beautiful dreams
beautiful dreams (1995)

"I might take a walk past your house, for a trip down memory lane, you may see me at your window, standing in the pouring rain, but I'm not crying, I'm not crying, I'm not crying over you."

Released in 1995 (Came out in Halifax in the middle of November)

"This is the album I've always wanted to make; a live studio recording of personal favourites, old classics and new songs, with full orchestra and choir."

"It was recorded in London over a period of eight days (instead of the usual three to four months) in July '95, and to sing each track surrounded by an orchestra, without the benefit of the safety-net of modern technology, was immensely exciting - everything in one take, the way it used to be!"

  1. Missing You [3:56]
  2. Girl [2:50] {written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney}
  3. Carry Me (Like a Fire in Your Heart) [4:05]
  4. Discovery [3:21]
  5. The Snows of New York [3:33] {music co-written by Albert Hammond}
  6. In Love Forever [3:54]
  7. Shine On [3:56]
  8. The Lady in Red [4:03]
  9. In Dreams [3:09] {written by Roy Orbison}
  10. I'm Not Crying Over You [3:57] {music co-written by Albert Hammond}
  11. Always on my Mind [3:22] {written by Wayne Thompson, Mark James and John Christopher}
  12. Say Goodbye to it All [4:34]
  13. One More Mile to Go [3:32]
A beautiful collection of ballads from a true expert in the field. The only disappointment is the small number of new songs. We can hope that since this album took such a short time to make that he may come out with another full album in the near future. However, that's hard to say. From what I've seen over the last number of years, he may be winding down a bit, wishing to spend more time with his family (who wouldn't) and less time touring and recording.

This album contains a rare thing for CdeB, cover versions. The first ones he has recorded to the best of my knowledge. I don't think I'm that fond of "Girl", but I keep finding myself humming it. "Always on my Mind" is very well done but I keep hearing the Pet Shop Boys... "In Dreams" however, is a beautiful little song, and though I haven't heard Orbison sing it, it has his trademarks all over it.

My favorite song on the album would have to be "Say Goodbye To It All", a completely different telling of a wonderful song. He has taken the upbeat sequel to the Borderline and turned it into a lovely, slow-moving ballad.

Of the other songs, "Carry Me", "Discovery", "I'm Not Crying Over You", "The Snows of New York" and "One More Mile to Go" are the stand-outs. (Gee, that's almost all of them!)

BACK TO MAIN PAGE