Great Tribute to a Great Talent!
Charles Ford | Whittier, CA | 08/28/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I got this shortly after it was released last year, being addicted to the Ace Songwriter series of CDs (all highly recommended) and I've been listening to it almost non-stop since hearing of Ellie's passing yesterday (26 Aug 2009). It's a fabulous compilation (lacking only the Spector masters, e.g., "Be My Baby" and "Baby I Love You" by the Ronettes, Tina's "River Deep" etc.). In addition to the songs most people know, there are many hidden and/or obscure songs. 100% good stuff, lots of it great.
Another, earlier collection of Ellie & Jeff's songs is the 1997 (promo only) compilation issued by Polygram Music Publishing, I Can Hear Music: The Songs of Greenwich & Barry. Very little duplication of individual tracks (only the Beach Boys and the Shangri-Las, and again no Ronettes, etc.), plus this one has modern artists cover some of the tracks, like Beth Orton's sublime version of "I Wish I Never Saw the Sunshine" not to mention classic tracks like the Supremes/Four Tops cover of "River Deep Mountain High" instead of Tina's. Plus 1965's "You Don't Know" by Ellie herself. This CD will take a little tracking down, but it's well worth it.
And of course, the Spector stuff is available elsewhere, which means you get to hear other versions of those songs, like Nilsson's version of "River Deep" on the CD reviewed here. Other gems here include the original version of "Hanky Panky" by the Summits, and the original of "Do-Wah-Diddy" by the Exciters, both from 1963.
I never met Ellie but feel like I know her a little from listening to her songs. "I had a tremendous innocence about me that shows in the songs I wrote. When I found out what life was really all about, I had nervous breakdowns. I really did. I don't like reality. How's that for a quote?" This is just one sample of Ellie's commentary on the songs in the (as usual) great and thoroughly annotated booklet.
I Can Hear Music, and it's wonderful!"
Brill Building songwriting juggernaut
Zub | Forks Twp., PA | 11/20/2009
(4 out of 5 stars)
"As one of the husband-and-wife songwriting teams from the famed Brill Building in New York City, Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich wrote their way into pop music-writing history in the early and mid-60's. Many of the top-100 songs of the day came from the pens of Barry and Greenwich and were popularized by the artists of Phil Spector's Philles label and later, by way of Leiber and Stoller's Red Bird Label's cadre of performers.
Here, in this new installment in Ace Records' salute to these prolific songwriting teams of the golden age of American rock and roll, is gathered a mere sampling, by necessity, of Barry and Greenwich's monumental output from the few years of their collaboration. And, rather than a "greatest-hits" collection, included here is a mix of a few major hits, some minor hits and quite a few obscurities. While Lesley Gore's "Maybe I Know" heads up the most recognizable tunes, there is a wealth of recordings that, in spite of their strength, were lost in the shadow of even larger hits that came before - compositions many times also the product of Barry and Greenwich. Coming on the heels of top-10 hits, the Dixie Cups' third Barry-Greenwich single "You Should Have Seen the Way He Looked at Me", the Jelly Beans' "Baby Be Mine", the Shangri-Las' "Out in the Streets" and the Chiffons' "I Have a Boyfriend" all had to vie for the attention of the fickle teenage market.
About half of the recordings in this collection are either failed singles or tunes that, when reworked by other performers, had extraordinary success. "Hanky Panky", first issued on a single by the Summits sank without a trace but two years later the tune was recycled by Tommy James and the Shondells into a number one hit. "Do Wah Diddy" was only a minor hit by the Exciters but again, somewhat frustratingly for Barry and Greenwich, it was recycled by Manfred Mann into a massive hit. And while everything they wrote didn't turn to gold, much of the top-100 music of the era was a product of this prolific pair of songwriters.
As one would expect of Ace, the production quality here is outstanding. Sound quality is first-rate with tracks 1,2,4,5,7,13,14 and 24 appearing in stereo. The 20-page liner notes booklet provides lots of illustrations, photos and fascinating background on each of the tracks on the CD. So why only four stars? Nothing from the Phil Spector artists is included and these songs are an integral part of the Barry-Greenwich musical library. Licensing restrictions prevented their inclusion and Ace certainly would have presented at least a few of the Crystals', Ronettes' or Bobby Sox and the Bluejeans' recordings had they been available. Nonetheless, without any of them, this collection can't be all that it would have been had the owners of the Philles catalog been more cooperative.
Shortcomings aside however, this is an outstanding addition to Ace's series on the Brill Building songwriters of the era and deserves a space in the collection of fans everywhere."
Track Listings (24) - Disc #1