Search - Mary Hopkin :: Postcard

A mixed bag from a fine singer

Matthew G. Sherwin | last seen screaming at Amazon customer service | 09/22/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Post Card is a Mary Hopkin CD that doesn't do her justice. Blessed with a fine voice but rather young and inexperienced back in 1969, Mary was talked into performing songs for this album that didn't fit in at all with the overall mood of the album. What a shame. At the time this album was recorded, Mary's star was on the rise; she scored a huge hit with her hauntingly beautiful "Those Were The Days." I never considered this song to be anti-Semitic despite the fact that I am Jewish. Other songs on this album showcase Mary Hopkin's talents as a chanteuse, too.



The CD track set begins, appropriately enough, with "Those Were The Days." Mary sings this with passion, sensitivity and panache. The musical arrangement makes good use of the strings and percussion; and the backup chorus works well for "Those Were The Days."



"Lord Of The Reedy River" sports a great arrangement for guitar; and Mary sings this well, using both major and minor keys to enhance the beauty of the number. "Love Is The Sweetest Thing," a Ray Noble tune, shines like gold in Mary's competent care. The horns bolster the musical arrangement; but the hokey country twist in the musical interlude brings this number down. Sorry, folks!



"The Honeymoon Song" starts with a beat that sounds somewhat Latin; and Mary sings this to perfection. The upbeat, catchy melody works well for this number. "The Honeymoon Song" is another highlight of this album. "Inchworm," on the other hand, belongs at the very least on another album. It just doesn't fit in and somehow Mary's voice sounds a tad shrill as she sings "Inchworm." I like the backup chorus, at least. Sigh.



"Lullaby Of The Leaves" sports a great arrangement for guitar. "Lullaby Of The Leaves" sports a haunting melody and Mary delivers this cover of a George Olsen song well. "Young Love" not only works well; it is a far better pick for this album than "Inchworm." The catchy, upbeat melody is just right as Mary sings to celebrate the joys of young love. The guitars work wonders for the arrangement, too. In addition, "Someone To Watch Over Me" apparently wasn't one of Mary's favorites for this album; but you'd never know it as she sings this to perfection. Mary's voice, which sounds slightly flat on this number, actually does justice to "Someone To Watch Over Me."



"There's No Business Like Show Business" also belongs on another album. It doesn't fit in well with the other numbers on this CD. Please don't misunderstand me; Mary does this well; it's just not good for this particular CD. Sigh.



We get three bonus tracks. "Turn, Turn, Turn (To Everything There Is A Season)" shines like silver and gold as Mary delivers this Pete Seeger ballad flawlessly. The arrangement uses just a guitar with Mary's voice; and as other noted this technique works very well. We then have two more versions of "Those Were The Days," one in Italian and the other in Spanish. Too bad, because this suggests that this was the only ballad Mary could truly sing well. We need THREE versions of "Those Were The Days" on one CD? Sigh--again, sigh.



The liner notes include some great artwork; and we get a couple of brief essays that actually admit this is not exactly album of the years. That's a surprise--liner note essays don't typically discuss that angle of the album.



Mary Hopkin possesses a huge talent and I hope she entertains us for many years to come. This album, which is certainly not perfect, gives us at the very least an understanding of the broad range of numbers Mary is capable of doing. Maybe one day there will be an organized, much more professionally chosen assortment of songs under the title of "Greatest Hits." I guess we must wait for that; but I hope we don't wait long for Mary to sing in concert!

"

Mary Hopkin, the Welsh Songbird.

Lovely to See You | Out There Somewhere | 10/12/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Produced immaculately by Sir Paul McCartney, resulting in a bit of overly mawkish fluff, it still can't take away the basic charm and beauty of the-then-19 year-old folk singer whose vocal gifts stand out all on her own. Hopkin had the kind of simple, beautiful voice that was sorely needed in a decade of Grace Slicks and Janis Joplins; one of purity, honesty, and gentility.



Sure, "Those Were the Days" is some of that retro-showbiz early 1900s stuff that made some people cringe, but how many of you ended up singing with it in an unguarded moment? "The Honeymoon Song" is undoubtedly a McCartney arrangement through and through, but you can't turn it off, can you? "Love is the Sweetest Thing" is the stuff 30s musicals are made of, but it's sung beautifully and enhanced with George Martin's classic strings, but you have to hand it to McCartney for the delightfully updated version of "Young Love," which totally rocks in a Beatleriffic way.



This is a charming folk rock album that has the incendiare production of my favorite Beatle--excessive as we all know he and George Martin can be--but her voice is a true diamond in a glass heap, filled with sweetness, savvy, and depth. My favorite songs are the beautifully penned George Martin tune "The Game," which will make veteran Judy Collins fans turn their collective heads, and "The Puppy Song" which I have adopted for me and my one year-old puppy Boomer. I admit it, this is an album for sentimental fools who love good, simplistic melodies and gorgeous, timeless arrangements. If you love your pop pure and polished in any decade, you will find Postcard a delight with each repeated listen."