Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Book of Chapin Opens Up, August 5, 1999
By A Customer
This was the first album I ever bought. At the age of ten (okay I was a weird kid) I cleaned out my parent's garage in exhange for this album. Harry is king of the story-song and some of his best are here. The world became aware of Harry with "Cats in the Cradle" but that song only scratches the surface of his talent. "What Made America Famous" is an excellent story of common-man heroics in the face of adversity. "30,000 Pounds of Bananas" is a light-hearted story of a fateful produce delivery gone awry. "Halfway to Heaven" explores a bored, married man's inner conflict with his beautiful young secretary and his dissatisfaction at having experienced so little in life. Like my other Chapin favorites, it is a song that expresses real emotions and the drama of everyday life. It is an even, somewhat somber album that doesn't come close to matching the energy and heart of his live performances, but it is an outstanding album and a good Chapin starter.
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Incomparable Harry Chapin's First 'Gold Strike', November 10, 2002
With the release of 'Heads And Tails' in 1972 Harry Chapin began a successful career of telling significant stories of contemporary times. That initial album contained the fan and early 70's AM radio favorite 'Taxi' which quickly became his signature song. He made a pyrotechnic rise to fame with 1974's 'Verities & Balderdash' which became his best-selling album , reaching number 4 on the American charts, easily becoming a gold record. It's success can be immediately attributed to the number 1 single "Cat's In The Cradle", a ballad about a neglectful and career-oriented father written by Chapin's wife Sandy. Actually, each song on this album (CD) represents Chapin working at the peak of his musical powers, it is an incredible and remarkable achievement - almost classifiable as a musical landmark. Not really a folk singer by definition Chapin's songs reflected that folksy, whimsical charm that nevertheless earned him that classification. He never really won universal acclaim from music critics, mainly because of his combining orchestral arrangements with a standard approach to ballad performances. They also accused him of overly sentimental lyrics and the inclusion of heavy-handed morality. Regardless of this criticism Chapin garnered a devoted following during the 70's, through his exceptional music and his tireless charity work, and still later as a social activist. Chapin was that rare celebrity who put his money where his mouth was, becoming one of the era's most dedicated and compelling forces in effecting aid to the hungry, raising well over 5 million dollars for the cause. Equal parts wistful, poignant, genial, caustic, literate, salient Harry Chapin made a deep impression on people that is still evident today. He made the statement, "Our lives are to be used and thus to be lived as fully as possible. And truly it seems that we are never so alive as when we concern ourselves with other people." In retrospect, for Harry Chapin a life lived was a life explained.
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Harry Chapin at his best; get this album for your friends, October 1, 2000
My personal favorite Harry Chapin album, although I continue to have a special place in my heart for "Short Stories" because it was the first Chapin album I owned. Here we have Harry's biggest hit single, "Cat's in the Cradle" and an excellent representation of his songwriting repertoire. "What Made America Famous?" is one of his epic story songs, "She Sings Songs Without Words" a paean to the woman he loves, "I Wanna Learn a Love Song" and "Shooting Star" are about the healing power of love, and for good measure there are Harry's absolutely finest pair of funny songs, "30,000 Pounds of Bananas" and "Six String Orchestra." Granted, except for the last class there are better songs to be found on other albums, but this 1974 album is still an excellent mix. This is truly Harry Chapin at his best. Its only defect is that it does not contain lyrics, but understanding the words has never been a problem when listening to Harry.
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by Harry Chapin 
