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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
36 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Astounding Homage to the Great Underrated Diva,
This review is from: It's My Party (Audio CD)
For those unfamiliar with Bear Family Records' way of doing things, one should understand that they go about their work like possessed archivists, turning out products that are worth twice the often high price tag attached to them. To be canonized by Bear Family is more prestigious than being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. That being said, obviously don't buy this if you aren't already an admirer of Gore's talents. But for those who are left hungry for more after obtaining the Mercury double-disk greatest hits package, this box set is for you. The pop aesthetic created by singer Gore, producer Quincy Jones, and arranger Claus Ogermann, is rivaled only by Spector's "wall of sound" and Motown's Funk Brothers. The sounds they achieved in the studio amaze me, and their selection of songs is even better. The Greenwich/Barry compositions, such as "Maybe I Know", "Look of Love" (not to be confused with Dusty's), and "What's a Girl Supposed to Do" surpass anything that this great duo did with Phil Spector, for the Crystals and the Ronettes. There are a good number of Goffin/King songs as well, along with many other songwriters who were part of the Brill Building/Screen Gems crew. Also of note are the sessions that took place after Quincy's departure, when Gore was coming more into her own as a singer and songwriter. These sessions with the Nashville musicians (way before Dusty did it), which were virtually ignored on Mercury's Best-of, are essential listening for Gore fans. "Any Other Girl", a song Lesley penned with her brother Michael, and "Only Last Night" particularly stand out as a brilliant pieces of pop songwriting, on par with anything produced earlier by the Jones/Ogermann team. And, of course, there's a book with lots of pictures, some of which Gore has interesting stories for. Trust me, I was skeptical about forking out the cash for what I feared might be endless second-rate outtakes, but that's not the case here. And besides, where else are you going to hear her singing "You Don't Own Me", "Run Bobby Run", "It's My Party", "Judy's Turn to Cry" and "If That's the Way You Want It" in German, French, and Italian?
27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Hidden Treasures,
By A Customer
This review is from: It's My Party (Audio CD)
Lesley Gore basically recorded as a one-girl girl group, double and triple-tracking her voice on songs of teen angst. She was among the earliest female artists to record songs reflecting female strength, independence and determination, most notably "You Don't Own Me" but also on numerous album tracks such as "Don't Call Me, I'll Call You." As her career proceeded, hit after hit, she began to move into more adult material and recordings. But what went unnoticed during her time at the top was her great qualities as a singer--the fruity flavor of her voice, her unusual after-vibrato at the end of holding long notes, her tough qualities and her ability to sing virtually anything and everything and move it to a higher level. This collection maps out a remarkable journey during her Mercury collaboration with Quincy Jones and then other producers and a variety of prominent arrangers. To think so many of us never knew what was going on with her, never thought to buy her albums, never considered her more than a pop confection when all along she was recording intriguing, offbeat songs to complicated, challenging orchestrations, turning out collections right up to the standards of anything Motown was turning out and getting great sales and artistic rewards for but for which Lesley mostly went uncredited. Mostly notably, the notably white and Jewish Lesley when you think about it ounds like a tough black chick! There really was very little fragile, sentimental or self-indulgent about her singing--she was right out there. On the top of that, as if that wasn't enough, hiding just beneath the surface was a jazz singer who very clearly grew up on June Christy, Chris Connor and Anita O'Day. This is a terrific collection of unending fascination, perfectly mastered and beautifully annotated and welll worth the price.
23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Hidden treasures,
By A Customer
This review is from: It's My Party (Audio CD)
Who'd suspect Lesley Gore, beyond all those hit singles, had recorded for Mercury intriguing unknown song after intriguing unknown song, all produced intriguingly with intriguing orchestrations, intriguing production and in some cases intriguing alternate versions? I plunked down the money for the 5-C Bear set (and then didn't eat for a while so I could afford it) when I friend tipped me off about it. This has got to be the biggest hidden treasure in the history of American pop. There's even an entire unreleased album tucked in her and even sessions for a jazz album of standard tunes. Gore does EVERYTHING with intelligence and panache. This goes WAY beyond lollipops and roses; it's musical champagne.
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