Portrait (The Walker Brothers album)

Portrait is the second album by the American pop group The Walker Brothers. Released in 1966 the album was their most successful and reached number three on the UK Albums Chart.[3] The group's musical accompaniment was directed by Ivor Raymonde and Reg Guest and produced by John Franz. Receiving good to mixed reviews the album was first released in both Mono and Stereo LP formats in August 1966. The album was later released on CD having been remastered and expanded in 1998. The sleeve notes were written by Keith Altham with photography by Dezo Hoffman.

Portrait
Studio album by
The Walker Brothers
ReleasedAugust 26, 1966
Recorded1966
GenrePop, baroque pop, blue-eyed soul
LabelPhilips, Smash
ProducerJohn Franz
The Walker Brothers chronology
Take It Easy with The Walker Brothers
(1965)		 Portrait
(1966)		 The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore
(1966)
Singles from Portrait
  1. "Saturday's Child"
    Released: 1966[1]
  2. "In My Room"
    Released: December 1966[2]

Portrait was not released in the USA. In its place Smash Records compiled The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore as the group's second album.[4] This alternate version substituted the majority of the album's tracks with A-Sides, B-Sides and tracks from their first EP leaving only "Just For A Thrill", "Old Folks", "People Get Ready" and "Take It Like a Man".

Reception

Portrait received good to mixed reviews from the majority of critics.

Legacy

Richie Unterberger writing for Allmusic recommends the album for serious fans only as the majority of the best tracks are on the compilation After the Lights Go Out. "Like some other pop/rock LPs of its time, it suffered from an apparent strategy to appeal to a wider demographic than those that typically bought pop/rock records, adding a cover of Louis Armstrong's "Just for a Thrill," the moldy standard "Old Folks," and the pedestrian white-boy soul workout on Curtis Mayfield's "People Get Ready."[5] Unterberger is also positive regarding "In My Room" which he describes as "dramatic"[5] and "No Sad Songs for Me" which he calls "melodramatic"[5] and "the best tune that doesn't show up on the After the Lights Go Out compilation".[5]

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."In My Room"Joaquin Prieto, Paul Vance and Lee Pockriss (English lyrics)2:34
2."Saturday's Child"Scott Engel2:07
3."Just for a Thrill"Lil Armstrong, Don Raye3:36
4."Hurting Each Other"Peter Udell, Gary Geld2:47
5."Old Folks"Willard Robison, Dedette Lee Hill3:13
6."Summertime"George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin, Dubose Heyward4:31
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."People Get Ready"Curtis Mayfield2:40
8."I Can See It Now"Scott Engel, John Franz3:00
9."Where's the Girl"Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller3:14
10."Living Above Your Head"Kenny Vance, Mark D. Sanders, Jay Black2:44
11."Take It Like a Man"Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller2:31
12."No Sad Songs for Me"Tom Springfield3:41
Expanded CD bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore" (1966 A-Side)Bob Crewe, Bob Gaudio3:17
14."After the Lights Go Out" (B-Side of "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore")John Stewart4:01
15."(Baby) You Don't Have to Tell Me" (1966 A-Side)Pete Antell2:28
16."My Love Is Growing" (B-Side of "(Baby) You Don't Have to Tell Me")John Stewart, Robbie van Leeuwen2:22
17."Another Tear Falls" (1966 A-Side)Burt Bacharach, Hal David2:28
18."Saddest Night in the World" (B-Side of "Another Tear Falls")John Maus2:13
19."Deadlier Than the Male" (1966 A-Side)Scott Engel, John Franz2:32
20."Archangel" (B-Side of "Deadlier Than the Male")Scott Engel3:45
21."Sunny" (from 1966 EP: Solo John/Solo Scott)Bobby Hebb3:50
22."Come Rain or Come Shine" (from 1966 EP: Solo John/Solo Scott)Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer3:21
23."The Gentle Rain" (from 1966 EP: Solo John/Solo Scott)Luiz Bonfá, Matt Dubey2:44
24."Mrs. Murphy" (from 1966 EP: Solo John/Solo Scott)Scott Engel3:20

Personnel

Charts
ChartPosition
UK Album Chart[3] 3
German Album Chart[6] 8

References
  1. "Walker Brothers, The - Saturday's Child (Vinyl) at Discogs". discogs. Retrieved 2014-09-20.
  2. "45cat - The Walker Brothers - In My Room / (Baby) You Don't Have To Tell Me - Philips - Japan - SFL-1080". 45cat. Retrieved 2014-09-20.
  3. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 589/590. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  4. Unterberger, Richie (2012). "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore - The Walker Brothers | AllMusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
  5. Allmusic review
  6. "charts.de - Discographie The Walker Brothers". 2012 media control. Retrieved 2012-10-26.
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