Barefoot on the Beach
Studio album by
Michael Franks
ReleasedJune 1, 1999 (1999-06-01)
Genre
Length1:02:27
LabelWindham Hill
Producer
Michael Franks chronology
The Best of Michael Franks: A Backward Glance
(1998)		 Barefoot on the Beach
(1999)		 The Michael Franks Anthology: The Art of Love
(2003)

Barefoot on the Beach is a smooth jazz album by American singer-songwriter Michael Franks, released in 1999 by Windham Hill Records.[1]

Background

Franks' relationship with Warner Bros. Records (and its subsidiary Reprise Records) which began with the 1976 album The Art of Tea ended with Barefoot on the Beach.[2] The album was his first and only release by Windham Hill, a Sony Music label; subsequent albums would be released by Koch (E1 Music) and Shanachie Records. His compilation albums continued to be released by Warner Bros. The album includes Valerie Simpson, who sings a duet in "Now Love Has No End", Joe Sample, and Jimmy Haslip of The Yellowjackets.

Although the album evokes summer, it also contains biting commentary on Broadcast Architecture's dominance of American smooth jazz radio at the time with "Mr. Smooth". Lyrics such as "some of us remember how much choice there was, before he took the throne" and "his verdict we must wait" lament the dominance and perceived heavy-handed influence of the network on the genre.[3]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Michael Franks, except where noted

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Barefoot on the Beach"Franks, Charles Blenzig5:04
2."Heart Like an Open Book" 4:48
3."Now Love Has No End" (with Valerie Simpson) 6:13
4."The Fountain of Youth" 5:52
5."When You Smiled at Me" 5:04
6."Double Talk" 6:12
7."Every Time She Whispers" 7:24
8."Why Spring Ain't Here" 4:27
9."A Walk in the Rain" 6:21
10."Mr. Smooth" 4:40
11."Like Moon Behind a Cloud" 6:23

Personnel

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]

Writing for AllMusic, Jonathan Widran praised Franks' vocal style and longevity. "Countless musical trends have steamrolled by since this wry singer songwriter with the cool and collected, wistful onionskin voice first graced the adult music world in the mid-'70s [..] yet Franks has stood his ground, growing as an observational lyricist while his relaxed demeanor stays pretty much the same, and charmingly so." He concluded the album is "the kind of spring in your step music Franks fashioned his career out of."

References

  1. ↑ "Discography in Order of Release". MichaelFranks.com. Retrieved 2012-02-12.
  2. ↑ PopMatters Staff. "Michael Franks, Barefoot on the Beach". PopMatters.com. Retrieved 2012-03-12.
  3. ↑ Hughes, Dave (2000-03-01). "CD/LP/Track Review: Michael Franks: Barefoot on the Beach". Retrieved 2012-03-12.
  4. ↑ Widran, Jonathan. Barefoot on the Beach – Michael Franks at AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-02-12.

Bibliography

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