Audio CD review:
Olivia Newton-John - Making a Good Thing Better

Olivia Newton-John - Making a Good Thing Better

Band: Olivia Newton-John Title: Making a Good Thing Better Rating: Release Date: 12 October, 1998 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Making a Good Thing Better 2: Slow Dancing 3: Ring of Fire 4: Collin' Down 5: Do'nt Cry for Me Argentina [From Evita] 6: Sad Songs 7: You Won't See Me Cry 8: So Easy to Begin 9: I Think I'll Say Goodbye 10: Don't Ask a Friend 11: If Love Is Real

Customer Reviews No big hits but a high quality album Perhaps her decision to change style was helped by the absence of hits from this album. This album marked the end of an era, being the last album that Olivia recorded before she changed her musical style completely. There are only two famous covers here and they certainly provide a contrast, one being the Johnny Cash classic Ring of fire and the other being Don't cry for me Argentina - a song that was originally a UK number one hit for Julie Covington and was a nineties hit for Madonna, but is most closely linked with Elaine Paige, the singer actress who originally starred in the stage production of Evita in London's West end. Elsewhere on this album, there is a song written by Olivia (Don't ask a friend) and a cover of If love is real (Randy Edelman) and several other interesting songs, mainly ballads. If you are already familiar with some of Olivia's music pre-Grease, you will find this to be similar in style - if not, you should try a compilation of her early music or some of her other original albums from the period. Nevertheless, this is a fine album in its own way and anybody who is a committed fan of Olivia's early music needs this album. beautiful songs sung by a beautiful voice-perfect So many times, you see artists not living up to their full potential because of their poor choices in style of music, but Olivia is the absolute queen of ballads and this album is a perfect example of that. The songs on this album are perfect for olivia's angelic voice. Yes, it is a slow, rather melancholy album and probably should not be the first livvy cd you buy because it makes her singing look more one dimensional than it actually is, but for any livvy fan who was first drawn to her beautiful voice, this is a must have. Slow Dancin' is the best version of that song I have ever heard and though there might be a few too many covers of other artists' songs considering she was already an established star and probably should have been doing more original work, this woman probably does the best job of any artist I have ever seen of covering other artists. This is a romantic album from start to finish. The title song is not my favorite, but is certainly a song anyone who has ever been in a relationship can relate to. Slow dancin makes me well want to slow dance with that special someone. As previously mentioned, that song is better than the original. Ring Of Fire is slightly out of place as it has an up-tempo country beat wedged in between songs that are soft rock, but it's a good interpretation. Don't Cry For Me Argentina will make you cry, it is such a beautiful rendition. Sad Songs is a great song, probably the best on the album, the epitome of soft rock in the 70's. You won't see me cry is another classic cover. So easy to begin is another one that all of us can relate to about the dynamics of a relationship and has that classic, breathy olivia sound. Olivia goes back to her country roots with I think I'll say goodbye. Don't ask a friend was written by olivia and shows her growing maturity at this time. It is a very interesting song, unlike anything I have ever heard before, but an excellent early composition by her. If Love Is Real is just beautiful. It sounds like it was written for Olivia and I can't imagine any other artist singing it. It is just perfect for her voice. I can't say enough about that song. I just love it. So yes, the whole album is ballads which would be a valid complaint if they weren't all sung by Olivia who is at top form with ballads and can make you feel a love song in your soul like no one else can. This is a beautiful album. Don't make it your intro to Olivia, but definitely get it if you know her stuff relatively well. Making a good career slightly worse, but still a great album 'Umm. When most Olivia Newton-John fans are asked about this album, their response in unanimous. The cover is really pretty'. And indeed it is. In fact it's probably not out of order to say that 'Making A Good Thing Better', Olivia's 9th studio album, boasts the nicest cover art of her career. That flowing blonde hair and so-seventies-it-hurts fringe with the flick around her shoulders, the cute-but-flirty flower tucked behind her left ear, the piercing blue eyes, and of course those freakishly white teeth - it doesn't take a genius to work out why John Travolta said that in the seventies every man on the planet was in love with her. Critics as well as fans noted this, Robin Smith in his review of the LP for Record Mirror said 'the pictures on the cover are almost worth the price of the album alone!' Unfortunately, focusing on the cover art doesn't give this album the dues it deserves. I, like most of Olivia's fans it would seem going from the reviews listed below, initally wasn't too impressed with the album. It is quite slow, and compared to the burning eclecticism of her next album ('Totally Hot'), certainly has more of a 'mellow' effect on the listener. That's not to discount its merit though, because on closer inspection the album is probably a lot closer to 'Totally Hot' than you'd first think. Comprised mostly of pop ballads and silky mid-tempos, 'Making A Good Thing Better' epitomises the gorgeous American feel of the late seventies. Although the effect of the growing disco phase hadn't fully registered with Olivia yet, at least half of this record is exactly what most seventies disco divas were putting out as their B-sides, or songs Studio 54 was playing for the 'slow dance' sections of their evening fiascos. The album builds on and succeeds in reaching the sound that her last record, 'Don't Stop Believin'', was aiming for but never quite achieved: a dreamy, often ethereal sound which compliments Olivia's singing style perfectly. Her voice is divine with, for the most part, her own multi-tracked backing vocals - sublime! The title track as Robin Smith put it is 'an average song turned into a specialty, her voice sounding like twelve vestal virgins'. The final track in the Grand Mellow Trio (the other two being 'Have You Never Been Mellow' and 'Don't Stop Believin''), except slightly more aggressive with a pop / gospel feel going on. Definitely one of her most underrated singles, just piercing the US and Australian Top 100. One can't help but feel that the gorgeous 'Slow Dancing' was the intentional pre-cursor to 'Totally Hot's 'Dancin' 'Round And 'Round', whilst 'Coolin' Down' as one US rock review said uses the 'tearful quality in her voice' to best effect. These three gems come spliced between two songs which create a rather jarring effect on the first 'side' (yes, I still love the old LP!) of this record. Her cover of 'Ring Of Fire' was not the best choice of song to record - in fact, next to 'I'll Bet You A Kangaroo', it's probably one of the worst songs of her early career - and 'Don't Cry For Me Argentina' is spine-tinglingly beautiful but is distracting on the album to say the least. The second side is a much smoother ride than the first, opening with the single-that-should-have-been, 'Sad Songs'. A catchy uptempo melody, this remains one of her best tunes of the seventies. So well-received was the tune that it actually warranted a single release in Japan, whereas the poor performance of the record and the title track ended the album's chart career elsewhere. 'You Won't See Me Cry', 'So Easy To Begin', and the critically-acclaimed 'If Love Is Real' make for a fantastic selection of seventies-sounding ballads which should rate a lot higher with fans in Olivia's back category. 'I Think I'll Say Goodbye' recalls the more country-esque tunes of Olivia's earlier career, whilst 'Don't Ask A Friend' is a self-penned mid-tempo with a lot of electric guitar and some interesting lyrical ideas from Olivia ('I'm your lonely hearts club friend'). Of course the best was yet to come from Olivia in terms of songwriting, but it was great to hear her try her hand at it in this comparitively early stage of her career. This album has got a lashing from both fans and the record-buying public at the time it seems, charting at the rather dismal #34 in the US and becoming her first US album not to go gold. One can only speculate, but there is no doubt in my mind that over-exposure played a defining role. In the space of two years she released three studio albums as well as a 'Greatest Hits' record. 'Excessive' is probably too kind a word!! Add to the fact that as wonderful as this record is, it's not the cutting-edge sound Olivia needed. Her career had been stable, for want of a better word, for the past three years, and she needed 'Grease' and its subsequent 'sex-up' to progress to a new, more exciting period of her career. 'Making A Good Thing Better' remains a joy from start to finish, minus a couple of temporary aberrations which make it slightly less cohesive than it should have been. In essence, it's not far away from 'Dancin 'Round And 'Round' or the 'Boats Against The Current' on her next record, and my only concern for the album is the fact that so many people don't seem willing to give it a chance. . You can see a complete list of all Olivia Newton-John discography, or go back to the Olivia Newton-John tabs