Customer Reviews

In Dreams (Reis) (Rpkg)

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Orbison's third album for Monument is stamped from the same pattern as his first two, with a pair of seminal hits surrounded by lesser album material. This time out, though, there's substantially less original material. The hits include the title tune's ultra-crescendo ending, and the more sedate (but no less anguished) "Blue Bayou."

The covers include The Orioles' "Lonely Wine" and The Everly Brothers' "All I Have to do is Dream," and stepping a bit further out, Johnny Mercer's "Dream" and Stephen Foster's "Beautiful Dreamer," the latter two finding resonance in Orbison's emotional croon. Cindy Walker's "Shahdaroba" has a mystery-tinged Eastern sound and the Pockriss/Tobias weeper "House Without Windows" is another good fit. Orbison contributes two more songs, including the beat-heavy "Sunset" and the femme fatale story "(They Call You) Gigolette."

This reissue adds four bonus tracks to the original dozen, including the top-40 "Falling," its Cindy Walker B-side "Distant Drums," a rockin' top-5 cover of "Mean Woman Blues," and a top-20 cover of Willie Nelson's "Pretty Paper." The latter is this reissue's biggest treat, as it's always been overshadowed on oldies radio by Orbison's more melodramatic singles. Sound quality is top-notch stereo, and the booklet reproduces both the front and back cover. Though the album tracks don't measure up to the hits, there are some interesting choices here for anyone who wants to go deeper than the standard anthologies.

Product note: track #4 is "No One Will Ever Know," not "Blue Avenue," as listed. The latter track appears on Orbison's "Sings Lonely and Blue" LP and CD reissue. [©2006 hyperbolium dot com]

A very HUGE 'THANK YOU' to BARBARA ORBISON for making a few of our beloved ROY's classic Monument Records albums available on Cd to us newer fans as well as his legions of long time fans. First, the erroneously listed gorgeous midtempo ballad, "BLUE AVENUE" does not appear anywhere on the "IN DREAMS" Legacy remastered Cd album reissue - it actually appears as track #4 on Roy's "LONELY And BLUE" Cd reissue. However, all is not lost, as Roy's heartfelt & majestic, "NO ONE WILL EVER KNOW" is actually track #4. [B/t/w, WHY was this song not a huge hit single?] "IN DREAMS" remains one of Orbison's most perfectly executed albums, with his signature dreamy ballads and impeccable vocals standing out and sweeping the listener away into a bluesy Pop dreamland. Mr. Orbison remains one of the greatest pop singers ever to have graced a vinyl platter with his bewitching vocal instrument. You can't help but be drawn and swept into his musical mini-dramas and unique operatic like vocal stylings - he simply pulls the right heart strings, hits every sensitive nerve and ultimate emotions in all of us with such ease. Whether he sings one of his many originals, "cover" songs, or his personally stamped rollicking fun and solidly rampaging rockers, Roy Orbison delivers consistently. Thanks to Barbara Orbison's desire to keep her husband's golden recording legacy and memory alive through ongoing PBS documentaries and concert performances, many legions of new fans will be gained for generations to come. Her awareness that her husband was a very specially gifted musician and ongoing worldwide public fascination with her husband's musical legacy is a benefit and quite pleasing to us all. I personally realize she has a sincere desire for us to listen, hear and enjoy, these long deleted marvelous recordings shamelessly left to gather dust in the record company vaults which Roy left behind for us. Previously cherished by a lucky generation of music fans Mrs. Orbison was most likely a part of four decades ago, her keen awareness is perfectly right on the mark! I myself was a mere unaware toddler, by my own recollection of time frame, during Roy's initial heyday, but, years later, his "ONLY THE LONELY/OH PRETTY WOMAN" captured my ears and heart upon first hearing it in the early 70's. I just had to know WHO this incredibly mysterious vocalist on the radio was! Unfortunately, my record hunting was initially relegated to a couple reissued '45s'. My joy ran into overdrive when my favorite singer, LINDA RONSTADT, covered and had an enormous hit with her compelling version of Roy's BLUE BAYOU.[Roy credited Ronstadt with the decade long resurgence in his recording career, and return to the top of the radio/record charts in 1987-88 with the Wilburys & Solo. It was a great ten year ride for him, sadly ending in his untimely passing.] Again, I tried diving deeper into Orbison's past catalogue, seeking out his vintage Monument albums in resale shops to no avail, realizing his fans were not going to part with his precious recorded output...I found myself rummaging through vintage record resale shops throughout the early 80's desperately seeking his long out of print albums, only able to locate a couple reissued vinyl compilations or the same "45s", so, these three CD album reissues are very welcome additions to my library. His "hits" are great, but, the real treasures are found in the album tracks! I love a great singer, period, and Roy is near the very top of the list - he ties first place with a couple others. Barbara Orbison is now sincerely and lovingly, in partnership with Sony, reissuing some of Roy's superb catalogue albums from his impressive Monument Records period when he ruled the radio & record charts during the first half of the 1960's decade. It is a privelege to many of us newer fans who missed the glorious first coming of ROY ORBISON to have this opportunity to own and listen to his wondrous recordings from a long bygone but not forgotten golden music era when singers depended wholeheartedly on their vocal abilities to succeed in the music world. Ditto to his legions of first time around fans who will be delighted to have Roy's classic albums available again in a remastered series with 'bonus' tracks. Featured 'bonus' tracks were either "B" sides or various other hit singles from Roy's Monument Records catalogue. Tracks include Roy Orbison-Joe Melson originals[many of which became Roy's trademark hit singles] as well as occasional "covers" highlighting Roy's take on some other hits of the era. None of the typical 1960's album "filler" on these albums. There isn't a single bad track anywhere on the three reissued Cd albums[IN DREAMS(1963)-CRYING(1962)-LONELY And BLUE(1960)]- every individual performance stands a winner, thanks to ROY ORBISON's unique and impeccable vocal delivery. It's shocking that he didn't score more "hit" singles from several of the included album tracks. Barbara Orbison spared no repackaging expense for 2006's Roy Orbison 70th Birthday Celebration and included era photos of Roy, recording, session musicians and chart information for each respective , plus the original liner notes by celebrated songwriter Boudleaux Bryant - you get the complete package, and then some. Get ready to be swept off your feet and ears! Correct track listing is also included inside the Cd booklet and is as follows: (1.)In Dreams (2.)Lonely Wine (3.)Shahbadora (4.)No One Will ever Know (5.)Sunset (6.)House Without Windows (7.)Dream (8.)Blue Bayou (9.)They Call You Gigolette (10.)All I Have To Do Is Dream (11.)Beautiful Dreamer (12.)My Prayer - "Bonus" Tracks:(13.)Falling (14.)Distant Drums (15.)Mean Woman Blues (16.)Pretty Paper

Roy Orbison's voice zips right into you and takes you away to wherever he wants to take you. It's better when he has good material, but even a lesser song becomes a standout when Roy sings it. His voice in 1963 was spot on. I remember back then I thought he reminded me of Buddy Holly. I don't think that anymore, but I think a lot of people might have. The glasses Roy's wearing on the cover might have added to that. For me it was impossible not to compare them. I like them both.

The opening song, "In Dreams," is one of Roy's best and one everybody who's ever listened to a radio knows. Most of the others you'd be forgiven if you haven't heard them. I really like "Shahdaroba," which was written by Cindy Walker, a song writer who's penned over 600 tunes which have been sung by almost every country music singer you can imagine. Roy does this song proud. "All I Have to do is Dream", originally by the Everly Brothers is better than their version, in my opinion anyway. To many some of this stuff will seem dated and even hokey, but I loved it all then and I'm not ashamed to say I love it all now.

I especially love the way Roy does "Beautiful Dreamer," though I'll admit it's been years since I've played it, but listening to it for this review, I do remember why I liked it so. But the capper for me, is one of the songs that wasn't on the record when it came out in 1963 and that is "Mean Woman Blues". Roy rocked on that song then and he was still rocking on it a quarter century later on A Black and White Night when Roy and some of his friends brought the house down at the Coconut Grove.

Roy's third album. It contains the rare but fantasic "Lonely Wine"
Some good sides here and some fodder as well.

Although Roy Orbison made some great rock'n'roll recordings on the Sun label, his career only really became significant after he joined Monument. On that label, he was considered mainly a singles artist, but for those who want more of his music than just the hits, he recorded a few albums too. He mixed some but not all of his hits with other original songs plus cover versions of country and rock'n'roll songs. This particular album was his third for Monument and the 2006 re-mastered version includes four bonus tracks, all recorded during the sessions in which Roy recorded the tracks that appeared on the original album.

Including the bonus tracks, this set contains both sides of four singles. The first single was the title track, which became a top ten hit in Britain and America, with Shadaroba as the B-side. Next came Falling, a British top ten hit that just missed the top twenty in America, which had Distant drums on its B-side. That song provided Jim Reeves with a posthumous British number one hit in 1966. Mean woman blues (a cover of a song previously recorded by Elvis Presley) provided Roy with an American top five hit, with its B-side, Blue bayou, charting separately and making the top thirty. In Britain, the same single was released as a double-A side, becoming a top three hit with Blue bayou as the first-named track. Linda Ronstadt's cover of Blue bayou became an American top three hit in 1977.

The fourth single included here was a Christmas release. The A-side was a cover of Pretty paper, written and first recorded by Willie Nelson. He was just starting to get noticed in country music circles, but only in the mid-seventies did he become a major star in his own right. The B-side was a cover of Beautiful dreamer, one of the finest songs ever written by nineteenth century composer Stephen Foster. Pretty paper made the American top twenty in 1963. We Brits were a bit slow but it made the UK top ten a year later.

There are many other fine songs here including covers of No one will ever know (a country standard written by Hank Williams), Dream (a brilliant song written by Johnny Mercer) and All I have to do is dream (the Everly brothers classic). This is yet another great Roy Orbison album for those who want to go beyond the A-side hits.