Chameleon
Studio album by
The Four Seasons
ReleasedMay 1972
Recorded1972
Length33:33
LabelMoWest
ProducerBob Gaudio
The Four Seasons chronology
Half & Half
(1970) 		Chameleon
(1972) 		Who Loves You
(1975)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]

Chameleon is a 1972 album by The Four Seasons notable for being their only album recorded for Motown. The album met with limited success in the US; no single was even issued from the album in America. "The Night", however, met with success in the UK and peaked at No. 7 in 1975, becoming a Northern Soul mainstay.[2]

Track listing

Chameleon track listing
Track Song Writer(s) Time
1 "A New Beginning (Prelude)" Bob Crewe, Bob Gaudio 1:21
2 "Sun Country" Bob Gaudio 4:07
3 "You're a Song (That I Can't Sing)" Bob Gaudio, Brit Gaudio 3:11
4 "The Night" Al Ruzicka, Bob Gaudio 3:22
5 "A New Beginning" Bob Crewe, Bob Gaudio 4:45
6 "When the Morning Comes" Bob Gaudio 4:37
7 "Poor Fool" Al Ruzicka 4:20
8 "Touch the Rainchild" Al Ruzicka, Bob Gaudio 4:22
9 "Love Isn't Here (Like it Used to Be)" Bob Gaudio, Brit Gaudio 3:44

Non-album singles

The following singles were recorded during the band's tenure at Motown; none of these appeared on Chameleon. Some, however, later turned up on Frankie Valli's 1975 "solo" album Inside You, which was a collection of unreleased songs and outtakes from Chameleon.[3]

Legacy

Although reception at the time of release was lukewarm, opinions today from both fans and critics are very positive.[4] Noted for the distinctive Motown sound combined with the sounds of the Four Seasons, the album's "slick pop production values" made for a unique album in their catalog.[5] Chameleon was unavailable on compact disc until 2008, when Universal Music Group, the parent owner of Motown Records, released a 2-disc compilation titled Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons: The Motown Years. It included this album, Frankie Valli's Inside You (1975), and all the non-album singles. With this release, all of the Four Seasons' material recorded for Motown is now accessible to a new audience, as well as for longtime fans.

The Motown Years Track listing

Disc one

  1. "A New Beginning (Prelude)" – 1:21
  2. "Sun Country" – 4:07
  3. "You're a Song (That I Can't Sing)" – 3:13
  4. "The Night" – 3:25
  5. "A New Beginning" – 4:47
  6. "When the Morning Comes" – 4:39
  7. "Poor Fool" – 4:10
  8. "Touch the Rainchild" – 4:23
  9. "Love Isn't Here (Like It Used to Be)" – 3:45
  10. "Walk On, Don't Look Back" – 2:58
  11. "How Come?" – 3:45
  12. "Life and Breath" – 3:08
  13. "Hickory" – 2:52
  14. "Charisma" (Unedited Version) – 4:30
  15. "Charisma" (Single Version) – 3:20

Disc two

  1. "Just Look What You've Done" – 4:49
  2. "Love Isn't Here (Like It Used to Be)" (1975 remix) – 3:50
  3. "Baby I Need Your Loving" – 3:06
  4. "Inside You" – 4:05
  5. "Thank You" – 3:33
  6. "Hickory" – 3:02
  7. "Life and Breath" (1975 remix) – 2:59
  8. "The Night" (1975 remix) – 3:21
  9. "With My Eyes Wide Open" – 4:31
  10. "You've Got Your Troubles" – 4:06
  11. "Listen to Yesterday" – 4:03
  12. "The Scalawag Song (And I Will Love You)" – 2:42

Personnel

Partial credits.[6]

The Four Seasons

Additional personnel

References

  1. ^ Allmusic review
  2. ^ Chin, Brain. Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons: The Motown Years, Liner Notes (2008)
  3. ^ Chin, Brain. Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons: The Motown Years, Liner Notes (2008)
  4. ^ "Motown Anthology Reviews" (PDF). The Four Seasons UK Appreciation Society. Retrieved 31 January 2011.
  5. ^ Lindsay Planer. "Allmusic". Chameleon. Retrieved 31 January 2011.
  6. ^ "Chameleon – Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic.
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