Born Free | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | April 10, 1967 [1] | |||
Recorded | 1967 | |||
Genre |
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Length | 33:39 | |||
Label | Columbia Stereo CS 9480 Mono CL 2680 | |||
Producer | Nick DeCaro [3] | |||
Andy Williams chronology | ||||
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Collectables reissue | ||||
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Allmusic | [2] |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [4] |
New Record Mirror | [5] |
Born Free is the twentieth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams and was released on April 10, 1967, by Columbia Records [1] and includes half a dozen songs associated with movies or musicals. Two of these tracks, however, originated in the scores of the films indicated on the album jacket but had lyrics added later: the melody for "Strangers in the Night" was written for A Man Could Get Killed , and "Somewhere My Love" began as "Lara's Theme" from Doctor Zhivago .
The album made its first appearance on Billboard 's Top LP's chart in the issue dated May 13, 1967, and remained there for 79 weeks, peaking at number five. [6] it also debuted on the Cashbox albums chart in the issue dated May 6, of that year, and remained on the chart for in a total of 31 weeks, peaking at 6 [7] The album received Gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America on July 6, 1967, [8] and that same month it began 11 weeks on the UK album chart, where it reached number 22. [9]
The single from the album, "Music to Watch Girls By", was available two months before the album was released and first appeared on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the issue of the magazine dated March 25, eventually reaching number 34 over the course of eight weeks. [10] The song performed even better on the Easy Listening chart after debuting in the issue dated April 1 and spending a week at number two during a 13-week stay. [11] It debuted on the UK charts shortly thereafter, on May 6, and stayed around for six weeks, peaking at number 33. The song was reissued there in 1999 and spent another six weeks on the chart, this time reaching number nine. [12]
The album was released on compact disc for the first time as one of two albums on one CD by Collectables Records on March 23, 1999, the other album being Williams's Columbia release from the fall of 1967, Love, Andy . [13] It was also released as one of two albums on one CD by Sony Music Distribution on May 14, 2001, paired this time with Williams's Columbia album from December 1966, In the Arms of Love . [14] The original album covers are displayed side by side on the front of these CD reissues, and it is clear that the color of the Born Free cover has been enhanced considerably for the Collectables release, as Williams's suntanned face from the original LP cover shown on the Sony release now has a more psychedelic orange glow. The Collectables CD was included in a box set entitled Classic Album Collection, Vol. 1, which contains 17 of his studio albums and three compilations and was released on June 26, 2001. [15]
William Ruhlmann of Allmusic remarked that this album "marked a notable contemporization of the Williams formula. On his most recent albums, The Shadow of Your Smile and In the Arms of Love, he had leaned toward Brazilian sounds, recording more obscure material and several standards from the interwar period." [2] He also explained why the change may have happened: "In the Arms of Love, released only four months before Born Free, had sold disappointingly. Williams reacted by dropping the bossa nova and the oldies and looked more to the recent pop charts for covers like Bobby Hebb's 'Sunny.'" [2] Ruhlmann suggested that Williams was trying to reach as wide of an audience as possible. "At a time when non-rock pop singers were beginning to be marginalized, Williams successfully threaded the needle, reassuring his older listeners while proving adaptable to current trends." [2]
Billboard gave a postive review, described the album as "a powerhouse album" [16]
Cashbox gave a postive results, saying that "he performs with his characteristic smoothness and mellowness" [17]
New Record Mirror called it "an exquisite album", and noted that "His version of "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye" is tender [5]
This was Williams's 13th studio album for Columbia Records and the first of those that was not produced by Robert Mersey. The credits are from the liner notes for the original album: [3]
Lonely Street is the fifth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams, released in late 1959 through Cadence Records. This, his fifth LP of new material for the label, is described by William Ruhlmann on AllMusic.com as "an album full of songs of lost love and loneliness that found Williams using more of the Mel Tormé-like foggy lower register of his voice." The liner notes on the back of the album jacket read, "The selections in Lonely Street, Andy confides, are those for which he feels a special affection. Every vocalist has a few personal favorites... and it is quite clear to the listener that this collection presents songs which Andy Williams believes, feels -- and loves."
Andy Williams' Greatest Hits is a compilation album by American pop singer Andy Williams that was released in early 1970 by Columbia Records. It was not, however, as its title might suggest, strictly a hit singles compilation, although some of his biggest songs since joining Columbia were included. A couple of selections were never released as singles by Williams, and his signature song, "Moon River", was released in the 7-inch single format but only for jukeboxes. His six Cadence singles that made the Top 10 on Billboard magazine's Hot 100 are passed over for the inclusion of his number 11 hit from that label, "The Hawaiian Wedding Song", and 17 of his Columbia recordings that made the Hot 100 up until 1970 are left out here in favor of "Charade", which spent its one week on the chart at number 100.
Danny Boy and Other Songs I Love to Sing is the eighth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams. It was released in early 1962 by Columbia Records. This was his first project after leaving Cadence Records, where his albums each had a specific theme. Additionally, it was his first in a series of LPs that covered songs established on stage, screen, and other hits from the pop chart and the Great American Songbook. This trend would not be interrupted until his 1966 album, The Shadow of Your Smile, hinted at a shift toward contemporary material with its inclusion of songs first recorded by the Beatles.
Warm and Willing is the tenth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams and was released in 1962 by Columbia Records. Allmusic's William Ruhlmann explained that Williams and producer Robert Mersey "followed the Sinatra concept-album formula of creating a consistent mood, in this case a romantic one, and picking material mostly from the Great American Songbook of compositions written for Broadway musicals in the 1920s and '30s by the likes of George and Ira Gershwin, then giving them slow, string-filled arrangements over which Williams could croon in his breathy, intimate tenor voice."
Days of Wine and Roses and Other TV Requests is the eleventh studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams and was released in April 1963 by Columbia Records following his first season as host of his variety series, The Andy Williams Show. The LP has a studio recording of the closing theme from the show, "May Each Day", and continues the format of his previous Columbia releases by including songs from the 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s.
The Wonderful World of Andy Williams is the thirteenth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams and was released by Columbia Records to coincide with the December 31, 1963, broadcast of The Andy Williams Show. Various tracks were recorded with members of his family, including The Williams Brothers, who joined him for a remake of his first top 10 hit, "Canadian Sunset", from 1956.
The Academy Award-Winning "Call Me Irresponsible" and Other Hit Songs from the Movies is the fourteenth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams and was released in the spring of 1964 by Columbia Records. Williams had already had great success with his albums named after Henry Mancini's Oscar winners from 1961 and 1962, "Moon River" and "Days of Wine and Roses", and was asked to sing Mancini and Johnny Mercer's title song collaboration from the 1963 film Charade at the Academy Awards on April 13, 1964, after it was nominated for Best Original Song, but the winner that year was the other song that Williams performed at the ceremony, "Call Me Irresponsible".
The Great Songs from "My Fair Lady" and Other Broadway Hits is the fifteenth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams and was released in September 1964 by Columbia Records, one month before the premiere of the film version of My Fair Lady starring Audrey Hepburn.
Andy Williams' Dear Heart is the sixteenth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams and was released in the spring of 1965 by Columbia Records and was the last of his Columbia releases that remained exclusively within the realm of traditional pop. After covering two Beatles hits on his next non-holiday studio album, The Shadow of Your Smile, he would try out samba music on In the Arms of Love, aim for a much younger crowd with "Music to Watch Girls By" on Born Free, and focus more on contemporary material on subsequent albums.
The Shadow of Your Smile is the eighteenth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams and was released in April 1966 by Columbia Records and included covers of "Michelle" and "Yesterday", the same pair of Beatles ballads that labelmate Johnny Mathis recorded for his 1966 album of the same name. For Williams these selections initiated a trend away from the traditional pop formula that his album output at Columbia up until this point had adhered to.
In the Arms of Love is the nineteenth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams and was released on December 19, 1966, by Columbia Records and was the last of twelve consecutive Williams studio LPs produced by Robert Mersey.
Love, Andy is the twenty-first studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams, released on October 16, 1967, by Columbia Records to coincide with the NBC special of the same name, which aired on November 6. The LP had a mix of covers of old and recent hits that included two songs from the 1940s that also had chart success in 1966 via Chris Montez: "The More I See You" and "There Will Never Be Another You".
Happy Heart is the twenty-third studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams, released in the spring of 1969 by Columbia Records and continued the trend of his recent albums in relying exclusively on contemporary material. This particular project eschewed offerings from Broadway and Hollywood that had been predominant on his LPs with Columbia.
Love Theme from "The Godfather" is the twenty-ninth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams, released on March 21, 1972, by Columbia Records. The two new songs on what was otherwise another LP of covers of hits by other artists were the title track and "Music from Across the Way", which came from the songwriters behind his recent hits "Happy Heart" and "(Where Do I Begin) Love Story".
The Way We Were is the thirty-second studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams, released in the spring of 1974 by Columbia Records and was a return to singing songs that his audience was already familiar with after Solitaire, his previous LP that was less reliant on covers of recent pop hits, did not perform well.
Two Time Winners is the third studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams and was released in the spring of 1959 by Cadence Records. This, his third LP for the label, is composed of songs that had been successful on two previous occasions or in two different ways.
To You Sweetheart, Aloha is the fourth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams and was released late in the summer of 1959 by Cadence Records. This, his fourth LP for the label, has a Hawaiian theme that coincides with the admission of the 50th of the United States.
Andy Williams' Best is a compilation album by American pop singer Andy Williams that was released late in 1961 by Cadence Records. This second album to compile the singer's material features 10 songs that made the Billboard Hot 100 along with two of their corresponding B-sides.
Million Seller Songs is a compilation album by American pop singer Andy Williams that was released in the fall of 1962 by Cadence Records. This third album to compile the singer's material features some of the most successful songs Williams had recorded to date.
Andy Williams' Greatest Hits Vol. 2 is a compilation album by American pop singer Andy Williams that was released in June 1973 by Columbia Records. This collection follows in the footsteps of its predecessor, Andy Williams' Greatest Hits, in that it is not limited to his biggest and most recent hit singles, although his final two US Top 40 entries were included. It also has an album track not released as a single, a couple of hits from his time with Cadence Records, two other singles that could have been included on the first volume, and two Easy Listening chart entries that never made the Billboard Hot 100.