Gently (album)

1996 studio album by Liza Minnelli

Gently

Studio album by

Liza Minnelli

Released| March 19, 1996
Recorded| 1996
Genre| Jazz, vocal, traditional
Length| 42:12
Label| Angel
Producer| Brooks Arthur
Liza Minnelli chronology
| Paris — Palais des Congrès: Intégrale du spectacle
(1995)  | Gently
(1996)  | Minnelli on Minnelli: Live at the Palace
(1999)

|
|

Singles from  Gently

1. "Does He Love You?"
Released: February 1996

Gently is a studio album by American singer and actress Liza Minnelli. Released in 1996, it is her first album under the Angel Records/EMI label.[1]

The release came seven years after her last studio album, Results, from 1989.[2] During that time, she released the live albums Live from Radio City Music Hall in 1992[3] and Paris – Palais des Congrès: Intégrale du spectacle in 1995.[4]

Gently is a jazz-infused album that also includes romantic ballads and lounge music numbers with arrangements featuring vibraphone, piano, and muted trumpet.[5] Its title and theme reference moments in Minnelli's love life, starting from her adolescence when she had crushes on handsome schoolboys.[6]

During the album's promotion, she referred to the work as her "make-out album" due to the irredeemably sentimental themes behind the song choices.[6] She summed up the inspiration behind the album on The Rosie O'Donnell Show when she explained, "There wasn't a romance section [in the record store]. So, I thought, well, maybe I'll make an album that people can kiss to. Remember kissing? Wasn't it great to kiss? That's what this album is about."[6]

As part of the album's promotion, the singer appeared on the UK shopping channel QVC.[7] According to Gilbert Hetherwick, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Angel Records, her appearance on the channel was positive: "She sold thousands of her CD 'Gently' on the network. It's a great way to create awareness, especially for people who live in small towns."[7]

In 1997, the album was nominated for a Grammy Award in the category of Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album.[8] The award went to the album Here's to the Ladies by singer Tony Bennett.[9]

## Critical reception

[edit]

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic| [10]
The Guardian| [11]

Reviews from music critics were favorable.

Caroline Sullivan of The Guardian gave it three out of five stars.[11]

William Ruhlmann of AllMusic wrote that Minnelli managed to blend her musical heritage with the trends of her generation.[1]

Rennie Sparks of the Chicago Reader gave a favorable review, stating that at 50 years old, Liza Minnelli had finally decided to shed the role of a cheerful and optimistic superstar, delivering somber and profound songs, sung with a solitary and sentimental voice, full of fragility and sadness.[5]

## Commercial performance

[edit]

Gently was one of Minnelli's most successful albums on the charts during the 1990s. It reached number 156 on the Billboard magazine's list of best-selling albums, the Billboard 200.[12] In the UK, it reached number 58 on the Official Charts Company's list of best-selling albums.[13]

Gently sold over 100,000 copies worldwide.[7]

## Track listing

[edit]

No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Chances Are" (feat. Johnny Mathis)| Al Stillman, Robert Allen| 3:16
2.| "You Stepped Out of a Dream"| Gus Kahn, Nacio Herb Brown| 3:39
3.| "Embraceable You"| George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin| 4:29
4.| "Close Your Eyes"| Bernice Petkere| 3:35
5.| "Some Cats Know"| Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller| 3:47
6.| "Lost in You"| Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller| 4:02
7.| "I Got Lost in His Arms"| Irving Berlin| 3:12
8.| "It Had to Be You"| Isham Jones, Gus Kahn| 3:32
9.| "Never Let Me Go"| Jay Livingston, Ray Evans| 3:15
10.| "Does He Love You?" (feat. Donna Summer)| Sandy Knox, Billy Stritch| 4:58
11.| "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning"| David Mann, Bob Hilliard| 4:18
Total length:| 42:12

## Personnel

[edit]

* Liza Minnelli – vocals
* Chuck Berghofer, Will Lee, Bob Magnusson, Jim Hughart, Neil Stubenhaus – bass guitar
* Terry Gibbs, Emil Richards – vibraphone
* Albie Berk, John Guerin, John Robinson – drums
* John Tropea – electric guitar
* Chuck Findley, Randy Brecker – trumpet
* Tim May, Michael Landau, Grant Geissman – guitar
* Paulinho da Costa – percussion, congas
* Mike Renzi, Roger Kellaway, Pete Jolly – piano
* Jack Cavari – acoustic guitar
* Gary Foster, Nino Tempo – saxophone
* Robbie Buchanan – keyboards
* Billy Stritch – piano, backing vocals
* Lenny Castro – percussion, congas, timpani
* Melissa Manchester – backing vocals
* Brenda Russell – backing vocals

## Charts

[edit]

Chart (1996)  | Peak
position

|

UK Albums Chart[14] | 58
US Billboard 200[15] | 156

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b Ruhlmann, William. "Gently - Liza Minnelli". AllMusic. Archived from the original on October 9, 2015. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
2. ^ Ruhlmann, William. "Liza Minnelli - Results Album Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic". AllMusic. Archived from the original on February 12, 2023. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
3. ^ "Allmusic Review". AllMusic. Retrieved August 30, 2012.
4. ^ "Allmusic Review". AllMusic. Retrieved August 30, 2012.
5. ^ a b Sparks, Rennie (August 1, 1996). "Liza Minelli/Gently/(Angel)". Chicago Reader. Archived from the original on December 9, 2022. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
6. ^ a b c Piatkowski, Peter (March 22, 2023). "Liza Minnelli Hung Up Her Feather Boa & Sequins for 'Gently'". PopMatters. Archived from the original on June 3, 2023. Retrieved September 4, 2023.
7. ^ a b c Paoletta, Michael (February 12, 2000). "Liza's 'Minnelli on Minnelli' on Angel". Billboard. Vol. 112, no. 7\. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. pp. 12, 16. Retrieved August 26, 2023.
8. ^ "Babyface, Celine Dion Dominate Grammy Nominations". E!. January 7, 1997. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved February 4, 2010.
9. ^ "Winners of the 1997 Grammy Awards". NY Times. February 28, 1997. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
10. ^ Ruhlmann, William. "Liza Minnelli Gently". AllMusic. Retrieved July 22, 2013.
11. ^ a b Sullivan, Caroline (July 5, 1996). "Music: This Week's Pop CD Releases". The Guardian.
12. ^ "Liza Minnelli - Awards - Allmusic". AllMusic. Archived from the original on December 23, 2015. Retrieved August 30, 2012.
13. ^ "Chart Stats: UK Charts". Retrieved August 30, 2012.
14. ^ "Charts: Liza Minnelli (Gently)". OCC. Retrieved July 22, 2013.
15. ^ "Liza Minnelli - Gently (Awards)". AllMusic. Retrieved July 22, 2013.

* v
* t
* e

Liza Minnelli

* Awards and nominations
* Discography

Studio albums|

* Liza! Liza!
* It Amazes Me
* There Is a Time
* Liza Minnelli
* Come Saturday Morning
* New Feelin'
* The Singer
* Tropical Nights
* Results
* Gently
* Confessions

Live albums|

* Live at the London Palladium
* Live at the Olympia in Paris
* Live at the Winter Garden
* Live at Carnegie Hall
* At Carnegie Hall
* Live from Radio City Music Hall
* Paris – Palais des Congrès: Intégrale du spectacle
* Minnelli on Minnelli: Live at the Palace
* Liza's Back

Compilation albums|

* The Liza Minnelli Foursider
* 16 Biggest Hits
* The Capitol Years
* Ultimate Collection
* Life Is a Cabaret!
* When It Comes Down To It.......1968–1977
* The Best of Liza Minnelli
* The Complete Capitol Collection
* The Complete A&M Recordings
* Cabaret... And All That Jazz

Singles|

* "Hello, Dolly!"
* "I (Who Have Nothing)"
* "(I Wonder Where My) Easy Rider's Gone"
* "All That Jazz"
* "Theme from New York, New York"
* "Losing My Mind"
* "Don't Drop Bombs"
* "So Sorry, I Said"
* "Love Pains"

Concerts|

* Minnelli on Minnelli: Live at the Palace
* Liza's at The Palace....

Films|

* Cabaret
* Liza with a Z

Related topics|

* Vincente Minnelli (father)
* Judy Garland (mother)
* Lorna Luft (maternal half-sister)
* Muscle of Love
* "Mama"

* Category
* Portal

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

|

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