Dionne Sings For New Ears

For her latest album, Dionne Sings Dionne, five-time Grammy winner Dionne Warwick has put a new face on some of her old hits, reports CBS This Morning Co-Anchor Thalia Assuras.

"Basically, it is not losing the integrity of the songs," says Warwick, 57. "That's the first prerequisite to every producer on [the album]. I did want to reach ears that were not listening to Dionne Warwick in the '60s or '70s, maybe not even born, and give them something they could sink their teeth into and be a part of."

For instance, on her new rendition of What the World Needs Now Is Love, she is joined by a dozen rap and R&B stars, including including Latin superstar Celia Cruz and rappers Coolio and Big Daddy Kane, although she did not particularly care for gangster rap.

"I was not against rap music," she explains. "I was against gangster rap, which is derogatory and carries messages that none of really wanted to hear and it was affecting our kids. I think that was not being quite fair to them, not giving them an opportunity to know there is a better way, and there is a way out, aside from shooting 'em up and taking drugs and doing all kinds of crazy things that were being perpetuated by the particular lyrics."

And for working with the rap artists?

Says Warwick, "They were wonderful."

Her hits included I Say A Little Prayer, Walk On By, Message To Michael, This Girl's In Love With You, and, of course, Do You Know The Way To San Jose. She also collaborated with The Spinners on Then Came You and with Gladys Knight, Stevie Wonder, and Elton John on That's What Friends Are For, which raised funds for AIDS research.

Of course, she is also known for her appearances on infomercials for the now-defunct Psychic Friends Network. And she has said, "That job kept the lights on during a period when the records weren't selling as much."