A Sony TV Special Offer
10/01/2007
(3 out of 5 stars)
"I bought this through TVMusic4U dot com back around 2001 as a result of a TV ad which, on the surface, appeared to be a good deal as all selections were advertised as originals and the clips they played on the promo were certainly among his best. It was only when I received it and opened it did I find out that it contains neither background notes nor discography of the contents, except for the recording dates.
Also, being a collector, once I got a look at the entire contents on the reverse I realize that a number of cuts on disc 2 were in no way to be counted among "the very best" of Bobby Vinton. Nice songs and well done, mind you, but none among these were hits for him, nor even the B-sides of hits: When I fall In Love; The Twelfth Of Never; Misty Blue; (My Little) Christie; Blue Moon; Too Young; Traces (Of Love); To Each His Own; and Unchained Melody. That's 30% of the package.
I wrote to the producer of the album and received a response which said, in effect, that they felt they had to include song titles that people would recognize in order to sell the item! Hello! I would think that the majority of those purchasing it would have been either fans of Bobby's or, like me, collectors of hit singles, and that alone would guarantee sales.
As it is you do get 21 bona fide Bobby Vinton hits, including all four # 1's (tracks 1, 6, 9, and 10 on disc 1) and, for the most part, the others are all among his very best. However, if these nine Top 40 hits had been included instead of those non-hits, this would have been elevated to a 5-star release, even without liner notes: I Love You The Way You Are (# 38 in late summer 1969 and his second hit); Trouble Is My Middle Name (# 7 Adult Contemporary (AC)/# 33 Hot 100 in late 1962/early 1963 and its B-side, Let's Kiss And Make Up (# 10 AC/# 38 Hot 100); What Color [Is A Man?] (# 38 Hot 100 in October 1965); Satin Pillows (# 23 Hot 100 in early 1966); Just As Much As Ever (# 10 AC/# 24 Hot 100 in early 1968); The Days Of Sand And Shovels (# 11 AC/# 34 Hot 100 in summer 1969); Beer Barrel Polka (# 5 AC/# 33 Hot 100 in spring 1975 and its B-side, Dick And Jane (a # 33 "follow-along").
The complete contents are:
Disc 1: Roses Are Red (My Love); Long Lonely Nights; Over The Mountain (Across The Sea); Blue On Blue; L-O-N-E-L-Y; There! I've Said It Again; Clinging Vine; Coming Home Soldier; Blue Velvet; Mr. Lonely; My Heart Belongs To Only You; Rain Rain Go Away; Halfway To Paradise; Please Love Me Forever; Tell Me Why
Disc 2: My Melody Of Love; I Love How You Love Me; When I Fall In Love; To Know You Is To Love You; The Twelfth Of Never; Take Good Care Of My baby; Misty Blue; (My Little) Christie; Blue Moon; Too Young; Traces (of Love); To Each His Own; Unchained Melody; Ev'ry Day Of My Life; Sealed With A Kiss"
