From the opening moments of Caprio Vicis exhilarating debut, Going Back in Time, its clear that Vici and producer Andilon Lensen have captured something special. In recent years many artists have tried to duplicate the sound of the 1960s, a time in which social change found a parallel in the creative stirrings of the music industry. Imitating a classic sound, however, is not the same thing as understanding it: Lensen, whose list of accomplishments includes overseeing the 1980s European comeback of singer Timi Yuro, possesses true feeling for the music she celebrates, and as a result gives these tracks a distinctive stamp of authenticity. Going Back in Time opens with a rousing version of Len Barrys 1965 hit, 1-2-3, performed by Vici with an exuberance that honors the spirit of the original. A native of the Netherlands, Vici possesses a supple voice that handles the soaring melody with confidence. His vocal talent also stands out on a version of Yuros rare single, Get Out of My Life, which provides this set with one of its finest moments. Few people had the chance to hear the song when it was first released on the Mercury label in 1965. At the time, Yuro had been suffering a career setback after her 1964 album, The Amazing Timi Yuro, fizzled due to inadequate promotion (that Mercury Records did absolutely nothing for me, she once said). Get Out of My Life was a moody ballad written by Teddy Randazzo, a former teen idol who had moved into arranging and production. Sadly, it did not achieve the chart recognition gained by the similar work Randazzo was then producing for Little Anthony & the Imperials, and today the song remains a overlooked gem in Yuros catalogue. Lensen and Vici have restored Get Out of My Life to prominence, using a marvelous arrangement that does justice to the original while staking out a fresh and exciting place of its own. Yuro, who died in 2004, would have loved it. Four other songs associated with Yuro, Something Bad on My Mind, Hey Girl, Itll Never Be Over for Me, and When She Wants a Man, provide tribute to this underappreciated artist whose influence both Lensen and Vici have cited. Itll Never Be Over for Me was in truth first recorded by another great singer of the early 1960s, deep-voiced Baby Washington. Yuro had heard Washingtons performance and remained haunted by it for years before deciding to wax her own version as part of the 1968 Something Bad on My Mind album (on which When She Wants a Man and Hey Girl also appeared, as When He Wants a Woman and Hey Boy). Vici draws upon Yuros uptempo treatment of the number to strong effect. The soul of the Righteous Brothers is evoked with two standout numbers first recorded by the blue-eyed soul duo, I Cant Make It Alone and Just Once in My Life. The latter, written by the formidable team of Gerry Goffin and Carole King, is another high point of this set. Lensen has crafted a soaring arrangement, over which Vicis voice glides effortlessly. I Cant Make It Alone, a number also associated with Dusty Springfield, allows Vici to showcase some of his deepest, most stirring notes. A driving, western-styled version of Bettye LaVettes Let Me Down Easy along with another Teddy Randazzo song, Cant Stop Running Away, round out this highly listenable package, bolstered by two Lensen originals with highly metaphorical lyrics, Sometimes and the haunting Glass (also featured in an instrumental version as the CDs closing track). As a bonus recorded especially for his and Timis Italian fans, Vici performs alternate versions of two songs, Get Out of My Life (Non e come te) and Cant Stop Running Away (Dami il tempo), offering a further example of his versatility. Despite the positive social changes fostered by the 1960s, the decade was not always a happy period, least of all for recording artists. Pop and rhythm & blues singers fought prejudice of many kinds, all the while struggling to convert their hard labors into a modicum of financial security (too many of the eras pioneers, like Yuro, have wound up sick and poor). But Going Back in Time celebrates the positive side of a turbulent decade, when a hard-working team of artists, writers, and producers came together to create the music we can once again savor through this fine recording. David Freeland -- New York Caprio Vici -- Cd Going Back In Time https://youtube/watch?v=wAa9AOJnLqA
Posted on: Sun, 10 Nov 2013 12:08:41 +0000