Helen Reddy

Album review

Helen Reddy's second album contains two originals, as well as covers of material by John Lennon, Carole King and Toni Stern, Randy Newman, Donovan Leitch, Leon Russell, and Alex Harvey. Over the years Reddy would continue to cover material by Carole King, Leon Russell, and Harvey; both she and Bette Midler covering Harvey's "Delta Dawn," with Reddy getting the chart hit. Here her rendition of his "Tulsa Turnaround" is intriguing and gives a good indication of the direction her music would take. These are very personal readings of Paul Parrish's"Time" and Leon Russell's "I Don't Remember My Childhood"; the accompaniment is laid-back and subdued, unlike Reddy's Love Song for Jeffrey album. Producer Larry Marks has a haunting foundation for David Blue's "Come on John," and one wonders if like Mama Cass on "I Call Your Name" or Janis Joplin's "Happy Birthday John Lennon," Reddy isn't singing this to the Beatle? Her rendition of Lennon's solo tune, "How?," is a rarity for the singer -- and as sparse as the Plastic Ono Band, minus what backed her on the soundtrack to All This and World War II when she performed "Fool on the Hill." The album Helen Reddy has a cover photo of the vocalist wearing a red and blue dress in ankle-deep water, a resting point before her cluster of Top 40 recordings. Donovan's "New Year's Resolution" and Carole King/Toni Stern's "No Sad Songs" give the singer a platform to help craft her sound. It's a nice glimpse of the naïve side of Reddy and a pleasant listening experience, though it was the only one of her early albums not to find representation on her Greatest Hits. Because there was no big hit on the record, it is not as well known as her other recordings, but it definitely has charm and is an essential part of her collection of music.

© Joe Viglione /TiVo