I'll always remember the song they were playing the first time we danced and I knew...

There's a great music blog by Jason Hare, www.Jasonhare.com, which I read religiously. Aside from his weekly flashback to the top-ten music charts of yesteryear, he also writes a weekly column called "Adventures In Mellow Gold". Concurrently reminiscing, dishing, and trashing soft-rock "classics", it's a funny read every time. One of the most recent columns, about Mary MacGregor's "Torn Between Two Lovers", argued the fact that there are few and far between women that would put together the rigth combo of sap and sugar of a mellow-gold nugget, but I'd like to offer a case for Anne Murray's "You Needed Me". Check out these lyrics...

I cried a tear, you wiped it dry
I was confused, you cleared my mind
I sold my soul, you bought it back for me
And held me up and gave me dignity
Somehow you needed me

You gave me strength to stand alone again
To face the world out on my own again
You put me high upon a pedestal
So high that I could almost see eternity
You needed me, you needed me

And I can't believe it's you
I can't believe it's true
I needed you and you were there
And I'll never leave, why should I leave?
I'd be a fool 'cause I finally found someone who really cares

You held my hand when it was cold
When I was lost you took me home
You gave me hope when I was at the end
And turned my lies back into truth again
You even called me "friend"

You gave me strength to stand alone again
To face the world out on my own again
You put me high upon a pedestal
So high that I could almost see eternity
You needed me, you needed me

It has the perfect combination of vulnerability and ballsiness (the "you needed me" and denial parts) that make it mellow gold.

The Best...So Far collects twenty nuggets like this taken from Murray's 25 years of performing in 1993. Containing all of her top-40 hits, it's the perfect way to get the best of her country-pop goodness. Starting with her breakthrough record "Snowbird", a gem in the Olivia Newton-John vein of country. The set is not in any sort of chronological order, but does flow well since her music didn't change much over the years. Highlights are the Loggins/Messina song "Danny's Song" (you'd know it as "even though we ain't got money....everything will bring a chain of love"), the soft-rock "powerballads" (read 70s wedding standards) "Nobody Loves Me Like You Do" and "I Just Fall In Love Again", the John Denver-like "A Love Song", "Could I Have This Dance" (from Urban Cowboy), and the forementionned "You Needed Me", a saccharine-sweet song made fragily touching due to Murray's pitch-perfect but just-cracking voice. The only parts of the compilation less strong are the forays into soft-country in the 80s, like "Somebody's Always Saying Goodbye", though even that is done with class and feeling.

Suffice it to say, if you're a fan of female singers like Joni Mitchell, country-rock like Poco, and very commercial soft country like Olivia Newton-John, by all means pick of The Best...So Far. You won't be disappointed at all. And it makes a great CD to play on a romantic dinner (and with Valentine's Day coming up...)

Grade: B+
Best Cuts: "You Needed Me", "Could I Have This Dance", "Danny's Song", "Nobody Loves Me Like You Do", "A Love Song", "I Just Fall In Love Again", "Could I Have This Dance"
Weakest Link: "Somebody's Always Saying Goodbye"

"Snowbird" hit #8 pop, #10 Country, #1 Adult Contemporary, and #23 in the UK.
"Danny's Song" hit #7 pop, #10 country, and #1 AC.
"Love Song" made #12 pop, #5 country and #1 AC.
"You Won't See Me" made #8 pop and #1 AC.
"You Needed Me" hit #1 pop, #4 country, #3 AC, and #22 in the UK.
"I Just Fall In Love Again hit #12 pop, #1 country, #1 AC, and #58 in the UK.
"Shadows In The Moonlight" made #25 pop, #1 country, and #1 AC.
"Broken Hearted Me" made #12 pop, #1 country, and #1 AC.
"Daydream Believer" hit #12 pop, #3 country, #1 AC, and #61 in the UK.
"Could I Have This Dance" hit #33 pop, #1 country, and #3 AC.
"Blessed Are The Believers" made #34 pop and #1 country.
"Another Sleepless Night" made #44 pop, #4 country, and #11 AC.
"Somebody's Always Saying Goodbye" hit #7 country and #36 AC.
"A Little Good News" hit #74 pop, #1 country, and #11 AC.
"Just Another Woman In Love" made #1 country and #7 AC.
"Nobody Loves Me Like You Do" made #1 country and #10 AC.
"Time Don't Run Out On Me" hit #2 country and #11 AC.
"Now And Forever (You And Me)" hit #92 pop, #1 country, and #7 AC.

To pick up a copy of The Best...So Far, you can go to websites like here and here.

To listen to the classic song "Could I Have This Dance" you can click here to download (Right-click to bring up another window).

And here's the "karoake" video for Murray's "You Needed Me" sung by her. Enjoy.



Bonus....somebody made a very touching montage to go with the song "I Just Fall In Love Again." Couldn't resist.