Customer Reviews

Treasured Tunes, Vol. 4

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

 

 

With each of the previous three volumes most of the selections offered are easily found in other compilations, some (like the Ace of London and Eric releases) offering up superior sound quality as well as more copious liner notes, especially in Ace series like The Golden Age Of American Rock & Roll. But the sound quality in this series from Stardust Productions of Canada is not bad, and while the liner notes take the same format from disc to disc, i.e., track-by-track comments over two pages, they are informative. And there is always a surprise or two in the Treasured Tunes volumes, including several in each that are considered hard-to-find.

In this one there are even more than usual, with these particularly in that category: Sammy Turner's 1959 # 3 Billboard Hot 100/# 14 R&B cover of the 1949 Sammy Kaye hit, Lavender Blue; Honest I Do by Kathy Young's back-up group The Innocents (# 28 Hot 100 in 1960); Spanish Lace by Gene McDaniels with The Johnny Mann Singers (# 31 Hot 100 in late 1962; 442 Glenwood Avenue by The Pixies Three, one of the more obscure of the "Girl Groups" (# 56 Hot 100 in February 1964); Love Me With All Your Heart (Cuando Calienta El Sol) - The Ray Charles Singers, longtime back-up group on many of Perry Como's biggest hits (# 1 Adult Contemporary (AC) for 4 weeks/# 3 Hot 100 in late spring 1964 - and right in the thick of the British Invasion).

Some others in that category would be: Black Is Black by Los Bravos (# 4 Hot 100 in late summer 1966); Burning Bridges by The Mike Curb Congregation, from the Clint Eastwood film Kelly's Heroes (# 16 AC/# 34 Hot 100 in December 1970); Daddy Don't You Walk So Fast by Wayne Newton (# 3 AC/# 4 Hot 100 in early summer 1972); and I Like Dreamin' by Kenny Nolan (# 3 Hot 100/# 4 AC in late 1976/early 1977.

And, as usual, you get at least one track that scored only on the Canadian charts, in this instance I Don't Care by British songstress Helen Shapiro.

I am a enthousiastic collector, and have almost all the Time Life rock n roll stuff, as well as ACE and Eric records cds of this era.
Honestly, if you go for 50s 60s songs, Ace and Eric records are unsurpassed, in their song selection and booklets info. But this is a highly forgotten collection that still hosts amazingly enough some songs that are no where else to be found. Ok some of them esp. of the 70s and 80s do not belong there, but that still leaves you with enough gemms I would say. So this whole series is excellent, and must have!
A few points why:
20 tracks per cd (Time life is also excellent, but you get 15 per cd!)
not the same old songs over again, but many rare and still excellent tracks!
last but not least good sound quality.

Although I found it a bit pricey, I bought this CD, mainly
for one song, DIANE, by the Batchelors. Although I also enjoy
some of the other songs on the album, I was very surprised by
how much I enjoyed #10, I DON'T CARE, by Helen Shapiro. I went
to CDNOW biography and learned more about her, and was fascinated
by her story. I cannot find this song anywhere else.