Customer Reviews

Red Rubber Ball: A Collection

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

For anyone growing up in the sixties, THE CYRKLE provided happy, crystal-clear pop (college pop or folk-rock as it was called then) As a kid, I loved the BEATLES, MOODY BLUES, HOLLIES, STONES, KINKS, Etc., but THE CYRKLE was my FAVE. I wore out my friend's RED RUBBER BALL single, then bought my own copy... and the album for Christmas! 5 tracks from that great 1st album are represented on this collection... the two HIT singles and another PAUL SIMON cover, CLOUDY. 5 others-from their RARE 2nd LP, "NEON," featuring their next 2 chart singles, of which "I WISH YOU COULD BE HERE" is a personal favorite of mine... It was on the local Top 40 in the winter of '66- '67.. you can almost see the snow falling outside your window listening to it (also co-written by PAUL SIMON/BRUCE WOODLEY of "RED RUBBER BALL" fame.) "NEON" also featured a song written by Chip ("WILD THING") Taylor: "I'M NOT SURE WHAT I WANNA DO" (not on this cd... I would have given it 5 stars if it was) It SHOULD have been released as a single! Hopefully, Columbia will raid their vaults again and release the remaining 11 album tracks & do a CYRKLE ANTHOLOGY disc! The remaining tracks on this RED RUBBER BALL COLLECTION disc are definitely a PLUS... Previously unreleased STEREO REMIXES of (most) of their remaining singles A & B sides... A NEIL SEDAKA tune "WE HAD A GOOD THING GOIN'" & another great summer tune "PENNY ARCADE" plus their last released single, "WHERE ARE YOU GOING" with some studio chatter at the end! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED CD for 60's Baby Boomers (check out the hidden track-CYRKLE sings for the United Way! (Tom & Don became jingle producers) 2 other previously-not-on CD songs are on CYRKLE FAVORITES (1996) Now, if only their ULTRA-RARE movie soundtrack for THE MINX (1970) could be released on CD... "CYRKLE ANTHOLOGY" could be a 2-disc BOX SET! For now, ENJOY this "RED RUBBER BALL-A COLLECTION" CD!

Certainly would have been wiser to just release the Cyrkle's Complete Recordings; not much is left off this CD, but some of the absent songs are choice ones, including a tune by obscure songwriters Lennon/McCartney. But I'll settle. The most beloved singles, B sides & album cuts are here. The two from the Bee Gees are fine picks. Although they weren't the American Beatles (Brian Epstein managed them), the Cyrkle had an endearing sweetness that has survived in a large handful of first rate pop recordings.

Bob Rixon, WFMU

Red Rubber Ball has some great tracks, including one of my favourite Cyrkle recordings: We Had A Good Thing Goin'. This was an interesting, and for the time, innovative treatment of Neil Sedaka's song. But I am so disappointed my all-time favourite Cyrkle song [the flipside of We Had A Good Thing Goin'] was not included. Two Rooms, which was on the now-unavailable Neon album, is a song of only 1'20" but it is so sweet and so sad, that I am sorry it was not made available.

If you like the music of Lovin' Spoonful, I think you'll love some of these tracks, but there are also quite a few duds.

When this CD first came out I was exstatic. All seven releases (some forget Reading Her Paper, the last one) were lost during moving.
The collection fit the bill nicely. It was good to see some tracks on this that were not on the original two albums. To a collector that just wants the releases this is a good buy.
Obviously the Sundazed releases include more. This is still a good buy and an enjoyable CD.

As a teen in the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania, the Cyrkle was always a favorite group. They met at Lafayette College in Easton, and made it to the top during a fun time in the music world. They had a fun and upbeat sound which comes through in this collection. Although many of the songs in the collection were not BIG hits, it is fun to have them together in this quality collection. The booklet of their history is a wonderful bonus. A great addition to this Boomer's collection.

I don't care if they were stoned when they recorded them, this is great stuff. You listen over and over again and you just feel good.

The best of the best are (natch) Red Rubber Ball and Don't Cry, No Fears ... But they're all very good and different enough that you don't find yourself skipping any.

Even though most of the tracks are the same, I'm going to get Favorites just to get the other three.

Wow!!

Great vocal harmonies.
The hits are here - "Red Rubber Ball," "Turn Down Day."
But there's much more.
"How Can I Leave Her" has intricate vocals, as does "Where Are You Going?"
A bit folksy at times.
Nice version of "Cloudy."
This is the 60s at its best.

This is the stuff made of which are dreams. Sunshiney days in the park and walks in the rain under a yellow umbrella in 1966. Brought to you from the geniuses behind the original alka seltzer and 7Up jingles. Fadeaway to CZL.

The Paul Simon-penned "Red Rubber Ball" is a mainstay on Classic Rock radio playlists, and only "Turn Down Day" kept the Cyrkle from becoming another one-hit wonder of the sixties.

These two songs are all most casual fans would want to hear from this band. But if you want more, the additional 16 songs are good examples of the folk/pop music of the era--call it Simon and Garfunkel Lite. [In fact, band member Tom Dawes played bass for S&G on their 1966 tour.]

It just goes to show that not everything Brian Epstein (who managed the Cyrkle) touched turned to gold. After follow-up singles failed, Dawes and guitarist Dan Dannemann tried their hand at writing their own material, but fared no better. [Biggest mistake of their career? Turning down another song Paul Simon offered them: "The 59th Street Bridge Song(Feelin' Groovy)."] By January 1968, the band was history.

I knew all the hits, however, the remaining songs were not my cup of tea. The Collection should have been shortened to reflect the pallatable songs.