Chameleon (The Four Seasons album)

Chameleon
Studio album by the Four Seasons
Released	May 1972
Recorded	1972
Length	33:33
Label	MoWest
Producer	Bob Gaudio
The Four Seasons chronology
Half & Half (1970) Chameleon (1972) Who Loves You (1975)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]

Chameleon is a 1972 album by the Four Seasons, notable for being their only album with Motown and the only one featuring Demetri Callas on guitar; Callas had replaced band co-founder Tommy DeVito in 1970 but left in 1974, replaced by Don Ciccone and John Paiva during the band's mid-1970s renaissance.^[2] The album met with limited success in the US; no single was issued in America. "The Night", however, met with success in the UK and peaked at No. 7 in 1975, becoming a Northern soul mainstay.^[3]

The following singles were recorded during the band's tenure at Motown; none of these appeared on Chameleon. Some, however, later turned up on Frankie Valli's 1975 "solo" album Inside You, which was a collection of unreleased songs and outtakes from Chameleon.^[4]

• "Walk On, Don't Look Back/Sun Country" – MoWest 5026
• "How Come?/Life and Breath" – Motown 1255
• "Hickory/Charisma" – Motown 1288
• "You've Got Your Troubles/Listen to Yesterday" – Motown 1251
• "The Scalawag Song (And I Will Love You)/Hickory" – Motown 1279

"My Eyes Adored You" was also recorded during the band's tenure at Motown but would instead be released by Private Stock Records under Valli's name, after Valli bought back the rights to the song in 1974.^[5]

Although reception at the time of release was lukewarm, opinions today from both fans and critics are very positive.^[6] Noted for the distinctive Motown sound combined with the sounds of the Four Seasons, the album's "slick pop production values" made for a unique album in their catalog.^[7] Chameleon was unavailable on compact disc until 2008, when Universal Music Group, the parent owner of Motown Records, released a 2-disc compilation titled Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons: The Motown Years. It included this album, Frankie Valli's Inside You (1975), and all the non-album singles. With this release, all of the Four Seasons' material recorded for Motown is now accessible to a new audience, as well as for longtime fans.

Disc one

1. "A New Beginning (Prelude)" – 1:21
2. "Sun Country" – 4:07
3. "You're a Song (That I Can't Sing)" – 3:13
4. "The Night" – 3:25
5. "A New Beginning" – 4:47
6. "When the Morning Comes" – 4:39
7. "Poor Fool" – 4:10
8. "Touch the Rainchild" – 4:23
9. "Love Isn't Here (Like It Used to Be)" – 3:45
10. "Walk On, Don't Look Back" – 2:58
11. "How Come?" – 3:45
12. "Life and Breath" – 3:08
13. "Hickory" – 2:52
14. "Charisma" (Unedited Version) – 4:30
15. "Charisma" (Single Version) – 3:20

Disc two

1. "Just Look What You've Done" – 4:49
2. "Love Isn't Here (Like It Used to Be)" (1975 remix) – 3:50
3. "Baby I Need Your Loving" – 3:06
4. "Inside You" – 4:05
5. "Thank You" – 3:33
6. "Hickory" – 3:02
7. "Life and Breath" (1975 remix) – 2:59
8. "The Night" (1975 remix) – 3:21
9. "With My Eyes Wide Open" – 4:31
10. "You've Got Your Troubles" – 4:06
11. "Listen to Yesterday" – 4:03
12. "The Scalawag Song (And I Will Love You)" – 2:42

Partial credits.^[8]

The Four Seasons

• Frankie Valli – vocals
• Bob Gaudio – vocals, keyboards, piano, producer
• Joe Long – vocals, bass guitar
• Demetri Callas – vocals, guitar
• Billy DeLoach – vocals, keyboards
• Lee Shapiro – vocals, keyboards

Additional personnel

• Paul Wilson – drums
• Al Ruzicka – keyboards
• Clay Jordan – guitar