*NEW* Harmony Of The Soul Vocal Groups 1962-1977

Here is the latest release from the good people at Ace Records. This one has some solid slow ballads that will make it a must have for any serious soul ballad lover. Highlights include "Without A Word" by The M-M's And The Peanuts, "Whatcha Gonna Do Baby" by The Lovers, "Girl, Girl, Girl" by The Determinations, "Is Love For Real" by Bobby Moore And The Rhythm Aces, "Don't You Make Me Blue" by The Fabulous Determinations and "Crying Bitter Tears" by The Steelers.
8 out of 10

The Renfro Soul Story

The only high point on this release is "New Girl In The Neighborhood" by The Attractions. If you have the Soul Grooves CD collection you get that plus many of the other tracks on this release. You won't miss much passing this one up.
1 out of 10

Los Angeles Soul

The only stand out on this release is Jimmy Bee's cover of "I Only Have Eyes For You". I Skipped through the rest of the material rather quickly.
2 out of 10

Ty Karim

The nice jam on this release is "Wear Your Natural, Baby" (as Towana And The Total Destruction). You are best off picking that up on Soulful Thangs Vol. 6.
1 out of 10

The Northern Soul Of L.A.

I picked up the first volume solely for the Young Hearts's uptempo take on "Beginning Of The End" but then I had to have the second disc to complete the set knowing it is all upbeat. A few decent tracks such as "Shy Guy" by Bobby Mac, "I Thought You Were Mine" by The Natural Four and "My Poor Heart" by The Sunlovers. Might be a treasured collection for the northern soul fan but not much to offer if you are seeking ballads.
2 out of 10

Soul City Los Angeles

A nice collection of obscure early R&B sounds. Highlights include "The Smile" by The Simms Twins, "This Is The Nite" by The Valiants, "Oh No" by The Robins, "Glory Of Love" by The Velvetones and "Yellow Moon" by The Viscaynes. It will take a dedicated Doo Wop fan to truly appreciate this release.
4 out of 10

Doo Wop Delights: The Los Angeles Groups

Early R&B sounds from my home city of Los Angeles. Highlights here are "Love Only You" by The Feathers, "Darling" By The Dynamics, "Why Did You Go Away?" by Henry Strogin And The Crowns, "Did She Leave You" by The Marvels and "Until You Say We're Through" by The Bonnevilles. This CD is recommended for the hard core Doo Wop fan.
5 out of 10

The Best Doo-Wops Of Eldo Records

A very nice mellow Doo Wop ballad in "Baby I Love You So" by The Tri Dels made this pick up well worth it. Other notable tracks are "Blue Mood" by Julie Steven And The Premiers and the couple of tracks by Little Julian Herrera. Sound quality varies a bit.
4 out of 10

The Legendary Dig Masters

The first three volumes focused on blues and boogie. With volume 4 we start getting into the vocal group sounds with some very nice and obscure ballads. Highlights include "My Darling" by The Premiers, "My Baby Doll" by The Gladiators, "A Dying Love" by The Jayos, "In Exchange For Your Love", "Symbol Of Heaven", "Here In My Arms" and "Lonely Lonely Nights" by Little Julian Herrera, "Star of Love" by Tony Allen, "I'm in Love" by The Teenettes, and "Don't Ever Leave Me" by Sugar Pie And Pee Wee. Excellent sound quality, highly recommended for the dedicated Doo Wop fan. I do not listen much at all to the blues so this rating is only for volumes 4 and 5.
6 out of 10

Earth Angel The Dootone / Dooto Records Story

All standard tracks on this 2 disc, well priced release. Highlights include tracks by The Medallions, The Cuff Links, The Penguins, The Fabulous Pearls, Charles McCullough And The Silks and The Dootones. Excellent sound quality.
5 out of 10

Little Caesar And The Romans

The Del-Fi release contains all the tracks as the Collectables Records release with more tracks plus better sound quality. Highlights are of course the classic "Those Oldies But Goodies (Remind Me Of You)", "Memories" and "Memories Of Those Oldies But Goodies"
5 out of 10

Rollie Willis And The Contenders

I was not sure what I was getting when I picked this up from a bargain bin. "Whenever I Get Lonely" is the best track out of the 5 on this disc.
3 out of 10

Out Of Many, One Music!

A massive collection of tracks covering multiple genres and decades are represented in this 3 disc collection. An impressive package put together by the folks at Fantastic Voyage with lots of photos and brief liner notes on each track. For me it was all about one track, "Wasted Days And Wasted Nights" by Freddy Fender as it is the original recording not the country recording done in the 70's that is widely used. Other notable tracks included are all standards by artists such as Little Anthony And The Imperials, Donnie Elbert, The Moonglows, Don And Juan and James Brown.
4 out of 10

Group Harmony Bombshells

A good quantity of Doo Wop ballads are included in this collection. Highlights include "Eternal Dream" by The Superiors, "Hello" by Little June And The Januarys, "Forever" by Frankie And The C-Notes, "You Did Me Wrong" by The Downbeats, "I Need Your Love" by The Enchanters, "It's You, You, You" by The Fabulous Gardenias and "If You Should Leave Me" by The Sinceres. Sound quality varies a bit but overall above average for this type of compilation. A must for the series Doo Wop fan.
6 out of 10

The Springboard Catalogue Sampler

The highlights on this set are now common tracks by such artists as The Independents, Maxine Brown, Fred Hughes and The Dubs. Big set back on the tracks included by The Drifters and Platters as they are all re-recordings. Excellent sound quality but not enough highlights to support recommending adding to your collection.
2 out of 10