Customer Reviews

25 Hits - Special Collection

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

For the Donny Osmond collector, this is the best there is; a relatively inclusive (although incomplete) compilation of his top material, from the early solo days, through the collaboration with Marie, to his resurgence with Soldier of Love and Sacred Emotion. In fact, the differences in some of the selections are so pronounced that one is tempted to wonder if the same artist is singing on all of these tracks.

There are two minor problems with the disc; first, it's not in chronological order, so the voice changes from track to track are a bit disconcerting; second, the technical difference in the mastering of the later releases makes the somewhat muddy sound of the early cuts more noticeable. After all, they were recorded on analog tape, and the sound engineers are only as good as the material they have to work with.

Nonetheless, this is a very good collection of teeny-bopper pop from a very talented artist. There are some true musical gems mixed in with the better known material (Hey, Girl and Morning Side of the Mountain stand out). It may be saccharine sweet but, at least you know what you're getting; good, wholesome, middle-of-the-road pop vocals.

Take a twenty-year journey down memory lane with Donny Osmond's 25-Hit Special Collection. You'll enjoy every minute of it!

This album is a great collection of Donny Osmond tunes from the 70's and 80's. As an long time fan of Donny's, I appreciate the ability to step back in time and rememeber the Sweet-n-Innoncent days of my youth with this marvelous singer. The songs on the CD are randomly placed and out of release order. I would prefer to listen to them in the proper time sequence; it's a little weird to hear Why and Hey Girl after A Million to One or The Twelfth of Never. Nevertheless, the CD is packed with tunes that will take you back to the best of your bubble gum years and remind you what an awesome talent Mr. Osmond has always been. A collection worth owning.

Donny Osmond has always been an outstanding singer and all around entertainer. True, the songs here are not in chronological order; but what we get is nothing but five star, high quality control music so this is not a major concern. There are also some great duets with that Donny performs with his sister Marie.

"Puppy Love" was one of Donny's earlier hits; I love to hear this tune even to this day! He sings very well and the lush musical arrangement enhances the number even more. "Go Away, Little Girl" is very well done; there is backup but Donny didn't need it--he could have easily carried this himself. "Sweet and Innocent" features Donny squarely front and center while "I've Got Plans for You" impresses me. "Too Young" is one of my favorite Donny Osmond ballads even though he recorded this way back when; he makes it special with his passionate delivery--which he could do when he was just a child!

"If Someone Ever Breaks Your Heart" has a somewhat older Donny crooning faultlessly along with an excellent musical accompaniment; this is very romantic and great for slow dancing all alone late at night with your sweetheart in your living room. "Hey Girl" is most poignant and I really like "Deep Purple" that Donny recorded with his sister Marie in the `70s. "Ours" has a beautiful melody; and listen for yet more gems like the love ballad entitled "A Million to One;" "Where Did All the Good Times Go" with Donny singing at his usual very best; "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" that Donny does so well, speaking some of the lines with great sensitivity; the memorable "When Somebody Cares for You;" "C'mon Marianne" which wasn't Donny's best ever but it still sounds quite good; the very entertaining "Last of the Red Hot Lovers" that Donny aces as effortlessly as if it were mere breathing; "Why" which is so easy on the ear; another fine duet Donny does with Marie entitled "Morning Side of the Mountain;" the moving "Take Me Back Again" that again pairs Donny and Marie; "Lonely Boy" with a younger Donny never letting go of a single superfluous note; an awesome rendition of "Young Love;" "A Day Late and a Dollar Short" that Donny performs so well; "I'm Leaving It All Up to You" with Donny singing very well even though he once said he had to rush through some of the lines--I could never tell by listening! Donny also gives us beautiful treatments of "The Twelfth of Never" and "Sacred Emotion." The album ends with Donny's rendition of "Soldier of Love;" it leaves me wanting more!

Donny Osmond has the type of genius that I rarely hear and enjoy; this is a great retrospective CD for his fans and it makes a fine starter CD for newcomers discovering his talent. I highly recommend this album.

I bought this cd for my wife, because she is a diehard Donny Osmond fan forever. I also like Donny myself, but the wife loves him to pieces. We saw him in concert at Wolf Trap Park in Virginia last year, and he sings more mature music, but the man still has a good voice. We also saw the Osmond Brothers-Merrill, Jay and Wayne which still sound great-they have the harmony that the Osmonds were famous for. I recommend this cd to anyone especially the diehard donny fans. Lots of music for a good price.

Marie and the Osmond Brothers are not part of this CD. All of Donny's solo hits (and he had lots of them) are here in their original versions. Only a few of Donny's charted songs are missing, so this is not a complete collection, but none of them were hits anyway. Some filler appears, but so do two recent hits, "Soldier of Love" and "Sacred Emotion." All in all, this is the best Donny CD available.

This is a good collection of Donny Osmond material, including some of his duets with Marie. A lot of music for the money. Much of it doesn't hold up after all this time, though; the early stuff just sounds silly, with elevator music string sections and back-up singers to match. There are some photos on the CD liner notes that are ridiculously blurry; surely with all the pictures that exist of Donny, they could have found a couple that were in focus! The order of songs also leaves something to be desired, namely chronological order, so there are some jarring transitions from a song with Donny's high, sweet early teen voice to his deeper, grown-up voice and back.

What can I say about this album except great. I have played the album at three if not four times since I bought it. Donny was and still is the greatest singer around and, has improved over the years. There are some songs on there that I have not heard before, and love them all especially Puppy Love which I simply adore, I only have to hear that song and I am suddenly transported back to 1972 and am once again eight years old. All the songs bring back such good memories for me from when I first listened to them and now being able to listen to them once again only without the scratches on the vinyl record. There are certain songs I play over and over again like Puppy Love, A Million To One as they are such great songs - it is hard to believe that Donny Osmond is now a grandfather of two. I recommend that any Donny Osmond fan buys this album, well worth the money.

Laura Lambert

Actually that is a stretch, but this Hits collection is a decent collection of Donny O's career. What is worth noting is Osmond's changing voice from track 1 to 25. He sounds like a kid in the beginning, then does his best Peter Brady effort in the middle, then to a mature adult in the end. Despite this...still a good effort. His duets with Marie stand out the most. Their remake (a lot of the songs were remakes) of Deep Purple is a favorite along with Morning Side of the Mountain.

He never was "Rock n' Roll", but was and is entertaining.

Donny Osmond will always be my first love! I love all these songs! They bring back memories of many hours of listening to his music. You can also catch him singing with Marie in some of these songs. The Osmonds were my role models growing up. I even named my daughter Marie.
Great cd for any Donny Osmond fan!

Many great hits.. but like what the other reviewers say, there is a wide specture of donny's voice from young to now, and can sound really EARKY when the track shift from one era to another!

but hey.. not bad CD...