Singin’… is a 1977 album release by Melissa Manchester on Arista Records.
This was Manchester’s sixth album and fourth and final collaboration with producer Vini Poncia who had produced her 1975 commercial breakthrough Melissa.
After the first of Manchester’s two 1976 album releases’: Better Days and Happy Endings failed to consolidate her stardom Arista had attempted to restore Manchester’s chart fortunes by making the lead single from the subsequent Help Is on the Way album not a Manchester original but rather the Michael Franks composition “Monkey See, Monkey Do”. This strategy proving unsuccessful Arista then had Manchester record “Singin’…” which eschewed Manchester’s songwriting – save for one track: “No One’s Ever Seen This Side of Me” – in favor of outside material including remakes of hits by Michael Jackson (“I Wanna Be Where You Are”), Sly and the Family Stone (“Stand”), Three Dog Night (“Let Me Serenade You”) and the Beach Boys (“The Warmth of the Sun”). The track listing was completed by Manchester’s versions of songs written and previously recorded by James Taylor (“You Make It Easy”) and Wendy Waldman (“My Love Is All I Know”) and a new song: “Sad Eyes” written by David Spinozza who played guitar on the album.
Upon its 1977 summer release Singin’… failed to boost Manchester’s faded chart presence, the release of “I Wanna Be Where You Are” as a single being overlooked. However the last-named track did attract the attention of the song’s composer Leon Ware who became Manchester’s producer for what would ultimately prove to be her comeback album Don’t Cry Out Loud (although that album’s top ten hit title cut would be produced by Harry Maslin).
Tracks
1 Sad Eyes (David Spinozza) 4:02
2 I Wanna Be Where You Are (Leon Ware, Arthur Ross) 3:46
3 A Love Of Your Own (Ned Doheny, Hamish Stuart) 3:59
4 No One’s Ever Seen This Side Of Me (Melissa Manchester) 3:14
5 You Make It Easy (James Taylor) 5:05
6 Stand (Sly Stone) 3:58
7 My Love Is All I Know (Wendy Waldman) 3:34
8 Time (John Miles, Bob Marshall) 4:13
9 Let Me Serenade You (John Finley) 3:46
10 The Warmth Of The Sun (Brian Wilson, Mike Love) 4:48
Musicians
1 Sad Eyes
Bass |
Will Lee |
Drums |
Steve Gadd |
Guitar |
David Spinozza |
Guitar |
Jeff Mironov |
Keyboards |
Don Grolnick |
Synthesizer |
James Newton Howard |
Percussion |
Lenny Castro |
Vocals |
Melissa Manchester |
2 I Wanna Be Where You Are
Bass |
Tony Levin |
Drums |
Steve Gadd |
Keyboards |
Don Grolnick |
Guitar |
David Spinozza |
Guitar |
Jeff Mironov |
Percussion |
Lenny Castro |
Vocals |
Melissa Manchester |
3 A Love Of Your Own
Bass |
Will Lee |
Drums |
Steve Gadd |
Guitar |
Sid McGinnis |
Keyboards |
Don Grolnick |
Percussion |
Lenny Castro |
Vocals |
Melissa Manchester |
4 No One’s Ever Seen This Side Of Me
Bass |
Tony Levin |
Drums |
Steve Gadd |
Guitar |
David Spinozza |
Guitar |
Jeff Mironov |
Keyboards |
Don Grolnick |
Percussion |
Lenny Castro |
5 You Make It Easy
Bass |
Tony Levin |
Drums |
Steve Gadd |
Guitar |
Sid McGinnis |
Keyboards |
Don Grolnick |
Synthesizer |
James Newton Howard |
Percussion |
Lenny Castro |
Vocals |
Melissa Manchester |
6 Stand
Bass |
Will Lee |
Drums |
Steve Gadd |
Guitar |
David Spinozza |
Guitar |
Jeff Mironov |
Keyboards |
Don Grolnick |
Percussion |
Lenny Castro |
Vocals |
Melissa Manchester |
7 My Love Is All I Know
Bass |
Will Lee |
Drums |
Steve Gadd |
Guitar |
David Spinozza |
Guitar |
Jeff Mironov |
Keyboards |
Don Grolnick |
Synthesizer |
James Newton Howard |
Flugelhorn |
Rich Felts |
Percussion |
Lenny Castro |
Vocals |
Melissa Manchester |
8 Time
Bass |
Tony Levin |
Drums |
Steve Gadd |
Guitar |
David Spinozza |
Guitar |
Jeff Mironov |
Keyboards |
Don Grolnick |
Percussion |
Lenny Castro |
Vocals |
Melissa Manchester |
9 Let Me Serenade You
Bass |
Will Lee |
Drums |
Steve Gadd |
Guitar |
David Spinozza |
Guitar |
Jeff Mironov |
Keyboards |
Don Grolnick |
Percussion |
Lenny Castro |
Vocals |
Melissa Manchester |
10 The Warmth Of The Sun
Bass |
Tony Levin |
Drums |
Steve Gadd |
Guitar |
Sid McGinnis |
Keyboards |
Don Grolnick |
Sax |
Stanley Schwartz |
Percussion |
Lenny Castro |
Vocals |
Melissa Manchester |
Other Musicians
Flute | Leo Potts |
Flute | Michael Carnahan |
Flute | Tom Saviano |
Sax | Tom Saviano |
Sax | Stanley Schwartz |
Trombone | George Bohanon |
Trumpet | Rich Felts |
Background Vocals | Brie Howard |
Background Vocals | Claudia Cagan |
Background Vocals | The Faragher Brothers |
Background Vocals | Gail Kantor |
Background Vocals | Vini Poncia |
Liner Notes
Producer – Vini Poncia
Arranged By (Strings) – James Newton Howard (Tracks 1, 8)
Arranged By (Woodwinds) – Tom Saviano (Tracks 2, 3, 6)
Concertmaster – Sidney Sharp
Coordinator – Anne Streer
Engineer – Bob Schaper
Engineer (Second) – Tom Bush
Engineer (Mixing) – Galen Senogles
Mastered By – Ron Hitchcock
Cover (Co-ordinator) – Kay Steele
Design, Art Direction – John Kosh
Photography – David Alexander
Mastered At The Mastering Lab
Mixed At Producers Workshop
Recorded At A&R Studios
Recorded At Sound Labs, Hollywood
Phonographic Copyright Arista Records Inc
Copyright Arista Records Inc