Whereas
Donny & Marie Osmond's first two albums were cut largely under the steam of their own considerable momentum, their third and fourth were drawn more specifically from the duets they performed on their television show. Combined together here as part of the 7Ts label's series of
Osbros two-fers,
Deep Purple and
New Season stand, therefore, not only as easy listening classics, but also as a reminder of prime-time TV in the mid-'70s. And therein lies their greatest problem. On vinyl alone,
Donny & Marie were preaching to the converted, cutting songs that slipped effortlessly into the larger
Osmond catalog. Television demanded that they broaden their appeal, however, toward the older demographic that would appreciate their clean-cut conversions of show tunes and ballads. So this is lightweight fun from start to finish, with broad brush strokes that might occasionally glance toward
Donny's own fans (the opening performance of his near-hit "C'mon Marianne") but are otherwise content to paint the pair as the new
Les Paul & Mary Ford -- a role they fulfilled admirably and, predictably, unadventurously.
–
Dave Thompson, Rovi