Telly Savalas - Telly

All Music Guide

If Telly Savalas really loved ya, baby, he would have refused MCA's offer to cut this album. Released at the pinnacle of Kojak fever, Telly is the quintessential sobadit'sgood celebrity record, wrought from nothing but ego and excess. "People know that singing is not my bag," Savalas writes in his liner notes, "but if I say, 'Hey, this is how Telly feels about this or that song,' I can't mistakes. I can only make mistakes by pretending to be a great singer." Ummm...okay. Thing is, no one is asking Savalas to be a great singer if nothing else, he's got a wonderfully gritty New York accent that could make for some cool protorap spoken word performances, but the producers instead drown him out with overbaked arrangements. Still, you haven't lived until you've heard Savalas interpret classics like "Something" and "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'." The man puts the "pop" in "lollipop."

- Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide