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From the Vault...
05/14/2006
#994 |
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info
Olivia Newton-John
"Back To Basics: The Essential Collection 1971-1992"
© Geffen Records
Year of Release: 1992
Rating:
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track listing
Deeper Than A River
Not Gonna Be The One
I Want To Be Wanted
I Need Love
Twist Of Fate
Physical
Magic
Deeper Than The Night
A Little More Love
You're The One
That I Want
Summer Nights
Hopelessly Devoted
To You
Please Mr. Please
Sam
Have You Never
Been Mellow
If You Love Me
(Let Me Know)
I Honestly Love You
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Olivia Newton-John
"Back To Basics: The Essential Collection 1971-1992"
Ahh... Another 1970s staple... Olivia Newton-John... Whether you liked her
or not, her popularity in the 1970s was categorized as what many critics felt
of the decade that was the worst in music. Well, comparing the 1970s decade
to the 1990s and even today, I can easily go back to the 1970s and appreciate
the music that came out from there. Where those critics said alot of the songs
from the '70s was just plain out boring, I totally disagree. Some songs did
have the mellow, laid back style, yet they became hits in their own rights,
for those who enjoyed this kind of music, and to those who just didn't.
Olivia Newton-John definitely fitted in this part of the 1970s decade,
with her mellow hits, such as "Please Mr. Please," her #1 "Have You
Never Been Mellow," and of course, she started out the 1980s with her
song that made people more aware of their healths, and a fitness craze,
"Physical." She began her career recording for UNI/MCA Records, and
later signed with Geffen Records, where her compilation, Back To
Basics-The Essential Collection 1971-1992 captures her best hits from
the two decades. Also, of course, there are a few songs that were unreleased.
The first 4 songs I'm assuming were new hits, and/or probably not released
on previous albums. This is my assumption, as I was reading the liner notes,
it showed the four songs with no reference of the year it was released. In fact,
the years were not referenced for any of the songs throughout this compilation,
except showing album covers for each song. The album covers shown for the first
four songs was the Back To Basics one.
The first four new songs: "Deeper Than A River" sounds like Paula
Abdul's "Rush Rush," but more upbeat. "Not Gonna Be The One"
has a new 1990s sound, "I Want To Be Wanted" is the Brenda Lee remake,
with an updated mellow sound. "I Need Love" has Olivia Newton-John
meeting the latest R&B style. It easily fits the Soul of even today's
artists, 10+ years later, assuming it was recorded in the early 1990s.
"Twist Of Fate," the title track of the movie with John Travolta,
after Grease, has a very mid-1980s style, as heard from another movie
soundtrack, Footloose. "Magic," a song that would reach #1,
was from another movie, Xanadu. The movie may have been forgettable,
(just as Twist Of Fate), and to some, so was this #1 hit.
Two songs from her Olivia release -- "Deeper Than The Night"
may not have been rememmbered as the other hit which I vividly remember, "A
Little More Love." The next 3 songs were very VERY remembered by all, from
the smash movie Grease with John Travolta: The #1 duet with Travolta,
"You're The One That I Want," "Summer Nights," and "Hopelessly Devoted
To You."
Ending out the compilation are her most memorable 1970s hits, "Please
Mr. Please," "Have You Never Been Mellow," "If You Love Me (Let Me Know)"
and "I Honestly Love You." (which also hit #1). "Sam," another
song that may not ring bells was from her Don't Stop Believin' release --
a song very mellow, easily fitting the Lite Rock/Easy Listening formats.
All her hits are here and a bit more -- it's a good collection for the
O.N-J fans. My only "complaint" is where most compilations display the songs
in chronological order, this one started with the later songs, then backwards
to the beginning of her career. It's probably best to set the songs on your
CD player from last to first, and hear how her career progressed. Either way,
it's a very good compilation of one of the popular artists of that so-called
"boring" 1970s decade -- Olivia Newton-John, or for those not so fortunate
call her, "Oblivious Neutron-Bomb." (I wasn't one of those "less fortunate";
I enjoyed her music, just as the rest of them who did, yet some didn't want to
admit it.) [C'mon guys, admit it, you LOVED seeing her in the black leather at
the end of the Grease movie, didn't ya? And you DIDN'T drool when you
saw her "Physical" video??? Huh Huh Huh? LOL]
Ahhh. The 1970s... < sigh >
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