Just a few weeks ago Ronnie Milsap was announced as 2014’s modern era inductee into the Country Music Hall of Fame. Country music’s first successful blind singer, he was also a huge crossover artist from the early 1970’s onwards, inspiring many who followed in his footsteps including most recently Hunter Hayes. It must have seemed appropriate then to look at his 71st year on Earth as the time to reflect upon the music that makes him happy, because in January of this year Ronnie released ‘Summer Number Seventeen’, a collection of covers of the music that inspired him as a youngster. Focusing on the period between the late 50’s and the mid 60’s and the R&B music of the period, a couple of tracks fall outside of that; including Hank Williams’ ‘I Can’t Help It (If I’m Still In Love With You)’, which takes a smooth, orchestral, crooner direction that really suits it; Lou Reed’s ‘Make Up’, which features Mandy Barnett and whose bluesy guitar part and wah-wah effects really add to the old school country/soul feel; and The Stylistics ‘You Make Me Feel Brand New’, another Mandy Barnett duet that opts for a more sparse mix and includes a sitar instead of lead guitar, making the sound particularly interesting.
The songs recorded for this album largely remain faithful to the original or most famed recordings, occasionally opting for a change or addition in instrument, or simply providing it with updated production. Utilizing a big brass band that ranges from more orchestral arrangements on ‘It’s All In The Game’ to soulful, classic renditions on ‘Georgia On My Mind’ (which has the added bonus of a decidedly 80’s approach to production on the synthed organ), to fun takes on swing songs such as on ‘Mack The Knife’, to finally funky, rollicking and jazzy sounds like ‘Mustang Sally’ and ‘Personality’. Ronnie is brimming with vitality, his voice clear and strong and full of joy, sounding perfect against the backdrops of rich, lush arrangements, the sheer variety evident despite an overall sonic theme developing throughout.
Bookending the dozen-track record are the new original song and title track ‘Summer Number Seventeen’ and a re-recording of Ronnie’s 1985 hit ‘Lost In The Fifties Tonight’. The former sets the tone for the album both sonically and thematically, bringing in a smooth big band sound and looking back nostalgically at those coming of age summers that so inspire our future years. With a perfectly timeless feeling, it joins the timeless classics that Ronnie has covered so effortlessly and a timeless hit of his own, again re-recorded very faithfully seemingly just to update the production, making it sound clearer and more in line with the modern techniques used in the prior 11 tracks.
This is a very pleasant album to listen to. Whether those songs are the ones from your childhood or whether you are just beginning to discover more of what came before, this is a classic covers album that will be enjoyed by all.
