The Best Of Paul Williams＜限定盤＞

At the time of this collection's original release in 1974, Paul Williams had firmly established himself as a premier songwriter in the industry, releasing six albums of his own and scoring major hits with the Carpenters and Three Dog Night. Considering that the Oklahoma native had originally come to Hollywood as an actor in the 1960s, his subsequent move to music was quite a fruitful one. This lean anthology is culled from Williams' early-'70s albums and contains his own versions of "We've Only Just Begun" and "Rainy Days and Mondays," the former of which became a signature song for Karen and Richard Carpenter in 1970 and remains a popular wedding favorite. Classic pop cuts like "Inspiration" and "Loneliness" show an inventive and crafty songwriter working in a similar milieu as contemporaries Harry Nilsson and Randy Newman. Many more hits and other anthologies would follow, but this collection, though brief, captures Williams in his creative prime. ~ Timothy Monger