THE PARTRIDGE FAMILY : COME ON GET HAPPY ! THE VERY BEST OF THE PARTRIDGE FAMILY

  1. Come On Get Happy
  2. I Think I Love You
  3. I Woke Up In Love This Morning
  4. Baby I Love, Love, I Love You
  5. Point Me In The Direction Of Albuquerque
  6. I Can Feel Your Heartbeat
  7. Echo Valley 2-6809
  8. Sunshine
  9. Let The Good Times In
  10. Stephanie
  11. I'll Meet You Halfway
  12. Together (Havin' A Ball)
  13. Doesn't Somebody Want To Be Wanted
  14. Looking Through The Eyes Of Love
  15. It's One Of Those Nights (Yes Love)
  16. Roller Coaster
  17. Together We're Better

Label : Arista

Release Year : 2005

Length : 47:14

Review (Amazon) : It doesn't happen all the time, but occasionally kitsch burrows itself into the popular consciousness and stays put because it's timelessly, compellingly good. Such is the case with The Very Best of the Partridge Family, which at long last allows pop aficionados who have closeted their dirty-little-secret obsession with the fictitious TV group to come clean. Never mind the ruffles and dove-wing lapels-heartthrob hang-ups aside, David Cassidy can sing (skip "I Think I Love You" and check his soul chops on the raging "Roller Coaster" or his Elvis-like vocal nuances on "Point Me in the Direction of Albuquerque" instead.) And it doesn't hurt that the material he crooned was penned by some of the era's top songwriters. Barry Mann and Cynthia Weill, for example, lent their graceful imagery to "Looking Through the Eyes of Love," and Gerry Goffin was behind "I'll Meet You Halfway." Add to that the band's layered-harmony-nailing background singers and a stash of sensational session players, and it can't be helped: You get happy.

Review (AllMusic) : The Partridge Family don't get much respect from the standard history of rock from the early '70s. Much like their fellow made-for-TV brethren the Monkees, their contributions are written off as pre-fab concoctions that are too trifling to be bothered with. If you fall in line with that kind of thinking you are going to miss one of the best pop acts of the era. Utilizing the cream of behind-the-scenes songwriters from Neil Sedaka to Hot Chocolate's Errol Brown, and the lush vocal harmonies of the uncredited (at the time) background singers, the Partridge Family's songs are solid AM pop, with hooks galore and a light but not saccharine sound. Add to that the excellent (and under-rated) vocals of David Cassidy and you have some top-notch disposable pop that has stood the test of time. Come On Get Happy! The Very Best of the Partridge Family replaces the 1989's decent Greatest Hits and streamlines 2001's Definitive Collection by taking away all the David Cassidy solo tracks. The bulk of the songs here appear on both those collections, though, including their smash hit "I Think I Love You" plus other gems like "Echo Valley 2-6809" and "Doesn't Somebody Want to Be Loved." The collection also includes four previously unreleased tracks, two of which ("Together (Havin' a Ball)" and "Let the Good Times In") appeared in the show's first episode and were sung not by Cassidy but by Ron Hicklin, a member of the backing vocal crew. The other two feature Cassidy and are as good as any of their hits, "Baby I Love, Love, I Love You" is particularly fun. Whether the unreleased four songs belong on a" Very Best Of" collection is up for debate: On one hand it might have been better to add more songs that people remembered. but on the other it is nice to have the rarities unearthed. Either way, this is the best Partridge Family collection available.