Open Fire, Two Guitars Johnny Mathis

• 1 Open Fire 03:52
• 2 Bye Bye Blackbird 04:07
• 3 In The Still Of The Night 02:35
• 4 Embraceable You 03:28
• 5 I'll Be Seeing You 04:26
• 6 Tenderly 02:58
• 7 When I Fall In Love 04:31
• 8 I Concentrate On You 03:16
• 9 Please Be Kind 03:24
• 10 You'll Never Know 04:07
• 11 I'm Just A Boy In Love 02:44
• 12 My Funny Valentine 03:37
• Total Runtime 43:05

Info for Open Fire, Two Guitars

Open Fire, Two Guitars is the eighth album released by legendary singer Johnny Mathis. Of his recordings, it is his seventh original studio album. In a major departure from all his previous albums, Mathis sings with the backing of two guitars played by Al Caiola and Tony Mottola plus an upright bass (Frank Carroll on nine of the tracks, Milt Hinton the rest) for rhythmic support. This allows the purity, sensitivity and sheer beauty of the Mathis voice to shine through.

„The open fire of the title is a warm hearth, not an invitation to gunplay. On this 1959 album, Johnny Mathis creates an atmosphere of fireside intimacy by dispensing with his usual orchestral accompaniment so that the purity of his voice entices the listener's full attention. Al Caiola and Tony Mattola play the two guitars that supplement Mathis' crooning, with an upright bass providing the album's only other instrument. Producer Mitch Miller is often associated with gimmicky or novelty productions, but his work on Open Fire, Two Guitars is perfectly understated, emphasizing the gentle caress of Mathis' voice over the relaxed counterpoint of the two guitars. The songs give prominence to the pop standards of Rodgers & Hart, Cole Porter, and the Gershwins, but the title track, 'Open Fire,' is a new composition by Leiber & Stoller. The album's effect seems nearly a cappella at times, but 'In the Still of the Night' finds Mathis intoning the lyrics over gently rhythmic guitar figures that educe new harmonic complexities from a well-known song. The enduring popularity of Open Fire, Two Guitars is attributable in part to its hypnotic aura of closeness and confidentiality, but also to the simple instrumentation that appeals to many rock-era listeners' preference for guitars over orchestral arrangements.“ (Greg Adams, AMG)

'...A minimal backing of two acoustic guitars and bass provide a warm, intimate setting for Mathis' wistfully tremulous singing style and the extraordinary range, depth and delicacy of his delivery. The selections of lilting ballads from Leiber & Stoller, George & Ira Gershwin and Cole Porter is similarly faultless.' (Q-Magazine)

Johnny Mathis, guitar, vocals
Al Caiola, guitar
Tony Mottola, guitar
Frank Carroll, bass
Milt Hinton, bass

Recorded January 1959
Engineered by Cliff Morris, Robert Waller, Harold Chapman
Produced by Mitch Miller

Digitally remastered

No biography found.

This album contains no booklet.