Friday, August 31, 2012

Patti Drew







Another deal forcing us to buy two CD's for one or two tracks. The Collectables release counts with "Turn Away From Me" but the Stateside release has "It's My Time" and "I've Known" making it the better choice if you had to pick one. Most of the other material is weak.
4 out of 10.

Dootsie's Discoveries





Fine set of west coast Doo Wop! Very nice ballads by Don Julian & The Meadowlarks, The Medallions, The Larks and a couple others. A recommended addition to any collection.
8 out of 10.

Yo! Frankie - Doo Wop Rarities




Sound quality varies at times but overall a good pick up. Doo Wop ballads by The Gallahads, The Jamecos, The Symbols and a few others. A recommended addition for the Doo Wop.
7 out of 10.

Jackie & The Starlites





Another quality Doo Wop release from Relic Records, excellent sound quality. If you dig Doo Wop ballads this CD will not disappoint. A recommended addition to your collection.
8 out of 10.

Bill Robinson & The Quails Meet The Aladdins





A disappointing pick up. "Lay Your Head On My Shoulder" and "Have A Heart" are the only highlights on this release. You can pass on this CD.
2 out of 10.

Thursday, August 30, 2012

The New Birth





A few nice ballads mixed in with their more funky numbers. Highlights include "Dream Merchant", "It's Been A Long Time" and "Do It Again". "Wildflower" is nice but just a bit too long for me.
6 out of 10.

The Futures




70's soulin' with The Futures. For me the highlight on this release is "Love Lives On A Windy Hill". Other nice tracks include "Love Is Here" and "Superlove".
6 out of 10.

The Springers





Philly soul from this little know group, The Springers. Highlights include "Who Do You Love", "All Too Soon" and "(I Want You) Every Night And Day".
5 out of 10.

The Winstons





I picked up this release solely for the sake of having it in my collection. Nothing really grabbed my attention. You will not miss much by passing this one up.
2 out of 10.

The Best Of Flip Records









A must for the Doo Wop fan! Plenty of nice tracks by The Six Teens, The King Bees, The Emotions, Richard Berry, The Ru-bee-els and others. Sound quality is above average.
7 out of 10.

The Mello Kings





A nice package put together by the folks at Acrobat Music with a good amount of liner notes and excellent sound quality.
Besides Tonight Tonight there is not much more for us seeking slow ballads.
3 out of 10.

The Best Doo-Wops Of Lute Records










A couple of strong ballads by The Uptones, "No More" and "Be Mine", but not much more. "Open Up Your Heart" by The Bishops, "Come To Me Darling" by The Monorails and The Starlets' cover of "I'm So Young" are decent.
4 out of 10.

Doowopoly





A few decent but not great Doo Wop ballads. Highlights include The Goldenaires, The Satisfactions, The Velvatones and The Bell-Tones.
4 out of 10.

The Fabulons Meet Connie McGill & The Visions






A handful of nice tracks by The Fabulons (A.K.A. The Gleems) such as "Sandra Baby", "This Is The End" and "What's The Matter Baby". Good tracks by Connie McGill & The Visions include "A Million Years", "I Wanna Be Free" and "I Could Never Love Another". A recommended addition to your collection.
7 out of 10.

Doo-Wops Of 20th Fox







A few strong Doo Wop ballads by The Majestics, The Hollywood Saxons, The Carribeans and a killer cut by The Snappers. The rest has more of a pop feel to it that I just did not enjoy much.
4 out of 10.

Saturday, August 4, 2012

Eddie Holman









Known in the main stream pretty much just for "Hey There Lonely Girl", Eddie Holman deserved way more recognition. He cut other pretty good ballads such as "Never Let Me Go", "I'm I A Loser", 'This Can't Be True", "Don't Stop Now", "Somewhere Waits A Lonely Girl" plus a few others. A recommended addition to your collection. Out of the three released noted here, picking up the This Can't Be True disc will set you up with all you need.
7 out of 10.

Bobby Moore & The Rhythm Aces





A nice to have disc but don't expect to find any killer slow ballads. Most of the cuts are mid uptempo or faster. Excellent sound quality and extensive liner notes.
4 out of 10.

We're A Lover





A bit on the weak side. Only a couple of highlights, the beautiful "Until You Came Along" by The Visitors is by far the best track followed by "Love Is Gone" by the Chi-Lites. Given these two tracks are available on other comps, I can't recommend you add this to your collection.
3 out of 10.