By Matt Robinson, other
Two recently released CDs highlight the works of legendary musicians Neil Diamond and Frank Sinatra, though Ol’ Blue Eyes gets his glory through Jewish singer Michael Feinstein.
Here’s the lineup:
The Very Best of Neil Diamond: The Original Studio Recordings
(Columbia/Legacy)
Few singer/songwriters have had more sustained success than Neil Diamond, and few deserve to be repackaged and reintroduced to fans — old and new — as much as he does. That may be why the vault-dwelling denizens at Columbia/Legacy have seen it fit to honor Neil yet one more time.
This new collection of one of America’s most timeless songwriters is a greatest hits collection in the truest sense of the word. From original renditions of such coverable classics as “I’m a Believer,” “Red, Red Wine” and “Girl, You’ll Be Woman Soon” to a delicate duet with Barbara Streisand of “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers,” and such truly original offerings as the proud “America,” and the ballpark favorite “Sweet Caroline,” there is nary a “fluff” cut on the disc.
Just shy of two dozen tracks, make this a collection to get lost in for a bit and to come back to again and again, just as so many people come back to Neil year after year.
Michael Feinstein—The Sinatra Project, Vol. II: The Good Life (Concord)
Though he may have run out of “signature” songs on this follow-up to the Grammy-nominated “Sinatra Project,” Feinstein brings his own signature voice to a second set of songs that capture Sinatra’s sense of style and swing. From the bouncy last-man-on-earth fantasy of “Thirteen Women,” to the aching loss of “C’est Comme Ça,” to the richly orchestrated duet of “Luck be a Lady” and “All I Need is the Girl,” Feinstein brings a new palette of mood and tone to these timeless tunes.
While a few of these selections are clearly Sinatra songs (among them “The Way You Look Tonight” and “The Lady is a Tramp”), Feinstein also pays tribute to other master interpreters (and Sinatra satellites) such as Ray Charles (“Hallelujah I Love Her So”), Tony Bennett (“The Good Life”) and even Stevie Wonder (“For Once in My Life”) and Tom Cat (a take on “Is You Is Or Is You Ain’t My Baby?” that also takes a coda from “On Broadway”).
Though Volume II may be more about the board (of which Feinstein was often a humble member) than the chairman himself, Feinstein brings his impeccable musical intellect and pervasive melodic passion to his latest well-chosen and beautifully crafted tribute album. The Voice may be gone, but Feinstein does an admirable job of sustaining the spirit that infused it and helped it dominate the musical universe.