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Solitaire (Andy Williams album)

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Solitaire
Studio album by
Andy Williams
Released1973
Recorded1973
Genre
Length37:32
LabelColumbia
ProducerRichard Perry[2]
Andy Williams chronology
Andy Williams' Greatest Hits Vol. 2
(1973) 		Solitaire
(1973) 		The Way We Were
(1974)

Solitaire is the thirty-first studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams, released in the fall of 1973 by Columbia Records and was an attempt to move away from his formulaic series of recent releases that relied heavily on songs that other artists had made popular.

The album debuted on Billboard magazine's Top LPs & Tapes chart in the issue dated November 17, 1973, and remained there for six weeks, peaking at number 185.[3] it also debuted on the Cashbox albums chart in the issue dated November 3, 1973, and remained on the chart for 8 weeks, peaking at number 112.[4] It entered the UK albums chart on December 22, 1973, and stayed there for 26 weeks, peaking at number three.[5] On January 1, 1974, the newly formed British Phonographic Industry awarded the album with a Silver certification for sales of 60,000 units in the UK, and Gold certification from the BPI, for sales of 100,000 units, followed on January 1, 1975.[6]

The first single from the album was the title track, which entered Billboard's list of the 40 most popular Easy Listening songs of the week in the U.S. in the issue dated October 6, 1973, and stayed on the chart for nine weeks, peaking at number 23.[7] Although the song did not make the magazine's Hot 100, it did make the top five in the UK, where it entered the singles chart two months later, on December 8, and reached number four during an 18-week stay.[5] Williams's rerecording of another song from the album, "Remember", as a duet with his daughter Noelle resulted in another Easy Listening chart entry as of the January 5, 1974, issue that made it to number 30 over the course of seven weeks.[7] A third song, "Getting over You", entered the UK singles chart four months later, on May 18, and lasted there five weeks, eventually getting to number 35.[5]

Solitaire was released on compact disc as one of two albums on one CD by Collectables Records on February 19, 2002, with the other album being Williams's 1972 release, Alone Again (Naturally).[8] Collectables included this CD in a box set entitled Classic Album Collection, Vol. 2, which contains 15 of his studio albums and two compilations, which was released on November 29, 2002.[9] Solitaire was paired with the UK version of Alone Again (Naturally) (entitled The First Time Ever (I Saw Your Face)) as two albums on one disc by Sony Music Distribution in 2003.[10]

History

[edit]

In 1966 Williams began to shift the focus of the material he recorded for his studio projects for Columbia Records away from traditional pop by recording the Beatles ballads "Michelle" and "Yesterday" for his album The Shadow of Your Smile. Covers of contemporary pop hits edged out his usual album fare of standards completely with the release of his 1968 album Honey and would dominate his LPs into the early 1970s.

Williams justified his latest decision to change his way of selecting music to record in an interview with Billboard in 1973. "'Middle of the Road music has changed drastically in the past two years,' says Williams. 'Easy Listening radio now plays predominantly the softer new rock records, not cover versions by MOR artists. My Columbia albums of hit covers have all made money, but I feel it's time for me to move along with the market.'"[11] The magazine's editor Nat Freedland wrote, "The total sound of the Solitaire LP is not drastically different from other Williams albums; pretty ballads and lush string backgrounds are still much in evidence. The most obvious differences are a new concentration on strong rhythm instrument core and predominance of previously unrecorded songs."[11]

The singer also took on a new approach to recording the album. "Williams, who generally has never recorded his vocals until the entire instrumental tracks were finished, here found himself singing along with the all-star rock session men putting down his basic rhythm tracks. 'I think everybody agrees now that you get better results when the artist sings along with the rhythm track sessions, even if you erase the vocal track afterwards,' says Williams. Ever the perfectionist, Andy wound up taping new vocals over the finished instrumental tracks. 'I just felt I could do it a bit better than I did at the live sessions,' he explains."[11]

Reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[12]

William Ruhlmann of Allmusic took note of the new Williams sound. "One doesn't usually think of Andy Williams as someone ahead of the curve in popular music trends, but in 1973 he anticipated the comeback of Neil Sedaka by recording the songwriter's tune 'Solitaire' and using it as the title track and lead single of an album. Unfortunately, getting out in front of fashions is as commercially dicey as falling behind them, and while Sedaka himself went on to commercial resurgence in 1974 and "Solitaire" became a hit for the Carpenters in 1975, Williams did not benefit from his prescience (except in the UK, where his version made the Top Five)."[1]

Ruhlmann also points out the logic behind the change in format. "With his record sales falling, Williams did not make a spring album in 1973, waiting until the fall to issue Solitaire, on which he not only cut his interpretations of recent pop hits ('You Are the Sunshine of My Life,' 'My Love') but also worked a little harder at song selection, resurrecting the Everly Brothers oldie 'Walk Right Back' and covering LP tracks by George Harrison ('That Is All') and Nicky Hopkins ('The Dreamer'). There was also an excellent movie song, 'Last Tango in Paris,' with lyrics by Dory Previn. In keeping with the tone of the title track, the arrangements and Williams's tone tended to emphasize melancholy, so that even 'You Are the Sunshine of My Life' sounded somewhat sad."[1] Ruhlmann concludes, "Solitaire was a cut above most Andy Williams albums, but commercially that didn't matter. The singer had not found a way to reverse his career decline, and the album barely grazed the charts."[1]

Billboard gave the album a postive reviews, saying "Solitare and "Make it Easy for Me" are examples of Andy's distinct vocal sound"[13]

Track listing

[edit]

This is the first Williams album that credits the musicians involved (with the exception of Lincoln Mayorga, credited on one track, God Only Knows, on the 1967 album Love, Andy), and they are listed on the back cover of the LP with each track as follows:[2]

Side one

[edit]
  1. "Solitaire" (Phil Cody, Neil Sedaka) - 4:22
  2. "Make It Easy for Me" (Peter Skellern) - 3:12
  3. "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" (Stevie Wonder) - 3:11
    • Jim Keltner - drums
    • Joe Osborn - bass
    • Jimmy Calvert - electric guitar
    • Vini Poncia - acoustic guitar
    • John Morrell - acoustic guitar
    • Billy Fender - acoustic guitar
    • Tom Hensley - piano and choral arrangement
    • Tom Scott - string, horn and woodwind arrangement
    • Chuck Findley - flugelhorn solo
  4. "Getting Over You" (Tony Hazzard) - 3:23
    • Klaus Voormann - bass
    • Jim Keltner - drums
    • Jimmy Calvert - electric guitar
    • Vini Poncia - acoustic guitar
    • Billy Fender - acoustic guitar
    • John Morrell - acoustic guitar
    • Tom Hensley - piano, string and horn arrangement
  5. "Remember" (Harry Nilsson) - 4:03

Side two

[edit]
  1. "That Is All" (George Harrison) - 4:28
  2. "Walk Right Back" (Sonny Curtis) - 3:10
  3. "Last Tango in Paris" from Last Tango in Paris (Gato Barbieri, Dory Previn) - 2:38
    • Hal Blaine - drums
    • Lyle Ritz - bass
    • Mike Lang - electric piano
    • Ben Benay - acoustic guitar
    • Clark Gassman - piano
    • Mike Deasy - electric guitar
    • Gene Cipriano - bass clarinet solo
    • Kirby Johnson - string arrangement
  4. "My Love" (Linda McCartney, Paul McCartney) - 4:00
    • Jim Keltner - drums
    • Joe Osborn - bass
    • Jimmy Calvert - electric guitar
    • Vini Poncia - acoustic guitar
    • John Morrell - acoustic guitar
    • Billy Fender - acoustic guitar
    • Tom Hensley - electric piano, string and woodwind arrangement
  5. "The Dreamer" (Nicky Hopkins) - 5:08
    • Nicky Hopkins - piano
    • Klaus Voormann - bass
    • Jim Keltner - drums
    • Vini Poncia - acoustic guitar
    • John Morrell - acoustic guitar
    • Billy Fender - acoustic guitar
    • Lon Van Eaton - percussion
    • Derek Van Eaton - percussion
    • Tom Hensley - choral arrangement
    • Del Newman - string and horn arrangement

Song information

[edit]

"Walk Right Back" by The Everly Brothers reached number seven on the Billboard Hot 100,[14] and their run on the UK singles chart that paired the song with "Ebony Eyes" included three weeks in the number one position.[15] "Solitaire" first appeared on Neil Sedaka's 1972 UK album of the same name but did not make the charts until the Williams version was released the following year.[16] Stevie Wonder's recording of "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" reached number one pop,[17] number one Easy Listening,[18] number three R&B,[19] and number seven on the UK singles chart.[20] "Last Tango in Paris" entered the Billboard charts as an instrumental recording by Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass that reached number 77 pop[21] and number 22 Easy Listening.[22] "My Love" earned Paul McCartney & Wings four weeks in the top spot on the Hot 100,[23] three weeks at number one Easy Listening,[24] a number nine hit on the UK singles chart,[25] and Gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America.[26]

In 1973 Herman's Hermits lead singer Peter Noone released "Getting over You" as a single,[27] and a trio of albums featured recordings of some of the lesser-known songs here: "Remember" was first sung by Johnny Mathis on Me and Mrs. Jones;[28] George Harrison's "That Is All" was included on Living in the Material World;[29] and "The Dreamer" was recorded by its composer/lyricist, Nicky Hopkins, for The Tin Man Was a Dreamer.[30] "Make It Easy for Me" was eventually recorded by its composer/lyricist, Peter Skellern, for his 1975 album Hold On to Love, which also featured the song "My Lonely Room", which Williams later recorded for his 1976 album Andy.[31]

Personnel

[edit]

From the liner notes for the original album:[2]

Charts

[edit]
Chart (1973/74) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[32] 62
United Kingdom (Official Charts Company) 3
United States (Billboard 200) 185

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e "Solitaire - Andy Williams". allmusic.com. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
  2. ^ a b c (1973) "Solitaire" by Andy Williams [album jacket]. New York: Columbia Records KC 32383.
  3. ^ Whitburn 2010, p. 844.
  4. ^ Hoffmann, Frank W (1988). The Cash box album charts, 1955-1974. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press. p. 406. ISBN 0-8108-2005-6.
  5. ^ a b c "Andy Williams". Official Charts. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  6. ^ "BPI search results". British Phonographic Industry. Archived from the original on 24 September 2009. Retrieved 13 February 2011.
  7. ^ a b Whitburn 2007, p. 296.
  8. ^ "Alone Again (Naturally)/Solitaire - Andy Williams". AllMusic. Retrieved 28 January 2011.
  9. ^ "Classic Album Collection, Vol. 2". allmusic.com. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 16 October 2010.
  10. ^ "Solitaire/Alone Again Naturally". allmusic.com. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 28 January 2011.
  11. ^ a b c "Andy MOR-Rocks to Market Shift". Billboard. 1973-11-03. p. 16.
  12. ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. p. 1498. ISBN 9781846098567. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  13. ^ "Top Album Picks: Solitare". Billboard. Vol. 85, no. 43. October 27, 1973. p. 64.
  14. ^ Whitburn 2009, p. 328.
  15. ^ "Everly Brothers". Official Charts. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  16. ^ "Solitaire by Neil Sedaka". rate your music.com. Retrieved 16 February 2011.
  17. ^ Whitburn 2009, p. 1074.
  18. ^ Whitburn 2007, p. 301.
  19. ^ Whitburn 2004, p. 635.
  20. ^ "Stevie Wonder". Official Charts. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  21. ^ Whitburn 2009, p. 36.
  22. ^ Whitburn 2007, p. 8.
  23. ^ Whitburn 2009, p. 635.
  24. ^ Whitburn 2007, p. 182.
  25. ^ "Wings". Official Charts. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  26. ^ "Gold & Platinum". riaa.com. Retrieved 29 May 2017. Type Wings in the Search box and press Enter.
  27. ^ "Peter Noone - Discography". NoOne, Inc. Archived from the original on 22 December 2010. Retrieved 19 February 2011.
  28. ^ "Me and Mrs. Jones - Johnny Mathis". allmusic.com. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 19 February 2011.
  29. ^ "Living in the Material World - George Harrison". allmusic.com. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 19 February 2011.
  30. ^ "The Tin Man Was a Dreamer - Nicky Hopkins". allmusic.com. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
  31. ^ "Hold On to Love by Peter Skellern". rate your music.com. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  32. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 338. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.

Bibliography

[edit]
  • Whitburn, Joel (2004), Joel Whitburn Presents Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles, 1942-2004, Record Research Inc., ISBN 0-89820-160-8
  • Whitburn, Joel (2007), Joel Whitburn Presents Billboard Top Adult Songs, 1961-2006, Record Research Inc., ISBN 978-0-89820-169-7
  • Whitburn, Joel (2009), Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 1955-2008, Record Research Inc., ISBN 978-0-89820-180-2
  • Whitburn, Joel (2010), Joel Whitburn Presents Top Pop Albums, Seventh Edition, Record Research Inc., ISBN 978-0-89820-183-3
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