Westlife - Allow Us to Be Frank
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Free Music Notes for Allow Us to Be Frank
Free Music Review: hits and misses
Hit: 4 Stars
This is a fun album, literally. It's pretty obvious the guys are having a good time singing a number of the all time big band standards. They're trying to emulate the sound of the fifties rat pack, sinatra, davis jr., martin and the likes, and surprisingly they almost pull it off.
They are assisted by a very tight and confident orchestra, who fortunately stick to the classic arrangement style of the fifties. Well produced and very well arranged.
The first 5 songs are great. The boys handle the songs and the arrangements well, but when it goes wrong it goes very wrong. While 'come fly with me' is already just so-so, Mack the Knife is downright terrible. The brawn presented in the singing is forced, the timing is off and it gets very close to bad karaoke style performance. San Franciso and Summer Wind are very good again, but the mess of Clementine is almost unforgivable. Again they mess up in an up-tempo song, the opening lines are awful, forced, terrible phrasing and timing, and absolutely no feeling for improvisation. They just try too hard, and lack the feeling for letting the song and arrangement lead them in the performance.
However, the next track 'When I fall in love' is absolutely majestic. Again, mostly due to a brilliant orchestral arrangement and performance, but also beautifully sung. There are probably hundreds of renditions of this song, but this one is absolutely one of the best I've heard in a long long time. This track alone already makes this a 4-star album.
The finish, That's Life, makes sense as a closer for the album but is a bit of an anti-climax. It's ok, but doesn't follow 'If I fall...' too well and kind of ends the album with a whimper.
All in all a very nice first effort for Westlife in this genre, and although a bit unbalanced definitely worth buying.
Free Music Review: Classics to a NEW GENERATION.
Hit: 4 Stars
WESTLIFE accomplishes what others have tried and failed.
Any artist can cover songs, but few can make them their own and provide the energy to make them sound new.
Aint that a kick in the head should be placed on any future greatest hits and the beautiful Smile never sounded better.
The boys had fun recording this CD and you will thoroughly fall in love, again, with these classic hits.
If you want a real treat, purchase their latest DVD - The #1's Tour, and experience a brief opportunity to go back in time.
Young people, if you take the time to listen, you will truely appreciate and LOVE this material.
Free Music Review: great way to publicize vocal music...
Hit: 4 Stars
Lets be frankly honest.... that this album is not that bad as the previous reviewers criticized it. I am was never really into Vocal music before, and now I am regular listener of that genre. Westlife does a great job introducing standards to the young audience. That does not necessarily mean that they will enjoy it. The people who enjoy music to its max are people who have an open mind. I absolutely fell in love with this album. Though they cant be compared to the vocal greats like Frank Sinatra, Andy Williams... they do a decent job.Free Music Review: HERE WE GO AGAIN1
Hit: 4 Stars
Westlife wallows in the Rat Pack-vein and what a gig it is.Mostly the credit must go to the enormously swinging back-up orchestra.That means of course a lift for crooners ,as Frankie certainly knew,i.e.if lacking a purely tonal voice but instead possess a technical first rate timing and phrasing.
We`ll never have a supporting orchestra like May,Riddle or Hefti again but this aggregation is not far behind.
Free Music Review: Rat Pack Done Right
Hit: 4 Stars
I was blown away by the way these guys, "Westlife" treated some of the best music ever recorded. A huge fan of the standards this group hit it right on the money. Really some good stuff here. Frank, "Mr. S" would be proud.