Customer Reviews

Symphonies for Susan

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

 

 

Since the other Arbors release is currently out of print, and fetching an outlandish used price, this volume is your best bet by far if you're seeking the five hits produced by this quartet out of the University Of Michigan - Ann Arbor [hence their name]. Brothers Edward and Fred Farran, and Scott and Tom Herrick, had an undistinguished sound, as evidenced by their modest chart success for the Date label. Certainly nothing like the group they are frequently compared with, The Vogues, who could boast 24 hits in the same era.

A Symphony For Susan was their debut hit, reaching # 18 Adult Contemporary (AC)/# 51 Billboard Pop Hot 100 in late 1966 b/w Love Is The Light. For their follow-up they reached back to a 1956 hit by the similar-sounding Rover Boys and Four Freshmen, taking Graduation Day to # 19 AC/# 59 Hot 100 in June 1967 b/w I Win The Whole Wide World (not included here).

Late that year The Valley Of The Dolls, inspired by the book and the film (although NOT the same as the Dionne Warwick song with the same title), reached # 26 AC b/w You Are The Music, and after being shut out for all of 1968, they returned to the charts in early 1969 with another cover, this time of a 1967 # 1 by The Box Tops, when The Letter became their fourth hit, reaching # 20 Hot 100/# 26 AC in April. Then, in June, they had their final hit when I Can't Quit Her stalled at # 67 Hot 100 b/w Lovin' Tonight (Maybe Tonight).

Decent liner notes and superb sound quality make this a 5-star release despite the omission of some B-sides.

This is NOT the re-release of "A Symphony For Susan" as some retaliers have it listed.
The full title is: "The Very Best Of The Arbors - Symphonies For Susan"
It has 22 cuts on it and includes every song from their best album: I Can't Quit Her/The Letter
It's a long overdue retrospective that effectively replaces an earlier out-of-print compilation that has been fetching outrageous prices.
This is a superb collection drawing from all three of their releases, many on CD for the first time.
The Arbors were ahead of their time in many ways, blending sugary sweet vocals with some cosmic production and arrangements. On some songs you could say: The Lettermen on steroids.
If you've watched any television in the last 30 years, you've heard their voices. A lot. The Arbors sang the jingles for McDonalds, United Airlines, Green Giant ("Up in the land of the Jolly Green Giant..."), Texaco and many more.

As usual, great Rev-Ola treatment. Very Good sound, good notes. A quality release.

Forget the above reviews which seem to parrot the liner notes. I remember hearing The Arbors versions of The Letter and I Can't Quit Her on Chicago radio quite often and was taken by the moody production of these songs. The LP containing those two, aptly titled "The Arbors:I Can't Quit Her-The Letter, released on Date records, ALSO contained in it the best version of Hey Joe you will EVER hear, ESPECIALLY if you are sick and tired of all the versions you HAVE heard before. (I'll just BET you haven't heard THIS one!) It is worth the price alone to hear this song . All 10 of the lp's songs are included here, plus a number of earlier, more middle-of-the-road (schmaltz) selections from earlier releases, pre-Letter. BUT! Thanks! They have also included the very trippy-sounding "Okalona River Bottom Band", a late single that shouldn't have died, but did. Well, LO! and Behold! Now you can hear these wonderful songs on an un-scratchy CD! Pow!Pow!Pow! Buy it before it disappears!

The best track on this album is the title track. The rest is an interesting blend of songs and music. Enjoyable, but not a must have for the average collector.