We've Only Just Begun / Let's Spend The Night Together

Description by OLDIES.com:

Claudine Longet's smooth, surreal voice was the key to her creation of some of the most sophisticated pop albums in the 1960s. We've Only Just Begun marks Longet's first work with Barnaby. An impressive transition from the 60s to the 70s is evident upon first listen, which justifies the range of talent that Longet possesses. The album was originally released by Barnaby in 1969.

Originally released by Barnaby in 1972, Let's Spend the Night Together was the last album that Caludine Longet ever recorded. What resulted was a fantastic compilation of Longet's takes on artist's ranging from Kris Kristofferson to Graham Nash to The Rolling Stones. The quality of this album is confirmed with backup musicians such as guitarist Larry Carlton and bassist Joe Osborn.

Product Description:

2 LP's on 1 CD: WE'VE ONLY JUST BEGUN / LET'S SPEND THE NIGHT

French pop singer Claudine Longet was never known for her strong vocals. A pretty face, Andy Williams' wife, and later a marksman of deadly skill, but never a great singer. These two albums serve as proof of that. We've Only Just Begun (1969) features Longet's fragile wisp of a voice trailing gently through some of the biggest soft pop hits of then-recent vintage as well as a few obscure tracks. The musical backing is cotton-candy sweet, overflowing with strings, gently strummed guitars, and waves of backing vocals in order to give listeners something other than her voice to focus all their attention on. Strangely, it all adds up into a pleasurable listening experience -- a little ironic but still better than it has any right to be. Longet's stilted phrasing and inability to emote even a little give the record an otherworldly feel that elevates the proceedings a notch above the easy listening norm. For some reason, she sounds best on uptempo tracks like "Ain't No Mountain High Enough," "Make It With You," and Donovan's obscure "Electric Moon" -- her take on Bobby Goldsboro's "Broomstick Cowboy" is almost exciting. The ballads are decent enough, though she proves herself to be no Karen Carpenter on "(They Long to Be) Close to You" and "We've Only Just Begun." Where the album falls apart is on tracks like "Cry Me a River" and "What Have They Done to My Song, Ma," where they take an overly cutesy novelty approach. Nobody really needs to hear a riverboat jazz version of "Cry Me a River." Ever. Still, if you skip that song the record is quite enjoyable. So is the album it is paired with on this 2005 release from Collectables. On Let's Spend the Night Together (1972), she takes a slightly hipper approach both in the song selections (the Beach Boys' "God Only Knows," Neil Young's "Birds," Leonard Cohen's "Hey That's No Way to Say Goodbye") and in the arrangements, which are heavy on the acoustic guitars and light on the strings and backing vocals. Longet still sings like a French mannequin, but the surroundings give her more of a chance to show a touch of emotion -- and she does here and there, especially on "God Only Knows" and Kris Kristofferson's "When I Loved Him." Her relaxed bongos-and-slide-guitar version of "Let's Spend the Night Together" is a real easy pop gem; it's hard to believe it hasn't shown up on more compilations and it's also hard to believe anyone could resist her request. No one is going to mistake her for an important artist, but this record and We've Only Just Begun show that she really is no joke, either. ~ Tim Sendra

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CD Details:

• Original Album #1: Barnaby 30377 (1969)
  
• Original Album #2: Barnaby 15001 (1972)
  
• Format: CD
  
• Genre: Vocals
  
• Label: Collectables Records
  
• Originally Released in: 2005
  
• Release Date: April 26, 2005
  
• OLDIES.com Sales Rank: 17,913
  
• Item Number: COL 7690
  
• UPC: 090431769027
  
• Shipping Weight: 0.25/lbs (approx); Counts as 1 item for International Shipping.