Ray Conniff & the Singers - It Must Be Him/Honey (CD)

All Music Guide

A good matchup of two similar and consecutive LP releases is offered on this discount-priced two-fer. It Must Be Him and Honey were Ray Conniff's first two albums of 1968, and they were among his more successful, each enjoying a long chart run and earning gold record certification. Conniff had updated his arranging style by this point, adapting himself to the rock revolution by bringing in electric guitars and beefing up the sound of the rhythm section, but he hadn't changed his basic approach. All 22 tracks here are his versions of songs that were in the pop charts between 1964 and 1968, originally recorded by the likes of British Invasion acts like the Beatles and Herman's Hermits as well as a slew of middle-of-the-road pop singers. Some of the songs, notably "Yesterday," "Sounds of Silence," and "Goin' Out of My Head," as well as the trio of songs written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David and the two written by Jimmy Webb, have gone on to become standards. Others are more of their tim...e, though they may spark a smile of recognition among '60s nostalgia fans. Conniff's arrangements shadow those of the original recordings, while his singers render the lyrics in a consistently pleasant, superficial style, even when they are negotiating the disquieting sentiments of "Sounds of Silence," for example. The indiscriminate use of male voices on lyrics written from a female point of view sometimes lends an unintended subtext of sexual ambiguity ("It must be him," sing the boys and girls with apparently equal ardor) -- that is, if you want to hear it that way. Maybe the best way to appreciate this long-outdated style of music is with a sense of humor. - William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide Read more Less