![]() ![]() ![]() To say the Beatles made nearly everything that had come before them sound and look ridiculously antique and wildly unhip would be a gargantuan understatement. airwaves, TV screens and actual shores, all the saccharine artists and tunes that had been so dominant at the start of the decade were straight-up done for. Yup, once the British Invasion hit the U.S. He was also a fledgling pop star himself, scoring a solid handful of hits during the first half of the’60s, the best known being evergreen goofballs “Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen” and “Calendar Girl”(composed with writing partner Howard Greenfield). Alas, doom was on the horizon for all the teen sweethearts of the early ’60s pop universe with their pastel sweaters and corny love songs. Neil began his career as part of the songwriting stable at the legendary Brill Building in NYC in the late ’50s along with Gerry Goffin and Carole King. ![]() All of which is to say, it was a great time to be Neil Sedaka. And it was not uncommon for these songs to hit the heights in the illustrious pop top 40. It was downright normal to see people your parents’ (occasionally even grandparents’) age, with sideburns and unbuttoned shirts, performing their latest frothy radio-friendly single on prime-time network television. ![]() It was surprisingly common for songs performed by artists 35 and up to be rubbing shoulders with the songs by the “kids.” Not only did radio embrace the “ageless” approach, but all the afternoon talk shows and nighttime variety hours on TV were complicit with the notion. You didn’t have to be a hot young thing in your early twenties (or younger) to score a massive hit. When it came to the pop charts in the ’70s, age literally was just a number. “Love Will Keep Us Together” was the musical embodiment of everything the Captain & Tennille seemed to be about, a mission statement if you will, a song so aligned with their whole persona, so custom fit to their sugary weirdness, that even 45+ years later it’s still hard to believe it was a freakin’ cover. Where Captain & Tennille wanted to go from here remained uncertain, but they were certainly off to a flying start here.If asked to pick a song that best encapsulates the swinging ’70s in all its shag-carpeted, Pet Rock’d, earth-shoed glory, you’d be hard pressed to find a better specimen than the Captain & Tennille’s 1975 #1 hit “Love Will Keep Us Together.” Infectious, bouncy, and supremely sticky, sounding like both a commercial jingle and the kind of thing a Disney World in-house performing arts ensemble would include in the love-themed portion of their act (see the legendarily tacky incredible-ness of “ Up With People,” or even better, The Simpsons‘ reimagined take “ Hooray For Everything“), it was POP with a capitol P and Proud of it. However, wistful anthems like "Gentle Stranger" and "Honey Come Love Me" are quintessential snapshots of what they did best - providing a kinder, gentler response to the more cynical fare topping the charts at the time. (The other intriguing link is drummer Hal Blaine, who graced numerous classic Beach Boys tracks and appears here as a sideman.) Given so many glittering non-originals, it's understandable how the pair's songwriting gets short-shrifted "Broddy Bounce" is pure instrumental filler, all right. There's a haunting, piano-led "Cuddle Up," which Dragon co-wrote with Beach Boys drummer Dennis Wilson, and a daring revamp of "God Only Knows" which deploys ever-shifting tempos to trip up the listener's expectations ( Brian Wilson would surely have approved). Smoldering versions of former Beach Boy Bruce Johnston's "Disney Girls" and "I Write the Songs" stand tallest, with Tennille leading the vocal charge to exceptional effect. But there are greater items of interest once you get past the hits, led by the bouncy title track and "The Way I Want to Touch You." Keyboardist Daryl Dragon honed his chops touring with the Beach Boys, whose own emotive choral approach underpins much of this album no less than four songs here have some connection to the band. As debut albums go, Captain & Tennille's coming-out party struck the right chord with their audience - and not just on the charts, although its showing there certainly outdid all expectations. ![]()
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