By 1965, a spring
Andy Williams ballad album keyed to movie theme songs had become a 1960s tradition, and
Dear Heart was the fourth in the series. Like its predecessors,
Moon River & Other Great Movie Themes (1962),
Days of Wine and Roses (1963), and The Academy Award Winning "Call Me Irresponsible" (1964), it featured the latest
Henry Mancini movie song, in this case "Dear Heart," which had already become a Top 40 pop and Top Five easy listening hit for the singer. There were also other movie themes: "Almost There," from I'd Rather Be Rich, another previous chart entry; "I'm All Smiles" from The Yearling; and "Emily" from The Americanization of Emily. Most of the other selections were
Williams' covers of songs that had been hits recently for other male pop singers: "Red Roses for a Blue Lady" (
Vic Dana); "Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me" (
Tony Bennett); and "You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Loves You" and "Everybody Loves Somebody" (
Dean Martin). The album was filled out by a few choice oldies: "It Had to Be You"; "I Can't Stop Loving You"; "Till." (There was also a performance of an early
Kenny Rankin song, "My Carousel.")
Williams applied his usual warm, smooth vocal style to all the songs, with string-filled arrangements that emphasized the melodies; not for him was the bluesy approach of
Ray Charles on "I Can't Stop Loving You" or the '50s rock & roll rhythm of
Dean Martin's "Everybody Loves Somebody." The album was a well-assembled collection of contemporary material in what had become
Williams' patented style. It became his fifth consecutive gold-selling Top Ten LP.