Search - Michael Franks :: Michael Franks Anthology: Art of Love

The Art of Michael Franks

douglas barton | Arlington, Va. | 05/17/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"While freely admitting to being an avid fan of Michael Franks for many years now I will confess to being more then slightly prejudicial when it comes to reviewing any disc that carries his name. Largely regarded for composing songs that, for the most part, are widely known ( and justifiably admired ) for being immensely enjoyable in their incredibly playful use of words ( " I hear from my ex on the back of my checks " ) Mr. Franks is a favorite in the music genre of Smooth Jazz and is an artist whose songs have been covered by a dizzying array of artists such as Diana Krall, Al Jarreau and David Sanborn. That being the case a two disc retrospective of his lengthy, and highly enjoyable, back catalogue is a welcome addition to my music library. And while, at first, I suspected that writing a review of Rhino's " Michael Franks Anthology: The Art of Love " was going to be a simple excercise in finding enough superlatives to get my point across as to my deep admiration of this artist it has become slightly more then just that. When releasing a two disc retrospective on any given artist there's always a chance of, while attempting to be all encompassing, it may also unintentionally reveal a weaker aspect of that artists back catalogue as well. And after my initial listen to disc one of this compilation I was enthralled with Rhino's choices and the remastering that they had accomplished. From the sinfully playful " Popsicle Toes " to the exotic " The Lady Wants To Know " and moving on to one of my favorites, " Antonio's Song " every selection included here is top-notch and I can think of no songs found on the first disc that should not have been included on this anthology. That being the case I, to my great surprise, ran into some trouble on disc two. To be perfectly blunt the tunes to be found on disc two simply do not scale the rather dizzying heights that I feel the first disc acheived. And while there are some wonderful songs to be found on the second cd, i.e. " Innuendo " beng one of my favorites and " The Art of Love " though I'm at a loss as to why they only included this one track from " Blue Pacific ", many of the second discs songs simply are not of the same superior quality and the anthology as a whole suffers slightly because of it. Granted when you have a disc that includes such classics such as " Lotus Blossom " and " On My Way Home To You " it would be difficult to maintain that exuberant quality through-out any compilation. Unfortunately though, many of the songs on the second disc simply tend to lose a certain amount of playfullness that has become a staple in Michael's back catalogue. In fact one or two of the tracks to be found, such as " Flirtation " and " Rainy Night In Tokyo " could easily have been left off and others included, such as " Island Life " from " The Camera Never Lies. " or " Long Slow Distance " which, for me , is without question one of his very best! Now, it isn't my intention as to complain about why some songs made the cut and others didn't ( that's the very nature of compilations ) but I must wonder as to some of the choices on the second disc. Although granted, even less the sterling songs of Michaels are appreciably better then most artists at their very best. Now with all that being said I would, without question, recommend this disc to any music lover. Whether you're a casual fan of Mr. Franks or a lifetime admirer, such as myself, owning a copy of " Michael Franks Anthology " is a must for any serious lover of Jazz, Pop or for that matter, any style of music that you subscribe to."

Happy Birthday To Me!!

James Fenos | Columbus, OH United States | 05/15/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"What an excellent gift from Rhino/Warner Brothers. This wonderful collection of Michael's music was released on my fortieth birthday and although it's a happy concidence, thanks anyway! There will be those who will complain about missing tracks, but I feel this anthology does a perfect job encapulating Michael's career. The one album not represented is Michael's self titled debut, but that cd is widely available. This set presents Michael's recordings chronologically, as did his "Backwards Glance" best of cd, released a few years ago. The mastering is, redundant as it now is to state with anything from Rhino, superb. The song selection is comprehensive without feeling manic or overwhelming. This collection picks up where "Backwards Glance" left off, giving us more than just a taste of each Warner Brothers album. This set closes with "Mr Smooth," a song from his "Barefoot On The Beach" album for Windham Hill. I'm very happy to see Michael's track "Leading Me Back To You" is here and remastered. It's from Joe Sample's "Spellbound" and that album contains Michael's "Somehow Our Love Survives" sung by Al Jarreau. The live songs, "Don't Be Blue" and Monkey-See Monkey-Do will be released again on an upcoming live set. "Don't Be Blue" which always sounded like an outtake from "Art Of Tea," is originally from "Sleeping Gypsy" and "Monkey-See Monkey-Do" is from "Art Of Tea." While I wish the studio version of "Don't Be Blue" was here in remastered form, the live version here refreshes the song. The Yellowjackets produced Michael's studio version of "The Dream," the live version presented here is also available on their "Collection" album on GRP records. Brenda Russell and Marilyn Scott provide the expert backing vocals on this live version. The studio version of "The Dream" is available on "Dragonfly Summer." "On My Way Home To You" with it's chord progression and modulation reminds me of Barry Manilow and "Ready To Take A Chance Again." I felt this song should have been included on Michael's "Backwards Glance" and am happy to see it presented here. "Innuendo" is one of my favorite songs from "The Camera Never Lies," the guitar arrangement is a mind blower. This set closes with Michael's humorus scatting on "Mr. Smooth." It's a fun soft-swing number that's so catchy you'll be singing it in your sleep. I guess my point is all the songs here are well chosen, not a mis-step in the bunch. All anthologies should be this well done and one more point, there are no edits here, all are full length versions."

Well, Well.... Well

Psboston7 | Upland, CA United States | 06/14/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is one schmooove compilation. Hours of good listening I played a whole 3 hours of Internet Spades while listening to this ENTIRE Set. LOVE IT!! I'm not a dedicated, old Franks fan but my boyfriend is and I can tell you that I have a New found respect for this artist. Nice, Unhurried just str8 up Easy Jazz Listening. I can't go into detail like the other reviews because I'm not feeling that deep tonight but I can say if you purchase this CD you won't be dissapointed there are some songs that you will pause and WANT to pay attention to and there are some songs that would be nice "background" music for a Sunday Afternoon.Respectfully Reviewed"