🎵 AotW Classics Nick De Caro HAPPY HEART (SP-4176)

What is your favorite track?

  • Happy Heart

    Votes: 5 55.6%
  • Lullaby from Rosemary's Baby

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Hey Jude

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I'll Forget You

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Love Is All

    Votes: 1 11.1%
  • Quiet Sunday

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I'm Gonna Make You Love Me

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Amy's Theme

    Votes: 2 22.2%
  • Caroline, No

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • If I Only Had Time

    Votes: 1 11.1%

  • Total voters
    9

Harry

Charter A&M Corner Member
Staff member
Site Admin
Nick De Caro and Orchestra
HAPPY HEART
A&M SP-4176
sp4176.jpg


In addition to original LP/tape configurations, also available as mini-LP CD UICY-93078 from Japan in 2006.

Tracks:
Side One:
1. Happy Heart (Jackie Rae-James Last) 2:59
2. Lullaby From Rosemary's Baby (Christopher Komeda) 2:40
3. Hey Jude (John Lennon-Paul McCartney) 3:02
4. I'll Forget You (Chall-Ha-Dichal) (Frank Pourcell-Bill Owens) 2:39
5. Love Is All (Nick De Caro) 2:32
6. Quiet Sunday (Mort Garson) 3:06

Side Two:
1. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da (John Lennon-Paul McCartney) 2:38
2. I'm Gonna Make You Love Me (Gamble-Ross) 2:42
3. Amy's Theme (John Sebastian) 2:51
4. Caroline, No (Brian Wilson-Tony Asher) 3:35
5. If I Only Had Time (Je N'Aurai Pas Le Temps) (Fugain-Delanoe-Fishman) 3:12

The Japanese CD also includes a bonus track of the "Happy Heart" Single Mono Version.

Liner Notes:
Nick my friend

There was a time, when the world of records, was as foreign to me as a far away land...

A time, when a sound booth was a little box within a box where I could mostly hear the sound of my own heart, and where I could observe in astonishment my own state of panic...

It was the time of my first album, and everything was doubt and confusion...

And wasn't it nice to have you there, to correct, to fix, to arrange, to make beautiful sounds, to make me laugh, and occasionally, to hold my hand...

And now look at you!!!!

You gave up your comfortable way of looking at things from the outside in, and stepped to the other side of the glass, to bravely enter the lonely sound booth to give perfect strangers, a very, very beautiful album...

If once you're in, you should hear your own heart beat, or should be in need of a friendly hand, you won't have to reach I'll be on the other side of the glass, smiling my biggest smile...

Claudine

OTHER CREDITS:
Producer: TOMMY LI PUMA AND NICK DE CARO
Engineer: DICK BOGERT

IN ADDITION TO THE FEATURED SOLOISTS, OUR THANKS TO THE FOLLOWING MUSICIANS FOR THEIR PARTICIPATION IN THIS ALBUM:

HAL BLAINE / HARRY BLUESTONE / JULES CHAIKIN / RON ELLIOTT / EARL PALMER / LYLE RITZ / TOM TEDESCO / JERRY VINCI

Art Director: T.WILKES / Photography: G.WEBSTER
 
I only discovered this album as a CD from Japan. I missed out on the LP all those years ago, but remember the cover for its appearances on all of those old innersleeves.

The "bonus track" mono single mix of the title track is a nice thought, but it doesn't sound like anything more than a fold-down of the stereo mix. I'm going to go with "Happy Heart" as my pick for favorite - I always liked that song, especially Andy Williams hit version.

Harry
 
It's "Amy's Theme" for me.

I have the CD release, bought it at Tower Records in Yokohama. Nice album; soft pop at its finest.

Mike
 
I had the vinyl for years, but, like Mike, acquired my CD copy while in Japan... In fact, I was with Mike when he bought his copy! Now I need to find his follow up Italian Grafitti -- Not sure if that one was ever released on CD, though (If so Japan would be the place to find it)...
 
This album has long been a fav' of mine, too... I enjoy the title track myself, w/ "Quiet Sunday" being a good "2n"d fav'... I had a well-worn LP copy before discovering a good, sill-sealed vinyl, too...

Italian Graffiti was where I'd started off, also discovering a still-new copy, before "the A&M thing" took hold & saw Happy Heart on one of my old A&M inner-sleeves...

I had no idea that I had this record playing on the wrong speed ('45') before the surprise vocal by Nick came on "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me", then I'd realized this record played much slower & more pretty especially on the next vocal number, "Caroline, No"... :laugh:

There is also at least one non-LP track the CD should have gotten: "Spanish Flea", a B-Side to the "Amy's Theme" '45'...

-- Dave
 
There was also a 30th Anniversary 1999 Japanese release of this
gem in "regular CD jewel case" form.
41PZ7YT09TL._SL500_AA300_.jpg

I'm with Dave though, Spanish Fles should be the bonus track!
Sounds like another job for CherryRed Records!:cool:
 
Had no idea he sang - he's got a cool voice, almost like a higher-pitched, soulful version of Michael Franks....
 
Had no idea he sang - he's got a cool voice, almost like a higher-pitched, soulful version of Michael Franks....

Spot on as usual AMGFWB. I think Nick's voice is another reason I think this 1969
A&M project is such a little gem. Reminds me a little bit of Herb on "Something Cool".
This LP also made me a James Last fan as a young boy. I know why my dad brought this
home, yet another A&M project to use a "pretty face" to sell product and boy is she a doll.
Those eyes. I think if I was at a Hollywood party in 1969 and she walked in, how could
you not stare all night? :cool:

In 1969, Herb Alpert gave Nick de Caro a shot at making his own LP, 'Happy Heart with Nick De Caro and Orchestra', produced by Nick and Tommy LiPuma. Highlights included 'I'm Gonna Make You Love Me', Brian Wilson's 'Caroline No', 'Hey Jude' and Nick's own song 'Love Is All'. With Nick as producer, arranger, songwriter, musician and vocalist there was much anticipation, especially as the title track began to climb the charts. At that time, Nick received a phone call from Andy Williams, who had acquired the rights to do 'Happy Heart' with a lyric. He wanted Nick to produce and arrange, but Nick declined and the rest is history. "Nick was really crushed," recalls Frank the brother of Nick. "He wanted no part of it, since his own record of 'Happy Heart' was just starting to get recognition on the charts. Nick felt he would've been competing with his own record. What really hurt him was that they used his arrangement on Andy's record. There was also some mention of a bet between Jerry Moss and Herb Alpert regarding the expected success of Nick's 'Happy Heart' LP. It pretty much took my brother a year to recover, since Andy's record was a smash hit. It was not a good time for him."

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I know why my dad brought this
home, yet another A&M project to use a "pretty face" to sell product and boy is she a doll.
Those eyes. I think if I was at a Hollywood party in 1969 and she walked in, how could
you not stare all night? :cool:

Indeed. The obi strip on the mini-LP version I have indicates that this album is part of a "Beautiful Covers" series. I've wondered in that phrase refers to the album cover being beautiful, or the fact that the song arrangements of "cover" tunes are beautiful...

Harry
 
I've never heard this album but at 3:02 this has gotta be the shortest version of "Hey Jude" on record!

There was a Nick DeCaro song in the '70s or '80s called "Canned Music" that I really liked but could never find. I don't think it ever charted, at least not on the Hot 100.

UPDATE: Hmm, on further sleuthing it turns out to be on an album called "Italian Graffiti" which is available as an import CD. I never thought I'd find THAT out after all these years!
 
"If I Only Had Time (Je N'Aurai Pas Le Temps)" is also a neat tune & nice that it comes on as the last track...

It's hard to really pin-point a favorite & needless to say, that's one I wished I voted for... Don Costa also has a version of it, on an LP entitled The Don Costa Concept...

-- Dave
 
Great read! Thanks for posting. I'm glad to have confirmation that Frank and Nick were indeed brothers! Someone (she whose name-shall-not-be-mentioned) once argued with me that the two were not related and merely shared a common last name. Vindication is sweet. I'm betting the DeCaro sister's albums are a good listen given her brothers' pedigrees!
 
Frank and Nick are my cousins...Nick passed away in 1992 and it was NOT from AIDS and Frank is still alive and living in Los Angeles (he is my godfather) !!!!!!!!!!!!!! And btw, they didn't have any sisters
 
Frank and Nick are my cousins...Nick passed away in 1992 and it was NOT from AIDS and Frank is still alive and living in Los Angeles (he is my godfather) !!!!!!!!!!!!!! And btw, they didn't have any sisters

Jan--thanks for clarifying that for us! There is a lot of misinformation on the Internet, so it's good to have this information first hand. :thumbsup:

And how lucky to have two cousins in the music biz like that! :agree:
 
I've never heard this album but at 3:02 this has gotta be the shortest version of "Hey Jude" on record!

There was a Nick DeCaro song in the '70s or '80s called "Canned Music" that I really liked but could never find. I don't think it ever charted, at least not on the Hot 100.

UPDATE: Hmm, on further sleuthing it turns out to be on an album called "Italian Graffiti" which is available as an import CD. I never thought I'd find THAT out after all these years!


Mike: "Canned Music" came out on Blue Thumb in the summer of 1974. There was a push for it by the label to Adult Contemporary stations. Here's a blurb in Billboard Magazine from June, 1974 (thanks, Google Books!):

http://books.google.com/books?id=ZwkEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA6&lpg=PA6&dq="nick de caro" "canned music"&source=bl&ots=mrOabYhLq8&sig=6n9ZWdJ-nRpXTnsnE2CSHp-oBPM&hl=en&sa=X&ei=gTlaT9adGqOjiAKNh82HCw&ved=0CCAQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q="nick de caro" "canned music"&f=false


And here's the YouTube video for "Canned Music" itself:

 
I just scored a nice promo copy of Happy Heart last week. I am really enjoying this LP. Loved his arranging and conducting on other records. Bought this unheard and no regrets. More than worth the $6 I spent on this NM minus beautiful WLP. And I love it. If you have not heard this LP, and you can find a copy, try it. Great instrumental LP with a vocal or two on the side. Great to listen to at the end of a rough day. Makes me smile.
 
The title track for me...some good versions here, though also some flotsam, too, typical of what amounts to better-than-your-average mood music album. Nick did a lot of work back in these days, so it was fitting he got the spotlight on occasion, too. Maybe he shoulda sang more?

:ed:
 
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