and we are all better off for his having shared his gift with us. I like that they used the original record album artwork when designing the overall artwork for this CD and the quality of the sound is excellent. One number I really like is "Misty;" Steve sings this wonderfully and he never skips a beat, either! His voice is in excellent form and his excellent diction bolsters his performance all the more. The song gets a musical arrangement that isn't quite as lush as I'm used to hearing but it all holds its own very well. "Around the World" has a very spirited arrangement and Steve handles the complex tempo and key changes like the pro he was and always will be! Excellent! Similarly, "Who's' Sorry Now?" is a big hit that I always liked; Steve's rendition is sublime and that's grand. How's about that brass? "It's Not for Me to Say" features Steve Lawrence squarely front and center; and that's quite all right by me! Johnny Mathis would be proud; Steve sings this with panache and the strings sound so good on this track. "Kansas City" has a fine piano arrangement as Steve sings this one very well; and "Go Away Little Girl" stuns me with its natural beauty. I think you'll like this version of "Go Away Little Girl" if you haven't heard it before. "Moon River" is easy on the ear; and "Teach Me Tonight" is a number I first heard sung by Dinah Washington. Dinah would surely approve of Steve's take on this ballad--it's all done so very well! The drums sound just right, too. "Volare" also showcases Steve Lawrence's exceptional talent as a vocalist; I love every minute of it. "Try to Remember" from The Fantasticks gets the royal treatment from Steve Lawrence who delivers this with grace and sensitivity; this tune lacks nothing when Steve sings it--this music is all THAT good. "What Did I Have That I Don't Have?" has Steve delving deep into this ballad to make it extra bright; I always enjoy hearing Steve doing this one up right! "She Loves Me" has a somewhat Vegas sounding arrangement and Steve handles this dynamic number with finesse. "What Kind of Fool Am I" again has Steve in the spotlight; wisely the musicians never try to steal the show from Steve. Very classy! "On a Wonderful Day Like Today" also has that classic Vegas sound and Steve delivers this faultlessly The CD even ends wonderfully with Steve Lawrence performing a splendid interpretation of "People." "People" is meaningful and pretty; and it leaves me wanting more! Fortunately for me and other Steve Lawrence fans, more is precisely what I can have because so many of Steve's wonderful record albums have been copied onto CDs. This is a must-have album for Steve Lawrence fans; and it even makes a fine starter CD for people just discovering the magical style of Steve Lawrence. Track Listings Disc: 1   1. Cotton Fields   2. Misty   3. Around the World   4. Who's Sorry Now   5. It's Not for Me to Say   6. Kansas City   7. Go Away Little Girl   8. All the Way   9. Moon River   10. Teach Me Tonight   11. Lollipops and Roses   12. Volare   13. On a Clear Day   14. Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me)   15. You'd Better Love Me   16. Try to Remember   17. What Did I Have That I Don't Have?   18. Mama, A Rainbow   19. She Loves Me   20. If I Ruled the World   21. What Kind of Fool Am I   22. On a Wonderful Day Like Today   23. People Product details Audio CD (September 13, 2005) Number of Discs: 1 Label: Gl Music Co. ASIN: B000AM6OX0