2010-07-27 The Archives of Let's Talk Dusty! - Lo… The Archives of Let's Talk Dusty! Home | Profile | Active Topics | Active Polls | Members | Search | FAQ Username: Password: Login Save Password Forgot your Password? All Forums Let's Talk Dusty! The Forum Forum Locked You Set My Dreams To Music Printer Friendly Longing Author Topic MissDustyFanatic Posted - 29/01/2009 : 03:05:34 Where am I going? At the request of Vicky (and since I either can't find or there wasn't a dedicated thread) and because the Dusty...Definitely thread isn't getting much love at the moment, I thought I'd start a thread on what was to have been Miss Dusty's 10th studio album. In July 1974, Miss Dusty went into the studios with Brooks Arthur, whom she'd worked with previously (on the New York tracks, perhaps? I don't have the Dusty bible with me at the moment), to record an USA album, her sec ond for her Americ an rec ord label, ABC/Dunhill. Her 2606 Posts previous effort for them, Cameo hadn't been a hit anywhere, and the only singles from that album didn't c hart in the Billboard Hot 100. The album was originally to have been titled Elements: However, be it a producer's prerogative, a record label executive decision, or Miss Dusty's choice, it was later retitled as Longing: dustyspringfield.info/…/topic.asp?TO… 1/17 2010-07-27 The Archives of Let's Talk Dusty! - Lo… In addition, the album was given a c atalogue number by ABC/Dunhill, and an official tracklisting (I'm assuming it is the official one, since it was in The Complete Dusty Springfield): Exclusively For Me Beaut iful Soul Home to Myself Angels Corner of the Sky In The Winter Make the Man Love Me I Am Your Child Turn Me Around A Love Like Yours (Don't Come Knocking Every Day) It was advertised in music trade publications in the fall of 1974, when, sadly, the sessions were abandoned. I don't know that anyone can know why they were abandoned for sure, but I think most people are aware of her personal problems at the time, and I think that contributed to Longing never being released. It must have been fairly close to release, save for a few vocals that weren't entirely finished ('A Love Like Yours', 'Make the Man Love Me', 'Angels', and 'Corner of the Sky'). This, for me, is Miss Dusty's most intensely emotional album, performance wise. It makes it all the more regrettable that it was never released. When she left ABC/Dunhill in 1975, she took the rights to the songs, as well as the tapes themselves, with her. I think it's telling that the only songs from those sessions that were mixed and intended for release during her lifetime are the ones where the vocals were truly finished ('Exclusively For Me', 'In The Winter' and 'Home to Myself'). I think they were released for the first time on Simply...Dusty in 2000. I love all the songs, but admittedly some more than others, and some not as much as others. 'Exc lusively For Me' has a c ool, introspec tive feel to it, whic h perfec tly fits the lyrics of the song. It's a perfect starter to the album, and indic ative of what lies ahead; Longing is one of her most introspective, personal albums. 'Beautiful Soul' is just heartbreaking. It hits me every time I listen to it. dustyspringfield.info/…/topic.asp?TO… 2/17 2010-07-27 The Archives of Let's Talk Dusty! - Lo… Paul Howes points out that it's usually considered to be a song sung by a woman to another woman; I've always taken it to be another introspective ballad- a lonely, depressed person's reflections on their life. 'Home To Myself' is well sung and to me, very c omforting. Ac c epting one's c urrent plac e in life, and understanding that it really isn't so bad living by yourself. You can "laugh and.. cry for the years gone by", and it's okay to do that and move on, knowing you still have a ways to go, but that you're content being yourself. 'Angels' is a bit of an oddity for me. I don't really care for it much beyond Miss Dusty's treatment. It does seem to fit in with other introspective songs on the album, though in a more metaphysical/cerebral way. 'Corner of the Sky' was the only song from the album that was never really finished. As Carole G. told us a while bac k, there are a few bits of Miss Dusty's voc als that aren't used on the only released version of the song, the duet with Petula Clark. It was released in 2007 on her Duet s album, and remixed and included on her Then & Now greatest hits album last year. This is my favorite song from the album, and is often the one to reduce me to tears. Although it was written spec ific ally for the music al 'Pippin', by Stephen Sc hwartz (who also played piano on the song), and uses the pre-Broadway lyrics of the song, it seems tailor-made for Miss Dusty. For me, it's an intensely spiritual song. It's about finding one's plac e in life, but it seems that since it was given the light of day (thanks to Miss Clark), to me, it's more about Miss Dusty being given a time to shine when she was thought to be lost, and she's now where her spirit can run free. 'In The Winter' is probably the most loved song from the whole album, though it's not a personal favorite of mine. It's quite grown on me, though I think the lyrics are a bit quirky. Miss Dusty gives such an emotional reading of the song. She also apparently had a sense of humor even in rec ording suc h an emotionally devastating song. Apparently, on the master tapes for the album, at the end line, where Miss Dusty sings "I'll live alone forever, not together, now.." she adds "wit h c at s" . 'Make the Man Love Me' is quite impassioned and one of my favorites. It starts out slowly and quietly, but builds up to quite the performance. I love the line "Lord, I know that he needs me..it's just that he don't know". Such conviction and tenacity! 'I Am Your Child' is a beautiful, quiet, devotional delivered from child to parent. While not one of my favorites, it is quite touching. I wonder if she had her parents in mind when she sang this. 'Turn Me Around' is probably my next favorite, after 'Corner of the Sky' and owes a lot of that to the arrangement on the song. While not one of the 'finished' voc als, the slight roughness ac tually adds to the intense drama of the song. It's all at once hopeful and pleading. I wonder why she didn't include the "It would be so easy, to give up and walk away, oh but please don't let that happen, no, you just cannot let that happen" line in her '78 re-recording. It's another classic Miss Dusty performance, where each line and chorus builds on the one before it, until she hits the stratosphere with her final delivery, then brings it back down to a gentle conclusion. Simply maaaahhvelous! 'A Love Like Yours (Don't Come Knocking Every Day)' is a good song, but I honestly prefer the '78 version. On some of the songs on Longing, her vocals are practice or rough takes, and on this song, it shows the most. She sounds tired and like she's struggling with the song. For this, I don't like this version. Although breathier, she sounds more energetic on the ...It Begins Again version. There are SO many facets of her personality on this album, and so many wonderful performances, and I'm so glad that we finally have them all, albeit one in duet form. Better that than not at all, though I would someday like to hear the songs as they are on tape. I'm still jealous of you, Carole! dustyspringfield.info/…/topic.asp?TO… 3/17 2010-07-27 The Archives of Let's Talk Dusty! - Lo… So...what do you think of Longing? What are your favorites from this intended/unreleased album? Do you think that if it HAD been released in 1974 that it would have been a needed hit, and given her a desperately needed shot of confidence? What singles would you have released from the album, had it been released at all? "I've got to be where my spirit can run free..." Clive Posted - 29/01/2009 : 13:37:11 I’ll try anything Thanks for starting this thread Taylor. I think what surprised me first of all when I heard the tracks was how near to completion the album was. From what I had read before I hadn't thought that the album would have been salvageable. Credit then to those who mixed and pieced together the tracks into a releaseable form although it would have been nice if Brooks Arthur had 1455 Posts been involved. My hope would be that this album could be remixed by Brooks Arthur as close to what he had intended at the time and released as an album in its own right now.