McCoy Tyner: What The World Needs Now: The Music of Burt Bacharach (Impulse IMPD-197).

McCoy Tyner: What The World Needs Now: The Music of Burt Bacharach (Impulse IMPD-197)

As a teenager in the '60s who worshipped Bob Dylan, idolized the Beatles, and was seduced by the "San Francisco Sound," I must confess that I also had a soft spot in my heart for the soft sounds of musicians such as Antonio Carlos Jobim, Tony Bennett, Jimmie Webb, and yes, even Burt Bacharach, whose music was given flight by singers such as the pre-psychic Dionne Warwick And in the '60s, pianist McCoy Tyner was most noted for his work with John Coltrane. I said above in a review that "things sometimes evolve." However, there must needs be an opposition in all things -- things sometimes fall apart, and this recording, which will no doubt sell more than all of the other recordings mentioned above put together, is evidence for that assertion. Here is McCoy Tyner accompanied by Christian McBride on bass and Lewis Nash on drums plus a small orchestra. Everything about this production seems overblown, almost laughable. And had they put one more picture of Tyner in the liner notes -- the Tyner notes -- I think I would have completely lost it. There are some nice moments, as in "The Windows of the World," where the orchestra fades into the hack-ground and Tyner plays with a reflective touch, but overall, the whole thing seems like an overblown vanity production. Maybe someday Tyner will go into the studio with just his trio -- forget all the strings! -- and rework these tunes into something with real heart. Until then, if you really want to hear Burt Bacharach's music, stick with Dionne. -- KWN