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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
mostly a retrospective release, but contains some new songs as well, September 6, 2005
This CD, "The David Gates Songbook--A Lifetime Of Music", was released in 2002, and it brings to mind a lot of things.
Of the 20 songs here, 10 of them are original versions of big Bread hits--"Make It With You", "Baby I'm-a Want You", "If", "Lost Without Your Love", etc. There are a pile of other Bread/ David Gates compilations out there containing all 10 of these hits, and if you're a major fan, you probably have all of them in your collection at least twice.
There are also 5 songs from David's pre-'90s solo career, and although Gates' solo career is drastically underrated and hasn't been anthologized to the extent that Bread has, 4 of these 5 songs do also appear on Rhino's 1996 two-disc "Retrospective" release. The one surprising inclusion from this era is a welcome one--the sumptuous "This Could Be Forever" which is a lush, exquisitely-harmonized soft rock ballad from his splendid 1981 album "Take Me Now". Gates has an absolute pile of great songs from his solo career that don't appear to have ever been released officially on CD, at least not in the US, and it's unfortunate that there isn't a CD collection that brings together all of these gems; even if an additional handful could have been included here would have been very nice.
I can't help but see this CD largely as a vehicle for its new songs. That said, this disc also recalls David's 1978 "Goodbye Girl" album which reused songs from his two previous solo albums, seemingly due to Gates' being short on unused compositions at that time.
Despite all the redundancy, I basically forgive the guy. One thing that does set this disc apart from most other Bread compilations is that everything is a David Gates solo composition. If you happen to be new to David Gates' work, this disc is a solid introduction to the man's music, although it's worth pointing out that of the 20 tracks, at LEAST ¾ of them are inarguably ballads, with not a rocker anywhere in sight (Gates COULD really rock out when he wanted to). So, despite all the great individual songs, the disc comes up WAY short in terms of showcasing his impressive stylistic range. You also notice after a while how Gates relied very heavily on very similar arranging techniques, especially in regard to his use of orchestral arrangements.
The brief-but-interesting liner notes point out that David Gates personally selected the songs for this CD, but it's clear to me that this doesn't mean he exclusively picked his own personal favorites per se. David makes his intentions clear--basically, he hopes people will be drawn to the disc for the old songs, and in turn will "latch on" to the new songs and discover that he hasn't lost and/ or abandoned his musical talent.
And sure enough, the new songs bear this out--the man certainly hasn't lost his songwriting talent at all. Once again, this CD gets one thinking of how David Gates is man of quality over quantity. He may release new material extremely infrequently, but when he does, he releases quality.
Although the disc claims there to be 5 brand new songs, one of them is a re-recording of "Love Is Always Seventeen" which appears in its original form on his 1994 album of the same name. The version here isn't much different--the strings are more prominent--yet it remains a great, profoundly moving song.
That leaves us with 4 honest-to-goodness newly-released songs. "Find Me", with its afterlife-oriented lyrics, is a little sappy and off the mark, but it's still an undeniably tender and heart-tugging song of eternal devotion, very much along the lines of "If" from over 30 years prior. "I Can't Play The Songs" is a great tune that uncannily mixes heartbroken-yet-slyly humorous lyrics with an upbeat-yet-yearning melody. "The Mustang" is a fun, lighthearted ditty that finds David in country-folk territory. And lastly, the wonderfully melodic "Mirror, Mirror" is a truly beautiful, heart-warming coming-of-age song, wisely done in a stripped-down, orchestra-free arrangement.
So, despite the reusing of so many hit songs that fans already own, this disc does have a lot going for it, and if you love David Gates (and who in the right mind wouldn't?), you won't want to be without it.
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16 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Buy this CD..., May 11, 2003
... if you like supporting a great deserving artist like David Gates, despite the fact this is the highest priced CD I have ever purchased. It is interesting to know that Mr. Gates hand picked the songs selected for this album- ten of his songs from the six Bread albums; five songs from his five solo albums; and five new penned songs never released on his prior recordings, with the exception of one. The CD, then, gives me a bit of personal connection to my favorite artist. It was interesting and a bit of fun to match David Gates's choice of his chosen 20 favorite songs compared to mine. (Where is "Clouds"?! <smile>) For those not familar with David Gates's total musical career, this CD gives you a small but decent sampling and proves his musical talent as a singer and songwriter did not diminsh after Bread's demise.Supposedly, there are "five" news songs on this CD... "Find Me," "I Can't Play The Songs" (a classic David Gates unrequited love song), "The Mustang" (one of Mr. Gates' more up-beat tempo songs), "Mirror, Mirror" (a very touching coming of age song Mr. Gates has sung in his concert appearances over the past several years) and "Love Is Always Seventeen." As I have his "Love Is Always Seventeen" CD (which was released in late 1994), the self-titled song was not new to me. It is interesting, though, to hear the new orchestration. The original recording has a country influence as many of the songs on his 1994 album. The new arrangement more aligns with Mr. Gates' classical influences with more prominent string arrangement. My favorite new song on the CD is "Find Me," which has an underlying spiritual, religious connotation to it. Anyone who knows David Gates' music knows this is not the first time he has written such songs... "The Other Side of Life" and "Do You Believe He's Comin' " also ring true of this genre. The words and melody in "Find Me" are hypnotic. I'll always remember the effect it had on me the first time I listened to the song and it still really gets to me everytime I hear it. My only trepidation is the title..."David Gates Songbook- A Lifetime of Music." I certainly hope this doesn't mean Mr. Gates is hanging up his hat. David Gates states in the booklet that he hopes we enjoy the new songs, know that he is still writing, and not to forget him. As an ardent David Gates fan for the past 34 years, I know I can say that I can not see that thought ever coming true. I am confident that position echoes the sentiment of all his fans. My fingers are crossed that there's a lot more melodies, music, lyrics, and great songs he has yet to write and share with us in his lifetime. And- fingers and toes crossed, that David Gates finally releases a "best of" compilation of his songs from his early 70's/80's solo albums! Don't ever forget your fans, Sir! We will NEVER forget you!
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The test of time, January 27, 2004
There is music that is timeless and that will be touching hearts forever. David Gates' music is just that! Having been a Bread fan since the first time I heard "Make it with you" in 1969-70, I felt there has never been enough music recorded by Bread, David Gates and James Griffin.After recently seeing David perform in Utah I wanted more. After hearing "Find Me" I wanted a copy of my own. This song is without a doubt one of the most moving songs that I have ever heard in my life. I found this album on Ebay and purchased it from a European seller. It was worth every penny of the $30 that I paid. Having not gotten my fill, I traveled a few months later to Arizona to hear David perform again. Again, I was not disappointed! The crowd in Phoenix responded with silent awe and tears to "Find Me" as well as singing along with every word of every song--especially "Everything I Own". It was another great night with one of our generations greatest singer-songwriters.
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