A much overlooked gem of talent
J. B Brent | Oak Ridge, Tennessee USA | 03/27/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Renee Armand is best known for backup singing on albums by Hoyt Axton, and this is her 1972 solo album (A&M SP 4369). Her vocals are similar to Carly Simon's and there's ample evidence of abundant songwriting talent. "Friends" is the chilling tale of a drug addict's resistance to intervention. "Does Anybody Love You" is very melodic. We Five did a cover version. "Raining in L.A." has all the ingredients of a hit single, but this record got little attention and minimal promotion when released. It's wonderful that A&M of Japan had the intelligence and vision to reintroduce this body of high quality material to the world. It's been a long but worthwhile wait."
Overlooked gem
Davalon | Tokyo | 01/04/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"As with many great pop albums that were not recorded by "big" stars, this precious gem was foolishly overlooked by the promotion department of A&M Records. Renee Armand, at the time, was a very photogenic young woman and the songs on this album, although of the era, are all excellently written, with great pop lyrics and melodies. It is hard to understand why this album was not promoted. Renee only recorded two albums to my knowledge and I just think to myself how wonderful it would have been to continue to hear her rich, mature, thought-provoking lyrics. I felt there was an aura (sorry to use that word, but it's appropriate here) of gentleness, love, heartfilled emotion and more. The cover of the album I always thought was beautiful and unique, and the haunting image inside of Renee smiling made her look like a Renaissance woman who seemed somehow out of place and time.
There are other singer-songwriter treasures like this out there, lost gems floating in a sea of flotsam and jetsam. As to why the Japanese will go to the trouble of remastering these albums is hard to understand, since Renee could not have possibly been a big star there (I know; I lived there); on the other hand, thanks to the Japanese, we have the CD.
Renee had what I would call a songwriter's voice (this comment is coming from a songwriter). In other words, I cannot say she was the finest singer in the world -- but she still sings better than half the singers on the radio today. She is passionate and heartfelt and in tune -- and in my book, that works.
If you want to take a misty trip back to the 70s and hear some authentic pop by an excellent overlooked songwriter, this album would be a good place to start. One song, "Raining in L.A." was played very briefly as a single, and I can proudly say that I performed it and "You and I" with my band. We miss you Renee! Please record some more songs!"
Track Listings (10) - Disc #1