Tender, Moving, Swinging/Soft and Beautiful [Import]

Aretha Franklin | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 20, 2005)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B0002848XA
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #364,048 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Don't Cry, Baby

2. Try a Little Tenderness

3. I Apologize

4. Without the One You Love

5. Look for the Silver Lining

6. I'm Sitting on Top of the World

7. Just for a Thrill

8. God Bless the Child

9. I'm Wandering

10. How Deep Is the Ocean?

11. I Don't Know You Anymore

12. Lover Come Back to Me

13. Only the Lonely

14. I Wish I Didn't Love You So

15. (Ah, The Apple Trees) When the World Was Young

16. Shangri-La

17. A Mother's Love

18. My Coloring Book

19. Jim

20. Friendly Persuasion (Thee I Love)

See all 22 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Two Original Columbia Albums From The Queen, June 28, 2008

By 

Peace Brotha (Ohio, United States) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Tender, Moving, Swinging/Soft and Beautiful (Audio CD)

Two vintage Columbia albums from Aretha Franklin on one disc. That's a good thing by itself. One of them is very good, the other one is just okay. And the two albums are so different from each other that you can't help but wonder why they paired these particular two together. But, better to have them available like this rather than not at all.

** The Tender, The Moving, The Swinging **

This 1962 set could have been The Electrifying Aretha Franklin Part II, which is no bad thing. Many of the arrangements are quite similar; in fact "I Apologize" sounds almost exactly like "I Surrender, Dear" from TEAF.

But this set lives up to its title. She's tender on that "I Apologize" number, as well as her own composition "Without The One You Love," which shows her to be a skilled songwriter even at the age of 20. Aretha moves us with her quiet but firm "Try A Little Tenderness," as well as her testimonial "How Deep Is The Ocean." And man, does she ever swing on "I'm Sitting On Top Of The World" and "Lover Come Back To Me."

Complaints? Sometimes Aretha's voice seems buried in the mix. Not sure if that's just this reissue or what, but "Don't Cry Baby" and "Lover Come Back To Me" suffer slightly for it. In addition, some of the arrangements are too similar ... if "Just For A Thrill" and "God Bless The Child" were going to sound alike, did they have to be sequenced right next to each other? And "Look For The Silver Lining" gets a bit hokey, even for the most avid fan.

Regardless, this is the young Queen of Soul in fine form, growing into her crown and handling a wide variety of material with ease.

** Soft And Beautiful **

These are the kinds of songs that many Aretha fans hate, no question. And I can see their point: sometimes the strings are overbearing, the arrangements are syrupy sweet, and they SEEM devoid of soul. There are some duds here. I love to hear Aretha sing anything. But it pains me to hear "People." And while she does some interesting things with "My Coloring Book" and you can sense she's trying to get into it, it never quite clicked.

But I would like to offer that soul is not always about squalling and shouting down fire from heaven. Listen to her reading of "Jim" and her post-romantic interpretation of "Shangri-La." Two very different songs, yet Aretha pours her heart into them. She reached down and got something from her life experience and applied it to these numbers. "A Mother's Love" takes on a new significance when the listener realizes that Aretha lost her mom at a very young age, and that dimension comes across even through the mildly sappy arrangement. And "Only The Lonely" remains one of Aretha's best Columbia recordings.

I disagree with the one reviewer that says this twofer should be dismissed except for historical purposes. Amidst the howlers there is some genuinely good music here from the Queen of Soul. Not only that, the sound quality is good and the reproduction of the liner notes is top-notch.

Don't deprive yourself of this unique set ... no telling how long it will be in print, given the state of the music biz.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars god bless aretha, September 9, 2007

By 

Darryl K. Clark "pywakkit" (springfield, missouri) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Tender, Moving, Swinging/Soft and Beautiful (Audio CD)

when i was seven or so, i used to play this album a lot. very loudly. usually before i went to school in the morning. i was obnoxious--i know it! but i loved 'the tender...', especially 'don't cry baby' and 'sittin on top of the world'. as far as i knew, it was soul music. it would take a few years to find out that one was associated with les paul and mary ford and the other was one of al jolson's standards!

it's still soulful.

now that i have the cd re-release, i am more than happy to play it again, nice and loud. but i promise i won't do it first thing in the morning.

trust me i will!

5.0 out of 5 stars lucy, March 19, 2009

By 

Persephone "LucyLu" (Los Angeles, California United States) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Tender, Moving, Swinging/Soft and Beautiful (Audio CD)

"i purchased this cd for my sister for her birthday. she recently called me to thank me profusely for this cd. it was a walk down memory lane that is unforgettable... especially memories of my father and family parties. no one does it better than aretha franklin. the seller was prompt with shipment and hassle free. thank you... XOXOXOXOX"