The sound quality is great. Rhino Records did a nice job, in this area, and the liner notes provide a good bit of information. Dionne's performances of these songs are flawless. She has great range and feeling, as well as subtlety and restraint. "Windows of the World," for example, sends a shiver up my spine. The hasty "San Jose'" is also a treat. The quantity of music presented is more than enough; you won't hear any 60's Warwick song on the radio not presented here, although this results in some unevenness. Burt Bachrach's composition is super.

I couldn't give it 5 stars because some of the musical arrangements don't hold up well, and probably sounded schlocky when they came out, even over the tinny radio speaker of a 1966 Ford Fairlane on its way to San Jose. But you know that going in. Lyricyst Hal David was most effective when he kept it spare and light ("Walk On By"), not when he tried to communicate socially "relevant" ideas (e.g. - "Message to Michael" - mobile society; "Windows of the World" - Vietnam). Not every song on the collection is to my taste. It's hard to find enough great material to fill a double greatest hits album, but most of this is quite good. Anyone who likes Dionne's 60's radio hits or needs a comprehensive sampling of Bachrach-David at their creative peak, should look here.


so beautiful   November 21, 1999
 12 out of 12 found this review helpful

I have always been a great admirer of artists like James Taylor, The Carpenters, Carly Simon, Roberta Flack, and others, but I had never really been exposed to Dionne Warwick's earlier music (with the exceptions of songs like Walk On By, Say A Little Prayer, and I'll Never Fall In Love Again) until a desire to own a recording of Walk On By lead me to purchase this greatest hits CD. I didn't really have any expectations of this CD beyond the few songs that I knew I liked, but after listening to it just a couple a times, I was quite overwhelmed by it's significance and sheer beauty. I can say easily that this collection of music ranks among the best I have ever heard, and this includes the artists whom I mentioned above as well as others. I wonder that there may be others who are as unaware of this special music as I have been. Rarely have I had the great pleasure and honor to experience such beautiful expressions of romantic love and sorrow: Burt Bacharach and Hal David are poets of the human heart, and Dionne their voice. The music they've produced is unique, and at times, crushingly beautiful, and at times, breathtaking.


Flawlessly-crafted pop   May 3, 2002
 11 out of 12 found this review helpful

Dionne Warwick may not have the gusty soul of Aretha or the flashy divatude of Diana Ross, but she, alomg with Burt Bacharach and Hal David, recorded some flawlessly-crafted pop tunes of the 1960s. This collection is the best of the bunch. Of course, there's "I Say a Little Prayer," which has been butchered countless times, but there are also some lesser-known tracks of note here as well. "I Don't Know What to Do With Myself" is an underrated and crushing breakup song, while "Always Something There to Remind Me" is the original recording that Naked Eyes would later cover in the 1980s. For over twenty tracks on one disc, this collection is a solid value and is recommended.