Andy Williams - 25 All-Time Greatest Hits 1956-1961: The Cadence Years

Title: 25 All-Time Greatest Hits 1956-1961: The Cadence Years Artist: Andy Williams Release Date: 4/9/2002 Label: Varese Album Type(s): Greatest Hits UPC: 030206630329 Genre: Vocal Music Styles: Early Pop/Rock, Soft Rock, Vocal Pop, Standards, Traditional Pop Moods: Romantic, Smooth, Sophisticated, Carefree, Elegant, Sweet, Amiable/Good-Natured, Cheerful, Earnest, Gentle, Happy, Innocent, Refined/Mannered, Reflective, Sentimental, Soothing, Stylish, Bittersweet, Playful, Poignant, Cathartic, Intimate, Plaintive, Reserved, Springlike, Wintry, Calm/Peaceful, Laid-Back/Mellow, Wistful Total Copies: 0 Members Wishing: 1 Number of Discs/SwapaCD Credits: 1

1. Walk Hand in Hand
2. Canadian Sunset
3. Baby Doll
4. Butterfly
5. I Like Your Kind of Love
6. Lips of Wine
7. Are You Sincere
8. Promise Me, Love
9. The Hawaiian Wedding Song
10. House of Bamboo
11. Lonely Street
12. Summer Love
13. The Village of St. Bernadette
14. I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry
15. Wake Me When It's Over
16. We Have a Date
17. Do You Mind?
18. Dreamsville
19. In the Summertime (You Don't Want My Love)
20. Don't Go to Strangers
21. The Bilbao Song
22. How Wonderful to Know
23. Twilight Time
24. So Rare
25. Under Paris Skies

Year Type Label Catalog # 2002 CD Varese 066303

No other editions were found for this album.

The title presents a somewhat mixed message: If this album has his 25 all-time greatest hits, it wouldn't cover just his 1956-1961 Cadence years. And sure enough, this couldn't be considered Williams' best greatest-hits collection, as it contains only material from those Cadence years and none from his subsequent hit-filled decade at Columbia. That carping done with, if you want a survey of his Cadence output, this is the best collection for that purpose, though it's not significantly different from the 1996 Varese Sarabande compilation The Best of the Cadence Years, other than dropping "Beyond the Reef" and adding six other tracks. Williams' Columbia hits might be a little better known, but he was indeed successful at Cadence. All of these 25 songs were released on singles (a handful after his early-'60s departure from the label), and about two-thirds made the charts, half a dozen making the Top Ten. Musically, it's lightweight and erratic, however, veering from good crooning standard pop to some pretty dull easy listening. Crooning is what he's known for, but actually some of the better cuts are those in which he swings to some degree, like "Canadian Sunset," "Butterfly" (actually a cover of a superior rockabilly hit by Charlie Gracie), the giddy male-female duet of "I Like Your Kind of Love," Lionel Bart's "Do You Mind?," and the mambo "House of Bamboo." On another trip altogether, "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" manages to drain all of the country out of the Hank Williams standard with its schmaltzy orchestration. ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide

Name Credits Archie Bleyer Orchestration Bill Pitzonka Art Direction, Design Cary E. Mansfield Compilation Producer, Compilation Evren Göknar Mastering Greg Yantek Associate Producer, Photography Joseph Lanza Liner Notes Marty Wekser Producer, Compilation Producer, Compilation Michael Ochs Photography