Music : Streisand Superman

In association with Amazon.com

Rating:

- The name of the album says it all... Barbra at the top of her game.
Streisand Superman is one of the best, there's no doubt about it. This album is one that many Streisand diehards argue as their favorite. While not mine personally, I must agree that this is one of the elite. It should also be noted that Streisand co-wrote some of the material on this record.

The track list... where to begin? The title song is gorgeous, and a strong opener for the album. "Don't Believe What You Read" immediately follows, which is my personal favorite on the album with its upbeat tempo and groovy riffs. I can't help but wonder if she had specific memories from her life in mind when writing it. "Baby Me Baby" is a gorgeous ballad, "Cabin Fever" is very similar to "Don't Believe What You Read" in sound, and Streisand's cover of "New York State of Mind" is almost better than the original, staying true to the original song while giving it that classic Streisand touch.

To me, Superman is the Pop version of People. There is variety in the track choices, but the cohesiveness of the album as a whole cannot be broken. Barbra sounds as beautiful as ever, and this album absolutely leaves your mouth watering for more. For those out there that are not real familiar with Barbra's work, this album is definitely an excellent indication of her recording career as a whole.

Rating:

- Superman Soars!
By the time Streisand Superman was released on June 14, 1977, Streisand was arguably the most powerful woman in show business. Six months prior, she had released A Star Is Born, which was her greatest box office film success to date. The accompanying soundtrack was Number 1 for six weeks, (the longest running Number 1 album of her career) which included her co-penned opus "Evergreen," which also earned her an Academy Award for Best Song after spending three weeks at the pole position on the Billboard Hot 100.

By 1977, Streisand was still delivering an album a year, but the fact that she delivered Superman just six months following A Star Is Born was extremely unusual, especially since the soundtrack was still riding high on the charts. The pop success of Streisand was now in full gear, and the songs on Superman were further proof that Barbra, a singer who barely scratched the pop singles chart a decade earlier, was now encroaching into new territory, and radio was finally embracing her. The press dubbed the six-month releases of A Star Is Born and Superman as "Streisand's one-two punch!"

There weren't many female singers (if any) that could release an album that carried a title such as "Superman" - and yet it seemed appropriate. Streisand was known for her chutzpah, and her pose on the album cover wearing a skimpy pair of white short-shorts with a tight white t-shirt emblazoned with the Superman logo seemed absolutely fitting. The title and the photo suggested that the queen of entertainment also had balls. And as successful as her career had been prior to '77, she seemed to have reached an even higher peak. It was fascinating to her fans and infuriating to her detractors.

Now that I've exhausted the packaging and multiple interior Steve Schapiro photos of the empowered Streisand, let's get to the music.

Streisand had finally delivered an entire pop album that was consistent and one that absolutely suited her. The songs ranged from pop ballads such as the hit single, "My Heart Belongs To Me" which reached Number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100, to gorgeous sonatas including "Love Comes From the Most Unexpected Places," which was co-written by the prolific Kim Carnes, to rock and roll.

From the opening title track, Streisand's vocals soared so effortlessly above the clouds, that when she sang the lyric "I'm Superman" with such conviction, you believed she WAS Superman!

The entire album is so much fun; it's like cotton candy at a summer carnival. The only exception would be "Don't Believe What You Read." Even though the track was co-written by Streisand and the lyrics were terrific, elucidating the details of her life in the tabloids, the steely rock guitar chords absolutely lacked a hook while repeating a monotonous rhythm. On the other hand, one other song that was co-written by the songbird was the gorgeous ballad "Answer Me," which was originally written for A Star Is Born. Although, it didn't make the final cut to the film and soundtrack, it luckily ended up on this album.

Upbeat rhythms such as "I Found You Love" and "Cabin Fever" captured Streisand's playful side, and since she succeeded so well in this genre on "A Star Is Born" (despite what many critics said) it was a given that she continued to show off her versatility as a first rate vocalist that could capture just about every style of music.

Speaking of versatility, she even sang a brilliant cover of the Roger ("King of the Road") Miller country-tinged ditty, "Baby Me Baby." Two very bright highlights were the albums final two tracks, Billy Joel's luminous "New York State of Mind" and Rupert Holmes' divine ode to independence "Lullaby For Myself." Billy Joel was said to be "over the moon" with Streisand's dazzling rendition of "New York State of Mind" that he later commented, "My mother now knew I had made it because Barbra Streisand had recorded one of my songs." Barbra Streisand had made it alright. She had conquered just about every medium of entertainment; it was just a matter of time that she dominated the world of pop music. If I had to choose one word to describe Streisand Superman, it would be "confident." This is truly one of the best pop albums of Streisand's discography.

Rating:

- For me this is her best album.
Good music, musical risk-taking, classic Streisand..for me this is her best.

Rating:

- Barbra Streisand: Streisand Superman (1977)
In June of 1977, Barbra Streisand had released her twenty-second album entitled, STREISAND SUPERMAN. I was expecting this album to prompt me in giving the album a three-star rating, but I wound up finding myself having to prompt myself in giving it a four-star rating. It is not good enough to receive all five stars, but it was good enough to come close as a great album. Many of the songs on are really amazing.

SUPERMAN
I have really enjoyed this song many times and I still enjoy hearing this song. Great song all the way.

DON'T BELIEVE WHAT YOU READ
This is something I can totally agree with because so many paparazzis are writing in papers many untrue things, so Barbra just tells us simply this, "Don't Believe What You Read".

BABY ME BABY
Great.

I FOUND YOU LOVE
Great.

ANSWER ME
Not bad.

MY HEART BELONGS TO ME
Great.

CABIN FEVER
I do not want to be the next victim of "Cabin Fever". That's all I'm saying.

LOVE COMES FROM UNEXPECTED PLACES
Not bad.

NEW YORK STATE OF MIND
This song was originally recorded by Billy Joel. Now, I am a fan of Billy Joel's, but this is not one of his best songs. Barbra did a great job of it, but it is not my favorite Billy Joel song, nor is it my favorite Barbra Streisand cover song.

LULLABY FOR ME
Not bad.

As I said before, this album achieved a four-star rating from me. STREISAND SUPERMAN is still worthy of being in your Barbra Streisand collection. So, just simply buy this album and put it with the rest of your Barbra Streisand albums.

Rating:

- Another good album
This album came out a few months after A STAR IS BORN. The album continued in the vein of that one with some rock inspired tracks. This to me is one of Barbra's most personal albums. She penned the rockish "Don't Believe What You Read", an attack on the press and tabloids. "I Found You Love" has a nice disco type sound to it. The album features the hit "My Heart Belongs To Me". The title track is another nice ballad. "New York State Of Mind" is another standout. Definately worth having in your collection if you are a Streisand fan.

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