REISSUES : Compilation of The Browns’ hits is hall-of-fame stuff
Posted on Thursday, June 19, 2008
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/adg/Style/229107/
Country music’s evolution into what became known as the Nashville Sound or countrypolitan in the ’ 50 s was largely the creation of musician / producer Chet Atkins. This hybrid was the product of joining the song structures and themes of country music to polished, pop-oriented production and instrumentation. Steel guitars, fiddles and dobros gave way to violins, orchestras, large choruses and slick production.
As Atkins envisioned, it was a commercial triumph, taking country music onto the pop charts in a big way.
One of the acts that powered Atkins’ vision to success was the Arkansas trio The Browns. The influential family trio is overdue for induction in the Country Music Hall of Fame. A just-released 21-track compilation, The Complete Hits (Collectors’ Choice ), is an apt reminder of the trio’s influence and artistry.
The Browns were hardly strangers to country radio before working with Atkins. Jim Ed and Maxine Brown had a Top 10 hit in 1954 with “Looking Back to See.” Then when their sister Bonnie joined, The Browns had more hits, including “Here Today and Gone Tomorrow,” “ I Take the Chance ” and “I Heard the Bluebirds Sing.”
But when they recorded “The Three Bells” in 1959 everything changed. Atkins reportedly put his job on the line for the group and that single. An English language version of Edith Piaf’s “Les Trois Cloches,” it hit No. 1 on the pop charts and stayed there for four weeks. It was No. 1 on the country charts for 10 weeks.
The Complete Hits also includes “Scarlet Ribbons,” “ The Old Lamplighter” and “Send Me the Pillow You Dream On,” which were pop and country hits.
This fine collection could have been even better with a full booklet with more photographs, details on recording sessions and chart positions and some personal anecdotes from each of the Browns.
But it is a superior gathering of songs that lives up to its name. All 21 of The Browns’ charted singles are here, presented in chronological order. PEGGY LEE: ALL AGLOW AGAIN !
One of the great singles of American pop is celebrating its golden anniversary.
The incomparable Peggy Lee’s sexy “Fever,” which smolders and burns with sensuality, is a major attraction on All Aglow Again ! (Collectors’ Choice ), one of several Lee reissues.
Lee had a small voice, but it made a big impression, starting with her stint in Benny Goodman’s Orchestra (1941-43 ) and continuing for four decades as a jazz and atmospheric pop singer. Her first hit was in 1945, “Waitin’ for the Train to Come In / I’m Glad I Waited for You.” She scored her biggest hit in 1948 with “Manana,” which she co-wrote with thenhusband Dave Barbour.
But when “Fever” hit the Top 10 a decade later, it became her signature tune and its popularity endures, which provides the motivation to re-release this 1960 compilation with six bonus tracks. One highlight of the expanded set is a bittersweet “Let’s Call It a Day,” with Lee’s voice imbued with resignation to a romantic breakup. The hits include the Latin-style “Manana,” her take on Ray Charles’ hit “Hallelujah, I Love Him So,” Fanny Brice’s “My Man,” a tender “Where Do I Go From Here” and the wonderful Nelson Riddle arrangement for “It Keeps You Young.”
Also out from Collectors ’ Choice are these Lee titles: The Lost ’ 40 s & ’ 50 s Capitol Masters (two CDs, $ 29. 99 ). There have been many Lee reissues, but this set picks up many of the unreleased tunes from the early part of her career. Serious Lee fans will find this two-CD set a real treasure, though sonic quality varies a bit. Then Was Then, Now Is Now and Bridge Over Troubled Water. Make It With You and Where Did They Go.
Two albums on one CD is always a happy bargain. Then Was Then was originally issued in 1965, Bridge in 1970. High points include the swingin’ “Trapped (in the Web of Love ),” a torchy “Losers Weepers” and a striking “I Go to Sleep,” written by Ray Davies of the Kinks (Davies sent a demo of the tune to Lee ). Her almost art song / cabaret take on “You’ll Remember Me” is impressive. Her version of “Bridge Over Troubled Water” works well and Lee makes it her own. Just as she transformed Ray Charles’ tune, she also shows a clear connection to Randy Newman with her lively “Have You Seen My Baby.” Bonus tunes include a swingin’ “This Could Be the Start of Something Big.” After Lee’s late-career defining hit “Is That All There Is ?” in 1969, she cut the albums Make It With You (after the Bread hit ) in 1970 and Where Did They Go in 1971. This pairing brings a tender version of the Beatles’ “The Long and Winding Road,” a heartbreaking “The No-Color Time of the Day,” an exquisite “Good-Bye,” the bittersweet “Where Did They Go ?” and a fine reading of Stephen Sondheim’s “Losing My Mind.”
BRIEFLY... Radiohead, The Best of Radiohead, Capitol. For many of us, music is just a click away. As downloaded music continues to proliferate, has the greatest hits album become obsolete when we can compile our own ? Still, there’s much to like in the two-CD version ($ 24. 98 ) with 17 of the band’s best-known tunes and a disc of lesser-known tracks. It’s not in chronological order, but it is a good overview a more casual fan may find interesting. It’s also available as a single disc version ($ 18. 98 ).
Lemonheads, It’s a Shame About Ray (Collector’s Edition ), Rhino, $ 24. 98 Singer-songwriter Evan Dando’s fusion of punk, folk, pop and rock is still accessible and interesting. What the songs lack in melodic originality, they make up in their sharp observations on life. The title song is a heartbreaking portrait of an addict. The original album is remastered; demos are added to enrich the set. The DVD has videos and live performances, mostly from the VHS video Two Weeks in Australia. Judy Garland, Garland at the Grove, DRG. In 1958, Judy Garland had an engagement at the Cocoanut Grove in Los Angeles. The performance, with the Freddy Martin Orchestra, was recorded and an abridged version of the concert was issued by Capitol. This remastered CD issues the entire program, all 13 songs. It includes familiar Garland classics “Rocka-Bye Your Baby With a Dixie Melody,” “ Over the Rainbow, ” a medley of “You Made Me Love You,” “ For Me and My Gal” and “The Trolley Song.” With a savvy and fun intro, she turns “Purple People Eater” into a funny take on UFOs and monster films. Though Garland was fighting vocal problems, Grove is worthwhile for fans. She was clearly in her element in concert, a powerful performer who really connected with an audience. Just three years later, she would issue the brilliant Judy at Carnegie Hall. E-mail:
ewidner@arkansasonline. com