Customer Reviews

The Lettermen (Capitol Collectors Series)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Throughout the 60's, the Lettermen continued to place singles and albums high onto the pop charts in spite of the assault of hard-edged, teenybopper and British invasion music during the era. The Lettermen's smooth harmonies supported by lush arrangements of new and reworked tunes earned them a diverse following among the music-buying public giving them the top billing for Adult Contemporary vocal groups of the 60's.

This exceptional collection of their music has been around since 1992 and is one of the few in the suberb Capitol Collectors Series that is still available. Among the 23 tracks are most, with three omissions, of their top-100 singles along with a few b-sides and album cuts. While the hard-nosed collector may be put off by the exclusion of a few lower-charting singles, this collection provides an extraordinary sampling of the Lettermen's remarkable music from their first charting single in 1961 right up to their final chart appearance in 1971.

Beyond the repertoire and generous track count, the listening experience here is further enhanced by the top-notch production with all cuts in stereo and having been taken from original session tapes and mixdown tapes. There is no finer single-disc collection of this quintessential vocal group available. If you will have only one Lettermen CD in your music collection, this is the one to have, bar none.

Capitol Collectors Series gives us this fine installment of great hits and ballads by The Lettermen. The Lettermen are definitely one of my very favorite groups from the 1960s and Capitol does great justice to them here with excellent sound quality and artwork.

The album starts with "The Way You Look Tonight;" The Lettermen play with some of the key modulations and it works wonders for this classic love song. The Lettermen could take any song and put their own stamp on it with their incredible style; and "The Way You Look Tonight" is a perfect example of this. This is anything but elevator music! "When I Fall In Love" features The Lettermen singing very sweetly; and they harmonize to perfection as well. The musical arrangement is very lush and it complements The Lettermen very well. Great!

"Turn Around, Look At Me" is easily a major highlight of this fine album; The Lettermen do this up right with style and grace and I'm very impressed. They handle tempo changes so well and the strings help to mark the best. The theme from A Summer Place also gets a royal treatment from this fine group; they perform this classic tune with heart and soul; and just one listen proves just how great this group really was. Listen also for The Lettermen to make good on "Sealed With A Kiss;" this gets a faster tempo than I'm used to but it still holds its own very well. "Sealed With A Kiss" is a highlight of this album.

In addition, "I Only Have Eyes For You" sounds fresh and new again when these men sing it with all their hearts and soul; they croon this beautifully and the melody is very pretty. There's also a strong live medley of "Goin' Out Of My Head" and "Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You;" the group enjoys a great rapport with their adoring audience.

"Put Your Head On My Shoulder" is a very romantic tune that The Lettermen infuse with so much passion; this works well for this number. The strings also sound very good on "Put Your Head On My Shoulder." "Everything Is Good About You" has a `60s pop music flavor to it that makes this tune shine when The Lettermen sing it; and I really like "Everything Is Good About You."

"Oh My Love" is a cover of a wonderful George Harrison tune; this would make George very proud! The album ends with a solid performance of "If You Feel The Way I Do" and it leaves you wanting more--excellent!

The Lettermen were a wonderful, special group that moved the hearts of so many people; and their CDs still sell well today. I highly recommend this CD for their fans; and this is also a fine starter CD for people just getting to know the wonderful artistry of The Lettermen.

Oh, this is the one to have! It's the sound we remember. If you have forgotten how many hits this group had, just purchase this CD, it'll all come back to you. The sound quality is great, "The Way You Look Tonight" will zoom you right back to the sixties....as you twirl around in front of your mirror waiting for your Prom date to arrive! These fellows could really harmonize, and Capital has done a great job of putting their hits together on one CD for us.

You can't beat The Lettermen for love ballads and close harmony. Selections 1-14 represents a cross section of the original Lettermen (Jim, Tony, and Bob) recordings(1962-1968), far and away the period of their best material. If you like the Lettermen, make sure you get all their recordings from this period (check out Lettermen.com and my other reviews for more info).

As a classically trained musician and audiophile, I agree with the following sentiments by fellow reviewers:

" ... I think this album is musical comfort food". [Well put.]
" ... This album is perfect for any romantic occasion, as it can be the soundtrack for a candlelight dinner or cuddling by the fireplace on a cold winter's night". [Indeed.]
" ... this collection provides an extraordinary sampling of the Lettermen's remarkable music from their first charting single in 1961 right up to their final chart appearance in 1971."
" ... Very popular at colleges and universities with their tight, harmonizing vocals, mostly romantic standards, they actually started out with Warner Brothers in 1960 before moving over to Capitol where, in 1961 and 1962, they put five songs into the Billboard Top 100 (tracks 1, 3, 4, 5 and 7)."
" ... why he included the uncharted B-side of Where Or When (Be My Girl) instead of the hit, is not explained because the insert contains no liner notes whatsoever." [Where Or When IS a great song, but you don't be without Be My Girl - you just have to get the other recordings available from the 1962 - 1968 period.]
" ... their obvious appeal eventually shone through when The Theme From "A Summer Place" rose to # 16 in July of (1963). They then went on to rack up thirteen more (including a change in personnel in 1968 when Pike's brother Gary took over from Engemann) before a drastically-changing music scene caught up to them in the early 1970s."
" ... Haunting melodies abound". [Well said.]
" ... Even so, The Lettermen hold the distinction of being the # 1 Adult Contemporary vocal group of the 1960s, and you only have to sample this album to see why."

When putting this one together for The Capitol Collectors series producer Ron Furmanek didn't quite take into consideration the "wants" of the significant portion of music lovers known as "completist collectors."

We are that anal-retentive part of the demography who simply have to have all charted hits for selected eras, and in this instance three legitimate Top 100 hits by The Lettermen were left off in favour of one B-side and a couple of singles that failed to chart.

The three missing hits from among the 20 they scored are: Where Or When which made it to # 98 Billbord Pop Hot 100 in January 1964, Hang On Sloopy which peaked at # 18 Adult Contemporary (AC)/# 93 Hot 100 in April 1970, and She Cried, which topped out at a solid # 6 AC and # 73 Hot 100 in June 1970.

Why Mr. Furmanek did this, and why he included the uncharted B-side of Where Or When - [Be My Girl] - instead of the hit, which wasn't even among their best at # 98 Hot 100 in January 1964, is not explained because the insert contains no liner notes whatsoever. It does, on the other hand, provide a complete discography of the 20 selections, and there are some very nice photos of the trio from L.A. - Tony Butala, Jim Pike, and Bob Engemann - including album, EP and singles cover reproductions.

Now that I got my gripes out of the way, let me hasten to add that the sound quality is excellent on the other 17 hits, all included here, beginning with their first - The Way You Look Tonight [# 3 AC/# 13 Hot 100 in the fall of 1961] to their last Hot 100, Love [# 8 AC/# 42 Hot 100 in late 1971 and written by John Lennon].

For the record, they also posted another 11 Adult Contemporary hits, the last coming in 1975 (You Are My Sunshine Girl - # 28 in July), four of which also scored on the Hot 100 "bubble under" charts.

Very popular at colleges and universities with their tight, harmonizing vocals, mostly romantic standards, they actually started out with Warner Brothers in 1960 before moving over to Capitol where, in 1961 and 1962, they put five songs into the Billboard Top 100 [tracks 1, 3, 4, 5 and 7].

Shut out in 1963, and with the wonderful [and missing] Where Or When getting buried by The Beatles et al early in 1964, it looked for a time that they might have become another of the many victims of the British Invasion, as nothing else that year or in the first half of 1965 could get them back on the charts.

But their obvious appeal eventually shone through when The Theme From "A Summer Place" rose to # 2 AC/# 16 Hot 100 in July of 1965. They then went on to rack up thirteen more [including a change in personnel in 1968 when Pike's brother Gary took over from Engemann] before a drastically-changing music scene caught up to them in the mid-1970s.

Even so, The Lettermen hold the distinction of being the # 1 Adult Contemporary vocal group of the 1960s, and you only have to sample this album to see why.

The Lettermen have been doing what they do for some 44 years now. Original member Tony Butala leads the current trio who continue to record and maintain an ambitious concert schedule.
This 1992 compilation, part of the Capitol Collectors Series, is by far the best available anthology of this legendary vocal group. You will find just about all of their Capitol hits here including "The Way You Look Tonight", "When I Fall In Love", the great medley from 1967 "Goin' Out of My Head/Can't Take My Eyes Off You" as well as one of the surprise hits of the summer of 1969 "Hurt So Bad". But the great listening does not stop with the big hits. I found just about every track on this disc to be quite enjoyable. Most surprising perhaps is "Oh My Love" a somewhat obscure Beatles tune and "Everything Is Good About You" originally recorded by the Supremes. You are also sure to enjoy
the Lettermen's version of the Four Coins classic "Shangri-La" and of course their other great medley from 1970 "Traces/Memories". While The Lettermen achieved considerable success on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart they were also a force to be reckoned with on the Billboard Pop Albums chart. In fact, The Lettermen saw 32 consecutive album releases make the Top 100. Quite a feat! The Lettermen were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2001.
Now I had given some consideration to rating this collection 5 stars. But although this comes with a fairly attractive booklet that includes a neat collage featuring many of their album covers and 45 rpm picture sleeves, the lack of any meaningful liner notes was a big drawback for me.
But all in all if you are a big fan of group harmony and/or 1960's pop you really can't go wrong with this one.

Not many Brits know about the Lettermen - they had just one minor UK hit single and no UK hit albums - but they were very popular in their American homeland, where they were consistently successful in both the singles and album charts, especially during the sixties. Smooth ballads were their trademark sound.

The original 1959 line-up was Jim Pike (originally a letterman), Bob Engermann and Tony Butala. In 1968, Gary Pike (Jim's brother) replaced Bob Engermann. Jim left in the mid-seventies, replaced by Donny, another of his brothers.

The original trio were immediately successful with The way you look tonight (a cover of a Fred Astaire song that went gold in America and also charted in Britain). Among their many other American hits, the two biggest were When I fall in love and the medley Going out of my head / Can't take my eyes off you. The collection includes many other fine songs including their covers of Sealed with a kiss and I only have eyes for you - two classic internationally famous songs. Other highlights include That's my desire, Come back silly girl, How is Julie, Turn around look at me, Silly boy she doesn't love you, Our winter love and Put your head on my shoulder.

Where you're an American looking back nostalgically or a Brit discovering this great trio for the first time, the Lettermen are well worth a listen if you enjoy hearing ballads performed superbly.

Capitol's Collectors Series' The Lettermen, a 23-song retrospective of pop standard covers by this wonderfully retro trio is a CD any romantically minded person should own. As a guy who gravitates more toward sentimental ballads rather than to heavy-metal songs about sex, drugs, disenchantment with society's flaws, or just plain anger, I think this album is musical comfort food. I wouldn't want a steady diet of it, but the soothing and smooth three-voice harmonies, along with lyrics and melodies I am already acquainted with, are great pick-me-ups on depressing rainy afternoons...like musical chicken soup for the soul.

While I like the entire album, there are several songs I am fond of. Of these, my favorite is Jerome Kerns' beautiful "The Way You Look Tonight." I had never heard this song until I saw the final episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, when James Darren (who played a holographic Sinatra-style singer) sang it. I have heard many covers of it since...even one by the real Frank Sinatra. The Lettermen's CD starts with this timeless classic, and this version is among the best. Other favorites include "When I Fall In Love," "Turn Around, Look At Me," "I Only Have Eyes For You," and "Theme from 'A Summer Place'."

The Collectors Series -- The Lettermen covers a 14-year period (1961-75), and includes songs written by a diverse group of songwriters and composers....Kerns, Steiner, Capehart, Anka, and Lennon (yes, John Lennon, whose "Love" is covered here).

The Lettermen definitely are pretty mellow in comparison to 21st Century pop acts, but if you are looking for a gentle yet romantic album -- either to relax on a rainy afternoon alone or to share with someone special, this CD certainly suits your needs.

Remember going "steady"? This definitely takes anyone back to high school and college when reminicing about the sixties. This sound was the "consummate" in romance. I love all of the "physical" attributes of this music. It seems so NOT fitting in the internet dating of today with myspace and facebook! :) Wow, what the youth are missing with all of the wonderful, subtle, small nuances of relationships. Too bad. Very unique. Who writes this way anymore? You know...."your head on my shoulder","turn around and look at me", "the way you look tonight", "can't take my eyes off of you", "you are soooo warm", "sealed with a kiss", the torn tickets in half in "Traces and Memories" and it just goes on and on and on....my goodness they sure were touchy feely...weren't they? :) These guys put the eaaaaaase in "easy listening". Smooth as the soda fountain sundae! All of the songs are just geat, you have, Phil Spector at the height of his talent (before now going mad) Lennon, Paul Anka etc..it just doesn't get any better for this era of music.

This is an amazing CD and how can you not like the Lettermen. I saw them perform last year and could not believe how good they still are. I had to have one of their CD's; so after much deliberation I chose this one and love, love, love it. There are 23 songs and I have no favorite. I love them all. Get it, guys!!