Jimmy Mack by Martha and the Vandellas
Where Did Our Love Go by The Supremes
Tell Him by the Exciter's
He's a Rebel by the Crystals
He's So Fine By the Chiffons
Don't Mess With Bill by The Marvelettes
The Happening by Diana Ross and The Supremes
Mama Said by The Shirelles
The Crystals were largely a studio group that served as a vehicle for Phil Spector's Wall of Sound, perhaps more so than other groups on Phillies Records. For example, several of their songs were actually performed by other artists and released under The Crystals' moniker. "He's A Rebel," the title track of this album and their biggest hit, is actually The Blossoms, led by Darlene Love. In any case, what a Wall of Sound it was! The signature booming drums and soaring strings make Spector-produced music some of the most enjoyable girl group ever produced. Behind it all, artists were exploited and women were abused by the future murderer. When the boundary between the abuse and the music is laid bare, the record is at its worst. The nadir of this album and the total output of Phillies Records appears as track eleven, the appalling "He Hit Me (It Felt Like A Kiss)." The lyrics were inspired by Little Eva's justification of her boyfriend's abuse, and disgustingly romanticize an awful social problem. The single was so repulsive, even for the time, that it was pulled from radio and distribution after a torrent of public anger. In contrast, the record is at its best with the pair of 1962 singles that lead off the album, which combine immaculate production with sweet lyrics (although "Uptown" is still dated in terms of sexual politics). While love songs about bad boys would become a girl group trope, the title track seems to be the origin point (please correct me if I'm wrong). Nine of the twelve songs here were a-sides or b-sides, so this album is pretty stacked. And one of the album-only tracks, "Another Country - Another World," is lyrically unique, as it finds its narrator struggling against the limits of society's xenophobia.
Like The Shirelles disc I wrote up earlier, this is a fairly comprehensive single-disc best of compilation. It features ten out of the twelve tracks from He's A Rebel, plus eight more. Most of these eight appeared on singles, but two, "Heartbreaker" and "Woman In Love (With You)", are previously unreleased tracks. Sadly, they were unreleased for a reason, and are two of the weakest tracks on the compilation, aside from the aforementioned He Hit Me. Da Doo Ron Ron cherrypicks the best from He's A Rebel, leaving off only "Frankenstein Twist," a rote dance number, and "On Broadway," a Drifters cover that fails to improve on the original. Their omission, combined with the additional quality tracks (especially "Then He Kissed Me" and the title track), make the compilation a better bet if you're only going to listen to one disc by The Crystals. However, if you're an album purist like Gowi (a legitimate position to have), He's A Rebel is a very solid listen.
Overall Rating:3.99
Top 3 Crystals Tracks:
1. He's A Rebel (1962) 5/5
Author: Gene Pitney
Billboard Chart Position: #1
Note: The epitome of cool.
2. Then He Kissed Me (1963) 5/5
Authors: Ellie Greenwich, Jeff Barry, Phil Spector
Billboard Chart Position: #6
Note: Perfectly saccharine pop.
3. Da Doo Ron Ron (1963) 4.5/5
Authors: Ellie Greenwich, Jeff Barry, Phil Spector
Billboard Chart Position: #3
Note: What drags this down from a perfect score is the corny part about his name being Bill. _________________ Add me on RYM
I have changed my scoring system and added to my listening list, so here's a little ranking and recap of where things are in the project. I'm doing this a lot more thoroughly than I expected to haha.
Albums Scored:
1. Spring Fever! by The Pussywillows (1988) 94.4*
2. Presenting The Fabulous Ronettes Featuring Veronica by The Ronettes (1964) 93.0*
3. Myrmidons Of Melodrama by The Shangri-Las (1964-1966) 91.6*
4. Shangri-Las - 65! by The Shangri-Las (1965) 90.2*
5. The Best Of The Girl Groups Volume 1 by Various Artists (1960-1966) 89.2
6. 25 All-Time Greatest Hits by The Shirelles (1958-1964) 80.2
7. Leader Of The Pack by The Shangri-Las (1965) 79.8*
8. Da Doo Ron Ron: The Very Best Of The Crystals by The Crystals (1961-1964) 79.7
9. The Best Of The Girl Groups Volume 2 by Various Artists (1958-1966) 79.4
10. Tonight's The Night by The Shirelles (1960) 76.2
11. He's A Rebel by The Crystals (1963) 72.4
12. Baby It's You by The Shirelles (1962) 70.6
* = writeup pending
Albums Listened, To Score:
We Are The Chantels by The Chantels (1958)
Please Mr. Postman by The Marvelettes (1961)
The Ultimate Collection by The Marvelettes (1961-1969)
One Kiss Can Lead To Another: Girl Group Sounds Lost And Found by Various Artists (1961-1969)
Playboy by The Marvelettes (1962)
Meet The Supremes by The Supremes (1962)
Heat Wave by Martha And The Vandellas (1963)
A Christmas Gift For You by Various Artists (1963)
Sunshine, Lollipops & Rainbows: The Best Of Lesley Gore by Lesley Gore (1963-1967)
The Ultimate Collection by Martha And The Vandellas (1963-1972)
Gold by The Supremes (1963-1976)
Chapel Of Love by The Dixie Cups (1964)
Where Did Our Love Go by The Supremes (1964)
Girls In The Garage, Vol. 1 by Various Artists (1964-1967)
Dance Party by Martha And The Vandellas (1965)
Whenever A Teenager Cries by Reparata And The Delrons (1965)
More Hits By The Supremes by The Supremes (1965)
Truth Gotta Stand by The Luv'd Ones (1966)
Watchout! by Martha And The Vandellas (1966)
I Hear A Symphony by The Supremes (1966)
The Supremes A' Go-Go by The Supremes (1966)
The Toys Sing "A Lover's Concerto" And "Attack!" by The Toys (1966)
The Marvelettes by The Marvelettes (1967)
The Supremes Sing Holland-Dozier-Holland by The Supremes (1967)
A Go Go by Dara Puspita (1968)
Love Child by Diana Ross & The Supremes (1968)
Composes, Produces And Sings by Ellie Greenwich (1968)
Honey Ltd. by Honey Ltd. (1968)
Sophisticated Soul by The Marvelettes (1968)
Nothing But A Heartache by The Flirtations (1969)
New Ways But Love Stays by The Supremes (1970)
Spring by American Spring (1972)
We Are The Pipettes by The Pipettes (2006)
Albums To Listen To, Digital Or Physical Copy Available:
The Cake by The Cake (1967)
A Slice Of Cake by The Cake (1968)
Albums To Listen To, Digital Or Physical Copy Unavailable For Now:
The Chordettes by The Chordettes (1957)
You Don't Have To Be A Baby To Cry by The Caravelles (1963)
He's So Fine by The Chiffons (1963)
Sweet Talkin' Guy by The Chiffons (1966)
Sinbad by Yanti Bersaudara (1968)
EDIT: Updated 2/25/18 _________________ Add me on RYM
I checked out these albums because as Gowi pointed out in Tilly's diary, there is more to The Shirelles than just a greatest hits compilation. They're both worth listening to, with some standout album cuts that fly below the radar. Tonight's The Night in particular is incredibly consistent, and I gave no track below a 3.5/5. Even by 1960, the transition from pronounced doo-wop influences to straight-up pop soul was already fairly complete. Baby It's You is spottier, with two mediocre tracks and one awful track ("Putty In Your Hands", almost certainly the worst and most regressive material they ever put out). Lyrically, these are usually pretty standard love songs on both albums, and instrumentally they're of mixed quality and uniqueness, so this material most often leans on strong, expressive vocals to reach its potential. I already wrote about some of the standout singles in the prior post, so I'll just pick one deep cut from each album:
1. Make The Night A Little Longer (1962) 4/5
By Carole King & Gerry Goffin
Great use of drums, strings, and backing vocals make this yearning tune shine.
2. The Dance Is Over (1960) 4/5
By Luther Dixon
This mini tragedy employs pathos effectively in its tale of perceived infidelity and dashed love. _________________ Add me on RYM
I checked out these albums because as Gowi pointed out in Tilly's diary, there is more to The Shirelles than just a greatest hits compilation. They're both worth listening to, with some standout album cuts that fly below the radar. Tonight's The Night in particular is incredibly consistent, and I gave no track below a 3.5/5. Even by 1960, the transition from pronounced doo-wop influences to straight-up pop soul was already fairly complete. Baby It's You is spottier, with two mediocre tracks and one awful track ("Putty In Your Hands", almost certainly the worst and most regressive material they ever put out). Lyrically, these are usually pretty standard love songs on both albums, and instrumentally they're of mixed quality and uniqueness, so this material most often leans on strong, expressive vocals to reach its potential. I already wrote about some of the standout singles in the prior post, so I'll just pick one deep cut from each album:
1. Make The Night A Little Longer (1962) 4/5
By Carole King & Gerry Goffin
Great use of drums, strings, and backing vocals make this yearning tune shine.
2. The Dance Is Over (1960) 4/5
By Luther Dixon
This mini tragedy employs pathos effectively in its tale of perceived infidelity and dashed love.
Great reviews. I like how you use empirical evidence to support your your opinions rather than just gushing about how awesome something is without giving any evidence of why it's so awesome. Ha ha
So while I was still in the thick of this project (someday I will return), I made a girl group playlist. It has every song in the genre I've rated 5/5, plus one 4.5/5 for each artist who had no 5/5s. It's organized first by year of release and second by artist, but it's meant to be shuffled. The one 5/5 that wasn't available on Apple Music was "Nothing But A Heartache" by The Flirtations (early music video embedded below). Hope you enjoy!
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