From Amazon.com
If you haven't been blinded by patriotism, wading through the glut of flag-waving duds flooding record bins will leave you squinty-eyed, which is why Disney's
Celebrate America!, despite its slightly ham-handed intro track, is worth celebrating. The swelling, Old Glory standards are here--"America the Beautiful" by Plus One and updated to weaken the knees of boy-band swooners; "America," issued with hats-off gusto by Lee Greenwood; and perennial Pete Seeger fave "This Land Is Your Land" among them--plus a handful of tracks that stretch, via their sentiments, to insinuate themselves into the red, white, and blue state of mind. Eva Cassidy's soul-scraping rendition of Curtis Mayfield's "People Get Ready" sounds right at home here, as do Bill Withers's "Lean on Me," Nita Whitaker's "Climb Every Mountain," and Art Garfunkel's "Bridge over Troubled Water" (still, a caveat's in order--the live version's a clunker compared with the original). Though Barry Mann's title track commands a sober, sincere liftoff for this collection, it comes across more as cobbled together for commercial purposes than as heartfelt; its polar opposite is Willie Nelson's achingly gorgeous "American Tune," also included here. Once Kaci issues the final salute with "Star Spangled Banner," what seems most American about
America! is its cross-genre approach: plant this musical melting pot in backyards across the country and at least a song or two will grow on everybody.
--Tammy La Gorce
