Description
This lovely compilation on Bear Family could well be the alternative soundtrack to cult movies like ‘American Graffiti’, ‘American Diner’, or ‘Lemon Popsicle’!
1‐CD with 16‐page booklet, 33 tracks. Total playing time c. 79 min.
* ‘Cruising’ is as much a part of America’s history as Kennedy, Marilyn, Coke, and the hula‐hoop.
* On 33 tracks from 1954‐1964, the heyday of rock ‘n’ roll, a culturally extremely vibrant decade is rediscovered, whether as a ‘soundtrack’ in your car or as a musical enhancement to the next party!
* There are plenty of titles that were often heard on the (car) radio at the time and invite you to cruise in a stylish vintage automobile.
* Doo‐Wop is strongly represented, including really rare recordings, especially Ding Dong by a certain Tony Orlando, played extremely fast for Doo‐Wop!
* There’s plenty of teen rock with Ricky Nelson, Fabian, Troy Shondell and Darrell McCall, plus a terrific instrumental by the Viscounts.
* Ed Townsend, Ronnie Love and Larry Tamblyn are all part of the so‐called popcorn sound, and there’s even an early blues/rock trailblazer from Hank Ballard!
* The 16‐page color booklet includes producer Marc Mittelacher’s remarks on each song and many photos and illustrations, some of them rare.
Cruisin’
Imagine it’s summer, with the sun up in the blue sky, cruisin’ in a fancy ’50s automobile with this compilation playing on the car stereo! Cruising is still prevalent in the USA today. If there wasn’t a dance going on in high school, you didn’t know where else to go. So you took your dad’s car and shuttled between the milk bar, the local diner and the drive‐in movie theater. You met in streets for wild car parties, participated in illegal races, or broke into the bathhouse at night, not just to swim! If you already had your sweetheart/lover by the hand, you usually went to ‘Lover’s Lane’ to … Or to a romantic lake outside the city. Whatever was done, it was never boring, and the car and rock ‘n’ roll were always there!
At The Hop
The very first song, At The Hop, here in its rare Barry Frank version, is a real get‐down dance number, followed by Bumble Bee, LaVern Baker’s most beautiful rendition ever. Vocal groups are as much a part of cruising as the salt in the soup, and so there are quite a few doo‐wop sounds in this compilation, including some hits as well as extremely rare ones. A highlight is One Bad Stud by the Honey Bears, which was covered by the Blasters in the movie ‘Streets on Fire’. Hank Ballard gives us flawless early blues/rock with Look At Little Sister, later covered by Stevie Ray Vaughan.
In between, again and again, the beautiful polyphonic sound of the vocal groups. The idea for this very personal compilation came via the feeling that keeps the time of the 1950s and early 60s alive and that is transported in cult movies like ‘American Graffiti’. Thus, this compilation could also be an alternative soundtrack to that movie. The CD includes a 16‐page booklet in color with notes on each song, compiled and written by Marc Mittelacher, as well as many photos and illustrations, some of them rare!
Track listing:
01 At The Hop ‐ Barry Frank
02 Bumble Bee ‐ LaVern Baker
03 Don’t Take The Stars ‐ The Mystics
04 Stars In The Sky ‐ The Chanters
05 One Bad Stud ‐ The Honey Bears
06 Lovers Never Say Goodbye ‐ The Flamingos
07 You’re So Fine ‐ The Falcons
08 For Your Love ‐ Ed Twonsend
09 Shimmy, Shimmy Ko‐Ko Bop ‐ Little Anthony & The Imperials
10 Look At Little Sister ‐ Hank Ballard & The Midnighters
11 Chills And Fever ‐ Ronnie Love & His Orchestra
12 Dorothy ‐ The Hi‐Fives
13 Why I Am So Shy ‐ The Three Pennies
14 String Along ‐ Fabian
15 Pickin’ On The Wrong Chicken ‐ The Five Stars
16 Your Last Chance ‐ Lewis Lymon & The Teenchords
17 Little Star ‐ The Elegants
18 A Picture Of You ‐ The Danleers
19 Traingle ‐ Janie Grant
20 Harlem Nocturne ‐ The Viscounts
21 Destiny ‐ Larry Tamblyn
22 I’m In The Mood For Love ‐ The Chimes
23 Poor Little Fool ‐ Ricky Nelson
24 Girl After Girl ‐ Troy Shondell
25 Hushabye ‐ The Mystics
26 A Lover’s Prayer ‐ Vernon Green & The Medallions
27 Two Broken Hearts ‐ The Del‐Satins
28 Mister Lonely ‐ The Videls
29 Baby Doll ‐ The Magnificent Seven
30 I Count The Tears ‐ The Drifters
31 Remember Then ‐ The Earls
32 My Girl ‐ Darrell McCall
33 Ding Dong ‐ Tony Orlando
GENRE: Rock N Roll/Teen Pop
BARCODE: 5397102176333
