The Look of Love: The Burt Bacharach Collection
11/03/1998 | Rhino / Wea
Lyrics from The Look of Love: The Burt Bacharach Collection
All Music Guide Review
While this three-CD, 75-song box set only has a half-dozen tracks actually credited to Burt Bacharach, it's certainly the best representation of his music likely to ever be assembled. Spanning the late '50s through a 1996 duet with Elvis Costello, this is the cream of his work as a composer (and, frequently, producer), properly concentrating mostly on the 1960s hit versions of his songs (usually, though not always, co-written with Hal David) by Dionne Warwick, Gene Pitney, Jackie DeShannon, Dusty Springfield, the Drifters, Chuck Jackson, and many others. Classics like "Baby It's You," "Walk On By," "What the World Needs Now Is Love," and "Wishin' and Hopin'" are here, of course. What really makes this exceptional by box set standards, however, is the deft intermingling of familiar smash hits with interesting minor hits and rarities. There are four cuts by the unknown Lou Johnson, who has been described as the male counterpart to Dionne Warwick; intriguing obscurities by Gene Pitney ("Fool Killer"), Jackie DeShannon ("So Long Johnny"), and others that even fans of the artists might not have heard; rare original versions of familiar classics (Tommy Hunt's "I Just Don't Know What to Do With Myself," for instance); hits by artists who only benefited grandly from the magic Bacharach/David touch once (Bobby Vinton's "Blue on Blue," Jack Jones' "Wives and Lovers"); and just plain off-the-wall things like the Five Blobs' novelty "The Blob," Manfred Mann's "My Little Red Book," Bobby Goldsboro's "My Japanese Boy I Love You," and TV actor Richard Chamberlain's "Blue Guitar." Thankfully only a little of his subpar work from the '80s is included. Aficionados may find some things to carp about, particularly the absence of some small hits (quantity and licensing would have made it difficult to bring everything together) and the track choice when several singers made worthy versions; sometimes the big hit is used, sometimes it's a rare original version, sometimes it's a rare rendition that was neither the original nor the biggest hit. Certainly there's more Bacharach/David worth hearing; the first places to start after getting through this are vintage Dionne Warwick compilations. For a rich but manageable anthology of his best work, though, it could hardly be bettered, enhanced by nearly 100 pages of liner notes and track annotations. ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide
The Look of Love: The Burt Bacharach Collection Track Listing
Credits of The Look of Love: The Burt Bacharach Collection
- Bill McElhiney
- Conductor
- David McLees
- Project Assistant
- Bob Morgan
- Producer
- Jerry Moss
- Producer
- Rick Nelson
- Performer
- Michael Omartian
- Producer, String Arrangements
- Tony Orlando
- Performer
- Jimmy Radcliffe
- Performer
- Phil Ramone
- Producer, Associate Producer
- Ivor Raymonde
- Director
- Joe Reisman
- Arranger
- Aaron Schroeder
- Producer
- Garry Sherman
- Arranger, Conductor
- Shelby Singleton
- Producer
- Mike Stoller
- Producer
- Peter Sullivan
- Producer
- B.J. Thomas
- Performer
- Jonathan Tunick
- Orchestration
- Harold Wheeler
- Director, Musical Director
- Cathy Williams
- Project Assistant
- Stevie Wonder
- Performer
- Paul Grein
- Liner Notes
- Jim Pierson
- Project Assistant
- John Franz
- Producer
- Luther Dixon
- Producer
- Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass
- Performer
- Johnny Mann Singers
- Vocals
- Ray Conniff & His Orchestra
- Orchestra
- Skip Heller
- Project Assistant
- Pete King
- Conductor, Director
- Rachel Gutek
- Art Direction, Design
- Patrick Milligan
- Liner Notes, Compilation Producer
- Jill O'Hara
- Performer
- Elizabeth Pavone
- Editorial Coordinator
- Craig Kamins
- Project Assistant
- Brian Schuman
- Project Assistant
- Steven Chean
- Project Assistant
- Vanessa Atkins
- Project Assistant
- Julee Stover
- Editorial Supervision
- Jim McCrary
- Photography
- Andrew Garver
- Remastering
- Emily Cagan
- Project Assistant
- Lori Carfora
- Project Assistant
- Michael Johnson
- Project Assistant
- Richard Lewine
- Producer
- Amy Dean
- Project Assistant
- Bill DeMain
- Liner Notes
- Snuff Garrett
- Producer
- Allyson DeSimone
- Project Assistant
- Gary Stewart
- Project Assistant
- The Five Blobs
- Performer
- Mitchell Ayres & His Fashions in Music
- Performer
- Malia Doss
- Project Assistant
- Daniel Goldmark
- Editorial Research
- Manfred Mann
- Performer
- Stephen Paley
- Executive Producer
- Chuck Sagle
- Arranger
- Larry Wilcox
- Arranger
- Tommy Hunt
- Performer
- Mitch Miller
- Producer
- Burt Bacharach
- Arranger, Choir Director, Liner Notes, Conductor, Main Performer, Producer
- Jack Jones
- Performer
- Carole Bayer Sager
- Arranger, Producer
- Cilla Black
- Performer
- Jerry Leiber
- Producer
- Alan Lorber
- Arranger, Conductor
- Peter Matz
- Arranger
- Richard Carpenter
- Arranger
- Richard Chamberlain
- Performer
- George Martin
- Producer
- Gene McDaniels
- Performer
- Henry Jerome
- Producer
- The 5th Dimension
- Performer
- Bob Alcivar
- Arranger, Vocal Arrangement
- Thom Bell
- Arranger, Conductor, Producer
- Hugh Brown
- Art Direction
- Artie Butler
- Arranger
- Claus Ogerman
- Arranger, Conductor
- Jack Daugherty
- Producer
- Hal David
- Producer
- Jackie DeShannon
- Performer
- Ray Ellis
- Arranger, Conductor
- Tommy "Snuff" Garrett
- Producer
- Jack Gold
- Producer
- Wally Gold
- Producer
- Paul Griffin
- Arranger
- Jimmie Haskell
- Director
- Bones Howe
- Arranger, Producer
- Bill Inglot
- Producer, Remastering
- Bert Keyes
- Arranger
- Jerry Lieber
- Producer
- Marty Robbins
- Performer
- Ray Conniff
- Performer
- Perry Como
- Performer
- Trini Lopez
- Performer
- Bobby Vinton
- Performer
- Dionne Warwick
- Performer
- Herb Alpert
- Producer, Performer
- Brook Benton
- Performer
- Jerry Butler
- Performer
- The Carpenters
- Performer
- Elvis Costello
- Producer, Performer
- Christopher Cross
- Performer
- The Drifters
- Performer
- Bobby Goldsboro
- Performer
- Chuck Jackson
- Performer
- Elton John
- Performer
- Lou Johnson
- Performer
- Gladys Knight
- Performer
- Patti LaBelle
- Performer
- Michael McDonald
- Performer
- Gene Pitney
- Performer
- The Shirelles
- Performer
- Dusty Springfield
- Performer
- The Stylistics
- Performer
- Bill Holman
- Arranger
















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