| Chameleon | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 1972 | |||
| Recorded | 1972 | |||
| Length | 33:33 | |||
| Label | MoWest | |||
| Producer | Bob Gaudio | |||
| The Four Seasons chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [1] |
Chameleon is a 1972 album by The Four Seasons notable for being their only album recorded for Motown. The album met with limited success in the US; no single was even issued from the album in America. "The Night", however, met with success in the UK and peaked at No. 7 in 1975, becoming a Northern Soul mainstay. [2]
| Track | Song | Writer(s) | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "A New Beginning (Prelude)" | Bob Crewe, Bob Gaudio | 1:21 |
| 2 | "Sun Country" | Bob Gaudio | 4:07 |
| 3 | "You're a Song (That I Can't Sing)" | Bob Gaudio, Brit Gaudio | 3:11 |
| 4 | "The Night" | Al Ruzicka, Bob Gaudio | 3:22 |
| 5 | "A New Beginning" | Bob Crewe, Bob Gaudio | 4:45 |
| 6 | "When the Morning Comes" | Bob Gaudio | 4:37 |
| 7 | "Poor Fool" | Al Ruzicka | 4:20 |
| 8 | "Touch the Rainchild" | Al Ruzicka, Bob Gaudio | 4:22 |
| 9 | "Love Isn't Here (Like it Used to Be)" | Bob Gaudio, Brit Gaudio | 3:44 |
The following singles were recorded during the band's tenure at Motown; none of these appeared on Chameleon. Some, however, later turned up on Frankie Valli's 1975 "solo" album Inside You, which was a collection of unreleased songs and outtakes from Chameleon. [3]
Although reception at the time of release was lukewarm, opinions today from both fans and critics are very positive. [4] Noted for the distinctive Motown sound combined with the sounds of the Four Seasons, the album's "slick pop production values" made for a unique album in their catalog. [5] Chameleon was unavailable on compact disc until 2008, when Universal Music Group, the parent owner of Motown Records, released a 2-disc compilation titled Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons: The Motown Years. It included this album, Frankie Valli's Inside You (1975), and all the non-album singles. With this release, all of the Four Seasons' material recorded for Motown is now accessible to a new audience, as well as for longtime fans.
Disc one
Disc two
Partial credits. [6]
The Four Seasons
Additional personnel
The Four Seasons is an American rock and roll and doo-wop quartet formed in 1960 in Newark, New Jersey. Since 1970, they have also been known at times as Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. The band evolved out of a previous band called The Four Lovers, with Frankie Valli as the lead singer, Bob Gaudio on keyboards and tenor vocals, Tommy DeVito on lead guitar and baritone vocals, and Nick Massi on bass guitar and bass vocals. On nearly all of their 1960s hits, they were credited as The 4 Seasons. The band had two distinct lineups that achieved widespread success: the original featuring Valli, Gaudio, DeVito, and Massi that recorded hits throughout the 1960s, and a 1970s quintet consisting of Valli, Lee Shapiro, Gerry Polci, Don Ciccone and John Paiva, with Gaudio and Long providing studio support.
Francesco Stephen Castelluccio, better known by his stage name Frankie Valli, is an American singer, known as the frontman of the Four Seasons beginning in 1960. He is known for his unusually powerful lead falsetto voice.
Robert John Gaudio is an American songwriter, singer, musician, and record producer, and the keyboardist and backing vocalist of the pop/rock band the Four Seasons. Gaudio wrote or co-wrote and produced the vast majority of the band's music, including hits like "Sherry" and "December, 1963 ", as well as "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" for Valli. Though he no longer performs with the group, Gaudio and lead singer Frankie Valli remain co-owners of the Four Seasons brand.
Soulsation! is a 4-CD box set of music recorded by The Jackson 5 during their tenure at Motown Records from 1969 to 1975, when they left Motown for CBS Records. The box set was released in 1995 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of The Jackson 5 becoming the first group to have its first four singles go straight to #1 on the US Billboard charts. Soulsation! included an introduction from the group's youngest sister Janet, liner notes from David Ritz and an essay from the brothers' first producer, Bobby Taylor. The fourth disc features 17 previously unreleased songs, most recorded from mid-1969 to early 1972. The set also includes solo numbers from brothers Michael, Jermaine, and Jackie.
"December, 1963 " is a song originally performed by the Four Seasons, written by original Four Seasons keyboard player Bob Gaudio and his future wife Judy Parker, produced by Gaudio, and included on the group's album Who Loves You (1975).
Who Loves You is an album by The Four Seasons. It was released in 1975 on Warner/Curb Records.
Adrian Baker is an English singer, songwriter, and record producer.
"My Eyes Adored You" is a 1974 song written by Bob Crewe and Kenny Nolan. It was originally recorded by The Four Seasons in early 1974. After the Motown label balked at the idea of releasing it, the recording was sold to lead singer Frankie Valli for $4000. After rejections by Capitol and Atlantic Records, Valli succeeded in getting the recording released on Private Stock Records, but the owner/founder of the label, Larry Uttal, wanted only Valli's name on the label. The single was released in the US in November 1974 and topped the Billboard Hot 100 in March 1975. "My Eyes Adored You" also went to number 2 on the Easy Listening chart. Billboard ranked it as the No. 5 song for 1975.
The Four Lovers was a band formed in 1956 that was the result of vocalist Frankie Valli joining The Variatones in 1954. The Four Lovers achieved minor success before a name change to The Four Seasons in 1960. During those five years, group members also included Nicolas DeVito, Hugh Garrity, Charles Calello (bass), Nick Massi, Bob Gaudio, and Philip Mongiovi (drums).
"Grease" is a song written by Barry Gibb and recorded by Frankie Valli : it was released as a single in May 1978. It is the title song for the musical motion picture Grease of that year, which was in turn based on the 1971 stage play Grease. The song celebrates the greaser lifestyle, and it sold over seven million copies worldwide and appeared twice on the film's soundtrack, first as the opening track and again as the closing track. "Grease" is one of four songs written specifically for the film that had not been in the stage production.
"Who Loves You" is the title song of a 1975 album by The Four Seasons. It was composed by Bob Gaudio and Judy Parker and produced by Gaudio. It reached number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in November 1975.
The Best of Jethro Tull – The Anniversary Collection is a greatest hits album by Jethro Tull, released in 1993. It includes some of the band's biggest hits from 1968 to 1991.
Dressed Up & In Line is a B-sides and rarities album by the band Copeland. It was released on November 20, 2007. The album consists of B-sides, rarities, acoustic recordings, and remixes. Aaron Marsh, lead vocalist and lyricist of the band, said, "Nearly all of [the songs] have been spruced up and re-mixed."
The 4 Seasons Greetings is the second studio album by The Four Seasons. It was released in 1962 on Vee-Jay Records as a monophonic recording and later again the same year in stereo. The album charted for 6 weeks on Billboard's Best Bets For Christmas album chart peaking at #28 on December 18, 1965.
Valli is the sixth solo LP album by Frankie Valli of The Four Seasons, released by Private Stock under catalog number PS-2017 as a stereo recording in 1976. It was reissued on compact disc in 2008, paired with his first solo effort from Private Stock, Closeup, by Collector's Choice.
Stop Us If You've Heard This One Before is a compilation album by Barenaked Ladies which includes rare recordings dating between 1992 and 2003. The album was originally planned as a companion to Hits from Yesterday & the Day Before; however, the release was pushed back to 8 May 2012, making it a standalone release. The 12-track album contains ten never-before-released tracks, as well as two previously released rarities. The album was released by Rhino Records
The Genuine Imitation Life Gazette is a 1969 album by American rock band the Four Seasons. Member Bob Gaudio teamed up with Jake Holmes to create a psychedelic concept album which adjusted the band's stylings to the changing times of the late 1960s. Instead of love songs, the band tackled subjects such as war and racial tension.
Closeup is an album by Frankie Valli, released in February 1975 on the Private Stock label. It had been seven years since his prior album, and afforded Valli his first of two number-one solo hits in the US. The LP reached number 51 on the U.S. Billboard albums chart.
Lady Put the Light Out is an album by Frankie Valli, released in November 1977 on the Private Stock label.
Frankie Valli...Is the Word is an album by Frankie Valli, released in August 1978 on the Warner Bros. Records label.