A Touch of Today is another of
Nancy Wilson's contemporary dates, comprised of standards from Broadway, Motown,
the Beatles, and
Bacharach, among other '60s sources. Though her voice is as strong and pliable as ever,
Wilson isn't always right for this material, as her attempt to sound exuberant on
Stevie Wonder's "Uptight (Everything's Alright)" displays. Most of the others work just fine though, and
Wilson stamps her versions of familiar pop songs like "The Shadow of Your Smile," "Call Me," "And I Love Her" (naturally adjusting the lyrics and title to read "And I Love Him"), "Yesterday," and "Goin' out of My Head." The arrangements, handled either by
Oliver Nelson or Sid Feller, are occasionally too reliant on period clichés, but
A Touch of Today is a solid album adrift in a period of lesser efforts by great singers. [A 1999 two-fer reissue by Capitol/EMI paired
A Touch of Today with
Wilson's 1964 LP
Today, Tomorrow, Forever.] ~ John Bush