Burt Bacharach

This two-disc British version of The Look of Love: The Burt Bacharach Collection is decidedly inferior to the original three-disc 1998 U.S. Rhino compilation. It features less material, having one less CD in the set, and inferior packaging in a thin cardboard slipcase (as opposed to the heavy cardboard, book-like presentation of the Rhino set). Even Alec Cummings' original liner notes appear in extremely truncated form. The biggest shortcoming of the set is the sequencing of the tracks. On the original collection, the works of Bacharach and Hal David appear in chronological order, so that one can clearly see the development of the songwriters, the evolution of the production craft of Bacharach, and the changing styles of pop music over the years. On this set, the tracks are placed in no discernible order, so that the set opens with the 1970 Carpenters track "Close to You," then zigzags back and forth between Bacharach tracks of the '50s, '60s, '70s, '80s, and '90s. One other notable difference between this version and the original collection is the not-surprising inclusion of British artists' (or American artists who were more popular in Britain, such as Jackie Trent) cover versions of Bacharach songs. The best of these is the Searchers sprightly Merseybeat take on "This Empty Place" and Sandie Shaw's tremulous reading of "(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me." Petula Clark offers up a solid performance of the original lyrics of "This Girl's in Love With You," though it lacks the unctuous lounge-lizard charm of Herb Alpert's guy version. Perhaps the weakest track represented here is the Pretenders' cover of "The Windows of the World." Chrissie Hynde's vocals and Nick Lowe's production just aren't up to snuff when compared to the Warwick original. The inclusion of these alternative tracks, however, could make this collection attractive to Bacharach completists. ~ Mary Grady, All Music Guide