Customer Reviews

Hard to Find 45s on CD, Volume 10: 1960-1965

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

With the declining sales and profitibility of music on CD, the mega-music companies that hold the rights to much of early and classic rock music are less and less interested in offering product of all but the most well-known and expectedly financially advantageous music from rock music's genesis. Disappointingly, even some of the independents that used to feed the die-hard fans and collectors have pulled in the reins on dredging up and reissuing the long-lost tunes that once were the staple of a.m. radio. While there may be technical issues with getting some of this remaining music on CD in quality form, thankfully there are still a few companies that satisfy the salivating collectors.

After a five-year hiatus, Eric Records, the big little reissue company, sends two more volumes of its extraordinary "Hard To Find 45's on CD" roaring into the marketplace. This volume, tenth in the series, serves up a generous 24 tracks with nearly half of them making their CD debut. Among these virgin-to-CD tracks are Barry Young's Dean Martinesque "One Has My Name", Andrea Carroll's "It Hurts To Be Sixteen" and "Roses Are Red My Love" from the "You Know Who Group". So the claim made a few years back by one of the then most notable reissue companies that virtually everything of that era worth reissuing was already out there, just wasn't, and still isn't, true. Beyond the appearance of new-to-CD tracks, adding to the appeal of this collection are tunes seldom found elsewhere on CD, and almost certainly, not of this quality. Notable in this category are Dale and Grace's follow-up hit "Stop and Think It Over" and "Talk To Me" from Sunny and the Sunglows. The revelations don't stop here either, as there are the stereo debut of Sir Douglas Quintet's "She's About A Mover" and the original versions of Donnie Brooks' "Mission Bell", Jerry Wallace's "There She Goes" and Adam Wade's "Take Good Care of Her". When all is said and done, this CD is jam-packed with goodies to satiate both the seasoned collector and casual listener.

In keeping with Eric Records' usual high standards, the 12-page liner notes booklet contains backround info on each of the included acts and all the tracks are very clean-sounding with many in stereo (tracks 2,8,10-12,14,22-24 in particular). While some have been lifted from vinyl, considerable effort has gone into presenting them in their best possible sonic state. If any fault must be found, there is an error in the liner notes regarding Dale and Grace. The duo of Jimmy Dale Gordon and Grace Sattenfield referred to here are not the Dale Houston and Grace Broussard that recorded in the early 60's. This "reinvented" Dale and Grace that run the D & G Ministries have hijacked the original duo's moniker and, while not claiming to be the original artists, capitalize on the confusion it causes.

But as far as this CD is concerned, one is hard-pressed to find a better executed "oldies" collection (but there is still volume nine in this series to be considered!). Bravo to Eric! And with apologies to Andrea True, "More, More, More"!

Eric Records is at it again. They have just released two more volumes of their popular "Hard To Find 45's on CD" series. Volume 10 features two dozen tunes from the years 1960-1965. Collectors should be quite pleased with the opportunity to latch on to digitally remastered versions of some long forgotten favorites as well as to sample a number of songs from the lower reaches of the Hot 100 they might not have even heard before. However, as Eric continues to mine the more obscure stuff you must be prepared for a few disappointments. For me, "Hard to Find 45's On CD: Vol 10" turns out to be a bit of a mixed bag. I was extremely pleased to find Jimmy Clanton's classic hit "Venus In Blue Jeans" in this collection. This is certainly among my very favorite tunes from this period as is Sunny & the Sunglows superb rendition of Little Willie John's "Talk To Me" which also appears here. You may or may not be familiar with James Gilreath's 1963 hit "Little Band of Gold". This is a terrific tune that is extremely hard to come by and I was happy to see that Eric managed to include it here. If you are a fan of group harmony then you will also enjoy the newly re-mastered version of the Castelles 1962 hit "So This Is Love". For my money, Adam Wade is one of the most underrated performers of the rock and roll era. You will find the original version of "Take Good Care of Her" in this collection. What a great record! And for the first time ever you can enjoy a stereo recording of the Sir Douglas Quintet's 1965 hit "She's About A Mover". In the category of pleasant surprises I would recommend to you a pair of tunes. My favorite has to be Andrea Carroll's "It Hurts To Be Sixteen", a real period piece from the summer of '63. I would also recommend for your consideration Trade Martin's 1962 entry "That Stranger Used To Be My Girl". Nice tune!

As is the case with the other volumes in this series "Hard To Find 45's on CD: Vol 10" includes a thoughtful 12 page booklet featuring information and photos on each of the artists as well as Billboard chart information for each tune. The remastering job is outstanding. As I indicated earlier I did find 3 or 4 "clunkers" on this one and that is what prevented me from rating this collection five stars. Nevertheless I do appreciate the fact that Eric continues to make these extremely rare recordings available to us. At the end of the day this is a disc I can recommend to both the serious collector and to those who are simply interested in exploring the music of this era.

Eric Records has done it again!!!! Volume 10 of the Hard to Find 45's series just might be the best one so far!!! So many rare gems like "Roses are Red My Love" by the You Know Who Group, "If You Gotta Make a Fool of Somebody" by James Ray, the stereo mix of "She's About A Mover" by the Sir Douglas Quintet and "Ruby Duby Du" by Tobin Mathews and Co. All I've got to do now is pick up Vol. 9 and I'll be set!

Volume 10 is an excellent addition to the "Hard to Find 45s on CD" line. I think my favorite track is the catchy "Cherry Pie" by Skip & Flip that oozes softly, "Give me some." One-hit wonder Trade Martin's "That Stranger Used to Be My Girl" is a catchy track that'll set your foot to tapping, "Once she said she loves me so now she doesn't even say hello; There she goes with her turned-up nose," boasting one of the few rock records with a tuba. On Andrea Carroll's record "It Hurts to Be 16," the Chiffons fill out background vocals. Although I can't find information in the booklet about the Castells, they sound like The Lettermen with their plush harmonies on "So This Is Love." Donnie Brooks' "Mission Bell" brims with energy, a great string arrangement and that delightful bell that dongs through the song, and refreshingly unabashed romantic lyrics, "My love is warmer than a day in spring, brighter than a diamond ring, braver than a mighty king is my love for you." I put Charley Pride's "Mountain of Love" on the turntable this week, played this Vol. 10 version of Harold Dorman's recording; but I'll stick with Johnny Rivers' urgency in his recording that nails it for me; but this is fascinating to hear. "Heartbreak (It's Hurtin' Me)" is an infectious rock blowout with a smoking sax solo, "She led me to believe that I was all she had; This morning I was happy, tonight I've got it bad." The Dynamics' "Misery" is a catchy track with a blazing falsetto vocal on a track I've not heard before. Sir Douglas Quintet's "She's About a Mover" is a familiar track to me and sounds great in this digitally remastered version. The You Know Who band's "Roses Are Red" sets my toe to tapping. Barry Young's "One Has My Name" sent me to the booklet to see if Dean Martin was on this set. This is an excellent set of tracks with sterling sound quality on the recording, worth it for those who love music from this interesting era of the early 60s. Enjoy!

This one is a very good addition to the Hard To Find 45's series from ERIC. Sure there are serveral on this one that can be found on other CD series (I own all 4 Teenage Crush CD's) but that doesn't diminish the listening enjoyment of this one. Those that are on other CD's are still great to listen to mixed-in with those that are new to the series. The song that led me to buy this CD is She's about a mover, Sir Douglas Quintet in stereo. I have this song in mono on another CD and think the stereo effect makes this song even more enjoyable. But others on this release that are worth getting it for are; Mission Bell (original version), Donnie Brooks, and If You Gotta Make A Fool Of Somebody, James Ray (I haven't found this on anywhere else). Jerry Wallace's There She Goes in stereo is one I had forgotten about and enjoyed hearing it after all these years. Cherry Pie, Skip and Flip seems to sound much clearer on this CD than it does on others I have. In fact all the songs on this one come through with great clearity. The blend of songs on this one is also very well done, just as it is on VOL 9. All in all this is a good CD. If you don't have another series that have some of the same songs, GET THIS ONE. You'll enjoy it.

The only reason tha this set only gets 4 stars is because of the remix of "Shes About A Mover" they should have left it alone

Hard to Find 45s on CD, Volume 10: 1960-1965 has just that: 24 hits of the first half of the 1960s that are hard to find on CD nowadays. These songs may have faded somewhat from the general public's mind; but with just one listen you can tell there's a lot of high quality control music going on here! The quality of the sound is excellent and the artwork is good even though it is rather standard for this CD series.

Jimmy Clanton starts things off with his "Venus In Blue Jeans." This tune is very pretty and romantic; it also sports that early rock and roll ballad flavor that I always find so endearing. Jimmy sings this very well; his excellent diction enhances his performance all the more. Keith Colley's "Enamorado" strikes me with its beauty; Keith sings this wonderfully and even though you may not understand every word he sings it's quite enjoyable anyway. The backup singers sound pretty good, too. Sunny & Sunglows do "Talk To Me" with a great deal of genuine feeling; and there's also Dale & Grace on "Stop And Think It Over." Dale & Grace had loads of talent and the music that plays complements their vocals faultlessly.

"Little Band Of Gold" by James Gilreath shines bright; and Trade Martin does "That Stranger Used To Be My Girl" with all his heart and soul. "It Hurts To Be Sixteen" gets the royal treatment from Andrea Carroll; her voice is as clear as a bell and I love every minute of it! The great Dorsey Burnette, who is so underrated, performs "(There Was A) Tall Oak Tree" without ever letting go of a superfluous note--great!

There's also a stereo version of "There She Goes" by Jerry Wallace; he sings this passionately and it's truly a major highlight of this album. "There She Goes" ranks high in my book! We also get the CD debut of "Comin' Down With Love" by Mel Gadson; Mel is another underrated singer and just one listen will show you just how talented he really was! Harold Dorman's "Mountain Of Love" got quite a lot of airplay; and "If You Gotta Make A Fool Of Somebody" sounds just great when James Ray does this tune. James handles the tempo and key changes like the pro he always was.

Jon Thomas turns out "Heartbreak (It's Hurtin' Me)" with an awesome beat that could even get the dead tapping their feet to the rhythm of this tune; it's all THAT good. The percussion and horns also work wonders for "Heartbreak (It's Hurtin' Me)." In addition, "Misery" by The Dynamics makes its CD debut; it's so good I don't know why it wasn't on CD way before this album was released! "She's About A Mover" by The Sir Douglas Quintet really impresses me greatly; and I also like "Roses Are Red My Love" by The You-Know-Who Group! The CD also ends very well with Barry Young performing "One Has My Name (The Other Has My Heart)" in stereo. This Dean Martin sounding singer sure does a splendid job with this number.

Hard to Find 45s on CD, Volume 10: 1960-1965 offers us so much--what a trip down memory lane this truly is! I highly recommend this album for people who enjoy the sounds of the first half of the 1960s that came from a more middle of the road scene instead of the world of rock and roll.

If Dick Bartley is on the other end of compiling oldies, you can't go wrong. He knows his business. This review covers 61-64, sixties pop classics, More sixties Classics, 1960-1965 and Rock and Roll Oldies.(One Hit Wonders)No mistaking the original sounds of those wonderful hits that are so hard to find.

Everytime it's probably more difficult to come up with follow-ups in
long series and still try be a 5 star CD. This Eric series has been
first class all over but this latest edition (Vol. 10) does not hold
"rare" or hard to get songs. Most of these can be found on ACE's
wonderful TEENAGE CRUSH series. There are only a few highlights like
Jerry Wallace (Ther She Goes) and Barry Young (One Has My Name...)
but the rest has been released before on other 50's & 60's compilations.

I enjoy listening to those old great songs of days gone bye............... a couple of the songs were not the ones I remembered but they sounded good as well.