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Olivia Newton-John - Come on Over Audio CD

A fair review of the Olivia Newton-John "Come on Over" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Olivia Newton-John reviews here, or go back to the Olivia Newton-John tabs.

Olivia Newton-John Band: Olivia Newton-John
Title: Come on Over
Rating:
Release Date: 1990-10-25
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Jolene 2: Pony Ride 3: Come on Over 4: It'll Be Me 5: Greensleeves 6: Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain 7: Don't Throw It All Away 8: Who Are You Now? 9: Smile for Me 10: Small Talk and Pride 11: Wrap Me in Your Arms 12: Long and Winding Road

Great easy listening
None of the last 6 songs were charted, but "Small talk and pride" would have been, in my opinion, a smash single if it had been released as a single. Tracks 7-12 (side 2 of the original LP)are all great songs and make for great easy listening pleasure. This is one of those lost treasures that should have been picked up by another artist later. Tracks 1-6 are good also, but not as good as the rest. Most albums have a song or two, maybe three if you're lucky that are good, the rest filler material. This CD has 6-8 quality songs on it, making it a great value. Probably Olivia's best album that nobody knows anything about.


Olivia - The Easy Listening Era
It's perhaps even more surprising one of the few that is available in 1976's COME ON OVER, one of her least selling albums from the period and one featuring only one single release, the title track. Consider how phenomenally popular Olivia Newton-John was in America from 1973 to 1985, it's surprising how few of her vintage albums from this period are available on CD in the States.

The album boasts of course a beautiful cover as well as one of Olivia's best performances on the sensational title track, which raised a few eyebrows back in 1976 being Olivia's first attempt to moving away from her sugary G-rated image with it's invitation to "lay your body down". Other than her early attempt at a dance track, "It'll Be Me" and three covers of country hits (Willie Nelson's "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain", Dolly Parton's "Jolene", Lynn Anderson's "Smile for Me") this album is as MOR/Easy Listening as anything Olivia has ever recorded and so soft and low-key it's almost a Ray Coniff album. Highlights include the romantic "Wrap Me in Your Arms", the regret-tinged "Small Talk and Pride", and "Who Are You Now" and a surprisingly choice for a 1970's pop album, the 18th century ballad "Greensleeves". Perhaps too relaxed for it's own good, COME ON OVER was Olivia's last album recorded in England, thereafter she recorded in the United States and after a couple of more modest successes solidified her popularity with her 1978-81 releases.


ONJ-"Come on Over"
. I owned this album on "vinyl" as a teen-ager, so the CD was just a replacemnt of that old album.


Olivia comes good in time.
Releasing 2 albums a year had meant quality control had suffered and perhaps Olivia was becoming over-familiar. When 'Come On Over' was released in the spring of 1976, Olivia Newton-John was struggling to keep up the momentum of earlier hits such as 'Have You Never Been Mellow' and 'I Honestly Love You'.

The title track was the lead single, in fact I believe it was the only UK and US release from this set. It's a cover of a Bee Gees track (from their 1975 album 'Main Course') and is one of the highlights of this album. However, as lovely as it is, it's not really strong enough to sell an album big time. It made #23 in the US charts which is OK, but it's not a song that is really remembered by Olivia.

This album, produced again by John Farrar, continues the theme of her previous long-players, a few covers mixed with a couple of originals by Farrar and other writers.

The opening track, 'Jolene' is excellent. Totally different to Dolly Parton's original, Olivia really lets fly with this and the song is possibly the high point of the whole album. Olivia's take on 'Greensleeves' is ill-advised as is her version of 'The Long And Winding Road' which is over 4 minutes of Olivia whinging and simpering, though, to her credit, she does manage not to nod off. . .

One of the main flaws, if that's the word, of this album is that it's very ballad heavy. I remember being quite disappointed with it when I first purchased it. Even I, as young as I was then, could see few hits on it.

Gary Benson's minor UK hit, 'Don't Throw It All Away' is another goodie and Farrar's 'Small Talk And Pride' stands out too. Olivia gets a little funky on 'It'll Be Me' though I've never been over fond of the song.

The good thing about 'Come On Over' is that 31 years later, I've really come to appreciate it. The production is beautiful and Olivia was rarely in better voice. Her next album, 'Don't Stop Believin' saw her record in Nashville for the first time and is a more varied collction than this but 'Come On Over' more than holds it's own as one of Olivia's better albums of the 70's.


great music, country and otherwise
Too bad it only released one single, but what a fantastic one it was. This great 1976 release from ONJ was a #2 hit on the country album charts, and #13 on the all-genre pop charts. "Come on Over" is one of Olivia's best and most moving performances, and one of my all time favorite songs. It was a #5 country hit and #23 pop hit, also topping the AC charts. There is more great music to be found here as well. I love her version of "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain," and her interpretation of "Jolene" is a good listen as well. It's more fast and upbeat than Dolly's, with a bit more urgency in the vocal I think (although Dolly's is excellent as well). "Pony Ride" is a nice, mellow ballad. "Don't Throw It all Away" and "Small Talk and Pride" would have made nice singles, especially on the country side.

The cover is beautiful, a cool effect and different from a lot of the covers of the time. (It's too bad MCA's stripped-down packaging for their "Compact Disc-Compact Price" series never has more artwork included than the front cover).

All in all, this is a very good album and worth owning.


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