One&Done @ A&M: Nick De Caro / Happy Heart -- SP 4176

JOv2

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  • Comments, questions, conjectures and stories are welcomed.
  • Released in 1969
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Happy Heart is one of my Favorite Easy listening standards written by the Late Great James Last Nick DeCaro nails it down with his arrangement I also like his arrangement of the Lovin Spoonfull's "Amy's Theme". I still like This album it's an acquired like most MOR/Easy listening is.
 
The late Johnny Gibbs & Orchestra also did the instrumental of "If I Only Had Time" (from Readers Digest 6 record set from 1971 "Sweet With A Beat"). I did like Gibbs version than De Caro's version because it is dreamy.
 
The Gibbs version was also played on "Beautiful 102" WGER (102.5 FM) in Bay City, MI (when it was a "Beautiful Music" station) in the mid & late 70's!!
 
I seem to have acquired two different copies of this album. I'm sure that my very first copy was a Japanese CD in a cardboard mini-album sleeve. This one was issued in 2006. If I'm not mistaken, it was a blind buy, based on my fondness for Andy Williams version of "Happy Heart". This CD has not only the stereo version of the title track, but the mono single mix as well.

Somewhere along the line, I must have purchased the LP. It's a standard Terre Haute pressing. Looks to be in nice shape.

It's a nice album, but I don't seem to listen to it much, though I do really like the title track,
 
The 2012 Japan-SHM issue also includes the bonus track, Spanish Flea.

The LP is OK, but I would argue that De Caro's best work -- like that of Bacharach -- was when arranging and producing for other artists.
 
I am not familiar with this album but I have heart his arrangements for other artists. I have never seen this record but I watch for it in thrift stores and used record stores. I had heard a vocal version of "If I Only Had Time" many years ago but I do not remember the artist name. It was done with both male and female vocals, that is all I remember about it.
 
The LP is OK, but I would argue that De Caro's best work -- like that of Bacharach -- was when arranging and producing for other artists.
Without a doubt. I saw this album come up via Qobuz, streamed about one minute of it and had to turn it off...
 
I think this and the Alan Copeland LP (SP 4173) we looked at last week were A&M's final forays into straight-ahead easy listening music.
 
I thoroughly enjoyed this album and found it on CD when I was stationed in Japan back in 2008. In 1974 he did another album called Italian Grafitti on Blue Thumb. Quite similar but not as good IMHO...

--Mr Bill
 
This is one of my all time favorite arrangements created by the great Nick De Caro. The arrangement exudes a joy for life. Music by Baden Powell--English lyrics by Norman Gimbel--arrangement by Nick De Caro--what a musical lineup for the Sandpipers.

 
This is one of my all time favorite arrangements created by the great Nick De Caro. The arrangement exudes a joy for life. Music by Baden Powell--English lyrics by Norman Gimbel--arrangement by Nick De Caro--what a musical lineup for the Sandpipers.


This was the first song I ever heard by The Sandpipers on the radio and it was my favorite song that they recorded.
 
Here is a great biography of the late great Nick De Caro. He arranged for some remarkable talent For example, he arranged the strings for Gordon Lightfoot's "If You Can Read My Mind" and Maria Muldaur's "Midnight at the Oasis".

 
This is a superb A&M classic slice of Easy Listening goodness. By one of the geniuses of pop music arranging. Underrated as can be. I love my White Label Promo LP of this.
 
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Thanks, Ij, for the bio link. As Steve Sidoruk confirmed, Frank, of the BMB, was his brother. The below content, written by his sister-in-law and including content from Frank, is interesting:

In 1969, Herb Alpert gave Nick 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. "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."
 
There was also some mention of a bet between Jerry Moss and Herb Alpert regarding the expected success of Nick's 'Happy Heart'

...which probably meant something like this:
Lee Michaels, Procol Harum, and Melvin Van Peebles
vs.
Claudine, Brasil '66, and The Sandpipers


😁
 
I never did hear Nick's A&M album but I remember a single of his called "Canned Music" that was OK pop. It was from an album called Italian Graffiti on the Blue Thumb label. Pretty unmemorable, for me at least -- about all I remember is the chorus of the single. I think I tried to order the A&M one from our distributor at least once but they never had it.
 
I checked Discogs and the cheapest CD copy was about $20 with shipping, from Portugal. The rest go up from there.


A lossless version from Qobuz is $10.49 if anyone still wants a digital version without the high price tag:

 
...which probably meant something like this:
Lee Michaels, Procol Harum, and Melvin Van Peebles
vs.
Claudine, Brasil '66, and The Sandpipers


😁
In this area, the latter three got far more airplay than the former three .Lee Michaels-1 song ever played, Procol Harum-2 songs ever played, Melvin Van Peebles-0 songs played.
Claudine-several songs played, Brasil'66-over 2 dozen songs played, Sandpipers-several songs played.
 
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