Customer Reviews

Best Side of Goodbye

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have been looking for this album for 20 years - I first heard it while living in Berlin in 1981, and have been hunting for it ever since. "Manchild Lullaby," with its sweet melody, is a real favorite. I have never understood why Jane never broke into the top 10; her voice is every bit as beautiful as Barbra Streisand's and Celine Dion's, without the overblown drama that these two other singers sometimes fall prey to. You'll find yourself singing these songs to yourself for years to come!

Praised by the critics and shunned by the public, The Best Side of Goodbye is a jewel in the cutout bin. A description of Jane Olivor that I once read stated, "a voice that could peel the paint off the walls." For a popular music songtress, Jane has powerful voice with excellent range. She steps up and down octaves effortlessly (To Love Again). She also changes her pitch from line to line, and sometimes several times within the same line (Manchild Lullaby). Her voice sounds "trained" - perhaps a bit too close to operatic perfection for a popular singer. Recording quality: For an original analog master, the Best Side CD is above average quality. Jane is close-miked. You can distinguish every detail including the sound of her lips touching (Weeping Willows, Cattails).

The Best Side is a collection of fully orchestrated and dynamic love songs (Manchild Lullaby, A Long and Lasting Love, Don't Let Go Of Me, and The Best Side of Goodbye) as well as quieter material. The best side of The Best Side is the more sparse material (Golden Pony; Weeping Willows, Cattails; To Love Again). These underproduced compositions give Jane's splendid voice extra room to shine. My advice is to buy the paint before auditioning The Best Side of Goodbye.

Although the solid fan base of Jane Olivor's voice and music were not as inticed by this release as her earlier gems, those who appreciate a more "mainstream" or "commercial" sound will probably find this album quite to their liking. The album was intentionally produced by various music industry standouts in that vein. Unfortunately, despite it having the highest Billboard chart position of any of her albums (#58), it was not what the bulk of her following expected of her. Randy Edelman's "Don't Let Go Of Me" is a perfect pop arrangement despite it's poor single performance (peaking at #108 on Billboard's "Bubbling Under" chart), and Peter ["Do You Wanna Make Love - or do you just wanna fool around"] McCann's "Love This Time" is an absolute pop standout. Crystal Gayle later made "A Long And Lasting Love" a smash hit, but Jane's relatively unknown version outshines it. "The Greatest Love Of All" (first recorded by George Benson; both versions overshadowed by Whitney Houston's later smash) is a magnificent vehicle for Olivor's vocal interpretation. The title track is also one of Jane's standout cuts. The collection of material is well-rounded to fit it's purpose, and had it received the airplay attention it deserved, could easily have pushed Jane's career into a different direction - not that that would have been so necessarily desirable to her followers, but that it would have given Jane Olivor the platform and recognition she truly deserves. From the same time frame, the superb 1979 duet with Johnny Mathis "The Last Time I Felt Like This" (from the motion picture "Same Time Next Year") is unfortunately not present here - one has to look through the Mathis catalogue to obtain that one. But it is well worth it. Jane wraps around the melody line and lyric - as if her voice were a stringed instrument - like no other before or since.

Back in the late 70's, I worked in a record store during college. One evening,due either to divine inspiration or complete boredom, I decided to open and listen to an album by an unknown (to me) artist named Jane Olivor. I was immediately captivated by the unmistakable talent pouring out of the stereo.

"The Best Side Of Goodbye" was released in 1980, and showcases Olivor's voice. The material is good, although not spectacular, and comes from a diverse group of songwriters. Highlights include songs "Don't Let Go Of Me," "Vagabond", and "A Long and Lasting Love," but she really shines on two heartbreakingly beautiful ballads: the title song, and "Love This Time" ("They say one lover loves the other more, the kind of love that you've been waiting for.")

"The Best Side Of Goodbye" falls short of a 5 star recording, more due to the song selections than to the artist's ability. Plus, I can't help comparing this CD to that first lp, "Stay The Night." "Stay The Night" is a great album, and it's a shame that it's not available on CD as well.

Jane Oliver is one of those artists that has such a talent and does not recieve the recognition she deserves. Her style is smooth and inviting. Her words and music are the perfect vehicle with which she expresses her heartfelt emotions. I find that I am singing her songs even after I have turned off the album. After seeing her in concert, I realized that she is not a flashy performer. I felt that she was someone who would sing songs to you in her living room over coffee. The orchestrations are intimate yet moving. This album is chock full of memorable songs that touched me deeply. I hope that you will take the time to experience her style and grace.

Jane started to go pop on this LP. Something wasn't the same on this collection as it was on her previous three LP's. With that said there are still some Jane Oliver standouts. "Weeping Willows, Cattails" is really a lovely song. Voice, lyrics and arrangements compliment and enhance one another. "To Love Again" is one of my favorite songs. First heard it by Diana Ross. The French weaves nicely with the English. One of Jane's best songs. Good as anything on her first three LP's. "The Best Side Of Goodbye" stands out but still isn't as strong as her earlier music. "The Greatest Love Of All" is a hard song to do wrong. Jane's version was the first I heard and it was love at first sound. I really would buy this cd just for this song.

Jane Oliver's contribution to music may be lacking in quantity but subperb and sublime in quality. If voice can have genius then Jane is its voice. If I were a songwriter I would first contact Jane to record my lyrics and music.

As I mentioned on another review of Jane's music, where is the duet with Mathis on an Oliver cd? "Last Time I Felt This Way" is perhaps the best duet in the past forty years. Give it to us on a Jane Oliver cd. I'll buy the cd for just that one song. After all, it was Jane's voice and contribution that made this song what is was.

This is simply a true artistic gem of a cd. Her voice and interpretations are awesome. Very glad to have found this on cd!! Best are the title cut. "love this time", "greatest love", "long and lasting love" - they all bring you to a better place!

This is a case of too many cooks spoiling the broth as Jane is produced here by three different people (back before production by committee was customary). The results vary, depending on the producer. The songs produced by Jason Darrow, Olivor's longtime producer, are far and away the highlights (the title cut and "Vagabond"). The Louie Shelton cuts seem a departure for Jane, in terms of style and substance, but all in all, more than satisfactory. The nadir are those produced by Michael Masser ("To Love Again", "Greatest Love of All" etc.) -- wildly overproduced, forcing Olivor to oversing to be heard over the globs and globs of orchestration. Somehow, this just isn't the same Olivor who thrilled us back with "First Night." And WHY Columbia released "Don't Let Go of Me," rather than the brilliant title cut, as the single, reflects the mismanagement of Olivor's career. Great pix of Jane though -- finally!

Jane Oliver could be on the cover a book called 'Almosts'. This is not a statement of her talent, but of the management at Columbia. Each of her four studio albums of this time frame had a track that surely would have hit the top 40, but Columbia put out weaker tracks ('Don't Let Go of Me' from this album and 'He's So Shy' from 'Stay the Night'). Though more commercial then her other releases, this album proves that there were many in the industry (Billboard gave the album a glowing review) who believed in her. Jane's version of 'The Greatest Love of All' or 'To Love Again' would have defiantly hit the Top 40 if not beyond. Had Columbia release 'One More Ride on the Merry-Go-Round', 'You', 'Stay the Night' and the two songs mentioned above, Jane may have found it harder to walk away (or she would have run faster).

Run don't walk to get this album.

TO ME JANE OLIVOR IS SO SADLY UNDERRATED AND KNOWN AS SHOULD...AND THAT'S VERY SAD....HER VOICE AND STYLE OF SINGING IS SO BEAUTIFUL...AND THIS IS ONE OF HER BEST