Various Artists - Girls! Girls! Girls! 25 All-Time Classics

Artist:

Various Artists

UPC:

030206647723

Description:

Personnel: The Dells (background vocals).
Audio Mixer: Steve Massie.
Liner Note Author: Bill Dahl.
Arrangers: Stan Greenberg; Russ Faith; Hutch Davie; Alan Lorber; Luther Dixon; Van McCoy; Wardell Quezergue; Riley Hampton; Paul Griffin .
Girls! Girls! Girls! 25 All-Time Classics of the Girl Group Sound is a well-chosen selection; along with the huge girl group hits on offer here (like the Shirelles` "Mama Said," the Jaynetts` "Sally, Go `Round the Roses," the Chiffons` "He`s So Fine," and the Murmaids` "Popsicles and Icicles"), the producers of the disc cast their net over a wide range of singers and groups and made some interesting song choices. By focusing on the girl group sound rather than the usual girl groups themselves, they are able to include middle-of-the-road girl singers like Linda Scott ("I`ve Told Every Little Star"), Marcie Blaine (the charming "Bobby`s Girl"), and Kathy Young (the tremulous "A Thousand Stars"), soul singers like Barbara Lewis ("Hello Stranger"), Barbara George ("I Know [You Don`t Love Me No More]"), and Barbara Mason ("Yes I`m Ready"), and some groups whose obscurity is completely unjustified, like Candy & the Kisses, whose soulful dance groover "The 81" should have been a huge smash, the Sapphires, whose "Who Do You Love" is a melancholy gem equal to the best of the Shirelles, and the Jelly Beans, who contribute one of the disc`s best tracks with the heartfelt and sassy "I Wanna Love Him So Bad." There are also some big-name purveyors of the girl group sound here, but they aren`t represented by their trademark hits; in a rare show of imagination, the producers decided to choose songs that are just as good as the classics but haven`t suffered the tragic fate of being played to death on good-time oldies radio. So instead of "Leader of the Pack" by the Shangri-Las, listeners get the transcendent "Give Him a Great Big Kiss." Instead of the tired "Iko Iko" by the Dixie Cups, listeners get the laid-back and dreamy "People Say." Instead of the obvious "My Boyfriend`s Back" by the Angels, listeners get their weepy ballad "`Til." There are a couple of stinkers (Felice Taylor`s pale Diana Ross imitation on "It May Be Winter Outside [But in My Heart It`s Spring]" and Brenda & the Tabulations` "Right on the Tip of My Tongue," which not only falls outside of the girl group sound as it was recorded in 1971 and sounds it, but is also pretty tuneless vocally), but not enough to be problematic or keep this from being one of the more interesting mainstream girl group collections. The blend of the familiar and the farther afield make Girls! Girls! Girls! a joy to listen to for fans of girl groups and any fan of 60`s pop music. ~ Tim Sendra

Track Listing:

DISC 1

1. I`ve Told Every Little Star - Linda Scott (stereo)
2. Shoop Shoop Song, The (It`s in His Kiss) - Betty Everett (stereo)
3. Mama Said - The Shirelles (stereo)
4. `Til - The Angels (stereo)
5. Party Lights - Claudine Clark
6. 81, The - Candy & the Kisses
7. Sally, Go `Round the Roses - The Jaynetts (stereo)
8. I Wanna Love Him So Bad - The Jelly Beans (stereo)
9. Laugh or Cry - Yvonne Carroll (stereo)
10. Bobby`s Girl - Marcie Blane (stereo)
11. Hello Stranger - Barbara Lewis (stereo)
12. He`s So Fine - The Chiffons (stereo)
13. It May Be Winter Outside (But in My Heart It`s Spring) - Felice Taylor
14. I Know (You Don`t Love Me No More) - Barbara George
15. People Say - The Dixie-Cups (stereo)
16. Yes I`m Ready - Barbara Mason
17. Popsicles and Icicles - The Murmaids
18. I Love How You Love Me - The Paris Sisters
19. Jimmy Kiss and Run - Diane Maxwell (stereo)
20. You`ll Lose a Good Thing - Barbara Lynn (stereo)
21. Who Do You Love - The Sapphires
22. Thousand Stars, A - Kathy Young/The Innocents
23. Oh No, Not My Baby - Maxine Brown (stereo)
24. Right on the Tip of My Tongue - Brenda & the Tabulations (stereo)
25. Give Him a Great Big Kiss - The Shangri-Las (stereo)

Album Information

Release Date:

07/15/2003

Type:

Collection

Genre:

Oldies

Subgenre:

Girl Groups

Label:

Var¿se Sarabande (USA)

Producer:

Ollie McLaughlin; Ellie Greenwich; Stan Greenberg; Gilda Woods; George "Shadow" Morton; Gerry Granahan; Jim Bishop; Huey P. Meaux; Steve Venet; Tony Sepe; Marv Holtzman; Jeff Barry; Jim Lee; Joe Johnson; Juggy Murray; Kim Fowley; Luther Dixon; Marty Wekser; Van McCoy; Barry White; Zell Sanders; Phil Spector; Steve Massie; Calvin Carter; Cary E. Mansfield

Catalog Number:

066477

Original Release Year:

2003

# of Discs:

1

Studio/Live:

Studio

Mono/Stereo:

Stereo

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