"What the World Needs Now" 1998

Big Deal Recording Artists Perform the Songs of Burt Bacharach
What the World Needs Now: Big Deal Recording Artists Perform the Songs of Burt Bacharach is a fitfully enjoyable collection of irreverent covers of classic Burt Bacharach songs. Big Deal's roster is entirely comprised of alternative rockers and indie bands; some have reverence for Bacharach, others don't. There's a bit too much irreverence here, as if some of the bands refused to treat these songs as anything other than camp artifacts, but the songs withstand such treatment. However, the best moments arrive when the performance and song match, such as the Wondermints' "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" or BMX Bandits' "It Doesn't Matter Anymore." There are more moments like these than you might expect on What the World Needs Now, but there aren't quite enough to make this worthwhile for every Bacharach fan. - Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
trax:
1 Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head - Shonen Knife 2 (There’s) Always Something There to Remind Me - The Absolute Zeros 3 I’ll Never Fall in Love Again - Splitsville 4 Don’t Go Breaking My Heart - Wondermints 5 Make It Easy on Yourself - Idle 6 It Doesn’t Matter Anymore - BMX Bandits 7 Promise Her Anything - Gladhands 8 Baby It’s You - Michael Shelley 9 Trains and Boats and Planes - Dan Kibler 10 Walk On By - Cockeyed Ghost 11 Wishin’ and Hopin’ - The Vandalias 12 It’s Love That Really Counts - Barely Pink 13 (They Long to Be) Close to You - Hannah Cranna 14 I Say a Little Prayer - Mitchell Rasor