| Harold Sings Arlen (With Friend) | |
|---|---|
_album_cover.jpg) | |
| Studio album by | |
| Released | 1966 |
| Recorded | 1966 |
| Genre | Traditional pop, jazz |
| Label | Columbia OL 2920 [1] |
| Producer | Thomas Z. Shepard |
Harold Sings Arlen (With Friend) is a 1966 vocal album by the composer Harold Arlen with arrangements by Peter Matz. Arlen is accompanied on two songs by Barbra Streisand. [2] This was Arlen's only album on which he performed as a singer. [3]
Chris Colfer and Lea Michele performed Matz's arrangement of " Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead" from the album in a 2011 episode of Glee. [4]
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |  
[2] |
The initial Billboard review from April 16, 1966 said that Arlen "...has a way with a vocal that's quite winning" and that "his manner is soft but persuasive". The album was one of Billboards 'Pop Special Merit Picks' for the week. [5]
William Ruhlmann reviewed the album for Allmusic and wrote that Arlen "proves he can carry a tune" on the album but "Arlen's modest singing voice doesn't quite justify the treatment" of a fully orchestrated album though he sings the lyrics with "feeling and understanding". [2]
Streisand's vocal on "House of Flowers" has been particularly praised; Arlen's biographer Edward Jablonski described it as a "classic" and Billboard wrote that it was a "knockout". [3]
Track listing
- All songs composed by Harold Arlen, with lyricists indicated
- " Blues in the Night" ( Johnny Mercer) – 3:55
- "Little Biscuit" ( E.Y. "Yip" Harburg) – 3:54
- " Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead" (Harburg) – 1:54
- " A Sleepin' Bee" ( Truman Capote) – 3:39
- "In the Shade of the New Apple Tree" (Harburg) – 4:02
- " Hit the Road to Dreamland" (Mercer) – 2:35
- " Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive" (Mercer) – 2:37
- " My Shining Hour" (Mercer) – 3:21
- "Today I Love Everybody" ( Dorothy Fields) – 2:08
- " House of Flowers" (Capote) – 2:43
- "For Every Man There's a Woman" ( Leo Robin) – 2:25
- "That's a Fine Kind O' Freedom" ( Martin Charnin) – 2:39
Personnel
- Harold Arlen – vocals
- Barbra Streisand – vocals on " Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead" and " House of Flowers"
- Peter Matz – arranger
- Thomas Z. Shepard – production
References
- ^ "Harold Arlen – Harold Sings Arlen (With Friend) (Vinyl, LP)". discogs.com. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
- ^ a b c Harold Sings Arlen (With Friend) at AllMusic
- ^ a b Edward Jablonski (September 1998). Harold Arlen: Rhythm, Rainbows, and Blues. University Press of New England. ISBN 978-1-55553-366-3.
- ^ Danielle Birkett; Dominic McHugh (4 December 2018). The Wizard of Oz: Musical Adaptations from Baum to MGM and Beyond. Oxford University Press. p. 226. ISBN 978-0-19-066317-9.
- ^ "Special Merit Picks: Pop Special Merit". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 16 April 1966. p. 42.
| Harold Sings Arlen (With Friend) | |
|---|---|
|
| |
| Studio album by | |
| Released | 1966 |
| Recorded | 1966 |
| Genre | Traditional pop, jazz |
| Label | Columbia OL 2920 [1] |
| Producer | Thomas Z. Shepard |
Harold Sings Arlen (With Friend) is a 1966 vocal album by the composer Harold Arlen with arrangements by Peter Matz. Arlen is accompanied on two songs by Barbra Streisand. [2] This was Arlen's only album on which he performed as a singer. [3]
Chris Colfer and Lea Michele performed Matz's arrangement of " Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead" from the album in a 2011 episode of Glee. [4]
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |
[2] |
The initial Billboard review from April 16, 1966 said that Arlen "...has a way with a vocal that's quite winning" and that "his manner is soft but persuasive". The album was one of Billboards 'Pop Special Merit Picks' for the week. [5]
William Ruhlmann reviewed the album for Allmusic and wrote that Arlen "proves he can carry a tune" on the album but "Arlen's modest singing voice doesn't quite justify the treatment" of a fully orchestrated album though he sings the lyrics with "feeling and understanding". [2]
Streisand's vocal on "House of Flowers" has been particularly praised; Arlen's biographer Edward Jablonski described it as a "classic" and Billboard wrote that it was a "knockout". [3]
Track listing
- All songs composed by Harold Arlen, with lyricists indicated
- " Blues in the Night" ( Johnny Mercer) – 3:55
- "Little Biscuit" ( E.Y. "Yip" Harburg) – 3:54
- " Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead" (Harburg) – 1:54
- " A Sleepin' Bee" ( Truman Capote) – 3:39
- "In the Shade of the New Apple Tree" (Harburg) – 4:02
- " Hit the Road to Dreamland" (Mercer) – 2:35
- " Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive" (Mercer) – 2:37
- " My Shining Hour" (Mercer) – 3:21
- "Today I Love Everybody" ( Dorothy Fields) – 2:08
- " House of Flowers" (Capote) – 2:43
- "For Every Man There's a Woman" ( Leo Robin) – 2:25
- "That's a Fine Kind O' Freedom" ( Martin Charnin) – 2:39
Personnel
- Harold Arlen – vocals
- Barbra Streisand – vocals on " Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead" and " House of Flowers"
- Peter Matz – arranger
- Thomas Z. Shepard – production
References
- ^ "Harold Arlen – Harold Sings Arlen (With Friend) (Vinyl, LP)". discogs.com. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
- ^ a b c Harold Sings Arlen (With Friend) at AllMusic
- ^ a b Edward Jablonski (September 1998). Harold Arlen: Rhythm, Rainbows, and Blues. University Press of New England. ISBN 978-1-55553-366-3.
- ^ Danielle Birkett; Dominic McHugh (4 December 2018). The Wizard of Oz: Musical Adaptations from Baum to MGM and Beyond. Oxford University Press. p. 226. ISBN 978-0-19-066317-9.
- ^ "Special Merit Picks: Pop Special Merit". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 16 April 1966. p. 42.