Customer Reviews

Bless You & 17 Other Great Hits

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I grew up in that era and although I was very young ,I didn't know who the singer was, until recently. The song all these have been one of my favorites, and it was stuck in my head, and now I know who sings "Bless You", I will be recieving the CD for Xmas and I can relive my past and enjoy my future. Thank You Tony Orlando, and Carole King, you two are the best.

Before "Candida," "Knock Three Times," "Tie a Yellow Ribbon" and a prime-time television show rocketed him to international fame, Tony Orlando was the epitome of the early '60s pop vocalist. As a go-to singer for Brill Building demos and background harmonies, Orlando paved the way for innumerable hits for innumerable chart-bound artist. The dues-paying not only taught him the nuances of different vocal styles, but eventually developed into his own unique brand of pop singing.

In parallel with his behind-the-scenes work, Orlando recorded many sides of his own, eighteen of which are anthologized here. Beginning with his second solo single, Goffin and King's "Halfway to Paradise" (covered by Nick Lowe, among others), and its follow-up, Mann and Weil's "Bless You," Orlando received the full string-filled Brill Building treatment. His vocals hint at the style he'd later develop with Dawn, but mostly they reflect the pop-idol styles he employed cutting demos.

Additional tracks include a terrific cover of the Drifters "Some Kind-A-Wonderful," and top-notch '60s confections like "The Lovin' Touch" and "Lonely Tomorrows." The eighteen tracks collected here are superb, but what's missing is disappointing. Orlando's first single, 1961's "Ding Dong," as well as 1962's "Chills," would have made excellent additions. Stretching a bit further, other pre-Dawn work, such as his 1969 lead vocal on Wind's "Make Believe," and the pseudonymously recorded "I Was a Boy (When You Needed a Man)" (credited to "Billy Shields") would have nicely fleshed out the story.

The omissions are especially puzzling, given that Mark Marymount's liner notes highlight all four. Then again, nearly 2/3 of his notes are spent on Orlando's post-Brill Building career with Dawn, rather than the music that's actually on this CD. It's informative, but misplaced with this issue. Finally, the lack of songwriting credits leave many of these songs a mystery. Hats off to Collectibles for issuing this material, but more thorough research and crediting would have been a big improvement.

I remember seeing Tony many years ago in concert. He sang "Bless You"/Halfway to Paradise. I fell in love with his voice at that time. I have the original album. It is so neat to have the music on CD. I would highly recommend this CD. Tony has earned his way in the music industry and I feel he does not get the credit he deserves.

I grew up in that era and since I was so young at the time I heard this song, I never knew who sang it, the lyrics stayed in my head forever and now I know who sang this wonderful song, I am to be getting it for Christmas so, I can relive my past, and enjoy my future with this wonderful song. Thank you Tony Orlando.

I have the original LP with 11 songs.This CD captures the great talent thatTony Orlando had. If yu enoy Tony Orlando and Dawn you will just go overboard with this CD. Halfway to Paradise (a hit by british artist Billy Fury) is superb.

When I was in high school, I remember reading several Civil War books with this playing in the back ground (33-1/3 album, still have). It brings back many memories. I particularly like the songs and Tony's clear voice. He is a very good singer. When he added Dawn to create a group he also shows he has/had staying power. For me, he was a biggy in the music industry. I would highly reocmmend this album as a must have if Tony Orlando is on your list of great singers.

Like Barry Manilow, Tony Orlando has become the subject of much mockery by some critics and comics, especially certain late-night talk show hosts who love to trash the music millions upon millions of fans adored, whether it was by Engelbert Humperdinck, Connie Francis, Tom Jones, Pat Boone - or Tony Orlando. One of The Beatles once made an off-hand disparaging remark about Humperdinck and bang, just like that, he became a target. Unfortunately, that's all it takes.

Tony Orlando, Joyce Wilson, and Telma Hopkins must have had something going for them because, from 1970 to 1976 they chalked up no less than 14 Top 40 Pop hits, with three of them (Knock Three Times, Tie A Yellow Ribbon, and He Don't Love You (Like I Love You) hitting # 1 in 1970, 1973 and 1975 respectively.

But Tony's career went way back to the late Fifties where he earned his keep singing demos for Don Kirshner at the famous Brill Building publication business. In fact, it was he who first warbled Will You Love Me Tomorrow and Some Kind Of Wonderful, which The Shirelles and Drifters would later turn into mega-hits, and in 1961 he turned out three Billboard Hot 100 hits himself on the Epic label - Halfway To Paradise (# 39), Bless You (# 15) and Happy Times Are Here To Stay (# 82). Then in 1969, and just before the fateful transcontinental link with the girls, he was the lead singer with a studio group calling themselves Wind which took Make Believe to # 28 Hot 100 on Life 200.

The man had paid his dues and deserved every ounce of the fame that was to come.

This is, from my personal point of view, the CD that collects the best recordings of Tony Orlando, those previous to his association with Dawn.

He is not a very gifted singer, he has not a great voice but with a good choice of songs, songwriters and producers, he is able to sound very well and make excellent recordings.

The choice of the material is exemplary, being Gerry Goffin-Carole King the songwriters of many tracks. Carole King has also done the arrangements of some of these recordings, a fact that now adds extra interest in them.

This compilation shows how rich in many ways the world of rock & Pop music was during the 60s, it is worth listening to these songs 40 years later and they always sound young and fresh.

The song "what am i gonna do" is missing fromthis cd,and so are a few others...but you can't always get what u want,so get this cd anyways

It is thought that TONY ORLANDO was an another person. It is thought that everything was understood if this "DING DONG" and "YOU AND ONLY YOU" were heard. Wasn't this age in the name of TONY ORLANDO because MILO 101 was put on the market in 1959 yet?