Presenting Dionne Warwick

Presenting Dionne Warwick
Presenting Dionne Warwick
Studio album by Dionne Warwick
Released	April 1963
Studio	Bell Sound (New York City)
Length	31:18
Label	Scepter
Producer	Burt Bacharach; Hal David;
Dionne Warwick chronology
Singles from Presenting Dionne Warwick
	"Don't Make Me Over"; Released: October 1962; "This Empty Place"; Released: March 1963; "Make the Music Play"; Released: July 1963;

Presenting Dionne Warwick is the debut studio album by American singer Dionne Warwick. It was released by Scepter Records on April 10, 1963 in the United States. Composers Burt Bacharach and Hal David provided three-quarters of the track listing, having met Warwick during the summer of 1961 at Bell Sound Studios when she was working as a background singer during the recording session for The Drifters' minor hit "Mexican Divorce" (1962). The songwriters would go on to become frequent collaborators on subsequent Warwick projects. Presenting Dionne Warwick peaked at number 14 on the UK Albums Chart and spawned the lead single "Don't Make Me Over" which reached number five on the US Hot R&B Singles chart and became a top-forty hit on several international charts.^[1]

Background

Presenting Dionne Warwick is notable for including "Don't Make Me Over", Warwick's debut single,^[2] as well as "Wishin' & Hopin'", which would become a hit for Dusty Springfield in 1964, "It's Love That Really Counts", which brought Warwick to the attention of Scepter owner Florence Greenberg, and "Make It Easy on Yourself". "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" features backing vocals by Dionne's sister Dee Dee Warwick and The Shirelles.^[2] Presenting Dionne Warwick was digitally remastered and reissued on CD on May 15, 2007 by Collectors' Choice Music.^[2]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	^[2]
Pitchfork	8.5/10^[3]

In the 21st century, AllMusic editor Lindsay Planer gave the album four stars out of five. She wrote:^[2]

Warwick's inviting voice was at the core of their successful working relationship, coupled with the undeniably unique and expertly crafted material, yielding a host of classics such as "Wishin' and Hopin'." The version here predates Dusty Springfield's rendering and was likewise much of the reason Springfield chose to cover it to begin with. Other seminal entries featured on Presenting Dionne Warwick are "Make It Easy on Yourself" and the lovelorn melancholy ballad "I Cry Alone," as well as the unique arrangement of "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah."

A 2023 review from Pitchfork rated this release an 8.5 out of 10, with critic Andy Cush calling it "an imperfect lens through which to examine her artistry", but he traces the singer's career up to this release and highlights several tracks as exceptional, writing that "the ghostly minimalism of the demos" enhances the listening experience.^[3]

Track listing

Side one
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"This Empty Place"	Burt Bacharach Hal David	2:55
2.	"Wishin' and Hopin'"	Bacharach David	2:55
3.	"I Cry Alone"	Bacharach David	2:37
4.	"Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah"	Ray Gilbert Allie Wrubel	2:40
5.	"Make the Music Play"	Bacharach David	2:25
6.	"If You See Bill"	Luther Dixon	2:58

Side two
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
7.	"Don't Make Me Over"	Bacharach David	2:46
8.	"It's Love That Really Counts"	Bacharach David	2:16
9.	"Unlucky"	Lillian Shockley Bobby Banks	2:25
10.	"I Smiled Yesterday"	Bacharach David	2:44
11.	"Make It Easy on Yourself"	Bacharach David	2:40
12.	"The Love of a Boy"	Bacharach David	1:59

UK version
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Make the Music Play"	Bacharach David	2:25
2.	"Anyone Who Had a Heart"	Bacharach David	3:04
3.	"Shall I Tell Her"	Doc Pomus Mort Shuman	2:29
4.	"Don't Make Me Over"	Bacharach David	2:46
5.	"I Cry Alone"	Bacharach David	2:37
6.	"Getting Ready for the Heartbreak"	Larry Weiss Lockie Edwards Jr.	2:33
7.	"Oh Lord What Are You Doing to Me"	Luther Dixon Bert Keyes	3:15
8.	"Walk on By"	Bacharach David	2:58
9.	"Any Old Time of the Day"	Bacharach David	3:18
10.	"Mr. Heartbreak"	Barbara English Al Cleveland	2:32
11.	"Put Yourself in My Place"	Reggie Obrecht William Drain	2:12
12.	"I Could Make You Mine"	Bacharach David	2:25
13.	"This Empty Place"	Bacharach David	2:55
14.	"Please Make Him Love Me"	Bacharach David	2:33

Charts

Chart performance for *Presenting Dionne Warwick*
Chart (1963)	Peak position
UK Albums (OCC)^[1]	14

References

^ ^a ^b "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 23, 2023.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Planer, Lindsay. Presenting Dionne Warwick > review at AllMusic. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
^ ^a ^b Cush, Andy (July 23, 2023). "Dionne Warwick: Presenting Dionne Warwick". Pitchfork. Retrieved July 23, 2023.

External links

Presenting Dionne Warwick at Discogs

[UK-1] "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 23, 2023.

[allmusic-2] Planer, Lindsay. Presenting Dionne Warwick > review at AllMusic. Retrieved May 15, 2012.

[pm-3] Cush, Andy (July 23, 2023). "Dionne Warwick: Presenting Dionne Warwick". Pitchfork. Retrieved July 23, 2023.

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