Let's begin this birthday salute to Dionne Warwick with the proper two words: All hail.
Dionne Warwick is 72 today, and I think the highest compliment I can pay her is that the stench of the Psychic Friends Network and Celebrity Apprentice isn't enough to hamper her astounding legend. This is a woman whose voice ranks among the most crystalline instruments of the 20th century, and even her earliest hits remain timeless examples of pop perfection. Hal David and Burt Bacharach considered her both their muse and collaborator, and together the three of them gave us gold. But what's her greatest single moment? Sigh. This is tough. Perhaps the toughest yet.
I could choose "Walk On By." I could choose, "Alfie," whose lyrics sound damn profound coming from Warwick's mouth ("Without true love we just exist, Alfie"). I could choose the twinkling, yet dark "You'll Never Get to Heaven (If You Break My Heart)." I almost chose the chirpiest stalker anthem ever, "Are You There (With Another Girl)?" (By the way, my heterosexual father had to explain to me that the muffled lyrics at the end of "AYTWAG" represent the radio songs that the protagonist overhears. Huh!) And I came even closer to choosing her 1982 Barry Gibb-penned jam "Heartbreaker."
But for me, there is one absolute pinnacle in the Warwick catalog, and that's because it has the greatest lyrics, most lilting melody, and the bleakest outlook of nearly any pop song I can think of.
It's 1968's "Do You Know the Way to San Jose?" the most poetic, tuneful, and awfully grim tale of Los Angeles loneliness and self-admitted failure. If the line "Dreams turn into dust and blow away" doesn't rattle you, then maybe the song's closing line of phony, loss-cutting hope, "I've got lots of friends in San Jose!" will decimate you just the same. From beginning to end it's a perfect song with perfect lyrics and a one-of-a-kind melody.
Since we're in a celebratory mood, I'm including this live, snazzy version of "DYKTWTSJ." Clap!
All right, what say you? What's the all-time greatest Dionne moment? I'll give you major props for shouting out "Love Power," if you dare.
