Search - Various Artists :: Fabulous Fifties 8: Favorite Hits

Beautiful ballads from the 1950s

Matthew G. Sherwin | last seen screaming at Amazon customer service | 03/13/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Fabulous Fifties: Favorite Hits is a very good installment in this CD series; I am baffled as to why this is currently out of print! The sound quality is great and I like the diversity of artists on this album. The artwork is also excellent.



The Ames Brothers kick things off with their tune entitled "You You You." You You You" features The Ames Brothers front and center and they sing this very sweetly. The lush arrangement works well to enhance the beauty of this ballad. Rosemary Clooney follows with her tune "Half As Much;" Rosemary never sounded better as she sings this torchy type of love song. Rosemary sings with passion, heart and soul and this impresses me very much. There's also Mitch Miller And His Orchestra doing an awesome job on "The Yellow Rose Of Texas." The arrangement also uses a chorus to sing the lyrics but the music really makes "The Yellow Rose Of Texas."



Johnny Mathis also hits home big with a wonderful rendition of "Smile." Johnny delivers this with great sophistication and he sounds as smooth as silk when he delivers this fine ballad. Don Cherry's "Band Of Gold" also has that distinctly `50s flavor to it; and Don sings this well with a fine musical arrangement--great brass here! Doris Day's "A Guy Is A Guy" isn't really my favorite number although I suppose a lot of other people will enjoy this number anyway.



Perry Como turns in an upbeat tune with his pop flavored "Papa Loves Mambo;" Perry sings this so well and I always enjoy hearing Perry sing. "Papa Loves Mambo" has great brass and the Latin flavor sounds very strong as Perry bats this one straight out of the ballpark! Jerry Vale also gives us his version of "Eternally;" Jerry's voice sounds strong and full of natural masculine warmth. Jerry never misses a beat!



Percy Faith And His Orchestra perform the theme from Moulin Rouge; and Johnnie Ray's "Just Walking In The Rain" showcases Johnnie's superior vocal talents. Great!



The album ends well with Frankie Laine performing "I Believe." "I Believe" has a great arrangement and Frankie sings this with heart and soul. Frankie's excellent diction bolsters his performance, too.



Overall, this is some great album of wonderful tunes from the fabulous 1950s! I can't understand why this is currently out of print. I highly recommend this for fans of `50s music and the oldies. People who enjoy classic pop vocals will also appreciate this album.

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