CONNIE FRANCIS - Happiness - (MGM ) - 1967, comment, review, On Broadway Today

The album is subtitled “Connie Francis on Broadway Today”

And that sums up the album.

Connie does Broadway songs popular circa 1967.

Every song (with one exception) from “current shows or shows about to open”, according to the liner notes. Not sure which is the exception as “Golden Boy” and “Fiddler on the Roof” both had Broadway debuts in 1964, and “Man of La Mancha” debuted on Broadway in 1965.

The Broadway album was a fixture amongst trad pop singers like Tony Bennett “Mr. Broadway” (1962), Frank Sinatra “My Kind of Broadway” (1965), Andy Williams “Songs From My Fair Lady And Other Broadway Hits” (1964), Bing Crosby “Sings The Song Hits From Broadway” (1948), as well as rock and pop singers like Bobby Darin “In A Broadway Bag” (1966).

Connie was friendly with Bobby so maybe she got the inspiration from him?

Then again Connie tackled all the trends in music styles in her albums: country and western, folk, foreign language, Hawaiian music, Broadway, religious songs, film songs, twist songs, children’s songs, rock and pop ….

And, she rarely failed.

Are the albums held high today?

No.

But, they are all listenable with some, naturally enough, being better than others.

What holds them together is her professionalism and wilfulness to play around with the songs a little without departing too far as to make them unrecognizable or to displease a lover of the original.

Broadway songs by their nature – being sung from a stage – need a bit of bombast (both in vocals and instrumentation) behind them. Even the quiet songs are meant to thump you around the head.

I have nothing against that but Connie is a pop singer.

She can do bombast but her sensibility is in pop.

So, these songs are, without doubt, still Broadway bound (sic) but there is a pop sensibility replacing the bombastic frills of the originals.

That gives them less power. Still listenable, but less power when compared to the originals. Some of the songs are actually better than the Broadway originals but they will never replace them.

I also note a Broadway album in the “Summer of Love” is visibly anachronistic. I don’t assume Connie is going to go braless, put flowers in her hair or “go to San Francisco” but this one is well out of step.

And, that may be an admiral quality.

According to the liner notes Connie chose the songs and concentrated on love songs and love songs that are upbeat. She felt that too many singers sang “sad songs, unrequited love songs, themes of melancholy and despair and a heart that’s tattered and torn from disappointment”.

So maybe this is a “summer of love”, Connie style.

Connie was 29 years old and already “of a different era”. Her audience had changed. She wasn’t singing for people younger than her, or of her age, but for older types.

There is no problem with that … as long as they buy the records …. and they were buying them less and less.

Produced by Bob Morgan.

Tracks (best in italics)

Side One

Happiness – (Clark Gesner) – from the musical “You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown” – a highlight and sing perfectly.
Together Forever/My Cup Runneth Over (Medley) – (Harvey Schmidt, Tom Jones) – from the musical “I Do! I Do!” – quite beautifully arranged and sung with great dreamlike backing vocals.
Hallelujah, Baby – (Jule Styne, Adolph Green, Betty Comden) – from the musical “Hallelujah, Baby!” – big and brassy. Connie does it okay.
Willkommen & Cabaret (Medley)- (John Kander, Fred Ebb) – from the musical “Cabaret” – The 1972 movie soundtrack with Liza Minnelli is perhaps the best-known of the recordings. Bigger and brassier. Connie’s version is close(er) to the Broadway version but Liza’s subsequent “big” version of the second part of the medley is what everyone wants to hear.
Fiddler On The Roof/To Life (L’chaim) (Medley)- (Jerry Bock, Sheldon Harnick) – from the musical “Fiddler on the Roof” – a song to be sung by a large Jewish man in full voice here done by a small Italian girl. Hmmmmm.
Walking Happy – (Jimmy Van Heusen, Sammy Cahn) – from the musical “Walking Happy” – catchy and pleasant

Side Two

Illya Darling – (Manos Hadjidakis, Joe Darion) – from the musical “Illya Darling” – not too bad. Melina Mercouri did it on stage. Connie captures the continental European quality in the song.
If They Could See Me Now/I’m A Brass Band (Medley) – (Cy Coleman, Dorothy Fields) – from the musical “Sweet Charity” – the best known version comes from the 1969 film starring Shirley MacLaine. This version is no way near brassy enough, in vocals or brass.
Sherry – (Laurence Rosenthal, James Lipton) – from the musical “Sherry!” – well sung.
I Wanna Be With You – (Charles Strouse, Lee Adams) – from the musical “Golden Boy) – Sammy Davis Jr did this in the Broadway production from 1964 and has the gravitas. Connie doesn’t..
My Best Beau – (Jerry Herman) – from the musical “Mame” – a well sung trad pop ballad.
The Impossible Dream – (Mitch Leigh, Joe Darion) – from the musical “Man of La Mancha” – The only pop hit. The song has been done by everyone including Ed Ames (1966), Jack Jones (with altered lyrics) (1966) (#35 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart and went to #1 on the adult contemporary chart), Frank Sinatra (1966), Jim Nabors (1966), The Temptations (1967), The Vogues (1968), Glen Campbell (1968), Andy Williams (1968), Cher (1968), Sammy Davis, Jr. (1969), Scott Walker (1969), Elvis Presley (1972). I like when blokes sing this song with a lot of drama (because it is a blokes song lyrically) but Connie does a great version. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Impossible_Dream_(The_Quest)