Early Girls Volume 1: Popsicles And Icicles [Import]

Early Girls (Series), Various Artists - Rock - Vintage Rock & Roll | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 3, 1995)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Ace Records UK
• ASIN: B0000009JT
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #67,810 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #49 in Music > Indie Music > Rock > Oldies & Retro

Track Listings

1. Do-Wah-Diddy - The Exciters

2. You're No Good - Betty Everett

3. The Name Game - Shirley Ellis

4. Chains - The Cookies

5. It Might As Well Rain Until September - Carole King

6. I'm Into Something Good - Earl-Jean

7. I Can't Stay Mad At You - Skeeter Davis

8. I Wish I Were A Princess - Little Peggy March

9. I've Told Every Little Star - Linda Scott

10. Triangle - Janie Grant

11. West Of The Wall - Toni Fisher

12. Pink Shoe Laces - Dodie Stevens

13. Music, Music, Music - The Sensations

14. Dear Abby - The Hearts

15. Whenever A Teenager Cries - Reparata & The Delrons

16. Popsicles & Icicles - The Murmaids

17. Wonderful Summer - Robin Ward

18. I Love How You Love Me - The Paris Sisters

19. Dark Moon - Bonnie Guitar

20. You - The Aquatones

See all 28 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Succulent selection of proto-Philly girls, country queens, Italian-American princesses, doo wop divas, swinging soul sisters, session stalwarts and Brill Building babes, from 1955 to the Beatles invasion of 1964. 28 tracks with The Exciters, Betty Everett, Earl Jean, Toni Fisher, The Essex, Janie Grant, The Hearts, The Shirelles, and many others.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific Early Girl Group Compilation, July 18, 2000

By 

Steve Vrana (Aurora, NE) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Early Girls Volume 1: Popsicles And Icicles (Audio CD)

Leave it to one of England's premier re-issue labels to put together a compilation that rivals Rhino's excellent "The Girl Groups" series. While a few of these songs fall outside the strict definition of girl groups (1961-1965), this is a super collection and at 28 tracks you won't find a more generous single disc compilation.

There are a few late Fifties hits: 13-year-old Dodie Stevens' "Pink Shoe Laces," Gale Storm's "Dark Moon," and the Aquatones' "You." The rest are early-Sixties classics and also-rans.

You get the Exciters' version of "Do-Wah-Diddy" (later a No. 1 for Manfred Mann), Betty Everett's "You're No Good" (which Linda Ronstadt took to No. 1 in 1975) and the Cookies' lead singer Earl-Jean's minor hit "I'm Into Something Good" (which would become Herman's Hermits' first U.S. hit).

There are seven songs that overlap with the Rhino series, but that's a minor complaint. Where Rhino gave you the Angels' oft-anthologized "My Boyfriend's Back," here you get their earlier 1961 hit "'Til." While the Rhino series included three Shirelles' songs, it did not include their classic "Dedicated to the One I Love" found here.

This Ace release also includes several artists not on the Rhino series: "The Name Game" by Shirley Ellis, "I Wish I were a Princess" by Little Peggy March, "I've Told Every Little Star" by Linda Scott, and Rosie & The Originals' "Angel Baby."

Don't think of this as a competing series with Rhino, but a companion series. And just like Rhino, you get crisp, clean sound and extensive liner notes on each of the songs and the artists. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 6 stars deserved, December 26, 2001

By 

Zub "Zubenelgenubi" (Forks Twp., PA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Early Girls Volume 1: Popsicles And Icicles (Audio CD)

Ace, England's premier reissue label blasts into the girl group compilation genre with this first in a series. "Popsicles and Icicles" gathers up a massive 28 tracks of girl- and girl-oriented group tunes from the pre-British invasion era. While including many familiar hits to keep the casual collector humming along, the wealth of this collection is also found in the number of seldom-found gems. "I'm Into Something Good", the pre-Herman Hermits Earl Jean domestic version, Janie Grant's "Triangle", Toni Fisher's "West Of The Wall" and Reparata and the Delrons' "Whenever A Teenager Cries" in stereo(!) give this collection a variety not found in the many other repetitive girl group compilations floating around.

As one would expect from Ace, these vintage recordings have been taken from the best available sources, sometimes British tapes that have survived better than those available domestically. Most cuts are in mono but there are several (2,3,7-9,12,15,17,28) appearing in stereo. The 16-page liner notes booklet gives lots of interesting backround on the included performers. As often done, Ace has set the highest standard for yet another genre of compilations.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Old gems from the fifties and sixties, January 27, 2003

By 

Peter Durward Harris "Pete the music fan" (Leicester England) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Early Girls Volume 1: Popsicles And Icicles (Audio CD)

Old gems from the fifties and sixties

This impressive collection of recordings by female singers, laid down between 1957 and 1963, is the first of three volumes. Few of the ladies featured here had a lot of hits. Skeeter Davis, successful for several years on the country charts, is represented here by I can't stay mad at you, but is best remembered for End of the world.

The set begins with Do wah diddy, a minor American hit for the Exciters which later became a number one hit in Britain and America via Manfred Mann's version. Betty Everett's version of You're no good helped launch her career, but the song became much more successful when covered by the Swinging blue jeans in Britain and (later) Linda Ronstadt in America. Completing an unlucky trio is Earl Jean, who had a top forty American hit with I'm into something good, only to see Herman's hermits cover the song and make it their own. There is nothing wrong with any of the original versions of these songs, leaving us to wonder why they did not have more success.

There are big hits here - It might as well rain until September (Carole King) and I love how you love me (Paris Sisters) were huge hits in both Britain and America. Other huge American hits include The name game (Shirley Ellis, best known in Britain for the clapping song), Dark moon (Bonnie Guitar) and Dedicated to the one I love (Shirelles, best remembered everywhere for Will you love me tomorrow).

There are many other great songs, mostly sung by long-forgotten one-hit wonders. Anybody interested in female singers of the era and looking for less obvious material should check this out.