Streisand, Barbra - Little Tin Soldier Lyrics

Three songs by Lennon/McCartney, one by Bacharach/David, one by Paul Simon. What a risky proposition, especially on the Beatles tunes.
I always liked this cover photo by Richard Avedon. He and Francesco Scavullo took some great shots of Barbra over the years. Check that out on Google Images.

yes it was written by Jimmy Webb

I heard her sing this song when I was a young teenager and the feeling of those moments never left me....

this is an extraordinary record. and the first one she ever made with a political message

This album is still a good as the day I bought it. I have the record album, the 8 track, cassette, CD. Wish they had the making of it on DVD.

i like turtles

This was to be her break-through album of pertinent '60's songs. But as she sang them with the same perfection and gusto that makes her shine, "Stony End" instead became the album that had her, in fact, singing the hip-funkier style of the era that she had previously kept clear of. There are some really great tracks, though on "What About Today"...this being one of them.

Sorry, but this is a common mis-conception. "What About Today?" was never intended as Streisand's break-through into contemporary pop. It was Streisand singing contemporary songs very much in the style of a broadway singer. This track is a pretty clear example of that. Nowhere on the album does Streisand attempt to sing in a contemporary/pop style, and the arrangements and production make no concessions at all to what was current in pop music in the late 60s. Indeed, the arrangers/producers are all veterans of Streisand earlier albums and none of them had the slightest interest in making a modern pop album. And overall the album conforms in every way to the format and style of all Streisand's previous albums in its mix of broadway belting, delicate ballads and comic "novelty" songs, with "Honey Pie" and "A Little Help" in the place of songs like "Whose Afraid of the Big Bad Woolf" or "Sam, You Made The Pants Too Long". Note that Streisand is also dressed and made up like a grand dame in vintage clothing on the cover (actually as Colette, the French writer), and the photo is rendered in sepia tones with hand colouring. It clearly says "I'm an old-time gal taking on something new" - not "I'm trying to pass myself off as a 60s pop star". It was only on Streisand's next album - Stoney End, two years later - that she embraced contemporary pop, with the music produced and arranged accordingly, and sung in an entirely different way. So the idea that Streisand somehow tried and failed to make a contemporary album with What About Today? is wrong. She never tried. And when she did try with Stoney End she quite conclusively nailed it in one.

Sorry, but this is a common misconception. "What About Today?" was never intended to be Streisand's pop break-through album. It was very deliberately a broadway singer delving into the contemporary pop repertoire, but delivering the material in her own style. Nowhere on the album does Streisand attempt to sing in a contemporary pop style, and the arrangements and production are all in the same vein as her previous albums. Indeed the arrangers and producers are all veterans of her earlier albums and none of them had the slightest interest in making a pop album. Also, while the songs are new, they all fit the traditional Streisand Album format of broadway belters, ballads and comic "novelty" songs - with Honey Pie and A Little Help in the place of songs like Whose Afraid of the Big Bad Woolf or Sam, You Made the Pants Too Long. Note also that the cover has Streisand dressed as a grand dame in vintage clothing (actually the French writer Colette) and it is rendered in sepia tones with hand-colouring. It clearly says "I'm an old gal doing things my way", not "I'm a 60s pop singer". So it's not that she tried and failed to make a contemporary pop album with What About Today? She never tried. When she did try - two years later with Stoney End - she hired a contemporary pop producer, commissioned contemporary arrangements and sang in an entirely different, completely contemporary way. And she nailed it in one.

Superb!!! Babs at her best!

This is a beautiful piece from this album, sung with the typical emotion and articulation from Barbra...
Very pretty, very sad at the same time.
"What About Today?" is a fabulous album.

this song and Barbra is just sublime.