Sandie Shaw Albums (5)
What The Critics Say
On her last album of the '60s, Shaw proved that she was hipper than a lot of people would have suspected. Moving away from the usual light pop and MOR, she chose a set of covers heavy on material by the likes of Bob Dylan, the Lovin' Spoonful, the Rolling Stones ("Sympathy for the Devil"!), Led Zeppelin's "Your Time Is Gonna Come" (double exclamation point!), Donovan, Dr. John, and the Bee Gees. Which doesn't mean it's a great album. It's thoughtfully arranged and energetically delivered, but Shaw's slight, wispy voice is as ill-suited for some of the material as a nun is for the mosh pit. Hearing her attempt even the slightest hint of funky menace, as on "Sympathy for the Devil" and Dr. John's "Mama Roux," is apt to induce snickers, however heartfelt the endeavor might have been. On the other hand, there's a nifty, slinky, jazzy cover of the Beatles' "Love Me Do," and her version of the Spoonful's "Coconut Grove" is also good. [The 2004 CD reissue on EMI adds two bonus tracks: a cover of Paul McCartney's "Junk"" and "Frank Mills" from Hair.] ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Fresh from her triumph at the 1967 Eurovision Song Contest, Shaw concentrated on determinedly MOR pop (not pop/rock) material on her third album. The program focused on songs by Jacques Brel, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Cole Porter, and the like, with only two contributions by her longtime songwriter Chris Andrews. She's no Barbra Streisand, to put it mildly, and the results held little charm either for her fan base or the larger adult market that she may have been trying to reach. The CD reissue is made more palatable by the addition of both sides of four 1967-68 singles, almost all of which were written by Andrews. These are more consistent with the pop/rock lite of her mid-'60s work, but are weaker than her biggest hits, although "Tonight in Tokyo," "You've Not Changed," and "Today" all made the UK Top 30; the Motown-influenced B-side "Stop" may be the highlight of the batch, although that's not saying much. ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide
'Always Something There to Remind Me'
Release Date 1/1/1964
Tracks 13
Label Pye
See Album Tracklist and Review
