No Ordinary World

Joe Cocker | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 22, 2000)
• Original Release Date: August 22, 2000
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Eagle Records
• ASIN: B00004WFEA
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #31,436 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #18 in Music > Indie Music > Pop > Adult Contemporary
  • #49 in Music > Indie Music > Rock > Classic Rock

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Possessed of one of the most distinctive voices of the rock era, Joe Cocker has largely made his mark by attacking other artists' songs with his shredded vocal grace and oft-inscrutable phrasing. Ironically, Cocker's has sustained his career in the 1980s and '90s largely by taming his throaty, raw power in service of increasingly tame balladry and hired-gun film work. Executive-produced by Cocker and longtime Tina Turner collaborator Roger Davies, this album soldiers on in that slick, perhaps overly professional tradition. The covers here range from pleasantly surprising (Leonard Cohen's dourly dramatic "First We'll Take Manhattan") to the superfluous (Steve Winwood's "While You See a Chance"), while the middle-of-the-road dynamics of the originals fare a bit better. Recent Cocker fans should be pleased, since his vocal prowess remains undiminished. It's his soul that seems to have mellowed; one can't help but wonder what Cocker might produce if he returned to the R&B grit of his roots. --Jerry McCulley

Product Description

Features Leonard Cohen's "First We Take Manhattan" and Steve Winwood's "While You See a Chance", among others.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Little Of This & A Little Of That, October 6, 2000

By 

"jloewe" (Brooklyn, New York USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: No Ordinary World (Audio CD)

Joe Cocker for the "Smooth Jazz" generation. "She Believes In Me" written by Bryan Adams and Eliot Kennedy with backing vocals by Bryan leads the way. I bought this CD for that song alone. That song and "Lie To Me" makes the purchase a worthwhile one. However I would have liked to have seen Ol' Joe cut loose as he does on the latter cut, more often than he does.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Heart Over Mind, January 5, 2001

By 

Lee Armstrong (Winterville, NC United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: No Ordinary World (Audio CD)

Even when Joe Cocker is not at his best, he's still a fascinating singer. No Ordinary World is not his greatest work. However, there are a couple of flashes here which Cocker enthusiasts will want to include on your own Joe Cocker compilations. The first cut of Leonard Cohen's "First We Take Manhattan" is a jewel. It rocks and drives home Cohen's great melody. I wish I were a studio wizard and could overlay Jennifer Warnes' version with Joe's and get an "Up Where We Belong" replay of the mixing of these two great voices. The other truly brilliant track is "Lie To Me." Cocker's voice rides on a great guitar riff, propeled with a blazing organ and strong electric guitar. If you love Cocker, this cut is up there with his best work. I also really like "My Father's Son." The great "heart over mind" lyric gives a rocking ballad that feels fast and slow at the same time. The problem with much of the rest of the album is the lack of distinctiveness of the material. "Different Roads" sounds like a computer's attempt to write an anthem. "Ain't Gonna Cry Again" has such a forumla construction that it sounds trite. "Soul Rising" has a nice rocking build, but again seems like it was written by Wang. (computers!) "On My Way Home" is a passionate slow ballad with Cocker's empassioned vocals, but the keyboards wash over the mix and drown it. The almost-good material is still interesting. Cocker doesn't add much to Steve Winwood's "While You See A Chance" from Winwood's "Arc of a Diver," but it's a good tune which I'm glad to hear again. "Where Would I Be Now" is a soulful ballad sung with good conviction. The clangy guitars on the title track make it sound like the Byrds if they were raised in Alabama. "Naked Without You" is a big booming ballad with nice piano by Jason Rubello prominently mixed to give the song a classic feel. There are enough good moments here so that a Cocker fan can buy with confidence not to miss the high points, but this is more of an Ordinary World than I'd hoped to hear.

5.0 out of 5 stars Couldn't be happier!!, October 17, 2008

By 

Mary M. Howe - See all my reviews
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This review is from: No Ordinary World (Audio CD)

Everything about my purchase was perfect. I received it quickly. It was brand new. I gave it as a gift and both he and I couldn't have been happier!! Thank you.