Dusty Is at her Best In this Collection of Soul Classics
Gavin B. | St. Louis MO | 11/14/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This fantastic collection of Dusty Springfield singing a whole slew of sixties soul & pop classics should be a no-brainer for fans of Northern Soul, Old School Sixties-style R&B or Dusty Springfield.
It's a British import that will never be issued in the USA because the ownership split of Dusty's master recordings in America. A lot of the songs don't appear on any of the numerous antholgies of Dusty Springfield's work. Some of the songs are from albums that aren't even in issue anymore. The price is very reasonable even for a budget priced domestic compact disc.
Dusty kicks it with this diverse collection Sixties and early Seventies classics written by such songwriting luminaries as Dozier, Holland & Holland team, the Goffin & King team, the Bacharach & David team and Jimmy Webb.
She is in best voice of her career and the wall of sound production values flatters her powerhouse vocals. There isn't any of poorly chosen, over-produced material that intrudes on the purity of her voice during her latter day efforts as a cabaret entertainer.
Dusty's nuanced phrasing, the sense of urgency and depair in her vocals, and her roots in the sophisticated jazz stylings of Peggy Lee made her the top ranking female blue-eyed soul singer of her generation.
A lot of the songs are forgetten chestnuts from less celebrated R&B groups of the Sixties. She breates new life into "Dream Merchant" a song by the obscure early Seventies soul group, New Birth. Dusty does a stirring rendition of "Needle in a Haystack" by the Velvelettes an early Motown girl group that had fifteen minutes of fame. "Love Power" by the one-hit wonders, the Sand Pebbles, gets an uptown Memphis sould treatment by Dusty.
Her passionate and masterful rendition Burt Bacharach's "I Just Don't Know What to Do With Myself" makes you wonder why she didn't choose more music from the Bacharach/David catalog, during her career. "Brand New Me" was a minor soul hit that was covered by such diverse artists, as Arthea Franklin, Jerry Butler, The Partidge Family, Gregory Isaacs, Liberace, Isaac Hayes, Patti Paige and Ricky Skaggs. I haven't heard Aretha's rendition of "Brand New Me" but it's safe to say that Dusty's cover of the song is one of the two best renditions of the song.
Some younger folks find the Phil Specter type production dated and some of Dusty's overdubbed girl group background vocals way too "Ronettes." For me, it makes this collection even better!"
SOULFUL MASTERPIECE~BRAVO DUSTY!!!
Bradly Briggs | TOLUCA LAKE, CALIFORNIA | 11/29/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"From the classic soul era there is nobody quite like Dusty Springfield and this collection makes this clear...classic songs are given definitive readings and "A Brand New Me" is a Dusty original and it was Aretha who did the cover version but this amazing song is owned by Dusty who had the original hit version produced by the legendary Gamble-Huff writing/producing team who did a complete lp with Dusty...they knew! The British gave Dusty a Lifetime Acheivement Award in a recent induction ceremony (11/06) and the singer chosen to do "You Don't Have To Say You Love Me" was no less than Patti LaBelle who also accepted the award for Dusty along with Nona Hendrix and they labeled Dusty as one of the Greatest Soul Singers ever...in a taped segment this sentiment was echoed by legendary Atlantic Records producer Jerry Wexler, Burt Bacharach and Martha Reeves of the classic Motown group Martha Reeves and The Vandellas who cites Dusty as the one who introduced Motown music to the British! Listening to this awesome collection anyone who loves great music and a great singer in peak form will come to the same conclusion themselves...Dusty was "The White Queen Of Soul" and just really a great singer who could sing anything and better than anyone else!!! Bravo Dusty and we miss you!"
Track Listings (18) - Disc #1