Philadelphia’s Hughie Mac returns with the fourth installment of his Sings Some Great Songs series and many will feel it is the best yet. Mac’s swing through popular music over the course of these four albums is reminiscent, in some ways, of Rod Stewart’s Great American Songbook releases, but Mac’s vision is arguably wider and more all encompassing than anything Stewart attempted with those releases. It’s difficult, if not impossible, to imagine Rod Stewart tackling Jimmy Buffet’s “Cheeseburger in Paradise” as Mac does here. Mac’s unabashed respect and love for these songs shines through and there isn’t one cut that will fall flat for listeners. The sound of the album, like its illustrious predecessors, frames these covers in the best possible light and the instrumentation is first rate, but the spotlight remains on Mac throughout and he never withers under its bright glare.
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The piano and light percussion powering the musical arrangement for “Almost Like Being in Love” gives Mac an excellent foundation from which he can weave his vocal magic. Focus is one of the many strengths of this release and few songs embody that strength better than this one – Mac eschews any needless sideshows and keeps listeners’ attention fixed on the song itself rather than any distractions that might undercut what he’s attempting to accomplish here.
“All of Me” is another venerable standard that receives sensitive treatment from Mac. His vocal breathes new life into this longtime favorite of many and hews close to the popular bygone versions of the track while still carrying his own identity for listeners. He never pushes his voice or the song too hard; instead, Mac’s comfort with the material is another across the board highlight of the release.
Anyone who follows Mac’s releases in this series knows about his obvious love for Frank Sinatra, but it’s taken until now for Mac to tackle Ol’ Blue Eyes signature song “My Way”. He takes the song on with a measured pace, never rushing, and the addition of strings to the musical arrangement brings another dimension to the performance. It can’t be stressed enough the bravery it takes to wrestle with a song like this – “My Way” is part of American musical lexicon, an iconic tune by any measure, but Mac does an exemplary job bringing something of himself to this classic.
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The upright bass and percussion underlying “Fly Me to the Moon” gives the performance a sturdy foundation and Mac, once again, acquits himself well with a superior vocal. It’s another highlight on an album full of such moments. He expands his sonic arsenal with a performance of Glen Campbell’s classic “Galveston” that incorporates wiry guitar and strong keyboards that never sound out of place on the release. Mac delivers a vocal full of zest that more than does justice to Campbell’s original.
His aforementioned take on Jimmy Buffet’s “Cheeseburger in Paradise” incorporates keyboards as well and is one of the album’s more improbable successes. The variety present on Hughie Mac Sings Some Great Songs Part 4 is a hallmark of Mac’s entries in this series and the completeness defining this latest release means that, if it is the last such release, Mac concludes the series on a high note.
Jodi Marxbury