Ah, New York, New York! The big apple! City of dreams! The town so nice they named it twice! Where would songwriters be without having the Big Town to use as a metaphor and/or a setting where big hopes and bigger challenges face every person who walks those mean streets? Two dozen classic and songs about life in the Big City are collected on , a compilation from that pays musical homage to New York and its musical identity. These tunes were recorded between 1962 and 1972, with most dating from the mid-'60s, and while not all of the songs specifically namecheck New York City, all tell stories of the hustle and bustle of metropolitan life, from the celebratory ( 's ) to the bittersweet ( by ). Appropriately, most of these tracks lean to the polished Brill Building production style that ruled the airwaves in the mid-'60s, though 's cover of adds some potent Latin flavor to the disc (as does ), and the great transplants a bit of Southern soul to his window box with A few key songs appear in cover versions, most notably 's recording of (a major hit for ), but compilers have done a splendid job of tracking down great performances of tunes related to their theme, and is superb listening either for native New Yorkers celebrating their hometown or outsiders who've fallen in love with Manhattan's image in the media. ~ Mark Deming