Customer Reviews

The Shirelles - 25 All-Time Greatest Hits

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is at heart a singles collection, one that contains all the hits (From "Dedicated To The One I Love", "I Met Him On A Sunday" and "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" to "Soldier Boy" and "Baby, It's You") plus lesser-known gems such as the sublime "A Thing Of The Past" (my favourite Shirelles song...and lead singer Shirley Owens's as well) and the swaying "Maybe Tonight".

The great majority of these cuts were issued as singles, that's how strong the material is. All are presented in their original versions and are digitally remastered, with the majority of the tracks appearing in stereo ("Baby, It's You" is presented both in mono and in stereo; as I'm a fan of wide stereo, it was nice to hear the difference). The sound is impeccable, the selection is nice (but where's "Blue Holiday"? Licensing issues?), and the price is just right. Highly recommended.

First point to make is that this is probably the best available Shirelles compilation. As others reviews say, the sound is excellent, it has all the right songs, and to get both versions of Baby It's You is a welcome bonus. But there are 'original' tracks here that may not be exactly what you're used to. The version of 'Welcome Home Baby' is not the same as that on the first compilation of Shirelles' Hits (called, reasonably enough, 'The Shirelles Hits'), which appeared in 1963. This version is more 'mellow'. Similarly, the version of I Met Him on a Sunday is not the same as the one that appeared on a mid-60s compilation (it's slower). There are certainly Shirelles compilations elsewhere (e.g. 'The Fabulous Shirelles' CD) that are definitely not the original singles, and perhaps the only conclusion is that after 40+ years it is hard to pin down the right masters. But this is the one to buy, anyway!

The Shirelles assured their place in history with their original version of the Goffin-King song, Will you still love me tomorrow, a classic song that has been covered many times in several different styles of music. From an examination of their other music, it is clear that the Shirelles were hugely influential and deserve to be remembered for more than one song.

Apart from Will you love me tomorrow, their best known song is Dedicated to the one I love. Originally written by a member of the Five Royales and first recorded by that group, it was only a minor hit for them. The Shirelles popularised the song, taking it high up the American pop charts, though it failed to chart in Britain. The Mamas and Papas covered the song in the late sixties, when it became a huge UK hit. So Brits finally realized what a great song this is.

Two other Shirelles songs (Boys, Baby it's you) appeared on the debut album by the Beatles. Other great songs include Tonight's the night, Mama said, Soldier boy and Foolish little girl.

Of all the girl groups of the early sixties, the Shirelles were among the best and most important. This compilation shows just how brilliant they were, including all the essentials and many other wonderful songs.

Great sound. Very good selection of songs. But the best thing about this CD is that it contains the original version of "I Met Him On A Sunday", the Shirelles' first release which was not on Scepter records, but first released on Tiara, then Decca. Most Shirelles collections have a remake of this song.

My sister who is three years my senior is solely responsible for my love of the "oldies". I always wanted to be just like her and so her music became my music. The Shirelles were her favorite girl group and I have had a good time digging up CD's for her . We both really loved hearing the music and singing along with it . It bought back so many memories (we are in our 50's) and our grandchildren are singing the songs with us . The are great songs to sing and hear again. We were especially thrilled to hear "Pretty Words" and "What a Sweet Thing That Was". Then we realized that "Blue Holiday" was missing and my search has not produced it. As it doesnot appear on any of the collections I suspect there is a licensing issue. Too Bad. We are still happy to hear this and other old favorites and we especially like that the little ones like it also. One more thing to help bring the generations closer.

I REMEMBER SEEING THIS GROUP WITH A SUPER ALL-STAR LINE UP AT THE BROOKLYN FOX THEATER,WITH MURRAY THE K. WHAT A CONCERT.ANOTHER SET OF GREAT CONCERTS TOOK PLACE AT THE R.K.O. KEITH THEATER IN FLUSHING QUEENS N.Y.THEY HAD MORE THAN 18 GROUPS,INCLUDING THE SHIRELLES.!!
THE SHIRELLES DISC UNDER REVIEW, CONTAINS 26 HITS NOT 25 AS LISTED.AND HAS MOST OF THEIR TOP 40 HITS,AND HAS EXCELLENT SOUND YOU CANNOT GO WRONG WITH THIS COLLECTION.THIS DISC CONTAINS 10 MORE SONGS,OVER THE RHINO 16 HIT COLLECTION,WHICH I ALSO OWN

You can't beat this set of 60's pop. The sound is great and songs you never knew The Shirelles sang. Next to the Supremes these girls ruled.

Why is it that most companies insist on using the stereo digitized versions of recordings that were mixed and meant to be heard in mono? My original single versions of these songs are much richer and fuller, in spite of occasional popping and hissing. The bass response has been practically lost and the songs sound tinny and flat on this CD. These songs were meant to be heard in mono--not stereo!! I wish record companies would wake up to this fact....

As a teenager, it was always very difficult to buy all the hit songs of one's favorite singer or group. The usual progression was an album with 2 or 3 hits, followed by another, if they lasted that long, and, finally, five years later you'd get the compete set. This album has all the Shirelles big hits and I got them all in 1 purchase. Just having "...love me tomorrow.." "Soldier Boy" "Dedicated to the One I Love" and "Mama Said" plus many others bring back some wonderful memories of younger times. The CD is pleasant listening and has a good quality of sound to it. If you like the ladies' groups from the early years of rock, can't go wrong with one

"Tonight your mine completely, you give your love so sweetly, tonight the night of love is in your eyes, But will you love me tomorrow? "

One of the truly great groups, with a beat which made many of us who are now in the alte- kokker stage want to pick up our feet and dance.
The joy is in the rhythm and this group, along with Mary Welles seemed to me the best of its kind at the time. Yes, much better than the Supremes.
This is the kind of music that brings you to the poor heedless joy the carefree joy of wild youth- it may not last long but when it did it was crazy American fun.