From Hello Dolly to Goodbye Charlie

AMG Review of From Hello Dolly to Goodbye Charlie

Richie Unterberger
All Music Guide

Darin focused on standards done with jazzy arrangements on this 1964 album, though he did in fact co-write a couple of the songs, "The End of Never" and "Look at Me." Otherwise, writers like Sammy Cahn, Henry Mancini, Anthony Newley, and Andre Previn figure strongly in the songwriting credits. "The Days of Wine and Roses," "Call Me Irresponsible," "Once in a Lifetime," "Sunday in New York," and of course "Hello, Dolly!" and "Goodbye, Charlie" are all on board. It's got the competent verve you'd expect from Darin's mid-'60s pop'n'swing vocals, though not so exceptional that you'd recommend it as the cream of the crop. The highlight, if only because it doesn't sound like more of the same, is the dramatic, somber allad "The End of Never," with its unexpected melodic arches and Darin's committed singing. From Hello Dolly to Goodbye Charlie was combined with another mid-'60s Darin album focusing on jazz-pop-swing and standards, 1965's Venice Blue, on a 2002 CD reissue on Exemplar Music.