A 25-track collection of lush, string-laden love
ballads
from the likes of
Al Martino
,
Eddie Fisher
Tony Bennett
Johnnie Ray
, and others, all transferred from the original 78s, this anthology from England's
Memoir Records
provides a glimpse of an era when crooners reigned. There isn't a lot of pacing here, and since each track is set in the same ultra-emotive
ballad
tempo, things seem to move at a glacier's pace after a few cuts, but there are plenty of gems here, including
's poignant
"When We're Young,"
Dean Martin
's easy, cool, and jaunty
"You and Your Beautiful Eyes,"
and
's patented sighs in
"Please Mr. Sun."
~ Steve Leggett