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When Will I See You Again
Studio album by
ReleasedMarch 1975 [1]
RecordedJanuary 13, 1975
January 20, 1975
January 23, 1975 [1]
Genre
Length33:42
Label Columbia
ProducerJohn Florez [3]
Johnny Mathis chronology
The Heart of the Woman
(1974)
When Will I See You Again
(1975)
Feelings
(1975)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic [2]
Billboardpositive [4]

When Will I See You Again is an album by American pop singer Johnny Mathis that was released in March 1975 [1] by Columbia Records and was again predominantly composed of covers of recent hit songs by other artists.

The album made its first appearance on Billboard magazine's Top LP's & Tapes chart in the issue dated April 19, 1975, and remained there for 13 weeks, peaking at number 99. [5] It entered the UK album chart on July 26, 1975, and reached number 13 during its 10 weeks there. [6] On September 1, 1975, the British Phonographic Industry awarded the album with Silver certification for sales of 60,000 units. [7]

Reception

Joe Viglione of AllMusic, writing retrospectively, warns, "If the casual fan thinks the album is full of Philly sound knockoffs, guess again. Producer John Florez and arranger/conductor D'Arneill Pershing align the stars perfectly for Mathis." [2] He enjoyed a variety of songs on this release, especially the title track, which he describes as "reinvented -- one voice leading the charge with backing vocals chiming in at the right time. Where the Three Degrees punched it for all it was worth as a team effort, Johnny Mathis reads the sentiment over a light disco beat with that soul sound that Gamble & Huff manufactured kept to a minimum. The Platters' ' Only You' may seem like a quantum leap away from the '70s compositions that predominate this collection, but the arrangement borders on jazz/pop and fits nicely alongside the other pretty moments here." [2] He also highlights his favorites from side two. "The medley of Paul Williams/ Roger Nichols tunes, ' I Won't Last a Day Without You'/' Let Me Be the One', which leads off side two, is as immaculate as the closing number, 'The Things I Might Have Been', making for another very good no-bumps-in-the-road Johnny Mathis release." [2]

Track listing

Side one

  1. " Mandy" ( Scott English, Richard Kerr) – 3:31
  2. " Nice to Be Around" ( John Williams, Paul Williams) – 3:52
  3. "You're As Right As Rain" ( Thom Bell, Linda Creed) – 3:02
  4. " When Will I See You Again" ( Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff) – 2:35
  5. " Only You (And You Alone)" ( Buck Ram) – 2:50

Side two

  1. Medley – 4:06
    a. " Let Me Be the One" (Roger Nichols, Paul Williams)
    b. " I Won't Last a Day Without You" (Nichols, Paul Williams)
  2. " The Way We Were" from The Way We Were ( Alan Bergman, Marilyn Bergman, Marvin Hamlisch) – 3:49
  3. " Laughter in the Rain" ( Neil Sedaka, Phil Cody) – 2:31
  4. " You and Me Against the World" ( Kenny Ascher, Paul Williams) – 3:59
  5. "The Things I Might Have Been" ( Richard M. Sherman, Robert B. Sherman) – 3:27

Recording dates

From the liner notes for The Voice of Romance: The Columbia Original Album Collection: [1]

  • January 13, 1975 – "Laughter in the Rain", "Only You (And You Alone)", "The Way We Were", "You and Me Against the World"
  • January 20, 1975 – "Mandy", "The Things I Might Have Been", "When Will I See You Again"
  • January 23, 1975 – "Let Me Be the One/I Won't Last a Day Without You", "Nice to Be Around", "You're As Right As Rain"

Song information

The most successful incarnation of " Mandy" was by Barry Manilow, who spent a week at number one with the song on the Billboard Hot 100 [8] and two weeks in the top spot on the magazine's Easy Listening chart [9] in addition to reaching number 11 in the UK [10] and receiving Gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America. [11] " Nice to Be Around" originated in the 1973 film Cinderella Liberty as "You're So Nice to Be Around" [12] and also " bubbled under" the Hot 100 to number 101 as a recording by Maureen McGovern [13] that also got as high as number 28 Easy Listening. [14] "You're As Right As Rain" first appeared on the 1972 Stylistics album Round 2. [15]

" When Will I See You Again" by The Three Degrees enjoyed two weeks at number one on the UK singles chart [16] and a week in that position on Billboard's Easy Listening chart, [17] peaked at number two pop [18] and number four R&B, [19] and received Platinum certification from the RIAA. [20] The Platters had the biggest hit version of " Only You (And You Alone)", which spent seven weeks at number one R&B [21] and made it to number five on the Billboard Hot 100. [22] " Let Me Be the One" first appeared on the self-titled 1971 album by The Carpenters, [23] and the brother-and-sister duo also had the most popular recording of " I Won't Last a Day Without You", which had a week at number one on the Easy Listening chart [24] and got as high as number 11 pop [25] and number nine UK. [26]

" The Way We Were" earned songwriters Alan Bergman, Marilyn Bergman, and Marvin Hamlisch the Grammy Award for Song of the Year [27] and the Academy Award for Best Original Song. [28] Barbra Streisand's recording of the song went Gold, [29] spent three weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 [30] and two weeks in the Easy Listening top spot, [31] and peaked at number 31 UK. [32] Neil Sedaka's " Laughter in the Rain" also spent two weeks at number one Easy Listening [33] in addition to enjoying a week in that position on the pop chart [34] and peaking at number 15 in the UK. [35] Another number one Easy Listening hit that Mathis covers here, " You and Me Against the World" by Helen Reddy, [36] also made it to number nine on the Hot 100. [37] And by the time this album was released, "The Things I Might Have Been" had been recorded as a solo by Kitty Wells, [38] Willie Nelson, [39] and Roy Clark [40] and as a duet by Kris Kristofferson and Rita Coolidge. [41]

Personnel

From the liner notes of the original album: [3]

  • Johnny Mathis – vocals
  • John Florez – producer
  • D'Arneill Pershing - arranger, conductor
  • Grover Helsley – engineer
  • Emerson-Loew – photography
  • Ron Coro – design
  • Nancy Donald – design

References

  1. ^ a b c d (2017) The Voice of Romance: The Columbia Original Album Collection by Johnny Mathis [CD booklet]. New York: Sony Music Entertainment 88985 36892 2.
  2. ^ a b c d e "When Will I See You Again - Johnny Mathis". allmusic.com. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 10 May 2013.
  3. ^ a b (1975) When Will I See You Again by Johnny Mathis [album jacket]. New York: Columbia Records PC 33420.
  4. ^ "Top Album Picks". Billboard. 1975-04-05. p. 52.
  5. ^ Whitburn 2010, p. 504.
  6. ^ "Johnny Mathis - Albums". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 10 May 2013.
  7. ^ "BPI Certified Awards". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 24 July 2017. Type Johnny Mathis in the Keywords box and select Artist in the Search by box and click Search.
  8. ^ Whitburn 2009, p. 612.
  9. ^ Whitburn 2007, p. 172.
  10. ^ "Barry Manilow". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  11. ^ "Gold & Platinum". riaa.com. Retrieved 1 January 2017. Type Barry Manilow in the Search box and press Enter.
  12. ^ "Cinderella Liberty (1973) - Soundtracks - IMDb". imdb.com. Amazon.com. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  13. ^ Whitburn 2009, p. 640.
  14. ^ Whitburn 2007, p. 184.
  15. ^ (1972) Round 2 by The Stylistics [album jacket]. New York: Avco Records AV 11006-598.
  16. ^ "Three Degrees". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  17. ^ Whitburn 2007, p. 276.
  18. ^ Whitburn 2009, p. 977.
  19. ^ Whitburn 2004, p. 578.
  20. ^ "Gold & Platinum". riaa.com. Retrieved 1 January 2017. Type Three Degrees in the Search box and press Enter.
  21. ^ Whitburn 2004, p. 463.
  22. ^ Whitburn 2009, p. 764.
  23. ^ (1971) Carpenters by The Carpenters [album jacket]. Hollywood: A&M Records SP 3502.
  24. ^ Whitburn 2007, p. 44.
  25. ^ Whitburn 2009, p. 162.
  26. ^ "Carpenters". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  27. ^ O'Neil 1999, p. 222.
  28. ^ Wiley & Bona 1996, p. 1113.
  29. ^ "Gold & Platinum". riaa.com. Retrieved 1 January 2017. Type Barbra Streisand in the Search box and press Enter.
  30. ^ Whitburn 2009, p. 943.
  31. ^ Whitburn 2007, p. 266.
  32. ^ "Barbra Streisand". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 19 May 2013.
  33. ^ Whitburn 2007, p. 245.
  34. ^ Whitburn 2009, p. 867.
  35. ^ "Neil Sedaka". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 19 May 2013.
  36. ^ Whitburn 2007, p. 226.
  37. ^ Whitburn 2009, p. 805.
  38. ^ (1956) Country Hit Parade by Kitty Wells [album jacket]. New York: Decca Records DL 8293.
  39. ^ (1963) Here's Willie Nelson by Willie Nelson [album jacket]. Hollywood: Liberty Records LRP 3308.
  40. ^ (1963) Roy Clark Sings The Tip of My Fingers by Roy Clark [album jacket]. Hollywood: Capitol Records ST 1972.
  41. ^ (1974) Breakaway by Kris Kristofferson and Rita Coolidge [album jacket]. Nashville: Monument Records PZ 33278.

Bibliography

  • O'Neil, Thomas (1999), The Grammys, Perigree Books, ISBN  0399524770
  • Whitburn, Joel (2004), Joel Whitburn Presents Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles, 1942-2004, Record Research Inc., ISBN  0-89820-160-8
  • Whitburn, Joel (2007), Joel Whitburn Presents Billboard Top Adult Songs, 1961-2006, Record Research Inc., ISBN  978-0898201697
  • Whitburn, Joel (2009), Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 1955-2008, Record Research Inc., ISBN  978-0-89820-180-2
  • Whitburn, Joel (2010), Joel Whitburn Presents Top Pop Albums, Seventh Edition, Record Research Inc., ISBN  978-0-89820-183-3
  • Wiley, Mason; Bona, Damien (1996), Inside Oscar: The Unofficial History of the Academy Awards, Ballantine Books, ISBN  0345400534