In the Beginning: Narrates His Poetry and Sings

UK collection from the late poet, author and recording artist. In 1972, the jacket copy of And To Each Season proclaimed, "Rod McKuen is both the best-selling poet in history and the best-selling author in this country (America)". Certainly the statistics behind Rod McKuen's career and work are astonishing. He recorded over two hundred albums and was the recipient of 63 gold and platinum records worldwide. His three-dozen books of poetry were published in 11 languages, sold 65 million copies and made him the most widely read poet of his time. The songs he has written and composed have accounted for the sale of over 100 million records for such diverse artists as Madonna, Dolly Parton, Waylon Jennings, Chet Baker, Andy Williams, The Kingston Trio, Percy Faith, Herb Alpert, Dusty Springfield, Petula Clark, Johnny Mathis and Frank Sinatra. In 1969, Sinatra commissioned an entire album of original McKuen songs and the result was the highly successful and much acclaimed A Man Alone. McKuen's music exploded in popularity during this period when he posted nine hit records on the Billboard chart. These included six collaborations with the arranger Anita Kerr and The San Sebastian Strings a sequence which began with the much admired The Sea, The Earth, The Sky trilogy. McKuen met Jacques Brel in Paris in the early `60s and began a long friendship.