Customer Reviews

Hey! Look What I Found, Vol. 13

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First of all, let me say at the outset that audiophiles will probably not like this series from Mavis of Canada as the sound quality is certainly not up to the standards of anything to emanate from the likes of Ace of London, Rhino, Varese-Sarabande, Eric Records, Jasmine or Acrobat. In fact, it tends to waver from barely adequate to satisfactory here and there in the series.

Even so, for those of us who grew up with the hiss and pop of the 78- and then the 45-rpm this is more than tolerable, and if you gather together all thirteen volumes in the series (so far) you will have 351 selections you're not apt to find in too many top-quality releases (so far). Indeed, some you won't find anywhere else as many were minor hits by bona-fide One-Hit Wonders, or releases by prominent artists which, while not hits in the U.S., did make the Canadian and U.K. charts in their day. It is also important to note that there are no liner notes whatsoever, although the insert does contain a re-listing of the tracks showing both the artist and tune's writer/composer and, for the first time in the series, the reverse of the jewel case shows the highest position reached on the Billboard Pop Top/Hot 100 in the year concerned.

Because each is just a random continuance of the releases before it, and ranges from 1955 to the 1990's depending upon the volume, I have repeated this opening blurb for each, followed by some information you may find useful on each of the tracks.

Here are the non-Billboard hits that did score on the Canadian and/or U.K. charts: I'm Walkin' - Larry Storch & The Seniors - Roulette 4014 - 1957 (you may recall Larry from the TV series F Troop); Lonesome Heart - Tommy Britt - London 17017 - September 1957; Where The Rio De Rosa Flows - Ken Copeland - Dot 15686 - 1958; Journey To Love - Al Martino - 20th Fox F200X - 1960; Good Deal, Lucille - Jack Scott - Top Rank Int. LP RM-326 "What In The World's Come Over You?" - 1960; Sealed With A Kiss - The Four Voices - Columbia 41699 - 1960; War Paint - The Brook Brothers - Pye 7N 15333 in 1961 (the U.K.'s answer to The Everly Brothers); Rockin' Johnny Home - The Texans - Gothic GOX-001 - May 1961 (Dorsey & Johnny Burnette as The Texans had one instrumental Billboard hit (# 100), Green Grass Of Texas, on Infinity 001 in 1961); I Hear You Say (I Love You Baby) - Andy Kim - Red Bird 10-040 - November 1965; Mr Success - Bobby Harris - Shout 203 - 1966 (Harris had just the one R&B hit, We Can't Believe You're Gone - a tribute to Sam Cooke - in 1965 (# 31) on Atlantic 2270); Just For Tonight - The Chiffons - Laurie 3423 - 1968.

Those that made the Billboard charts are: The Ballad of Davy Crockett - The Voices of Walter Schumann - RCA Victor 6041 - # 14 Pop April 1955 (there were four Top 20 versions that year - Bill Hayes, Fess Parker, and Tennessee Ernie Ford were the others - and this One-Hit Wonder is the hardest to find); Ridin' The Wind - The Tornadoes - London 9581 - # 63 Pop February 1963; Six Days On The Road - Dave Dudley - Golden Wing 3020 - # 2 Country/# 13 Adult Contemporary (AC)/# 32 Pop June/July 1963; Milord - Bobby Darin - Atco 6297 - # 11 AC/# 45 Pop May 1964; Come See About Me - Nella Dodds - Wand 167 - # 74 Pop/R&B November 1964 (the R&B charts were suspended for all of 1964 - the ranking only was assigned later for "historical purposes" and so likely would have finished much higher on those charts had they been in place); The Girl On The Billboard - Del Reeves - United Artists 824 - # 1 Country/# 96 Pop April 1965; Dedicated Follower Of Fashion - The Kinks - Reprise 0471 - # 36 Pop June 1966; Ride, Ride, Ride - Brenda Lee - Decca 32079 - # 37 Pop January 1967; Hello Josephine - Jerry Jaye - originally on Connie 101 - re-released as My Girl Josephine on Hi 2120 - # 29 Pop April 1967 (Jaye had 3 Country charters as well); Soul Meeting - Soul Clan - Atlantic 2530 - # 34 R&B/# 91 Pop July 1968 (all-star group consisting of Solomon Burke, Arthur Conley, Don Covay, Ben E. King and Joe Tex); Kay - John Wesley Ryles I - Columbia 44682 - # 9 Country/# 83 Pop December 1968/January 1969 (a new version by Ryles made the Country charts at # 50 in 1978 on ABC 12375 - this was the only Pop cross-over for Ryles who had another 26 Country hits to 1988); Those Were The Days - Carroll O'Connor & Jean Stapleton - Atlantic 2847 - # 30 Adult Contemporary/# 43 Pop late 1971/early 1972 (theme from All In The Family TV show); The Telephone Call - Tina & Daddy - Epic 11099-A - # 25 Country April 1974 for George Jones and his stepdaughter; No Charge - Tina & Mommy - Epic 11099-B - flip of the foregoing for Tammy Wynette and daughter; Somebody's Knockin' - Terri Gibbs - MCA 41309 - # 3 AC/# 8 Country/# 13 Pop late 1980; The Sam & Dave Medley - Stars On 45 featuring Sam & Dave - 21 Records 99636 - # 92 R&B August 1985 - one of two hit singles by this studio group (the reverse shows 1982 and no chart information so it's possible this may have come out in Canada or the U.K. 3 years before it charted in the U.S.).

Let's hope those in charge keep digging because those of us who enjoy many of these rarities will keep buying. Besides, who would end a series with Volume 13?