Bruce Hornsby - Greatest Radio Hits

MUCH PRAISE TO THE COMPOSTER PIANIST

Who is Bruce Hornsby? He is an exceptionally gifted prodigy pianist and composer who managed to stay under the radar & came through the side door so to speak. Born 11/23/54 in Virginia, he went & graduated from Berklee College of Music in Boston and the University of Miami School of Music. He decided to get into the popular music scene, started off with his band, The Range, and in 1986, he really knocked me out with his smash hit, The Way It Is, which has a superb out-of-the-ordinary melody and extraordinary composing and piano playing at the very least. His fingers just dance across the keyboard--every note clear and sharp. I recognized that The Way It Is was very special and Bruce was a gifted pianist, but as I listened to his other works, I soon noticed he is beyond extraordinary. Bruce is not an average or ordinary musician-composer--he is extraordinary. He may not fit an exceptionally gifted prodigy stereotype in part because he chose to enter popular music, but he IS one. I think it just happened that he created his own particular genre of music, which is within the times (or popular) and usually has a southern flair (or bluegrass), melodious and at times jazzy (or jazz). Bruce is also an astonishing jazz musician, as well. He also has a VERY beautiful voice, and he can sing very well.

What to pay attention to in this CD and just some highlights:

#1 The Way It Is--listen to those key strokes and melody--he couldn't have done it any better--a masterpiece. Since a recording of this song was done in his garage in 1984 (heard in Intersections) and he was born at the end of the year, I can safely say he must have composed "The Way It Is" when he was still in his 20's. Incredible.

#2 Mandolin Rain: another hit of his and great song.

#4 The Valley Road--GREAT MELODY and astonishing jazz solo that fits so well into the song and is so original that it is like exquisite lace embroidered into a song. Listen to it twice if you didn't appreciate it right away.

#8 Across the River: Haunting melody, otherworldly guitar playing. I hear the piano in the background sometimes, but it is drowned out by the guitar solo. (Piano is not mentioned in the instruments, however.)

#11 Fields of Gray: Great. I love this.

#12 Walk in the Sun. Listen to his astonishing background piano and chords. I love this one.

#13 See the Same Way: Ah, I just love this one. It certainly has a Southern flair and Bruce has a really beautiful singing voice in this one. This is one of my favorites for SURE. His great voice stands out in this one for sure.

#15 Go Back to Your Woods: Good One.

Listen to The End of the Innocence on Don Henley's Album, The End of the Innocence. Bruce co-wrote this one. If you haven't heard the original, please listen to it.

The studio recordings are PERFECT TO SUPERB. His compositions are absolutely perfect to extra superb.

DID MOZART AND BEETHOVEN sing? I find Bruce's voice really great, and with his musical genius, I will never notice if his voice is ever less than perfect--I certainly don't care.

I will go through all his albums one at a time.

(I regret deeply I caused my parents grief having abandoned piano with no good excuse--I was very good at excuses. I am paying the price for that mistake every day. Bruce & I are almost the same age & this hits very hard for me.) May 15, 2008

Definetly a keeper

I bought this for my husband and I think he loves me more for it.It's been a huge hit! March 28, 2008

Musical Progression

Bruce Hornsby started his radio career off with a couple of songs containing pertinent lyrics and catchy tunes then delved deeper into his musical roots and played with the instinct of a soulful jazzman. Radio hits goes some way to encapsulating his musical progression.Great cd if you're a Hornsby fan, although the first half should appeal to all listeners. January 17, 2007

Great CD - Old and New Together

You forget how many great songs Bruce Hornsby sang, wrote and co-wrote with others. I especially liked the first 8 tracks which are most of his Greatest Hits of the 80s. What a great sound he and the Range had. He has such a talent tickling the invories and it is refreshing to hear it all again. November 10, 2006

By far one of the best CDs I've ever listened to.

There aren't many Cds that I say have good or great songs all on the single disc, but this is an exception. This is one Cd I actually don't get tired of listening to on a daily basis. February 25, 2006

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