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EXCELLENT DON CORNELL COLLECTION

A. POLLOCK | PLYMOUTH, DEVON United Kingdom | 12/14/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

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This excellent UK release from the dedicated reissue Jasmine label obviously reflects the limited popularity Don Cornell had in the UK during the 50's when he topped the Charts with his biggest hit HOLD MY HAND (from the Debbie Reynolds-Dick Powell film comedy SUSAN SLEPT HERE) in 1954 and shared the multi-singer popularity of STRANGER IN PARADISE (from Broadway's KISMET) the following year with the latter platter recorded in London with the Rowland Shaw Orchestra in order to stake its claim for the British portion of the Borodin-borrowed theme's hit status.



As far as the US was concerned, experience as band vocalist with the Red Nichols and Sammy Kaye Orchestras, had already set Don towards a successful solo career which resulted overall in the sale of 50 million records. IT ISN'T FAIR, I'M YOURS, I'LL WALK ALONE, THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO and this collection's title song, moved swiftly up the Charts to help to swell Don's reputation and coffers. However hits are invariably only a portion of any singer's popularity and this compilation highlights Don's expansive repertoire which includes standards I'LL BE SEEING YOU, and S'POSIN plus movie and show songs LOVE IS A MANY SPENDORED THING, A FACE IN THE CROWD and ALL OF YOU. A plethora of pop ballads like YOU CAN'T TELL A LIE TO YOUR HEART, DREAM WORLD, ALL AT ONCE and YOU'RE ON TRIAL range from gentle romantic to dramatically forceful interpretations, including the religious sentiments inherent in I STILL HAVE A PRAYER and a few cheery Christmas numbers. Don's version of UNCHAINED MELODY no doubt helped the song become a lasting classic but it's a surprise to hear his take on ROCK ISLAND LINE which launched the career of UK's Lonnie Donegan and the British skiffle craze. Novelty numbers vary the diet with SEE-SAW and MAMA GUITAR relevant examples, whilst LITTLE LUCY owes much to the style then in vogue thanks to Guy Mitchell. Also inviting necessary radio play, the macho YOUNG ABE LINCOLN echoes strains of JOHN BROWN'S BODY; PA-PA MA-MA CHA-CHA reflects the popular dance craze and THE DOOR IS STILL OPEN TO MY HEART and TEENAGE MEETING feature a watered down rhythm and blues/rock `n roll tempo. Duets with the popular Mindy Carson (GO TO SLEEP, GO TO SLEEP, GO TO SLEEP and ASK ME QUESTIONS) and perky songstress, Teresa Brewer (THE HOOKEY SONG and WHAT HAPPENED TO THE MUSIC? and two others) recall days when such shared delights were quite common, whilst the testosterone-packed HEART OF MY HEART and I THINK I'LL FALL IN LOVE TODAY are shared with the equally popular Alan Dale and Johnny Desmond.



Don sounds at ease with the material throughout, helped by the distinctive orchestral styling of Henry Winterhalter plus Norman Leyden, Dick Jacobs, Camerata, Jack Pleis and even Lawrence Welk and it's to their credit these tracks sound as fresh today as they did fifty years ago. The tracks are generally sorted for variety rather than chronological order with no listed recording dates but with excellent sound quality and informative notes, this collection's strength lies in the inclusion of many neglected recordings which will delight his many fans as well as those seeking a satisfying Cornell compilation.

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ALL His North American Hits Are Here ... And Then Some

A. POLLOCK | 04/26/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you've been searching about for the definitive Don Cornell hit singles volume, look no further. THIS is the one. And it comes from the U.K. where they produce the best oldies material on the planet, complete and with informative liner notes (three pages written in May 2007 by Robert Nickora) and excellent sound quality. The only thing missing is a discography of the contents showing chart details and label numbers, although they do re-list the titles showing the composers and backing orchestras). Here are the tracks:



Disc 1: 1) I'll Walk Alone; 2) All Of You 3) You Can't Tell A Lie To Your Heart; 4) See-Saw; 5) The Door Is Still Open (To My Heart); 6) I'm Yours; 7) Mama Guitar; 8) A Face In The Crowd; 9) The Devil's In Your Eyes; 10) Ask Me No Questions; 11) Go To Sleep, Go To Sleep, Go To Sleep; 12) Dream World; 13) Love Is A Many-Splendored Thing; 14) She Loves Me; 15) Teenage Meeting; 16) Unchained Melody; 17) I've Got The Christmas Spirit; 18) Let's Have An Old-Fashioned Christmas; 19) Rock Island Line; 20) I Need You So; 21) My Inspiration; 22) Danger! Heartbreak Ahead; 23) Heart Of My Heart; 24) I Think I'll Fall In Love Today; 25) I; 26) That's The Chance You Take; 27) Many Are The Times; 28) I'll Be Seeing You:



Disc 2: 1) The Bible Tells Me So; 2) Let's Be Friends; 3) Pa-Pa Ma-Ma Cha-Cha; 4) Believe In Me; 5) Young Abe Lincoln; 6) Why Don't You Tell Me So?; 7) All At Once; 8) I'm Yearning; 9) You'll Never Get Away; 10). The Hookey Song; 11) The Glad Song; 12) What Happened To The Music?; 13) Hold My Hand; 14) Little Lucy (Let Down Your Hair Tonight); 15) It Couldn't Happen To A Sweeter Girl; 16) I Still Have A Prayer; 17) It Isn't Fair; 18) I Want To Wish You A Merry Christmas; 19) Here Comes Santa Claus; 20) When The Hands Of The Clock Pray At Midnight; 21) Most Of All; 22) S'posin'; 23) This Is The Beginning Of The End; 24) No Man Is An Island; 25) From The Bottom Of My Heart; 26) You're On Trial; 27. Size 12; 28) Please Play Our Song (Mister Record Man); 29) Stranger In Paradise.



Don Cornell, born on April 21, 1919 in New York City, was one of the few Big Band vocalists (starting in the late 1930s he had worked with Al Kavelin, Red Nichols and, of course, Sammy Kaye) who, after going solo, was able to extend his career right through the beginning years of the R&R era, racking up 24 hit singles from 1950 to 1957. And they are all here, along with some of their B-sides.



His first solo hit after scoring some 14 with Sammy Kaye's orchestra on RCA Victor came in 1950 when, also on that label, he was backed by Hugo Winterhalter for his cover of the Ivory Joe Hunter # 1 R&B hit, I Need You So, which reached # 25 in September b/w It Couldn't Happen To A Sweeter Girl. Thereafter, his releases would be handled by the RCA subsidiary, Coral, and, for the most part (except where noted hereunder) he would be backed by the Norman Leyden orchestra.



However, it would be 18 long months before he found the charts again with I'll Walk Alone which featured no less than 8 hit versions in the spring of 1952. Dinah Shore topped the list with her # 1 rendition, followed by Martha Tilton (# 4) and then Don, whose version reached # 5 b/w That's The Chance you Take. Then, in May, he shared the # 3 slot with Eddie Fisher on I'm Yours (b/w My Mother's Pearls - not here), both finishing well ahead of versions by The Four Aces and Toni Arden. A # 20 hit followed in July with This Is The Beginning Of The End (b/w I Can't Cry Anymore - not here), and in September Coral paired him with their female singing star, Teresa Brewer, on You'll Never Get Away, a # 17 b/w The Hookey Song and backed by the Jack Pleis orchestra. He then finished off a very successful 1952 with the shortest song title ever recorded - I - (see track 25 on Disc 1), a # 7 b/w Be Fair (not included).



1953 would be another good year, starting with S'posin' which peaked at # 28 in February b/w another missing B-side, If You Were Only Mine, and in July, She Loves Me topped out at # 23 b/w When The Hands Of The Clock Pray At Midnight. That September he had a # 18 with Please Play Our Song (Mister Record Man) b/w If I Should Love Again (not here), and im December he had two hits. The first, accompanied by the Jack Pleis orchestra, was the # 10 (The Gang That Sang) "Heart Of My Heart" which he did with two other Coral stars, Johnny Desmond and Alan Dale, b/w I Think I'll Fall In Love Today. The second was the solo You're On Trial, a # 24 b/w I'm Yearning.



In March 1954 he was back with Size 12 (# 23 b/w Hold Me - not here), in May had the # 22 Believe In Me, b/w Little Lucy (Let Down Your Hair Tonight), and that fall came the closest to a # 1 when Hold My Hand, from the film Susan Slept Here, surged to # 2 b/w I'm Blessed (not here). Both Size 12 and Hold My Hand were backed by the Jerry Carr orchestra. By the start of 1955 the first ripples of the wave known as R&R had started, and in May he had his first double-sided hit with two R&B covers, the A-side being Most Of All (a # 5 R&B for The Moonglows) which, with the Dick Jacobs orchestra, he took to # 14 on the new Billboard Pop Top 100. and the B-side a Pop "follow-along" # 14 of The Door Is Still OPen To My Heart (a # 4 R&B for The Cardinals).



Early that fall he scored with a song penned by Roy Rogers and Dale Evans when The Bible Tells Me So reached # 7, with the backing of the Jacobs orchestra, while the flipside, a cover of The Four Aces # 1 hit Love Is A Many-Splendored Thing, reached # 26 backed by the Carretta orchestra. By this time everyone was enthralled by the recordings about Davy Crockett, so Don tried with a similar tune, Young Abe Lincoln, and had modest success as it reached # 25 b/w Dream World (not here).



Then, in early 1956, he tried his hand at R&R with Teenage Meeting (Gonna Rock It Up Right), but it finished at a disappointing # 80 b/w I Still Have A Prayer with the backing of Dick Jacobs, and in April only did marginally better when his cover of The Rock Island Line ended up at # 59, once more with the Carretta orchestra, b/w Na-Ne Na-Na (not here). He then finished off 1956 with two more R&B covers backed by Jacobs, the first being The Moonglows' See-Saw which peaked at # 59 in November. By now, however, record-buyers were alert to the originals and so it was that The Moonglows saw their version go to # 6 R&B and # 25 Pop Top 100. On the other hand the B-side, From The Bottom Of My Heart, became a # 57 "follow-along" while the original by The Clovers did not chart.



His last hit then came in May 1957 when Mama Guitar, from the film A Face In The Crowd, finished at # 47 with the backing of Dick Jacobs b/w the title tune A Face In The Crowd. It's too bad they didn't include all the B-sides here rather than some of the failed singles and Christmas tunes, but even at that this is the best Don Cornell hits compilation on the market by a wide margin."