Ray Conniff - Happiness Is (CD)

All Music Guide

An aggressively "happy" album by Ray Conniff and his singers, Happiness Is. combines exuberant singalongs, wordless vocals, and instrumentals into a grab-bag album that covers many -- if not most -- of Conniff's bases. A couple of mellow moments don't detract from the overarching sunniness of the album, which lapses into delicious self-parody with "Popsy" and the hilarious title track (co-written by former teen idol Paul Evans). "The Sheik of Araby" is whistled to a shuffling soft-shoe rhythm, and the joyous ba-ba's totally eclipse the inherent loneliness of "Blue Moon." Happiness Is is a fun and very funny album that once again shows Conniff's self-effacing sense of humor.

- Greg Adams, All Music Guide