For Once in My Life (Carmen McRae album)

For Once in My Life
Studio album by
Carmen McRae
ReleasedJuly 1967 (1967-07)[1]
RecordedApril 10–12, 1967[2]
StudioOlympic Studios, London
Genre
LabelAtlantic
Producer
Carmen McRae chronology
Alfie
(1966) 		For Once in My Life
(1967) 		This Is Carmen McRae
(1967)

For Once in My Life is a studio album by American singer Carmen McRae, released in 1967 by Atlantic Records. The arranger was Johnny Keating.[3] The recording was made in London at Olympic Studios. The album consists covers mainly of modern popular songs by Burt Bacharach, Brian Wilson, the Beatles and Buffy Sainte-Marie.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[5]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz[6]

The Billboard magazine review noted that McRae is following a new path, choosing a repertoire from the current pop catalog, and it works effectively, as well as that her performance skills are better than ever and this gives the first album for Atlantic a good chance to take off.[7] From a review by Cash Box magazine: "Carmen McRae sings a selection of pop melodies which her fans are bound to take to their hearts. The artist’s tone is mellow and true, and she gives meaningful interpretation to the lyrics. A quality package indeed."[8] Stereo Review reviewer Rex Reed stated that it was a wonderful listening experience, showcasing Carmen's voice in a better, more relaxed, more controlled way than he had ever heard.[9]

Tim Sendra from AllMusic noted in a retrospective review that it may seem like it's just an attempt to jump on the pop scene, but McRae, with her not so pleasant voice, but a great interpretation of the songs, creates great tracks. Although, in his opinion, there is not much jazz here, McRae fans should not be put off by the songs or the era, because this is one of the best albums of the second half of her career.[4]

Track listing

  1. "For Once in My Life" (Ron Miller, Orlando Murden) – 3:08
  2. "Don't Talk" (Tony Asher, Brian Wilson) – 2:10
  3. "Until It's Time for You to Go" (Buffy Sainte-Marie) – 3:03
  4. "Got to Get You into My Life" (John Lennon, Paul McCartney) – 2:35
  5. "Our Song" (Tony Clarke, Umberto Bindi, Nisa Califano) – 2:37
  6. "Come Live with Me" (Johnny Keating, Leah Worth) – 3:11
  7. "The Look of Love" (Burt Bacharach, Hal David) – 2:56
  8. "It's Not Going That Way" (Johnny Keating, Leah Worth) – 2:37
  9. "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times" (Tony Asher, Brian Wilson) – 2:57
  10. "Worlds of Time" (George David Weiss) – 3:00
  11. "Flying" (Carolyn Leigh, Mike Stoller) – 2:46

Personnel

References

  1. ^ "New Album Releases". Billboard. Vol. 79, no. 29. July 22, 1967. p. 41. ISSN 0006-2510.
  2. ^ "Carmen McRae - The 1960's". Jazz Discography. August 22, 2006. Retrieved October 12, 2024.
  3. ^ Friedwald, Will (2010). "Carmen McRae". A Biographical Guide to the Great Jazz and Pop Singers. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. p. 322. ISBN 9780307379894.
  4. ^ a b Sendra, Tim. "For Once in My Life Review". AllMusic. Retrieved October 12, 2024.
  5. ^ Larkin, Colin (2011). "McRae, Carmen". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-1561592371.
  6. ^ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2006). "Carmen McRae". The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (8th ed.). Penguin. pp. 890–891. ISBN 9780141023274.
  7. ^ "Special Merit Picks". Billboard. Vol. 79, no. 30. July 29, 1967. p. 38. ISSN 0006-2510.
  8. ^ "Cash Box Album Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. July 29, 1967. p. 34. ISSN 0008-7289.
  9. ^ Reed, Rex (November 1972). "Something Very Special from Carmen McRae" (PDF). Stereo Review. Vol. 19, no. 5. pp. 89–90. ISSN 0039-1220.