Customer Reviews

Back To Bacharach

5 star:		(52)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

"Back To Bacharach" continues Tyrell's foray into pop standards and remains quite close to the winning formula he developed on his previous albums.
Virtually all the songs on the album are so well-known that it would be difficult not to compare them to the originals; the only difficulty would be knowing exactly which artist did record the original, since all of them had been so well-covered both by famous and not quite so famous singers.
Steve possesses a pleasantly husky voice, but has limited range.
He put this quality to good use in his version of "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head".
However, tracks like "Walk on By", "Always Something There to Remind Me", and "This Guy's in Love with You" find Tyrell straining to reach the high notes.
There is nothing to stretch the imagination here, Steve's versions are all impeccably performed, perfectly in tune, very pleasant, no chance of alienating any existing fan.
On "I Say A Little Prayer" and "Don't Make Me Over", he duets gracefully with Patti Austin, who, along with Regina Belle, remains one of the best duet partners of all time. Patti nicely complements, but never overshadows Steve's voice.
Mostly Tyrell sticks close to Bacharach's original arrangements, although "The Look of Love" uses bass and guitar lines to give it more of a rock feel.
The result is always pleasant, yet Tyrell's takes very rarely leave a lasting mark in a listener's ear.
Many guest artists: Herb Alpert, vocalists Patti Austin and Lynne Fiddmont, Bob Mann, with Bacharach lending a hand as pianist on Bacharach and David's anthem, "What the World Needs Now is Love," a song Steve Tyrell believes is "more relevant now than it ever was." Bacharach's piano glues together the whole affair which features superguests Rod Stewart, James Taylor, Martina McBride and Dionne Warwick along with Tyrell.
The album debuts at # 3 of Billboard Top Jazz Albums and # 181 of The Billboard 200 (July 12, 2008)


Burt Bacharach's 60 Greatest Hit Songs
Burt Bacharach Songbook
Back to Bacharach
Look of Love: Burt Bacharach Songbook
Who'll Speak for Love

Steve is my favorite singer and interpretator of the great American Songbook compositions so I had trepidations as to whether I would enjoy this new endeavor of his tribute to Bacharach's music. I heard him give a preview of this new CD at his concert in Malibu and was thoroughly blown away. I loved it. There is a soft jazz approach to the tunes and the integrity of the music is completely maintained. The use of backup singers adds to the feel of today's music sound.Back to Bacharach

There are fourteen tracks in the album with duets shown in parentheses: Walk on By, The Look of Love, This Guy's in Love (Herb Alpert and Burt Bacharach), One Less Bell to Answer, What the World Needs Now (Rod Stewart, James Taylor, and Dionne Warwick), Reach Out for Me, I say A Little Prayer for You (Patti Austin), I Just don't know What To Do with Myself (Burt Bacharach), Always Something There to Remind Me, Don't Make Me Over (Bacharach and Austin), Close to You, A House Is Not A home, Alfie, and Raindrops Keep Fallin on My Head. Bob Mann and Steve produced this (winning formula) with Jon Allen cooproducing.

The concept of this cd started in 2002 but was abandoned due to the passing of Steve's talented and lovely wife, Stephanie. During the last six years, the decision to complete this album was always there and finally reached its fruition in 2008. So, this particular CD holds a special meaning to Steve. In addition, Steve credits Burt as serving as his mentor and "professor."

All of the tracks are delightful to listen to and are well crafted. I consider Burt the pioneer in creating the soft jazz feeling in his compositions. The music is relaxing (never boring) and the lyrics by Hal David conveys a message that is timeless.

Steve's voice has matured as good wine does and has developed more poignancy and depth. The selection of songs used is impeccable. I loved his duos with Patti Austin. Is there a favorite track? That is a personal decision. A House is Not A Home delivers with a strong message, and One Less Bell tugs at the heart. You be the judge and jury.

Steve can do no wrong whether it be Porter, Gershwin, Disney, and now Bacharach. Interesting to note that the color scheme used on the cover and the insert are stimulating yet somber, orange and black.

This is a CD to be enjoyed and should be added to your Steve Tyrell/Burt Bacharach collection. Thank you, Steve, for never deserting this labor of love.

I think Steve's voice is richer and sweeter with each CD that he produces. I had the opportunity to meet Steve a couple of years ago and was impressed by the man and his music.
I play his music in my office on a regular basis and patients are constantly complementing his voice and style. Bacharach has been one of my favorites for many years and it makes sense that teaming Steve and Burt together would bring about beauty in this sometimes "not so beautiful world". Thanks for creating this CD.

For reasons beyond the scope of this discussion, I decided to re-visit this CD to make sure I still agree with my original review. Sure as shootin', I was waaaaay off regarding the quality of the recording. While my original positive comments regarding the music & performances still apply, I've made a 180 degree turnaround regarding the recording quality. This thing sounds great .... especially in the areas of sonic clarity and soundstage/image placement... in particuler, but not necessairly limited to, track # 5. Anyone who really listens to music and utilizes a quality audio system will immediately appreciate the placement of the individual vocalists within the soundstage. Awsome. And to make things even better, this kind of care in engineering is evident throughout the recording. My rating is now a firm 4 9/10 stars (5 stars to me means perfect, but, to me, nothing in this world is perfect). Take a few minutes to read the liner notes.... I think they reflect the kind of love that is evident in this entire production.

BELOW IS MY ORIGINAL REVIEW

What a way to kill good music!! Come on... muddy, muffled, dull, soft, what ever. It's 2008... we've been doing better since the 1970's! But the music.... SUPERB!...especially Alphie, perhaps the best love song ever written. Too bad the audio quality is so poor... sounds like an AM radio. Steve... talk to me!!! You're destroying your image. Frank and Nelson would not approve. So it's 3 1/2 from me... sorry, if it sounds bad, I just can't listen to it.

THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST CD'S STEVE TYRELL HAS EVER RELEASED. THE FIRST TIME I HEARD HIS VOICE WAS ON THE NBC MORNING SHOW LAST YEAR.KATIE COURIC WAS STILL THERE AND INTRODUCED HIM. I WAS HOOKED IMMEDIATELY!
I ALREADY HAVE 3 OF HIS CD'S AND HIS VOICE SENDS CHILLS UP MY SPINE.HIS VOICE SOOTHS ME TO SLEEP AT NIGHT. I HOPE HE WILL BE ON MORE SHOWS SO MORE PEOPLE WILL HEAR HIM.HE IS THE BEST!

We met Steve when his son played with ours on Little League teams Steve coached. While we knew he was in the music business, we'd have never guessed that the "gravelly voice from the Texas Blues bands" would soon be a "jazz star" on the radio.....And starring on our CD changer.

We have enjoyed his music, both recorded and live, over and over. He has great stories to tell (including how he was enticed to start recording). He is as wonderful with the audience as he was with the Little Leaguers. And we shared his pain when his wife died. Knowing that this latest recording honors her and helps fund cancer research makes it all the more special.

Steve always has great musicians and great productions......Those years "behind the glass" have really paid off.

Try this and see if you do not also get into his other works.

Keep up the good work.

Don & Eileen

I have read several comments concerning Steve's limited vocal range, or raspy voice.. but he brings a rich quality to these songs, and I agree with one comment on how his voice is bittersweet, and he sings the songs, not with the orchestrated smoothness of the original, but as if he has lived each song. There is so much feeling transmitted with each song, and it brings up memories in my own life that the original versions never could do. A great CD.

I am a Steve Tyrell appreciator to the nth degree!

What can one state after stating "Perfect" on Steve's "Back To Bacharach" album.

Well, I can state that Steve loves this album very much too because he told me so! And I can tell amazon.com that he told we in his audience at Jazz Alley in Seattle this July 2008 that he checks amazon.com every hour for the status and was happy to tell us at that time it was rated #1! We all laughed joyously with him and appluaded hugely because we had been checking on the album too!

Seeing him perform is a delight beyond describing because his voice is perfectly wonderful, he is handsome, warm, kind, the nicest and is very interactive with his audience, it's like visiting with a friend who sings beautifully seemingly 'only' to you.

I am biased on behalf of Steve and all his albums he's released and my review shows it as intended, if you want specific details about his songs see Steve in concert; he'll tell you the story about each one and how and why he chose them for this album while he sings to you.

Steve Tyrell, The Songster Divine!

My wife and I own every CD that Steve Tyrell has cut; except for his Disney CD. We love his "raspy voice." We have seen him 3 times in concert and just saw him recently where he sang some of the songs from the Bacharach CD. If you know the story of Steve and Stephanie Tyrell and of her premature and tragic death caused by cancer, you cannot help but get emotional when you hear "A House is Not a Home." Wow!

I did not rate this one a 5 Star as I have a difficult time hearing songs sung by someone who is not the original artist, especially when the artist is Dionne Warwick. Dionnne Warwick was my favorite female singer in the 1960s and she was the best and while Steve does an excellent job, it is tough for me not to compare this with Dionne. On the other hand, my wife thinks this is his best CD to date so that would make this a 6 Star CD. :-)

My favorite song on this CD is "A House is Not a Home" and this may even surpass "That's All" and "The Way You Look Tonight." Other bests on this CD are: "The Look of Love," "What The World Needs Now," and "One Less Bell To Answer." We will savor the 5 or 6 CDs that we have and will patiently await the next one.

This is not my favorite..but its great....I truly am enjoying it I bought one for a friend and she is loving it....I loved Frank Sinatra and all of his were...not always favorites..but over all...loved his music as I do Steve Tyrell s...I have met him a few times he is so personal...down to earth person with mucho talent....cant wait for his next cd...also the work he did with Rod S.....excellent...Steve s Standard is my all time favorite...He is up there with the best...such as Ray Charles...Stevie Wonder...Rod (do u think Im sexy )Steve if u read this come to Count Baise in NJ again ....Annette Georgios