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Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1957: Pop Gold
Various Artists
Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1957: Pop Gold
Genres: Pop, Rock
 
  •  Track Listings (25) - Disc #1

11 CD DEBUTS! - ALL ORIGINAL 45 RPM SINGLE VERSIONS - DIGITALLY REMASTERED FOR HIGHEST QUALITY SOUNDWho knew when Hit Parade launched its audiophile-quality reissue series with Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1956 that popu...  more »

     
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CD Details

All Artists: Various Artists
Title: Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1957: Pop Gold
Members Wishing: 3
Total Copies: 0
Label: Hit Parade
Original Release Date: 1/1/2008
Re-Release Date: 2/19/2008
Genres: Pop, Rock
Styles: Oldies, By Decade, 1950s
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaCD Credits: 1
UPC: 730531230521

Synopsis

Album Description
11 CD DEBUTS! - ALL ORIGINAL 45 RPM SINGLE VERSIONS - DIGITALLY REMASTERED FOR HIGHEST QUALITY SOUNDWho knew when Hit Parade launched its audiophile-quality reissue series with Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1956 that popular demand would warrant two big volumes for 1957 - a very good year for music! Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1957: Pop Gold throws its spotlight on the astonishing breadth of music that graced the popularity charts that year: Calypsos, polkas, skiffle, and all manner of pop tunes for listeners of every age. Many people thought rock `n' roll was just a craze back then, so traditional pop styles were doing very well, thank you. This pure pop installment of Jukebox Classics shows exactly how well. Digitally remastered and lovingly presented, these 25 hits sound more vibrant than you've ever heard them!In 1957, the teenagers swooned to Ricky Nelson's recording debut and earliest hits for Verve Records, A Teenager's Romance and You're My One And Only Love, while the grown-ups delighted to traditional pop classics such as Jane Powell's version of True Love. Tony Bennett waxed the biggest hit of his career with the hard-to-find In The Middle Of An Island, and Johnnie Ray and Gale Storm notched their last major hits with Yes, Tonight Josephine and Dark Moon.Rusty Draper brought the British skiffle style to the Top 10 on the American charts with the folksy Freight Train, and the Fontane Sisters joined the calypso craze with their spirited rendition of The Banana Boat Song. Will Glahé's Liechtensteiner Polka broke out of its niche to become a major national seller alongside the hits of Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis, and yet it has never appeared on CD until now!And who could forget the dreamy vocal groups of the era, represented here by such rare gems as the Four Esquires' Look Homeward Angel and the Four Voices' Lovely One, both of which make their CD debuts. Other first-time-on-CD cuts include Eydie Gorme's second-biggest hit of the `50s, Love Me Forever, and Jim Lowe's rare country-pop crossover hit, Four Walls.With an incomparable selection lasting over a full-hour and a fact- and photo-filled 12-page booklet featuring a 4,000 word essay on the music by noted music writer Greg Adams, Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1957: Pop Gold is truly worth its weight in gold. (also see: Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1957: Rhythm & Rock)
 

CD Reviews

Lots of tunes that you will find nowhere else!
Paul Tognetti | Cranston, RI USA | 02/24/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)

"When you have been collecting for as long as I have it is not often that you come across a disc that offers a bunch of tunes that you do not already own. In perusing the 25 tracks offered on one of Hit Parade's pair of brand new 2008 releases "Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1957: Pop Gold" I was extremely pleased to discover that this collection includes a total of 10 songs that I did not previously own. As a matter of fact, most of these were tunes I had never even heard before! Seems to me that Hit Parade is succeeding in bringing back lots of extremely rare pop music.

Among the gems that you will find in "Hard To Find Jukebox Classics: Pop Gold" are Tommy Sands #2 smash "Teenage Crush" and Rusty Draper's classic recording of "Freight Train". I had been looking for that one for years! And the hits just keep on coming! One of my all time favorite Tony Bennett recordings "In The Middle Of An Island" can also be found here. 15 year old Paul Anka created a sensation in 1957 with his debut single "Diana" which climbed all the way to the top of the charts in July of that year. And although he turned out to be pretty much a one hit wonder 14 year old British singer Laurie London would spend 4 weeks at Number One with his recording of the traditional favorite "He's Got The Whole World In His Hands". It was great to hear that one again!

One song that I had never heard before was "The Girl With The Golden Braids". I think you will agree that this is vintage Perry Como. Another tune I had never heard before was Jill Corey's "Love Me To Pieces". Nice! Being a fan of vocal group harmony I fell in love with a pair of songs included on this disc. "Lovely One" by the Four Voices has been virtually impossible to find and the Four Esquires version of "Look Homeward Angel" is outstanding as well. Finally, "Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1957: Pop Gold" includes a pair of rare and offbeat recordings. Does anyone out there recall "Liechtenstein Polka" by the German accordionist and bandleader Will Glahe? This was a top 20 record towards the end of 1957. And how about "Open Up Your Heart (And Let The Sunshine In) by Cowboy Church Sunday School? The strange thing is that this somewhat weird song seems to grow on you.

Once again, Hit Parade records has come up with another winner here! "Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1957: Pop Gold" was lovingly produced by Bill Buster. As usual the liner notes are outstanding and the sound quality superb. I have only had the disc for a few days and I have already played it several times. It turns out that this is a treasure trove of great pop hits. Fans of 1950's pop should jump all over this one. Very highly recommended!

"
Rarities from '57
Zub | Forks Twp., PA | 03/14/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)

"50's compilation CD's are a dime a dozen but in this new installment in Hit Parade Records' year-by-year "Hard To Find Jukebox Classics" series, are gathered together a collection of tunes from 1957 that, while most were top-20 at the time, have been mostly ignored in the CD reissue market. Beyond the well-recognized "Diana" from Paul Anka and Gale Storm's "Dark Moon", we fans of the era's music get rarities such as Margie Rayburn's "I'm Available", Laurie London's "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands" and Russ Hamilton's "Rainbow". What makes us hardcore collectors stand up and take notice however, is the wealth of new-to-CD tunes such as Jim Lowe's version of "Four Walls", Will Glahe's "Liechtensteiner Polka" and "Love Me Forever" from Eydie Gorme, to name a few. Another interesting find, for several reasons, is "Open Up Your Heart and Let the Sunshine In", the first successful rock-era recording using speed-altered voices, a technique that later gave us the Nutty Squirrels and the Chipmunks. Technically, this tune is from 1955 and is outside the time frame of this collection but as this fills one of the few remaining holes in the universe of top-10 rock-era recordings on CD, it is very welcome regardless. Since stereo recordings were in their infancy in 1957, these tracks are, as would be expected, all mono with two exceptions however, those being "When the Swallows Come Back to Capistrano" and "Fascination". While the sonic sources used for this collection are not revealed, the sound quality measures up to the high standards this series has set as its standard. Rounding out this extraordinary package is a 12-page booklet with backround info on the included tracks and artists interspersed with pics of the performers. Hit Parade hits another one out of the park with this newest installment in its (hopefully!) ongoing "Jukebox Classics" series. A definite must-have."
Hard to find 1957 hits
Kitty Kat | Cockeysville Md | 08/30/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)

"What a wonderful Cd! I listened to it 3 nights in a row. I was so happy to get it.The songs were great and so were the memories that went with it. It took me over a year to find When the Swallows come back to Capistrano by Pat Boone and I was just thrilled to find it as my 45 no longer would play."