Customer Reviews

The Very Best of The Platters

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The Platters (represented by 12 of their greatest hits of the 1950s) stood a middle ground between traditional vocal groups such as the Ames Brothers and the doo-wop sounds to follow. Happily (for us, anyway), they were accepted by the new teenage culture and many of their parents.

The reason is in the quality of songs presented here. Hard to believe Jerome Kern's estate bristled over their rendition of "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes"; distinctive lead singer Tony Williams captures the lyric perfectly, walking through a fog of strings and piano with perfect pitch and diction until a glass-shattering finale. The originals, many co-written by their manager, Buck Ram, have themselves become standards: "Twilight Time," "My Prayer," "Only You" (later covered by Travis Tritt and Ringo Starr), "The Great Pretender" (later satirized by rock n' roll grump Stan Freberg). Overall, regardless of which 50s musical style you prefer, anyone loving traditional group harmony will enjoy this set.

The Platters typify 50's music and this cd is exactly what you would expect, and more. Buy it.

Nothing rerecorded here, and all big pop hits. A good buy for those who seek only the cream of the crop, although a few well-known hits are absent.

The Platters have always been one of the best of the 1950s vocal groups. Every song here is the real thing(no overdubbed remakes as on other Platters collections)and you'll want to play this cd over & over again. The music is timeless and still very romantic-major makeout music. It is easy to see how they were inspired by the Ink Spots and the Mills Bros. Tony Williams' gorgeous voice was one of the best in recorded music. This cd is highly recommended for lovers of great music.

Tracks
1 The Great Pretender ~ Ram 2:39
2 My Prayer ~ Boulanger, Kennedy 2:45
3 (You've Got) The Magic Touch ~ Ram 2:28
4 On My Word of Honor ~ Harrison, Harrison, Miles ... 2:42
Composed by: Harrison, Harrison, Miles, Miles
5 Twilight Time ~ Dunn, Dunn, Nevins, Nevins, Ram 2:44
6 You'll Never, Never Know ~ Gordon, Miles, Miles, Robi ... 2:38
Composed by: Gordon, Miles, Miles, Robi, Warren, Williams, Williams
7 Only You (And You Alone) ~ Foster, Pankow, Ram, Rand ... 2:37
Composed by: Foster, Pankow, Ram, Rand, Spampinato
8 I'm Sorry ~ Diddley, Freed, Fuqua, Hart, Ram ... 2:52
Composed by: Diddley, Freed, Fuqua, Hart, Ram, Tinturin, White, Wilson
9 Smoke Gets in Your Eyes ~ Harbach, Kern 2:38
10 If I Didn't Care ~ Lawrence 3:07
11 Enchanted ~ Ram 2:52
12 Harbor Lights ~ Kennedy, Kennedy, Wiliams 3:10

Releases Other Editions
Year Type Label Catalog #

1991 CD Mercury 510317
1991 CS Mercury 510 317

The Very Best of The Platters: Even though I own the great Doo Wop box set, I just could not resist getting this CD. It's easy to forget just how many excellent songs The Platters have recorded and this album carries their 12 greatest (far to many for the Doo Wop box to include).

This is an outstanding CD. It is one of those rare collections that all of the songs are great. What a beautiful mellow sound!

The Platters, represented here by their 12 greatest hits, rose to fame right beside the rock and roll/teenage culture. How you took them depended on your feelings about that seismic, permanent shift.

For Ames Brothers and other harmony group loyalists, hearing the 40s vocal style and standards like "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" juiced with pizzicato strings and rock n' roll piano triplets was sacrilege. (Jerome Kern's estate threatened to sue; rock n' roll hating satirist Stan Freberg parodied "The Great Pretender." ) But how would this polished group fit next to the wild southern men of Sun Records or handsome balladeers like Pat Boone?

Quite well, actually. The nine songs here that weren't standards (many co-written by Buck Ram, their manager) became standards by decade's end. Lead singer Tony Williams' voice is annunciated and dramatic, whether walking through the string and piano fog on "Smoke" or contrasting the bass vocal intro on "You'll Never Never Know." Each songs has a final, unforgettable ending (tight harmony singing on "Great Pretender," a piercing final note on "My Prayer") making them emblematic of a time, place and feeling. "The Best of The Platters" is classic 50s music from either side of that decade's fence, still intriguing and great sounding today.

There used to be a saying that something that was right on target was "A full_______"(for example, 'Cleveland' - which in those days some people did not mean to be complimentary!), well, this is a "full" Platters - a perfect Platters cut with all the great songs.

This product was shipped to me in an unpadded envelope and when it arrived the CD disc was broken in two. It was unable to be played.