Solitaire (album)

Infobox Album |
Name = Solitaire
Type = Album
Artist = Neil Sedaka


Released = 1972
Recorded = Strawberry Studios, Stockport, England,
June 1972
Genre = Pop
Length = 41:22
Label = RCA
Producer = Neil Sedaka
Reviews = * Allmusic Rating|3.5|5 [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:j9ftxqy5ldse link]
Last album = "Emergence"
(1972)
This album = "Solitaire"
(1972)
Next album = "The Tra-La Days Are Over"
(1973)

"Solitaire" is a 1972 album by American singer-songwriter Neil Sedaka. The album, released after a successful English tour in early 1972, ["Q Rock Stars Encyclopedia" by Dafydd Rees and Luke Crampton, Dorling Kindersley, 1999] marked the comeback of Sedaka after a 10-year absence from the charts. Two singles were lifted from the album, "Beautiful You" (UK No. 43) and "That's When the Music Takes Me" (UK. No. 18, US No. 27). The album's title track, "Solitaire", later became a hit single for Andy Williams (1973) and The Carpenters (1975).

The album was produced at Strawberry Studios in Stockport, England, with the musical support of Graham Gouldman, Lol Creme and Kevin Godley who – together with the album's recording engineer Eric Stewart – would shortly become the successful pop band 10cc.

Sedaka opted to record at Strawberry after meeting Gouldman in New York and discovering his association with Stewart, Godley and Creme. The trio had recorded the single "Umbopo", which Sedaka liked, under the band name of Doctor Father.cite book | author=George Tremlett | title=The 10cc Story | year= 1976 | id=ISBN 0-8600-7378-5 | publisher= Futura ]

His work there became pivotal in the musician's decision to forge their own career as a band. Gouldman recalled: "It was Neil Sedaka's success that did it, I think. We'd just been accepting any job we were offered and were getting really frustrated. We knew that we were worth more than that, but it needed something to prod us into facing that. We were a bit choked to think that we'd done the whole of Neil's first album with him just for flat session fees when we could have been recording our own material." [ [http://www.minestrone.org/rc_04_84.htm Graham Gouldman interview, "Record Collector", 1984] ]

Sedaka recorded one more album with the band members.

Track listing

All tracks by Neil Sedaka except where marked

ide one

# "That's When the Music Takes Me" – 3:35
# "Beautiful You" (Sedaka, Phil Cody) – 3:35
# "Express Yourself" (Sedaka, Cody) – 3:21
# "Anywhere You're Gonna Be (Leba's Song)" – 3:30
# "Home" (Sedaka, Cody) – 3:10
# "Adventures of a Boy Child Wonder" (Sedaka, Cody) – 3:10

ide two

# "Better Days Are Coming" – 4:17
# "Dimbo Man" (Sedaka, R. Atkins) – 3:58
# "Trying to Say Goodbye" (Sedaka, Cody) – 3:20
# "Solitaire" (Sedaka, Cody) – 5:02
# "Don't Let It Mess Your Mind" (Sedaka, Cody) – 4:24

Personnel

* Neil Sedaka – electric piano, organ, piano, vibes, vocals
* Graham Gouldman – bass, guitar, vocals
* Lol Creme – guitar, vocals
* Kevin Godley – drums, vocals
* Eric Stewart – recording engineer

References