Nick DeCaro

[rainydayperson]

Can I pay tribute to someone who has not had the recognition in the context of Gord's music that he deserves? I am talking about Nick DeCaro who first appeared on Sit Down Young Stranger and was involved off and on until Dream Street Rose. Take two tracks from SDYS: Approaching Lavender scored by Randy Newman and Poor Little Alison arranged by Nick. Similar songs, similar chords but very different outcomes. The former to my mind has intrusive and discordant strings, the latter has become a classic. Ditto IYCRMM, Beautiful and a host of others. Not forgetting Nick's accordian playing on several other tracks. Thanks Nick whatever you're doing(does anybody know?).
Your place in Gord's music is assured.

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The winter wind has turned my head but I always came up warm somehow.

[Westernstar9]

Nick DeCaro's string arrangements are tastefully understated. They complement the existing guitars and voice. I think the best proof of this is on "Gord's Gold". The first LP with GL's remakes have string arrangements by Lee Holdredge. The second LP is mostly DeCaro, with assists from John Sebastian and Bob Thompson. Lee Holdredge was working with John Denver at the time and his soaring string arrangements gave Denver's music a much-needed boost. GL's music doesn't need that kind of boost, and I think the core band and the orchestra were just fighting one another. Another good example of this would be Glen Campbell's recording of "Galveston". Arranger Al deLory made the song sound like Ali vs. Frasier.

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[Wes Steele]

Anyone know anything about this man? I heard somewhere that Nick was from the Cleveland area. Any truth to that?

His backgrounds always added class....understated.

[horizonfound]

Way back when I was in 6th grade, my dad loved this cheesy song by Andy Williams called "Happy Heart"(which became his last charted single as I seem to recall). On a whim, I turned the 45 over to check out the B-side entitled "Our Last Good-bye."The song credits read as follows: by W. House, N. DeCaro.Arranged by Nick DeCaro. Produced by Nick DeCaro. From the Columbia LP "Honey." The song is a very soppy ballad;however, it's a guilty pleasure...absolutely beautiful. I've never forgotten DeCaro's stunning production and have run into his name in the oddest places over the years! A real talent...without question.