Customer Reviews

Golden Hits

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Whilst a comprehensive box set exists for Lesley Gore completists, this will probably suffice for the more casual listener if the price is right. Kicking off with the iconic anthem of teen girl angst, It's My Party (And I'll Cry If I Want To), which sounds petulant until you realise it is the end of the world because Johnny has left the party with Judy, and its triumphal and equally unsophisticated sequel, the glorious Judy's Turn To Cry, it contains all of Lesley Gore's 12 Mercury label Top 100 hits from 1963 and 1966 together with three flip sides, two album tracks and one flop. It includes the powerful feminist statement You Don't Own Me, rather ahead of its time in 1963, although she took a backwards step the following year with the resignedly accepting sentiments of That's The Way Boys Are.
Lesley Gore benefited greatly from the production skills of Quincy Jones and Claus Ogerman's arrangements, though What Am I Gonna Do With You, a standout track that wasn't a single, has a typically brilliant Jack Nitzsche arrangement.
As this album first came out on CD in 1987 (expanded from its vinyl original) it suffers slightly from mastering which foreshortens songs by a second or two to mask analogue hiss, although all are taken from original 2,3 and 4 track stereo master tapes (some of which differ slightly from their mono equivalents), and has an ungenerous 43 minutes playing time by today's standards

My mother played this album around the house when I was a child and though I have a preference for the original LP, the extras on this deluxe CD are well worth the price of admission. Truth be told, I developed my love of 60's pop from listening to Lesley Gore, thanks Mom! The hits are all here, but album cuts like the insistently hooky "Maybe I Know"(I dare you to play it only once) and the doo-wop flavored "The Look Of Love" are so top-notch, they could have easily been #1 hits as well. There is absolutely no filler to be found here and indeed none in Ms. Gore's entire catalogue. Every song here is catchy as heck, superbly produced (most notably by Quincy Jones on "It's My Party") and sounds as fresh today as it did when this hits package first appeared in 1965. For true classic pop and some of the greatest vocals ever recorded, "Golden Hits..." is a must own. You will NEVER tire of this collection.

The Bear Family box set which included everything Lesley ever did for Mercury, including a lot of alternate takes and versions (including "What Am I Gonna Do"), a whole unreleased album, an unreleased JAZZ album (!) and much else, revealed something we never suspected: This cute-as-a-button teen star was a much more versatile artist than we ever knew and a much, much better singer than all her doubletracked hits revealed. What stands up here, quite surprisingly, is all those '60s hits. They don't sound dated and that's because Quincy Jones was Lesley's musical collaborator on so much of this work. All of her arrangers were talented, imaginative orchestrators and Mercury always gave Lesley topdrawer production. Who'd ever thunk she turns out to be a helluva singer? If you've seen and heard Lesley today she is as great as ever and STILL cute as a button (she never became an overweight drunk, in other words). Lesley is also a great songwriter--try to find her splendid Motown album "Someplace Else Now", "Love Me By Name" on A & M and "The Canvas Can Do Miracles" on Columbia Special Products. Lesley the person is loved by everyone who has ever worked with her or interviewed her. She is sharp as a penny and a truly nice person. She will always be a winner.

This is a typical compilation of Lesley Gore hits, all 18 tracks in true stereo. The vinyl LP was available for many years and the CD became available in the eighties. One strange thing though. "Look Of Love" is an alternate take then the one found on the original LP. The version on this CD is a slower take. I have no idea why a different version of this wound up on the CD. If you want to hear the original version of "Look Of Love", you will have to get the 2 CD set "It's My Party, The Mercury Anthology" which is a better deal if you can afford the 2CD set.

Back when this first hit the market as a CD in the early days of the format it was common among the major labels to re-issue older vinyl albums exactly as they appeared originally, with 10 to 12 tracks and only the liner notes that appeared on the large sleeve. Since then, some (but not nearly all) have been re-released with added tracks, such as the CD versions of the early Elvis Presley LPs, as well as a Sarah Vaughan and Donovan album of their hits.

This one was an exception in one significant regard as it came out as a CD for the first time with 8 added tracks. The liner notes by Kenneth Kendall are still minimal, and the photos included are all black & white and rather "muddied" at that. But the music is clean and crisp, providing 12 of the 19 Billboard Pop Hot 100 and 2 Adult Contemporary (AC) hits she registered for Mercury from mid-1963 to 1970. Much of them right through the opening phases of the British Invasion, no mean feat in itself.

Lesley was born in NY City on May 2, 1946 and, raised in Tenafly, New Jersey, she was singing at age 17 at a Manhatten hotel when discovered by Quincey Jones. After being signed to a Mercury recording contract and then linked with the Claus Ogermann orchestra, who would back her on her first 12 hits, It's My Party showed that this was no ordinary female warbler as it shot to # 1 Hot 100 AND R&B in early summer 1963 b/w Danny.

The follow-up was a sequel to the hit called Judy's Turn To Cry, and in late summer it peaked at # 5 Hot 100/# 10 R&B b/w Just Let Me Cry. That was followed in the fall with She's A Fool, another # 5 Hot 100 and a # 20 R&B b/w The Old Crowd, and in December she closed out a very successful debut year with You Don't Own Me, which would top out at # 2 Hot 100 in early 1964 b/w Run Bobby, Run, right in the middle of a pack of Beatles hits.

And, throughout that tumultuous year which would also see the arrival of The Rolling Stones, Dave Clark Five, The Animals, Peter & Gordon, and a host of others from across the pond, she would hold her own on the charts. In early spring, That's The Way Boys Are made it to # 12 Hot 100 b/w That's The Way The Ball Bounces, followed in June by I Don't Wanna Be A Loser (# 12 AC/# 37 Hot 100 b/w It's Gotta Be You), and late summer by Maybe I Know (# 14 Hot 100 b/w Wonder Boy).

In October she then had her lowest hit ever when Hey Now could only manage a # 76 Hot 100 b/w Sometimes I Wish I Were A Boy, which also charted at # 86, ending up as her only double-sided hit. For whatever reason, the producer did not include the B-side among the 8 added tracks. Then, in December, The Look Of Love began its climb to # 27 Hot 100 in early 1965 b/w Little Girl Go Home. The last four hit singles had all been culled from her LP Girl Talk.

Following another minor entry in April 1965 with All Of My Life (# 71 Hot 100 b/w I Cannot Hope For Anyone - neither side included here), she bounced back into the Top 20 with Sunshine, Lollipops And Rainbows (# 13 b/w You've Come Back in July), and the Top 40 with My Town, My Guy And Me (# 32 b/w A Girl In Love in October, with the backing of the Don Costa orchestra). She also made the Hot 100 "bubble under" charts with two cuts from an LP, You Didn't Look 'Round and What Am I Gonna Do With You? (both # 120). All 13 Hot 100 hits to this point had been produced by Quincey Jones.

She closed out 1965 with I Won't Love You Anymore (Sorry), which struggled to # 80 in early 1966 b/w No Matter What You Do, followed in February with We Know We're In Love (# 76 b/w That's What I'll Do), and in April with Young Love (# 50 b/w I Just Don't Know If I Can). Each, backed by the Alan Lorber orchestra, is omitted here. Almost a full year would then go by without another hit before California Nights got her back into the Top 20, as it topped out at # 16 in spring 1967 b/w I'm Going Out (The Same Way I Came In), with the backing of Hutch Davie & His Orchestra. He also backed her on Summer And Sandy, which reached # 65 Hot 100 in July 1967 b/w I'm Fallin' Down, neither of which is included.

Nor is the prophetic Brink Of Disaster which, with the Al Capps orchestra, then became her final Hot 100 hit when it stalled at # 82 in late fall 1967 b/w On A Day Like Today, although she would return to the AC charts in summer 1969with a medley of 98.6/Lazy Day (# 36 b/w Summer Symphony), still with Mercury, and in early 1970 on the Crewe label with Why Doesn't Love Make Me Happy (# 39 b/w Tomorrow's Children).

In retrospect it would have been better had they replaced tracks 15 to 17 with three of the missing Hot 100 hits, but even so this is still an album worth having in your oldies collection.

"The Golden Hits of Lesley Gore" has been a steady and solid seller for Mercury Records (Polygram) since it was first released in summertime 1965, and has remained in print for more than thirty years. It is easy to hear why: Lesley's double-tracked vocals sung with the ease and finesse of a jazz chanteuse on the rapids and the conviction of a gospel singer; her range of emotions, which allowed her to successfully portray sadness ("It's My Party"), joy ("Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows"), desire ("California Nights") and rage ("You Don't Own Me"); the superb production by Quincy Jones and Bob Crewe; and the unrelenting quality of the songs. Most - but not all - of Lesley's chart hits are on this disc, and in addition to the more familiar songs here, standouts include the punchy r&b grooves on "Hey Now," the tender, rueful "What Am I Gonna Do With You" and the LP track Lesley sang on "The TAMI Show," "You Didn't Look 'Round," with Jack Nitzsche conducting. A great addition to any CD collection.

This CD has all the hits- this is the CD you want if you want to hear all of Lesley Gore's best. LoL, this reminds me of my mom and driving to the beach when I was a kid. Classic.

Around 1983, listening to WBCN late one night, the iconoclastic DJ Oedipus opened his show with "You Don't Own Me." I'd always liked this song, but I hadn't heard it for 15 years, and I'd never heard it through a decent system. The wonderful orchestration just came through that night, and the seething tone and calmly strident lyrics told me this had to be the feminist anthem that started it all.

Besides early feminism, songs like "Judy's Turn to Cry," "That's the Way Boys Are," and "Maybe I Know" clearly establish Ms. Gore as the queen of dysfunctional teen heterosexual relationships.

When people say this is an outstanding collection of songs by Leslie Gore, they mean it! There isn't a bad track on this album and even though it runs a bit short it remains one of my very favorite CDs. The quality of the sound is very good even if a second or two is missing here or there; and Leslie is in top form throughout all of these numbers.

There's truly something here for just about anyone who likes this genre of music; and Leslie's voice itself is a wonderful instrument that I could never tire of hearing. "It's My Party;" "Judy's Turn to Cry;" "She's a Fool;" "You Don't Owe Me;" "That's The Way Boys Are;" "Maybe I Know" and "California Nights" will never go out of style; this music is all THAT good. But don't count out other terrific songs including "Hey Now" that Leslie does with solid backup; "I Don't Wanna Be a Loser;" "Look of Love;" "Sunshine, Lollipops And Rainbows;" "My Town, My Guy And Me;" "You Didn't Look Around" and more--Leslie performs them all with panache and I'm very impressed.

Leslie Gore fans will enjoy this; and this is especially good for newcomers to Leslie's artistry or casual fans who want a good sampling of her songs from an era when milk still came in bottles; phones had dials and people got their news from reading the paper or listening to the radio! That era may have passed; but thankfully we can still enjoy this excellent music and at least for some of us these songs will bring back countless fond memories.

It seems that in this day & time, everything sounds alike (country trying to be pop, pop trying to be rap, etc., etc. etc.). Also, anything marketed to teens these days is full of sex (just taking a look at Britney Spears will tell you that!). This timeless classic, though, is a breath of fresh air. To hear these songs in stunning digital quality along with having the original artwork is absolutely wonderful. No sex, no attempts to sound like what's been down the block twice

before!!! The bonus tracks are excellent along with the official hits. Buy this & you won't be disappointed.