Somebody's Waiting is the seventeenth studio album by Canadian country pop artist Anne Murray, released in March 1980 via Capitol Records. The album charted lower in the U.S. than most of Murray's other releases from the same period, peaking at number 15 on the Billboard Country Albums chart and number 88 on the Billboard Pop Albums chart. In Murray's native Canada, it reached number 32.

Somebody's Waiting
Studio album by
ReleasedMarch 1980
Studio
  • Eastern Sound (Toronto, Ontario, Canada)
GenreCountry
LabelCapitol
ProducerJim Ed Norman
Anne Murray chronology
I'll Always Love You
(1979)
Somebody's Waiting
(1980)
A Country Collection
(1980)
Singles from Somebody's Waiting
  1. "Lucky Me"
    Released: March 1980
  2. "I'm Happy Just to Dance With You"
    Released: June 1980

The album's first single. "Lucky Me", reached the U.S. country Top Ten, peaking at number 9; it also reached number 42 on the U.S. pop singles charts. A second single, a cover of the Beatles' "I'm Happy Just to Dance With You", made the country Top Thirty, and reached number 64 on the Hot 100 chart.

The song, "The French Waltz", was later recorded by Art Garfunkel on his 1981 album, Scissors Cut.

Critical reception

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Billboard's reviewer praised Jim Ed Norman's production by saying that it "suited exactly to her warm vocal ambiance; imaginative musical flourishes show up all through this fine package". He also noted that on this LP Murray is "back to doing what she does best: wrapping her voice around a pleasant, well-chosen variety of tunes with ballads predominant throughout."[1]

Track listing

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No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Lucky Me"Charlie Black, Rory Bourke3:06
2."You Set My Dreams to Music"Molly Ann Leikin, Steve Dorff2:39
3."What's Forever For"Rafe Van Hoy3:36
4."Do You Think of Me"Sandy Ross3:38
5."The French Waltz"Adam Mitchell4:08
6."I'm Happy Just to Dance With You"John Lennon, Paul McCartney3:51
7."Moon Over Brooklyn"Jimmy Lott, Alan Miles3:56
8."Nevertheless (I'm in Love With You)"Harry Ruby, Bert Kalmar3:16
9."Beginning to Feel Like Home"Colleen Peterson2:43
10."Somebody's Waiting"Aidan Mason, Gordon Adams3:26

Personnel

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  • Anne Murray – lead vocals, backing vocals
  • Brian Gatto – keyboards (1, 3, 5, 6), accordion (5)
  • Pat Riccio, Jr. – keyboards (1-6, 9, 10)
  • Doug Riley – keyboards (1-4, 7, 8, 10)
  • Bob Mann – guitars (1-6, 10)
  • Brian Russell – guitars (1-3, 5, 6, 9, 10)
  • Jim Pirie – guitars (4)
  • Aidan Mason – guitars (6)
  • Bob Lucier – steel guitar (3, 4, 8)
  • Jack Zaza – mandolin (5)
  • Tom Szczesniak – bass (1-5, 8-10)
  • Barry Keane – drums (1-5, 8-10)
  • Jørn Anderson – drums (6)
  • Michael Brecker – saxophone (6, 7)
  • Charlie McCoyharmonica (8)
  • Rick Wilkins – horn and string arrangements (1, 2, 4, 7-10), conductor (1, 2, 4, 7-10)
  • Peter Cardinali – horn and string arrangements (3, 5, 6), conductor (3, 5, 6), bass (6)
  • Bruce Murray – backing vocals
  • Debbie Schaal – backing vocals

Production

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  • Balmur Ltd. – executive producers
  • Jim Ed Norman – producer
  • Ken Friesen – engineer
  • Peter Holcomb – assistant engineer
  • Ken Perry – mastering at Capitol Mastering (Hollywood, California, USA)
  • Paul Cade – art direction, design
  • Gord Marci – photography

Chart performance

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Chart (1980) Peak
position
Canadian RPM Country Albums 1
Canadian RPM Top Albums 32
Australia (Kent Music Report)[2] 61
U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums 15
U.S. Billboard 200 88

References

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  1. ^ "Review: Anne Murray – Somebody's Waiting" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 92, no. 18. New York: Billboard Publications Inc. 3 May 1980. p. 50. ISSN 0006-2510. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 February 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2022 – via World Radio History.
  2. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 212. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.