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Nichols enlisted various vocalists to perform these melodies including John Bahler, Murray MacLeod, Randy Marr and Carol Chase.

The first disc of Treasury is rounded out with Nichols’ collaborations with talented partners including Gerry Goffin, John Bettis, John Allen, Will Jennings and Steve Kalinich. Stan Farber sings the ebullient “I’m Coming Home,” from 1982. The gentle “Footprints on the Moon” was recorded in 1973 by Judy Lynn for the Amaret label Paul’s own version is expectedly beautiful. The ballad “Let Him Be King,” haunting, urgent “Watching Out for You” and evocative, uptempo “Mother Lode” (all sung by Paul) are among the never-before-heard gems, along with a proposed theme for The Brady Bunch performed by Roger and the Small Circle of Friends which would have opened up that famous sitcom in soft and lovely fashion. Most are sung by Paul to spare but tightly-arranged accompaniment, though Roger has the affecting lead on “It’s Hard to Say Goodbye.” Some of these demos are of familiar tunes, like the ravishing pair of “Traveling Boy” (recently covered by Rumer in satiny fashion) and “I Won’t Last a Day Without You,” the happily upbeat “Talk It Over in the Morning,” and the rocking “Out in the Country,” a hit for Three Dog Night. The pair could be intensely romantic, socially conscious, or observational, but never lost sight of expressing universal truths in song. Nichols and Williams complemented each other’s strengths, inspiring each other with immense heart and a knack for pure, deceptively simple in the classic tradition. “It’s Hard to Say Goodbye” was the first song written by Nichols and Paul Williams, and its demo appears here on the first disc along with ten more rarities by the duo. (The late vocalist wrapped her powerful pipes around a number of Nichols’ songs including “Time” and “Somebody Waiting.”) Hal Levy penned the words to the yearning slow-burner “I Wish I Knew,” performed here by Linda Ball as what sounds like a demo for Eydie Gorme. Roberds also co-wrote a previously unreleased yet entirely captivating slice of sunshine pop, “Wait and See,” with that famous Nichols bounce surrounded by typically sweet and lush harmonies. The latter, featuring words by Tony Asher of Pet Sounds fame, appeared in final form on the Small Circle’s A&M debut. The former, with lyrics by The Parade’s Smokey Roberds, might be best known in The Vogues’ rendition. Roger, Melinda MacLeod and Murray MacLeod). Many of the songs on the first disc are familiar, presented here in embryonic yet impeccably produced demo form including the bright pair of “Just What I’ve Been Looking For” and “Just Beyond Your Smile,” both performed by Roger and the Small Circle of Friends (a.k.a. There’s more in that style including “Straight Ahead,” “Trippin’ at the Mardi Gras,” and “Treasure of San Miguel,” which actually was recorded by Herb Alpert’s hitmaking ensemble in 1967. The earliest track on this set, “Everything’s Cool,” is an instrumental in the prime A&M/Tijuana Brass vein, led by an irresistible horn line.

In doing so, this career-spanning anthology premieres previously unreleased songs, demo recordings, and commercial jingles, all with the infectious, hopeful, soft, and bouncy melodic charm that has long been Nichols’ trademark. Instead, it offers a whopping 69 tracks on two CDs drawn from the composer’s own archives from recordings made between 19. The Roger Nichols Treasury doesn’t offer precisely what is expected it is not a collection of Nichols’ greatest hits or most famous recordings. It arrives from the Victor label in Japan, a country in which he’s long had a substantial following. Now, he’s the subject of an exciting new anthology, the Roger Nichols Treasury. Many of those songs have become bona fide American standards, among them “We’ve Only Just Begun,” “Rainy Days and Mondays,” “I Won’t Last a Day Without You,” and “Times of Your Life.” He and Williams are also responsible for one of the greatest yet most unheralded albums of all time in Williams’ Someday Man, while Nichols made his mark as a headlining artist with the beautiful and engaging A&M release in 1968 of Roger Nichols and the Small Circle of Friends., like Someday Man a benchmark of the sunshine pop genre. His compositions have been sung by the Carpenters, Barbra Streisand, Diana Ross, Petula Clark, Jackie DeShannon, Bobby Darin, Paul Anka, The Monkees, and Nichols’ most frequent lyrical collaborator, Paul Williams – just to name a few.

If you don’t know the name of Roger Nichols, you know the man’s songs.