Customer Reviews

The Kenny Rankin Album

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

If you haven't made up your mind about this recording from the previous comments, let me give you the bottom line. Don Costa had worked with Sinatra on the WB /Reprise label, but Rankin could not have timed the effort better, for Costa passed away not long after this was made.. This IS one of the truely magnificent vocal albums in history. Why it never got the recognition it deserves I will never know, but the session is unreal. "When Sunny Gets Blue" and "Here's That Rainy Day" will show you a "lush-ness" beyond belief. I would bet anyone, that more than half of the people who own(ed) the LP have the CD, it is simply that good from beginning to end.

I first saw Kenny at the Golden Bear in Huntington Beach CA in the early 80's. I was an an Aierto fan, and he was playing with him, so some of my samba/rugby fans and I decided to check him out. Well, Aierto showed up late, and Kenny played half his set solo. Our table was about three feet from him, and he started with "Blackbird". Bing. I was hooked. Aierto got lost and finally showed up, playing hubcaps, broken cymbals, and assorted plumbing and automotive scrap, to convince all that he was and is the most immaginative recorded percussionist ever. Kenny finished his set with "Eye of the Eagle", with Aierto playing a battered parade bass drum. It was as close to perfection in music as I have heard; a sensitive vocalist, deep lyrics, gentle, perceptive percussion, melded with clear acoustic guitar chords and pick that made the four rugby players at my table tear up. I saw Kenny a couple of years later with my new bride, right before the Golden Bear was demolished and turned into a resort. He was magic. It was to the Kenny Rankin album that my daughter, now the most perfect 17-year-old a father could pray for was concieved. Do your self and future generations a favor - own this masterpiece.

To me, this Don Costa-arranged-album is one of the best-ever Kenny Rankin recordings of all-time. Kenny Rankin has said that Don Costa gave him his very first set of guitar strings in 1962 and since that time his fantasy was to record an album with him. And 14 years later, that fantasy became a reality when they recorded this wonderful album of ten remarkable songs. Don Costa's typically sublime arrangements and Kenny Rankin's creative talent as a singer, guitarist and pianist, were all delightfully wrapped-up in this rare musical offering. This is one of my earliest gems (LP format) when I was just starting my very own collection and it's ever so good to listen to it from time to time, and each time is as enjoyable as the first time I listened to it years ago.

Kenny Rankin never fails to deliver great music and performances in all of his recordings for his artistry is truly one-of-a-kind. Don Costa was known as one of the best Sinatra arrangers and his best work, aside from this album, was presented in one of my absolute favorites, "Sinatra And Strings." Put them together with Wendy Haas (electric piano and organ), Roy McCurdy (drums), Peter Marshall (bass), Nino Tempo (tenor sax), and the end result is this treasure of a recording, produced by Michael Stewart and dedicated by Mr. Rankin to his mother, Elizabeth.

Kenny Rankin's unique version of "When Sunny Gets Blue," written by Jack Segal and Marvin Fischer in 1956, is simply a pure beauty. Just the intro alone would put any listener to a trance.

"When Sunny gets blue
Her eyes get gray and cloudy
Then the rain begins to fall...

When Sunny gets blue
She breathes a sigh of sadness
Like the wind that stirs the trees

Wind that sets the leaves to swaying
Like some violins are playing
Weird and haunting melodies

Memories will fade
And pretty dreams will rise up
Where her other dreams fell through"

He sings another two achingly beautiful songs, James Van Heusen and Johnny Burke's "Here's That Rainy Day" and Stephen Bishop's "On And On" (Puts on Sinatra and starts to cry). I love his smooth take on a popular song in the Seventies, "Groovin'" written by Felix Cavaliere and Eddie Brigati and was originally recorded by The Young Rascals. The arrangement is so sublime making it easily as the best version of all. Ditto with his poignant but charming George Harrison's "While My Guitar Gently Weeps."

The talented artist shines with his take on his very own composition, "I Love You," which he wrote both lyrics and music, and wraps this beautiful package up with another of his very own, "Through The Eye Of The Eagle."

Kenny Rankin's vocal artistry is a marvel, and so is this album.

P.S. Many thanks to a good friend of mine who kindly provided me with a new copy of this rare and hard-to-find-CD. It's one of my most cherished CDs from my collection.

Kenny Rankin has an unmistakable voice and way with a song. Beautiful, mellifluous and fluid. In this particular recording he tackles well established pieces surrounded by Don Costa's excellent string arrangements.

When Kenny covers a piece it will be done in that unique way that completely reconfigures it. That's the way it should be. Why do it otherwise?

Kenny can take a piece like The Rascals "Groovin'" and put it it in a completely different context, without losing that 'Sunday morning' feel that the piece always had. His vocal here is amazing, giving the piece a bit of drama in the process, when he leads you to an amazing octave leap and fluid modulation. You're airborne in the process.

He can take a saccharine little prom slow dance ditty, like "You Are So Beautiful" into something unique and take it from saccharine to a sense of romance.

"House of Gold" is done with integrity and real feel for the song and it's country leanings.

"When Sunny Gets Blue" is, to my ears, better than the original. With a jazz bass intro and Roy McCurdy's brush work, it becomes a jazzy standard without losing that sense of melancholy the original had.

"On and On" again outdoes the original simply because Kenny is a much better vocalist than Stephen Bishop and he invests himself much more in the song and it's sentiment. The arrangement is crisp and inobtrusive. This his excellent pop single material.

For any fan of good singing in a perfectly symbiotic setting with good accompaniment and arrangment. For any fan of the art of reinterpretation. This is the recording for you.

"Smooth, mellow and a joy to listen to. I would love to hear him do more with the Don Costas' orch, the arrangement is superb. Quite probably the best CD I own. I would also like to see his 'Silver Morning' album in CD form".

I've heard Kenny Rankin say on more than one occasion that if he recorded nothing else in his lifetime, this album would be all he could ask of a career. "Through the Eye of the Eagle" is a masterpiece, as is the surprising "House of Gold;" surprising because this beautiful tune was written by Hank Williams. Do yourself a favor and snap up a copy of this album...although I must say the asking price of it these days is shocking. But for a once in a lifetime collection, this one can't be beat. It's a rare musical experience.

This is a wonderful album, but I think the reviewers here are doing Mr. Rankin a disservice by not being precise when describing his vocal ability. I can only analogize it. His voice has the same sort of purity, power, agility and, well, human warmth as the greatest pop singers: Karen Carpenter, Harry Nilsson, Stevie Wonder, George Michael, Squeeze's Glenn Tilbrook, etc. In the deceptively simple opening song of this CD, Hank Williams' "House of Gold," Rankin starts off almost meditatively, his rich voice rolling around Williams' folksy lyrics, but suddenly he soars: "Sinner, hear me when I say..." It's a transcendent moment, lifted by Don Costa's amazing string arrangement. And the rest of the CD is nearly as good, and further testament to how Rankin is, and always has been, a terrific singer.

All you folks who have been soothed and vibed by the multi-talents at Windham Hill--this guy is the original in vocal form. His crooning is smooth as melted chocolate and just as addictive. I've been addicted since the mid 70's. Great background, mood, or dinner music. I wish all his original recordings were available in CD.

It stands the test of time. It was excellent in the 1970's as it is now

This by far is his most soulful album. It is so relaxing and mellow. A great blast from the past. He still sounds great even today.