Martin Cooper - American Portraits (W/Book) [CD]

Marty Cooper is a storyteller of America, truly America's hidden balladeer. He has written number one hits, as well as songs covered by such luminaries as Stevie Wonder, Rod McKuen, Jimmie Rodgers, Sammy Davis, Jr., The Kingston Trio, The Brothers Four, Burl Ives, Bobby Bare, The Irish Rovers, and Jennifer Warnes. In a career extending back to the late 1950s and as an important voice of the 60s folk revival, Marty's worked with such LA studio legends as The Wrecking Crew and Jack Nitzsche. And yet, he remains largely undiscovered by the public at large.This collection consists mainly of Marty doing Marty - singing songs previously covered and made famous by other artists, like Donna Fargo's "You Can't Be a Beacon (If Your Light Don't Shine)", which debuted at #1 on Billboard's Country Top 100, and "A Little Bit Country, a Little Bit Rock 'n Roll", the ubiquitous theme song of Donny and Marie Osmond, heard here with the original non-sibling lyrics. And there's protest songs censored by "the powers that be" back in the 60's, like "One More Time, Billy Brown" (originally sung by Burl Ives), because the message was deemed too inflammatory. But beyond all that, there is a portrait here painted with love and care of an America that we have largely lost - painted with the hope that perhaps we can find it, or some parts of it, again.Track list - (divided into Three Galleries)Gallery 1 - Classic Portraits1. Stephen2. Their Roof Is the Sky3. The Burlington Zephyr4. The Mississippi Blind Boy5. (I'm a) Yo Yo Man6. The Ball Player7. The Oklahoma Wrangler8. A Little Bit Country, A Little Bit Rock and RollrGallery 2 - A World in Motion9. In Santa Fe10. The Indiana Girl11. Cowboys and Daddies12. You Can't Be a Beacon (If Your Light Don't Shine)13. Think of the Children as Roses14. The Biplane, Evermore15. Little Bitty BallGallery 3 - A 60's Farewell 16. Under Your Wing17. The View From Ward Three18. The Leaves19. Little Play Soldiers20. One More Time, Billy Brown21. A Stranger in Your Town22. I Wrote a Song