Jackie Wilson History of Jackie Wilson, Vol. 2: Jackie Sets the Standards Album Review, Songs, Rating

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Jackie Wilson
History of Jackie Wilson, Vol. 2: Jackie Sets the Standards
Release Date: 2006 06 27
Label: Edel Records
Rating:

Jackie Wilson was one of the great natural talents of soul and R&B during the 1950s and '60s, but you wouldn't always know that from listening to his records. Wilson and his A&R people had rather curious ideas about what to do with his powerhouse voice, and he cut lots of material -- standards, show tunes, adult pop hits -- which cast him in the mold of a middle-of-the-road supper club singer rather than the soulful dynamo who exploded on nightclub stages. The History of Jackie Wilson, Vol. 2: Jackie Sets the Standards collects 40 songs from Wilson's Brunswick Records catalog that reflect this side of his musical personality, and while there's never any question that Wilson has a tremendous voice with a broad range and plenty of expressive power, he doesn't seem especially well-suited to this material most of the time. Did anyone really think it was a good idea for Wilson to record "You'll Never Walk Alone," "People" or (gulp) "My Yiddishe Momma"? Wilson never gives less than 100 percent on these selections, but sometimes this just makes things worse; he struggles to find a soulful undercurrent in "Ode to Billie Joe," "My Way," and "Sonny Boy" to the point of forcing one in even if it doesn't fit, and the emotional overstatement only makes these sides sound all the more absurd. The highly polished and hackneyed arrangements don't do Wilson any favors, and ultimately, it's remarkable that a handful of songs work in spite of it all, especially "Danny Boy," "Night," "St. James Infirmary," and "For Once in My Life," numbers where Wilson finds a way to reach the songs on his own terms. There's an old cliché about a singer being so good that he could sing the telephone directory, and there are moments where that sounds preferable to what's on Jackie Sets the Standards; given Wilson's incredible talent, this is usually at least listenable, but it also demonstrates just how misguided Wilson's recording career could be. Mark Deming, All Music Guide

Tracks:

	Title	Composer	Time
1	My Way	Francois, Thibout, Revaux	3:49
2	Don't Go to Strangers	Evans, Mann, Kent	2:39
3	This Guy's in Love with You	Bacharach, David	4:25
4	Eleanor Rigby	Lennon, McCartney	2:38
5	Ode to Bille Joe	Genrty	4:18
6	This Bitter Earth	Otis	2:06
7	That Lucky Old Sun (Just Rolls Round Heaven All Day)	Gillespie, Smith	2:59
8	For Once in My Life	Miller, Murden	3:10
9	Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me)	Bricusse, Newley	2:45
10	People	Styne, Merrill	3:26
11	Be My Love [#]	Brodszky, Cahn	2:26
12	(It Will Have to Do) Until the Real Thing Comes Along	Nichols, Cahn, Freeman, Holiner, Chaplin	3:07
13	Over the Rainbow	Harburg, Arlen	2:56
14	You'll Never Walk Alone	Hammerstein, Rodgers	3:44
15	You Don't Know Me	Walker, Arnold	2:54
16	Goergia on My Mind	Carmichael, Gorrell	2:42
17	What Kind of Fool Am I?	Bricusse, Newley	3:18
18	Stardust	Parish, Carmichael	3:47
19	Danny Boy	Traditional	4:17
20	Rags to Riches	Adler, Ross	2:39
21	I'll Be Home for Christmas	Ram, Gannon, Kent	2:13
22	Yes Indeed	Oliver	2:18
23	St. James' Infirmary	Traditional	5:38
24	Pianissimo	Alstone, Tabet, Kennedy	2:53
25	I Apologise	Nelson, Goodheart, Hoffman	2:55
26	Body and Soul	Green, Eyton, Heyman, Sour	3:29
27	I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)	Webster, Ellington	4:10
28	Mood Indigo	Bigard, Ellington, Mills	3:25
29	Try a Little Tenderness	Connelly, Campbell, Woods	4:07
30	Tenderly	Lawrence, Gross	3:42
31	Stormy Weather (Keeps Rainin' All the Time)	Arlen, Koehler	3:18
32	Cry	Kohlmann	2:49
33	By the Light of the Silvery Moon	Edwards, Madden	2:21
34	My Yiddishe Momme	Pollack, Yellen	2:38
35	Alone at Last	Lehmann, Tchaikovsky	3:01
36	Night	Miller, Lehmann, SaintSaens	2:49
37	Danny Boy	Traditional	3:29
38	Sonny Boy	DeSylva, Jolson, Henderson, Brown	3:42
39	Blue Moon	Rodgers, Hart	2:23
40	We'll Be Together Again	Fisher, Laine	2:54

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