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Bobby Womack's remake of Close To You I've been listening to Bobby Womack's Communication LP lately and I had forgotten how much I love his remake of the Bacharach/David penned, Close To You. Womack strips the Carpenters' sugary pop ballad down to a heartfelt, soul/blues masterpiece. I LOVE the long Monoluge that proceeds the song. Womack's discussion of the music business, what it means to be commerical and his meteoric rise is very interesting and enterataining. But most importantly it sets the stage for the sharp shift in gears and adds an explanation of why he would cover the song. I am blown away by the understated reworking of the track. The emotion Womack is able to get out of his voice is simply amazing and his guitar work is on point as usual. The entire Communication LP is damn good, but that 9min 30second masterpiece that opens side 2 gets me everytime. Anyone else dig this track?
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I've had a few conversations here about Close to You. The monologue is interesting (especially when he talks about how he "sold out"), but to me this part of the song is a bit of a distraction. The arrangement of the song is perfect for his style and the addition of the horns is beautiful. The best part of this version of the song is its slow build. By the time he's singing "One more time!" I start to get a little tingly.
He does a great workout on the song. It's a song that's been done many times, and I like that he switched the arrangement so that it doesn't sound like a carbon copy of the previous versions. Though I do like it, the original Dionne Warwick demo and The Carpenters' classic take on it rank among my best-loved recordings. They put a little tear in the corner of my eye. Bobby's version hits in a very different way. A good way, but very different. | |
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Wow,I gotta go out and find Bobby's version if it's as good as you guys say it is 
I adore the Carpenters version  | |
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DavidEye said: Wow,I gotta go out and find Bobby's version if it's as good as you guys say it is
I adore the Carpenters version I hope you know Dionne's version then. She actually recorded it twice - as a demo when it was first written and later on her 1979 album, Dionne. If you like The Carpenters' version and you haven't heard Dionne's first recording of it, do check it out. | |
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RipHer2Shreds said: DavidEye said: Wow,I gotta go out and find Bobby's version if it's as good as you guys say it is
I adore the Carpenters version I hope you know Dionne's version then. She actually recorded it twice - as a demo when it was first written and later on her 1979 album, Dionne. If you like The Carpenters' version and you haven't heard Dionne's first recording of it, do check it out. it's on her 1979 album 'Dionne'? Wow,I listen to that album all the time and I never heard it! But,I'm always too busy playing "Deja Vu" and "Out Of My Hands" | |
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sucha beautiful song... thanks for introducing it to me dorothyparkerwascool.... ur good for so many things lol | |
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I just had to revisit this topic. What I find sort of intriguing about the Dionne Warwick and Bobby Womack versions of this song is the lyric "so they sprinkled moon dust in your hair of gold and starlight in your eyes of blue." This minor twist in lyrical interpretation hints at interracial romance and adds a little more depth to the song. | |
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RipHer2Shreds said: I just had to revisit this topic. What I find sort of intriguing about the Dionne Warwick and Bobby Womack versions of this song is the lyric "so they sprinkled moon dust in your hair of gold and starlight in your eyes of blue." This minor twist in lyrical interpretation hints at interracial romance and adds a little more depth to the song.
Very good point! | |
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DavidEye said: RipHer2Shreds said: I hope you know Dionne's version then. She actually recorded it twice - as a demo when it was first written and later on her 1979 album, Dionne. If you like The Carpenters' version and you haven't heard Dionne's first recording of it, do check it out. it's on her 1979 album 'Dionne'? Wow,I listen to that album all the time and I never heard it! But,I'm always too busy playing "Deja Vu" and "Out Of My Hands" OMG I LOVE those two songs...ok, I guess I know what cd I have to sleep to tonight, LOL!!!!! | |
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I just realized that I have a DVD concert of Bobby Womack in London that might have this song....so now I know what I have to watch before I have to find the cd to listen to while I sleep  | |
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