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If You Could Hear Me Now

 
Album Review: If You Could Hear Me Now

  • Artist: The Walker Brothers
  • Rating: StarStarStar
  • Release Date: 2001
  • Type: Compilation (best of)
  • Genre: Rock

Review

Comparing the equally lengthy track listings of the '60s-based After the Lights Go Out and the '70s-based If You Could See Me Now to one another, one gets the impression that both decades were equally fruitful for the Walker Brothers. And if space for John's grand version of Curtis Mayfield's "He'll Break Your Heart" couldn't be found on the latter, surely there must have been some frayed nerves caused by picking the selections. Further inspection reveals that no, that wasn't the case -- it's more a matter of slightly bungled selecting (relatively important biggies like "Lines" and "No Regrets" did make the cut, however) and the fact that previously unissued material was sitting around, just waiting to be released on a compilation like this one. It's not necessarily the quality that kept versions of Jimmy Webb's "The Moon's a Harsh Mistress," Stevie Wonder's "I Never Dreamed You'd Leave in Summer," and Randy Newman's "Marie" off No Regrets and Lines -- most of them are just as mediocre as anything found on those records. More importantly, their orphaned status often had to do with timing; many of them were appearing on several other artists' records around the time. So this isn't sock drawer emptying in the strictest sense. After the covers and MOR workouts subside, the entire first side of Nite Flights comes along to shake things up. The majority remains brilliant, full of dark disco and huge string arrangements. Including the final song of that LP side might have been too generous; the inclusion of Gary's "Death of Romance" proves that there indeed was a prototype for Glenn Frey's "You Belong to the City," a notion all the more painful when placed in the shadow of an epic like "The Electrician." The closing "Tokyo Rimshot" is Scott's surprising stab at Tomita-style electronics with a hint of Chip Davis, ideal for '70s sports highlight reels. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track TitleComposersPerformersTime
No Regrets T.W. Rush The Walker Brothers (5:44)
Lover's Lullaby Janis Ian The Walker Brothers (3:48)
I've Got to Have You Kris Kristofferson The Walker Brothers (3:28)
Loving Arms [#] Tom Jans The Walker Brothers (3:37)
I Never Dreamed You'd Leave in Summer [#] Stevie Wonder The Walker Brothers (3:14)
The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress [#] Jimmy Webb The Walker Brothers (3:01)
Marie [#] Randy Newman The Walker Brothers (3:43)
Lines The Walker Brothers (3:25)
Inside of You Tom Jarvis The Walker Brothers (3:36)
We're All Alone Boz Scaggs The Walker Brothers (4:34)
The Brand New Tennessee Waltz Jesse Winchester The Walker Brothers (3:12)
Dreaming as One David Palmer, William D. "Smitty" Smith The Walker Brothers (3:03)
Til I Gain Control Again [#] Rodney Crowell The Walker Brothers (5:02)
The Ballad of Ty and Jerome [#] Douglas John, Dr. John Walker The Walker Brothers (4:06)
Shutout Scott Engel The Walker Brothers (2:47)
Fat Mama Kick Scott Engel The Walker Brothers (2:53)
Nite Flights Scott Engel The Walker Brothers (4:21)
The Electrician Scott Engel The Walker Brothers (6:03)
Death of Romance Gary Leeds The Walker Brothers (3:42)
Tokyo Rimshot [#] The Walker Brothers (3:40)

Credits

The Walker Brothers (Main Performer), Scott Walker (Vocals), Scott Walker (Producer), Geoff Calver (Producer), Dave MacRae (Producer), David Peschek (Liner Notes), Michael Joseph (Photography), Michael Joseph (Cover Photo)
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Copyrights:

Album Review. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more

 

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