Customer Reviews

Song for Young Love / Once Upon a Time

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4 star:		(1)
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I'm a classically trained musician and audiophile who has remastered much of my older music collection from retail CD's because of audio quality issues - but I wouldn't touch any of these masterpieces. The engineers simply did a REMARKABLE job of mixing and mastering these recordings, no doubt from the original session tapes. When I first listened (with earphones, of course) I was almost astonished, doubtful that the great sound would hold up from song to song but, to my amazement, it did. It was goose bumps for an hour. It just doesn't get any better than this. Without question, this is the best sounding Lettermen CD so far, the best quality reproductions yet released on CD.

To me, the best Lettermen material (song titles, arrangements, and recordings) comes from the original period of 1962 - 1968, and was recorded by the original group (Jim Pike, Tony Butala, & Bob Engemann). They just had great chemistry, their voice types matched well, and the result was a unique sound, a great blend. About the time Gary Pike replaced Bob in 1968, the style of music was rapidly changing and The Lettermen (necessarily) changed with it. Today, Tony still has The Lettermen going strong but this original period, far and away, represents their best stuff, and is some of my favorite music of all time. These albums, A Song For Young Love and Once Upon A Time, were released in 1962.

Since I am intimately familiar with every recording from this period (with few exceptions), having long ago memorized every melodic measure, I have no reservation in saying these recordings sound better than the original vinyl. No integrity was lost, and I actually detected parts of music background through the albums I hadn't heard before, which I didn't think was possible. This is the way older, analog recordings should be. It's as if they zoomed back to 1962 and did a digital recording of the entire session. Amazing. And all the selections on this CD are good - there are no fillers.

If you liked The Lettermen, or just like ballads, you'll love this CD. We just have to hope they'll continue releasing these great recordings from the original Lettermen period. Oh, do yourself a favor (get a decent set of headphones if you don't already have them) and treat yourself by listening through your headphones the first time you listen. This is The Lettermen like you've never heard them. Just be ready for the goosebumps.

Song For Young Love/Once Upon A Time is an excellent twofer CD by the incomparable Lettermen. The Lettermen harmonized just about better than any group I've ever heard; and they sang with all their hearts. This impresses me greatly; and hopefully with CDs like this one The Lettermen will always be fondly remembered. The sound quality is excellent and the artwork is very nice, too. I always like it when they incorporate the record album artwork into the CD artwork.

The album opens with The Lettermen singing "Blueberrey Hill" so sweetly; the strings complement their singing perfectly and I love every minute of it! The Lettermen prove with this tune they were champs! "When I Fall In Love" is equally bright; this is a major highlight of this album and it's truly very beautiful. "When I Fall In Love" features The Lettermen harmonizing to perfection--and beyond! Terrific! In addition, "The Way You Look Tonight" shines brightly and The Lettermen never skip a beat!

"Dreamer" features The Lettermen singing a fine tune and they handle the changes between major and minor keys effortlessly. Impressive! Of course, we know that it really wasn't so easy these guys were incredibly talented and they could make it appear effortless without any trouble. "In The Still Of Night" uses the strings to great advantage; and again The Lettermen use modulations between major and minor keys so very well. The overall effect is that "In The Still Of The Night" is an especially pretty ballad-and that's grand.

"Smile," a song partly written by the great Charlie Chaplin; has an beautifully and very sensitive arrangement; I love this rendition of "Smile" and I predict that you'll like it very much if you haven't heard The Lettermen perform this already. Great! In addition, listen fort The Lettermen to do a smashing job on "There's Got To Be A Girl." They play and sing this so flawlessly and I am amazed at how well they do this number.

"Evening Rain" has a stunning arrangement fr the piano and The Lettermen sing this with all their hearts and souls. It's a very pretty melody and The Lettermen take this song to new heights! In addition, "My Funny Valentine" works at many levels at once; and this is another major highlight of this album.

"Once Upon A Time" shines brighter than silver and gold when The Lettermen sing it; and listen for The Lettermen on "Remembering Last Summer." "Remembering Last Summer" is a sentimental Love ballad that gets the royal treatment from The Lettermen as they croon this without a superfluous note."Time Was (Duerme) is another sentimental ballad and The Lettermen deliver this with their usual panache. Great!

"Turn Around, Look At Me" was a huge hit for The Lettermen; and just one listen proves why! It's absolutely stunning. The CD also ends nicely with The Lettermen singing "Young And Foolish;" this makes a strong ending for this CD and that's terrific.

The Lettermen amply prove on this CD that they were champs. I highly recommend this for their fans; and people who enjoy classic pop vocals will also want this for their collections. Thanks you, Lettermen!

These first two of their albums of the original Lettermen are fantastic. Sure would be great to have other early original albums released in CD form as were these two. The numerous "Best of..." compilations simply recycle the same songs. The original cuts of "I Believe", "You'll Never Walk Alone", "Dearly Beloved", "No Other Love", and so many others are not on these reissues. Or how about their beautiful Christmas album of about 1970. The Lettermen harmony has never been equaled. Reissue the orginal albums. How about it?

The Lettermen had 32, count 'em, 32 charting albums, each a model of close-harmony adult pop, and not ONE of them is on CD!
Such a situation fairly begs for a Collectors' Choice Music reissue, and we're happy to oblige, offering their first two albums-FYI, "A Song for Young Love" was their highest-charting release, at #6 in 1962-on one 24-track CD. Special note to Lettermen fans-if this one sells, you can expect a lot more! Includes from " A Song for Young Lovers" -"Blueberry Hill," the hits "When I Fall in Love," "The Way You Look Tonight," and "Come Back, Silly Girl," "Dreamer," "I'll Be Seeing You," "In the Still of the Night," "It Happened Once Before," "Smile," "A Song for Young Love," "There's Got to Be a Girl," and "Valley High." From "Once upon a Time"--"Evening Rain," the hit "How Is Julie?," "Lover's Beach," "My Funny Valentine," "Once upon a Time," "Polka Dots and Moonbeams," "Remembering Last Summer," "Sixteen Reasons (Why I Love You)," "Summer's Gone," "Time Was (Duerme)," "Turn Around, Look at Me," and "Young and Foolish."

The outstanding harmony, along with the orchestra, background singers, and great stereo sound make this a "must" for any fan of The Lettermen.

This is the best Lettermen CD ever. The quality is excellent and it is the original Lettermen singing. It combines the two best albums that the Lettermen ever made. Go buy it!

A very good nostalgic album. The Lettermen were one of the more harmonious groups with lush sounds. This album recaptures some of those feelings when young, in college, and all we had to do was study, be with friends, and listen to a variety of music.

Sound is great. I play this one in the car a lot. Reminds me of days gone by. A must buy for Lettermen fans!!

After hear the Lettermen at the Kravis Center in West Palm Beach, Fl., I came home and ordered this CD. This group has been around for 47 years and sound as good today as they did when I first heard them forty some years ago. Iris Levin