Chris Bartley - The Sweetest Thing This Side Of Heaven (1967)

A CD clone of Chris Bartley's 1967 LP on Van McCoy's Vando Records. Collectables Records tacked the extra song "Love Me Baby" on to make it a baker's dozen with McCoy writing and producing every track. Bartley scored the first time out with "Sweetest Thing This Side of Heaven," a lilting beauty caressed by Bartley's flowery falsetto. The follow-up, the Motown-ish, formulaic "Baby It's Wonderful," flopped, though it probably sounded like a straight hit in the recording studio booming from those big speakers. He's better on "You Get Next to My Heart," the third single, the lilting "Sittin' Pretty," where he displays a honey soaked false voice, and "Hooked on You," a hard-edged up-tempo number where he sings natural and falsetto. Oozing with love is a remake of the Spellbinders' "For You," one of McCoys' best floaters; the up-tempo "Gotta Tell Somebody (About My Baby)" shows he can jam with the right material. Regardless of the tempo, Bartley's always depicted as a love-struck romantic.

Tracklist:
1.01 - Chris Bartley - Gotta Tell Somebody (About My Baby) (2:42)
1.02 - Chris Bartley - Sittin' Pretty (3:02)
1.03 - Chris Bartley - Baby It's Wonderful (3:04)
1.04 - Chris Bartley - That's How Much I Love You (2:44)
1.05 - Chris Bartley - Hooked On You (2:42)
1.06 - Chris Bartley - I'll Be Loving You (3:10)
1.07 - Chris Bartley - The Sweetest Thing This Side Of Heaven (3:00)
1.08 - Chris Bartley - Sugar Baby (3:00)
1.09 - Chris Bartley - You Get Next To My Heart (2:42)
1.10 - Chris Bartley - For You (3:01)
1.11 - Chris Bartley - My Baby (3:16)
1.12 - Chris Bartley - Thanks For Loving Me (2:49)
1.13 - Chris Bartley - The Sweetest Thing This Side Of Heaven (Mono Single Version (Bonus Track)) (2:59)
1.14 - Chris Bartley - Love Me Baby (Mono Single Version (Bonus Track)) (2:31)
1.15 - Chris Bartley - Baby It's Wonderful (Mono Single Version (Bonus Track)) (3:04)
1.16 - Chris Bartley - I'll Be Loving You (Mono Single Version (Bonus Track)) (3:09)
1.17 - Chris Bartley - For You (Mono Single Version (Bonus Track)) (2:51)
1.18 - Chris Bartley - You Get Next To My Heart (Mono Single Version (Bonus Track)) (2:39)