Greatest Songs of the Fifties (DualDisc) (2006)

Highlighted by a guest appearance from Phyllis McGuire of the McGuire Sisters on the medley of 1954 hits, “Sincerely/ Teach Me Tonight,” The Greatest Songs of the Fifties is a veritable jukebox of favorites. Any one of them would be a treat to hear on a new Manilow album – from his remake of the Four Lads’ “Moments To Remember” (1955) and the Everly Brothers’ “All I Have To Do Is Dream” (1958), to Bobby Darin’s “Beyond The Sea”(1959)– but to hear them collected on one album is a dream come true. The project (just like the era it emulates) cuts across musical genres, from The Four Ace’s ”Love Is A Many Splendored Thing” (1955), to Frankie Avalon’s “Venus,” to Johnny Mathis’ ”It's Not For Me To Say”(1957), to Tommy Edwards’ “It’s All In The Game” (1958), and Dinah Washington’s signature “What A Difference A Day Makes” (1959).

Some of America’s greatest artists are evoked on songs that are forever associated with them, for example, Tony Bennett on “Rags To Riches” (1953) and the Four Aces on the motion picture title tune hit “Love Is A Many Splendored Thing” (1955). More: the spirit of Frank Sinatra imbues “Young At Heart”(1954) and Elvis Presley is remembered with “Are You Lonesome Tonight.” “Unchained Melody”(1955) remains one of the most-recorded songs in contemporary popular music. The album will be available as a CD and DualDisc release, featuring behind-the-scenes footage of the making of the record.

For Manilow, The Greatest Songs of the Fifties is a labor of love – by an artist whose career has encompassed every facet of popular music, from his own string of top 40 hits in the ’70s and ’80s to side trips into swing, jazz vocalese, Broadway show tunes, Christmas music, hits from the silver screen, even the special tribute Manilow Sings Sinatra.