The Voice of Romance: The Columbia Original Album Collection is a 68-disc box set by American pop singer Johnny Mathis that was released on December 8, 2017, by Legacy Recordings, a division of Sony Music Entertainment. The packaging noted that it includes 67 albums that have been remastered, several of which were being made available on CD for the first time. Two of those, I Love My Lady and The Island, were debuting in their entirety for the first time anywhere, and 38 of the bonus tracks included had also previously gone unreleased.
Background Johnny Mathis was surprised when Columbia Records notified him that they would be releasing a box set of everything he had recorded for the label.:"When they said they were going to release all of my recordings that I've done," he laughs, "I said, 'You mean, all of them?'" Regarding the songs on the albums included, he explained that his early success gave him the freedom to choose what to record, saying, "[M]ost of the stuff I ever wanted to do, from the time I was a little kid growing up in San Francisco, I've been fortunate to be able to put them into recordings." Upon receiving his own copy of the box set, he described it as "the greatest feeling I've ever had in my musical life." He told The Arizona Republic, "I saw all of the years and years of dedication and working hard and learning and trying to improve… It's hard to explain to even the most devoted fans what you've gone through in your life."
Critical reception In his review of the box set for The Second Disc, Joe Marchese asserted, "What it reveals is that the history of Johnny Mathis is, put simply, the history of American music in the second half of the twentieth century." In summation he wrote that Mathis's "consistence of quality and variation of style" were the most compelling reasons he had to recommend it. Elmore Magazine'''s Suzanne Cadgène admired many qualities of the release, including the organization and labeling of the discs, the album cover reproductions, the extensive liner notes, and the "delicious" music. In addition to noting how "handsomely designed" it was, Mikael Wood of The Los Angeles Times'' praised the box set for its inclusion of the two previously unreleased Mathis albums, stating, "Both demonstrate how nimble a singer Mathis has always been — and how curious a mind." Brenda Nelson-Strauss of Black Grooves recommended the collection "if you're interested in a complete career retrospective with plenty of tempting bonus material and you have a large budget". Michael P. Coleman of Sac Cultural Hub wrote, "We all know the hits, but the album cuts are equally breathtaking … [T]hese albums are bonafide masterpieces."
Contents Recording dates and release information taken from the liner notes.(2017) The Voice of Romance: The Columbia Original Album Collection by Johnny Mathis [CD booklet]. New York: Sony Music Entertainment 88985 36892 2. Disc # Album Year Bonus tracks 1 Johnny Mathis 1956"Out of This World" (Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer) – 2:43 recorded 3/14/56; previously unreleased "I'm Glad There Is You" (Jimmy Dorsey, Paul Madeira) – 3:43 rec. 3/19/56 2 Wonderful Wonderful1957 3 Warm 4 Good Night, Dear Lord 19585 Swing Softly6 Merry Christmas7 Open Fire, Two Guitars 19598 Heavenly9 Faithfully10 The Ballads of Broadway 196011 The Rhythms of Broadway12 Johnny's Mood13 I'll Buy You a Star 1961"Wherever You Are It's Spring" (Arthur Hamilton) – 2:33 rec. 2/8/6114 Live It Up!15 Rapture 196216 Johnny 196317 Romantically18 Up, Up and Away 196719 Love Is Blue 196820 Those Were the Days"Gentle on My Mind" (John Hartford) – 2:44 "Like to Get to Know You" (Stuart Scharf) – 2:33 above two rec. 7/10/68; both previously unreleased21 Johnny Mathis Sings the Music of Bert Kaempfert"It Makes No Difference" (Milt Gabler, Bert Kaempfert, Herbert Rehbein) – 2:32 rec. 10/21-23/68; previously unreleased in the U.S.22 Love Theme from "Romeo And Juliet" (A Time for Us) 1969"The Way of Love" (Jacques Dieval, Al Stillman) – 2:51 rec. 6/5/69; previously unreleased23 Give Me Your Love for Christmas24 Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head197025 Close to You"Caroline" (Bodie Chandler) – 2:44 rec. 5/13/70; previously unreleased26 Love Story1971Medley – 2:47 a. "Goin' Out of My Head" (Teddy Randazzo, Bobby Weinstein) b. "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" (Bob Crewe, Bob Gaudio) rec. 1/4/71; previously unreleased27 You've Got a Friend"Reach Out I'll Be There" (Holland–Dozier–Holland) – 4:03 rec. 5/5/71; previously unreleased "So Much in Love" (George Williams, Billy Jackson, Roy Straigis) – 4:02 rec. 5/7/71; previously unreleased; songwriters erroneously credited as Marjorie Goetschius, Jascha Heifetz "I Only Have Eyes for You" from Dames (Al Dubin, Harry Warren) – 3:43 "Golden Slumbers" (John Lennon, Paul McCartney) – 3:30 above two rec. 5/11/71; both previously unreleased28 Johnny Mathis in Person: Recorded Live at Las Vegas197229 The First Time Ever (I Saw Your Face)"Remember the Good" (Mickey Newbury) – 3:06 rec. 1/27/72; previously unreleased30 Song Sung Blue"Morning Has Broken" (Eleanor Farjeon, Cat Stevens) – 3:40 rec. 6/7/72; previously unreleased "I'm on the Outside Looking In" (Teddy Randazzo, Bobby Weinstein) – 3:05 rec. 7/24/72; previously unreleased31 Me and Mrs. Jones 1973"Pieces of April" (Dave Loggins) – 3:17 rec. 10/2/72; previously unreleased32Killing Me Softly with Her Song 33I'm Coming Home 34The Heart of a Woman 1974"Fifty Fifty" (Jerry Fuller) – 3:22 "Nothing in This Whole World" (unknown) – 4:14 above two rec. 5/28-29/74; both previously unreleased35 When Will I See You Again 197536Feelings "Crazy Little Love Makin' Ways" (Rose McCoy, Robert Mersey) – 2:56 "Let's Go On From Here" (Kenneth Crouch) – 2:54 above two rec. 3/25/75; both previously unreleased37I Only Have Eyes for You 197638Mathis Is... 197739Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me "Experience" (unknown) – 4:17 rec. 9/30/77; previously unreleased "If It's Magic" (Stevie Wonder) – 3:36 rec. 6/14/7740You Light Up My Life 197841That's What Friends Are For "Comme ci, comme ça" performed with Deniece Williams (J. S. Stewart) – 2:58 rec. 4/26/78; previously unreleased "Without Us" from Family Ties; performed with Deniece Williams (Jeff Barry, Tom Scott) – 4:02 rec. 10/21/82 "So Deep in Love" performed with Deniece Williams (Barry, Bruce Roberts) – 4:32 rec. 10/21/82; previously unreleased42 The Best Days of My Life 1979"I Never Said I Love You" (Hal David, Archie Jordan) – 3:38 rec. 8/23/7843Mathis Magic 44Different Kinda Different 1980"In Love with Love" (Jimmy Scott) – 3:19 "Time for Love" (Don Ferris, Jack Lloyd) – 4:23 "Wondering Why" (Ainsworth Prasad, Tamra Smith) – 3:38 above three rec. 11/27/79; all three previously unreleased "When Am I Going to Get Over You" (unknown) – 3:30 rec. 12/6/79; previously unreleased "Three Times a Lady" (Lionel Richie) – 4:15 rec. 3/5/8045Friends in Love 1982"We Kiss in a Shadow" (Oscar Hammerstein II, Richard Rodgers) – 3:37 "Cryin' for the Night" (unknown) – 4:43 "Goodbye for Now" from Reds (Stephen Sondheim) – 3:22 above three rec. 9/1/81; all three previously unreleased "The One and Only" from The One and Only (Alan and Marilyn Bergman, Patrick Williams) – 3:17 rec. 9/2/81; previously unreleased "Here's to You" (Bob Geldof) – 5:05 "As If" (Shelly Peiken, Guy Roche) – 4:17 above two rec. 10/21/81; both previously unreleased46 I Love My Lady 198147A Special Part of Me 1984"Simple" (Vocal Version) (Marvin Morrow, Keith Stegall) – 5:55 "Simple" (Instrumental Version) (Morrow, Stegall) – 4:52 above two rec. 4/13/8348 Unforgettable – A Musical Tribute to Nat King Cole 198349 Live 198450Right from the Heart 198551The Hollywood Musicals 1986"I'll Take Romance" from I'll Take Romance (Oscar Hammerstein II, Ben Oakland) – 3:06 previously unreleased "Baía (Na Baixa do Sapateiro)" from The Three Caballeros (Ary Barroso, Ray Gilbert) – 4:08 "Brazil (Aquarela do Brasil)" from Saludos Amigos (Barroso, Bob Russell) – 4:15 above three rec. 4/6/8652 Christmas Eve with Johnny Mathis53 Once in a While 198854 In the Still of the Night 198955 The Island56In a Sentimental Mood: Mathis Sings Ellington 199057 Better Together: The Duet Album 199158 How Do You Keep the Music Playing? 199359All About Love 199660Because You Loved Me: The Songs of Diane Warren 199861Mathis on Broadway 200062The Christmas Album 200263Isn't It Romantic: The Standards Album 200564A Night to Remember 200865Let It Be Me: Mathis in Nashville 201066Sending You a Little Christmas 201367 Odds and Ends: That’s What Makes the Music Play201768 Johnny Mathis Sings the Great New American Songbook
Odds and Ends: That’s What Makes the Music Play
Track listing Recording dates and release information taken from the liner notes.
"Teacher, Teacher" (Alternate Version) performed with Ray Conniff & His Orchestra (Robert Allen, Al Stillman) – 2:37 recorded 6/16/57 "Wild Is the Wind" (Alternate Version) from Wild Is the Wind (1957); performed with Ray Ellis & His Orchestra (Dimitri Tiomkin, Ned Washington) – 2:33 rec. 10/31/57 "Now That You've Gone (Puisque tu pars)" (Petula Clark, Norman Newell, Hubert Ballay) – 3:01 rec. 11/2/67; previously unreleased "What to Do About Love" (Leon Carr, Paul Vance) – 2:28 rec. 5/31/60 "Each Time We Kiss" (Clyde Otis, Colin Towns) – 2:39 rec. 3/4/61 "My Favorite Dream" (Lee Pockriss, Vance) – 2:55 rec. 10/9/61 "A Clock Without Hands" (Jerry Livingston, Paul Francis Webster) – 2:58 "The Joy of Loving You" (Bart Howard) – 3:05 above two rec. 3/29/62; above five from the album I'll Search My Heart and Other Great Hits "You Are There" (Johnny Mandel, Dave Frishberg) – 3:06 "Fifty Fifty" (Jerry Fuller) – 3:19 above two rec. 9/22/76; both previously unreleased "That's What Makes the Music Play" (Will Jennings, Roger Nichols) – 3:11 "Let Me Be the One" (Nichols, Paul Williams) – 3:31 above two rec. 9/27/76; both previously unreleased "El Amar y el Querer" (Manuel Alejandro, Ana Magdalena) – 4:13 "Cosas Pequeñas" (Alejandro, Magdalena) – 3:11 "Cuando Vuelvas a Casa" (Alejandro, Magdalena) – 4:00 above three rec. 2/11/83; all three from his CBS Discos album Cuando Vuelvas a Casa Medley performed with Barbra Streisand – 4:43 a. "I Have a Love" from West Side Story (Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim) b. "One Hand, One Heart" from West Side Story (Bernstein, Sondheim) rec. 11/30/92; from the Barbra Streisand album Back to Broadway "The Shadow of Your Smile" performed with Dave Koz and Chris Botti (Johnny Mandel, Paul Francis Webster) – 5:22 rec. 5/6/06; from the 2006 Mathis compilation Gold: A 50th Anniversary Celebration
Personnel Credits taken from the liner notes.
Mitch Miller – producer (tracks 1, 2, 4) Robert Mersey – producer (track 3) Frank DeVol – producer (track 5) Irving Townsend – producer (tracks 6–8) Jerry Fuller – producer (tracks 9, 10) Roger Nichols – producer (tracks 11, 12) Jack Gold – producer (tracks 13–15) Barbra Streisand – producer (track 16) Phil Ramone – producer (track 17)
Box set personnel Credits taken from the liner notes.
Johnny Mathis – executive producer; vocals Adam Block – executive producer John Jackson – executive producer Didier C. Deutsch – compilation producer Mike Piacentini – compilation producer; mastering engineer Timothy J. Smith – A&R coordination Mark Neuman – product direction Jeremy Holiday – product direction William McKinney – project direction Tom Cording – press coordination Gabby Gibb – press coordination Matt Kelly – tape research Michael Kull – tape research Tina Ibañez – art direction & design James Ritz – liner notes
Images courtesy of Rojon Productions & Sony Music Photo Archives: CRPS Bob Cato Jeff Dunas Becky Fluke Don Hunstein Urve Kuusik Art Maillett Aaron Mollin Fred Mollin Ricky Robinson Rick Shaw Sandy Speiser David Vance
Chart positions courtesy of Joel Whitburn & Billboard Publications
References