Search - Nino Tempo, April Stevens :: Deep Purple / Sing the Great Songs

Nino Tempo & April Stevens bring you back to the 1960's.

James McDonald | Southern California | 05/27/2003

(3 out of 5 stars)

"You get 2 albums on 1 CD. The "Deep Purple" album and "Nino and April Sing The Great Songs". 12 songs each, 24 in all. All originally released on ATCO in 1963. This CD is way too 1960's for me, but I enjoyed listening to it since it was released on the year of my birth. The "Deep Purple" song is not what I was use to. Being a child and teenager of the 1970's, I'm used to the brother/sister duo Donny & Marie Osmond singing "Deep Purple", but the brother/sister duo Nino Tempo & April Stevens is fine with me. I first saw Nino Tempo and April Stevens on an old music clip on American Movie Classics cable network. They were singing the song I do not know the title of, but it had "mashed potatoes" in it and it was funny when Nino would do that infamous OOH!. On the "Deep Purple" album, I found "Baby Weemis" to be strange. Although, the girls might find it cute. "Paradise" was dull. "True Love" is nice. "Sweet and Lovely" is a catchy tune. "(We'll Always Be) Together" is another catchy tune. You might catch yourself singing it too. On the "Sing The Great Songs" album: "Tea For Two" is done faster but is good. "I'm Confessin' That I Love You" is nice. "Honeysuckle Rose" is one of my favorite songs. Nino and April have a style all their own. "All The Things You Are" is probably the nicest tune on this album. "I Surrender Dear" is sung very tenderly. The CD I received has a typo on the back cover. The listing for "Tea For Two" and "I'm Confessin' That I Love You" are both labled #13, instead of 13, 14. And the security sticker on the top side of the CD has Nino's name as "Nina". That's an error. This CD is a collector's for sure."

Early sixties duo update songs of an earlier era

Peter Durward Harris | Leicester England | 08/26/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The brother and sister duo of Nino Tempo and April Stevens had a huge hit with Deep Purple, a song which first hit the charts in 1939. In that year, Larru Clinton's band (with Bea Wain as lead singer) spent several weeks at #1, but several other versions also charted high.Nino and April's version of Deep Purple, updated for the sixties, is very different from Larry and Bea's version. I enjoy both versions, though on balance I prefer the original. The remainder of this twofer contains many other old songs also updated for the sixties, including Stardust (from 1930), Tea for two (from 1925) and Shine on Harvest moon (from 1909). Not all the songs are as famous as these, but together they provide a fascinating and entertaining slice of musical history,As someone who was raised on sixties music, but who has more recently gained an appreciation of the Great American Songbook, I find this set particularly interesting. Some may think the different interpretations amount to sacrilege, but great songs can be done in a lot of different ways - and the number of new recordings of such songs still being made even now is proof of that.Generally, this will appeal more to fans of early sixties pop that to lovers of the old standards, but if (like me) you enjoy both, this is essential."

Old ballads you can twist to

ernie garcia | LONG BEACH, CA. | 08/31/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"APRIL STEVENS AND NINO TEMPO ARE A GREAT PART OF 60'S MUSIC. THIS WAS THE ERA OF "THE TWIST' AND THEY WERE STEADILY COMING OUT WITH TUNES THAT OUR PARENTS DANCED TO, ONLY IN UPDATED DANCEABLE TWIST STYLE. WE LOVED WHAT WAS HAPPENING, ESPECIALLY WHEN OUR PARENTS WOULD SAY "OH, I REMEMBER THAT SONG..TURN IT UP!" MY FAVORITE WAS "SWEET AND LOVELY", WHICH WAS A HUGE CALIFORNIA HIT. BOB EUBANKS USED TO HOST A DANCE SHOW THAT AIRED FROM A POPULAR CA. AMUSEMENT PARK (SIMPLY KNOWN AS P.O.P. FOR PACIFIC OCEAN PARK)AND HE USED TO FEATURE THEM ON HIS SHOW, ALONG WITH CAROL CONNORS AND THE TEDDY BEARS, MIKE CLIFFORD (CLOSE TO CATHY), THE PARIS SISTERS ETC. BUY IT!!IT'S A GREAT C.D. I RECOMMEND IT. YOU'LL WANT TO TWIST AGAIN!!"