Album Notes

This is what famed critic Rex Reed has to say about the remarkable new CD from Christopher Gines, The Way It Goes:

"Like Christmas and birthdays, some things are always welcome and never out of style. Great singers are at the top of the list, and Christopher Gines is at the top of mine. He has taste, imagination and intelligence. This is a thrilling experience from start to finish."

Reed included the CD in his annual list of holiday picks, which also featured new releases from Barbra Streisand and Tony Bennett, in the New York Observer. You can find the complete article on Gines' website: christophergines.com

The 15-song CD, nearly all of them love songs, brings together material from some of the most accomplished writers in the American popular songbook. "Here I Go Again" by Cy Coleman, "Sorry-Grateful" by Stephen Sondheim, "Whoever You Are, I Love You" by Burt Bacharach & Hal David, "I Promise You A Happy Ending" by Jerry Herman, "Two For The Road" by Henry Mancini & Leslie Bricusse, "Music That Makes Me Dance" by Jule Styne, "A Quiet Thing" by Kander & Ebb - Gines interprets them all in a style that is his own.

With Gines, the focus is always on his voice. The New York Times has called the voice "stunning," adding Gines "resurrects a tradition of polished, manly crooning that in recent years has seemed all but extinct." The New York Observer has raved: "The smooth, brandy tones of Mr. Gines' easy baritone add luster to a variety of standards."

"I wanted to make an adult-contemporary pop album like you used to hear in the '70s - The Carpenters, Gordon Lightfoot or George Benson," Gines says about The Way It Goes. "But instead of rock and R&B tunes, I chose material from what I call the 'second wave' of great American popular songwriters - the group that followed the pioneers of Tin Pan Alley like the Gershwins, Cole Porter & Irving Berlin.

These next-generation writers continued that wonderful tradition of song craft through the rock era (all the songs on the album were written after 1960) and stayed true to the form. I also wanted this to be an album of love songs, because people always go back to love songs to be reminded of what's important in life. Many of the songs have an unusual twist - they explore the complexities and often ambivalent emotions that come with being in love - as well as the joy and excitement. To me, these are some of the best love songs ever written."

Gines is an accomplished performer who has appeared at The Oak Room of the Algonquin, The Rainbow Room, Sardi's, The Supper Club, and Lincoln Center's Alice Tully Hall, and with Vince Giordano's Nighthawks, and the Alex Donner and Stuart White orchestras. But perhaps he is best known for conceiving, creating and starring in Our Sinatra, the long-running off-Broadway hit revue celebrating the music of Frank Sinatra that will embark on a 60-city national tour in January.

"An utterly winning tribute to Ol' Blue Eyes...superior entertainment," The New York Times gushed about Our Sinatra, singling out Gines by saying "Mr Gines has a strong, smooth baritone and a voluptuous timbre that recalls the young Steve Lawrence." Our Sinatra was the winner of the 2000 MAC Award for Best Musical.

Previously, Gines released Christopher Gines Sings Charles DeForest, a tribute to the author of "When Do The Bells Ring," the song Tony Bennett has credited with championing his comeback. Of Gines CD, Bennett has said: "Christopher's interpretations of Charles' songs are a knockout!" In addition, Gines appeared on the compilation CD Friday Nights at Sardi's.