Search - Mimi Hines :: The Mimi Hines Albums

Mimi Hines Sings Her Face Off

09/24/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"At last, Mimi Hines' two vocal albums from the mid-1960s are available on CD. After listening to this, you'll wonder why there were only two albums. "The Music That Makes Me Dance," which she sang in "Funny Girl" after she replaced Barbra Streisand, is a standout, as well as "Nothing Can Stop Me Now" and "Till There Was You. And "Pink Taffeta Sample Size 10," a song cut from "Sweet Charity" is touching and a standout performance. Thank you to whoever made these albums available again."

Why Mono?

Robert Mcdonald | West Hollywood, CA United States | 09/14/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Mimi Hines has, in my opinion, an astonishing instrument. I have only been recently introduced to this magnificent voice, that has to my ears, has the purity and sweetness of young Garland, and the operatic overtones of Shirley Bassey, along with great musicianship. The two Lp's contained on this CD are from 1966 and 1967; years when the great American singer/artists were recording the great American songbook standards in real time. Don Costa, a veteran of Broadway arranging and working with the best singers out there did the charts for both albums. And listening to these wonderful tracks is a trip in a time capsule to that period of recording never to be heard from again. My biggest complaint with this release is why does the MIMI HINDS SINGS given to us in MONO? Surely Decca with it's brilliant engineering reputation recorded this in Stereo. It was 1966 after all and everything was being offered to the public in both formats. It is a loss not to hear all the details of the Costa arrangements lushly separated, instead of the shrill and harsh sound of this mono mix! Especially when the 2nd album begins with the Stereo separation (Yes, the MIMI HINDS IS A HAPPENING is presented in Stereo)from just a year later, and you realize all you are missing. I have encountered this many times on albums that are licensed from the original studio to independent labels. Do they hoard the stereo versions? Are they lost in the vaults? As usual, it's the consumer who suffers and pays for it."