Hello Stranger: The Best of [Import]

Barbara Lewis | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 12, 2005)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Wea International
• ASIN: B0007YVBJI
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,728,809 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. My Heart Went Do Dat Da

2. My Mama Told Me

3. Puppy Love

4. Hello Stranger

5. Think a Little Sugar

6. Straighten Up Your Heart

7. Snap Your Fingers

8. How Can I Say Goodbye

9. Spend a Little Time

10. Someday We're Gonna Love Again

11. Pushin' a Good Thing Too Far

12. Baby, I'm Yours

13. Make Me Your Baby

14. Don't Forget About Me

15. Make Me Belong to You

16. Baby What Do You Want Me to Do

17. I Remember the Feeling

18. I'll Make Him Love Me

19. Thankful for What I Got

20. Sho-Nuff (It's Got to Be Your Love)

Editorial Reviews

Pop-soul Doesn't Get Much Better Than Barbara Lewis, Whose Seductive, Emotive Croon Took "Hello Stranger" to #3 in 1963. The Michigan Native Had Been Writing Songs Since the Age of Nine, and Began Recording as a Teenager with Producer Ollie Mclaughlin, Who'd also Had a Hand in the Careers of Del Shannon, the Capitols, and Deon Jackson. Lewis Wrote all of the Songs on her Debut LP (Including "Hello Stranger"), and Confidently Handled Harmony Soul Numbers (Some with Backing by the Dells) and More Pop-savvy Tunes, Some of Which, Like "Hello Stranger," were Driven by an Organ and a Bossa Nova-like Beat. Follow-ups to "Hello Stranger" Didn't Sell Nearly as Well (Although One of her Singles, "Someday We're Gonna Love Again," was Covered by the Searchers for a British Invasion Hit). In the Mid-'60s, She Began Doing Some Recordings in New York City, with Assistance from Producers Like Bert Berns and Jerry Wexler, that Employed More Orchestral Arrangements and Pop-conscious Material.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

52 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best of a Great Artist, August 9, 2001

By 

James E. Bagley "Jim Bagley" (Sanatoga, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hello Stranger: Best of (Audio CD)

No singular adjective does justice to Barbara Lewis' voice. Her delivery was silky smooth. And while her sound was somewhat sweet, she had a soulfullness that always kept her recordings from getting sappy. Today, she is mostly forgotten by the general public, which is a huge shame. Lewis had her own niche, somewhere between the light pop sounds of Diana Ross and Dionne Warwick, and the fiery soul of Aretha Franklin and Gladys Knight.

Hello Stranger is easily the best compilation done on Lewis (it even carries Lewis' personal endorsement as such on the back of the CD and in the enclosed booklet). The twenty recordings cover Lewis' entire career with Atlantic Records (1962-1968). Its (for the most part) chronological order effectively captures her musical development as well.

The first five recordings are all Lewis compositions that were recorded in Chicago. The first three (including the minor hit "Puppy Love") are a bit juvenile but track number four "Hello Stranger" brought Lewis her biggest hit and a more mature sound.

Lewis really came into her own with her New York City recordings made during 1965-1966. "Baby I'm Yours," "Make Me Your Baby," and "Make Me Belong To You" were all sizeable hits that reveal an increased confidence in Lewis' voice.

By 1967, the lower regions of the charts were all Lewis could muster, but the shimmering "I'll Make Him Love Me" and the Carolina beach classic "I Remember The Feeling" show it wasn't due to the quality of the material and the collection ends on a high note with the glorious "Thankful For What I've Got."

The overall choice of recordings for this collection is strong, with Rhino wisely leaving off the cover versions found on other Lewis compilations such as James Brown's "Please Please Please" and Ben E. King's "Stand By Me." Rhino's remastering is typically superior, with "Don't Forget About Me" in particular coming to life like never before.

David Nathan's extensive liner notes are also a big delight as Lewis did very few interviews during her heyday. Perhaps that contributed to her "lost" status in the music world. Do yourself a favor by getting this collection and discovering or revisiting the special sound that is Barbara Lewis.

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent retrospective of almost forgotten singer, April 12, 2003

By 

Peter Durward Harris "Pete the music fan" (Leicester England) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hello Stranger: Best of (Audio CD)

Barbara was a less dramatic singer than label mate Aretha Franklin, but she was a top quality soul singer with a wonderful, clear, soprano voice. She had three big American hits, these being Hello stranger, Baby I'm yours and Make me your baby. Although Hello stranger was the biggest hit, Baby I'm yours has spawned more cover versions and is probably the most familiar song.

Someday we're gonna love again failed to chart, but the Searchers covered it and had a British hit with it. Another chart failure, Don't forget about me, was covered by Dusty Springfield who had a minor American hit with it. The Shirelles influenced Barbara strongly, even to the extent that My mama told me (the second track here) owes a lot to the Shirelles song Mama said.

Barbara Lewis is one of many singers who have largely been forgotten. This collection proves that she had the talent to be a major star. If you enjoy sixties soul music and you want to look beyond the famous names, this is for you.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rock And Roll With The Queen Of Beach Music, April 5, 2001

By 

David W. Coleman "Sportside Books" (Buckeye, AZ USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hello Stranger: Best of (Audio CD)

Barbara Lewis had a couple of unforgettable hits that no oldies station can do without: "Hello Stranger" and "Baby, I'm Yours." She is noteworthy just for those two songs, but she recorded a number of other pop/soul gems, and has become a legend in Beach Music circles. This collection is more extensive (and therefore, better) than the "Golden Classics" edition that is also available. Barbara's "Think A Little Sugar" is probably the most heralded B-side in the Carolinas. It was helped along by having "Hello Stranger" as its A-side, but stands as a unique performance in its own right. Barbara has an amazing ability to convey teen-age angst and innocence, and yet still seem womanly... even sultry! Her voice has a particular timbre that I haven't encountered anywhere else. Her diction and phrasing are superb. She also wrote many of these classics, and was certainly not afraid to inject "adult" themes into her songs! She actually got away with saying, "Please don't tease me like you did before!" (on Hello Stranger) and she makes it very clear on "Think A Little Sugar" that she's interested in renewing a more-than-friendly relationship! Not just any female singer from the sixties could have pulled that off! Barbara came along at a time when Black female singers were making the transition from the "girl group" sound to soul. So the early numbers on this collection ("My Heart Went Do Dat Da" "Puppy Love") have a decidedly different flavor from later numbers like "Sho Nuff" and "Make Me Belong To You." Barbara Lewis has often been confused with other female singers of the sixties. In addition to the songs above, she also recorded, "I'll Make Him Love Me" and "Make Me Your Baby." But she didn't record "Make Me Yours" (That was Bettye Swann). And she is not the one who recorded "Yes, I'm Ready." (That was Barbara Mason, who even toured with Barbara Lewis to celebrate their being confused with one another!) After these Atlantic recordings, Barbara and her producer (Ollie McLaughlin) landed at Stax Records. If you like Barbara Lewis, pick up "The Many Grooves Of Barbara Lewis" to hear her in a different and even more mature light. But if you want to know some of the reasons, why so many people had fun at their summer/winter homes in the Carolinas, listen and dance to this collection of Barbara Lewis at her best. And pay special attention to the words!