This is an update on the availability of Mitch Miller’s recording of the theme from The Guns Of Navarone.

Since I originally posted about Mitch Miller’s recording of the theme from Guns Of Navarone, I noticed that the search terms “Mitch Miller” and “Guns Of Navarone by Mitch Miller” are both among the top five search terms that lead to this blog, and that the post about Guns Of Navarone is among the top five viewed pages at StereOldie.com, so I decided to resume hunting.

I’m happy to report that the original recording of Guns Of Navarone by Mitch Miller is available on CD, but the news isn’t ALL good.

Depending on your budget and on exactly what other music you’d be interested in owning, you can find the recording on two different CD’s. That’s the good news. The bad news is, it’s not cheap either way.

A few copies of the original 1961 soundtrack recording of The Guns Of Navarone composed by Dimitri Tiomkin, which – according to the cover artwork – contains the Mitch Miller track, is available, but they are all used copies. It may be worth looking into, though, if you want to own that original soundtrack album.

The other CD I found is the more reasonably priced of the two. It’s a 2003 Japanese import on the Sony label titled Star Box Mitch Miller and containing 20 tracks of Mitch Miller & The Gang‘s hits, and includes both Guns Of Navarone and The Longest Day – another recording I’ve wanted for a long time. It’s nice to find them both on a single disc!

Star Box Mitch Miller is also available at reasonable prices (as of this writing) from Collector’s Choice and CDUniverse. CDUniverse had a few sound samples from the disc at last visit, but claimed to have only one copy available.

The song, “Secretly” by Jimmie Rodgers holds a special place in my heart. The artist is another of many who died too young, and that is perhaps one of the reasons why his material is special to me. I don’t want to delve into my deepest, darkest secrets here, but the reason that song is important to me is something I still like to think about.

Back when I was about 10 years old, in 1958 or so, I liked a girl on my block. Now, understand that (in those days) a 10-year-old boy liking a girl was not cool. Back then, boys hated girls at that age. Both boys and girls thought of the opposite sex as “having kooties.” You were a boy, you just didn’t like girls – period! So me liking a girl was something I had to keep to myself – at all costs.

So I’m rummaging through the newest 45′s that my mom bought one day, and I come across this Roulette single called “Secretly” by Jimmie Rodgers and I put it on and listen to it. Wow! Part of the lyrics went, “Wish we didn’t have to meet secretly; wish we didn’t have to kiss secretly; wish we didn’t have to be afraid to tell the world that we’re in love…”

The lyrics echoed some of the thoughts I had every night when I lay my head on the pillow. I know… weird, perhaps, that a 10-year-old boy is thinking about love and kissing and secret loves. But back in those days just thinking of a girl as a human being, let alone liking one, was the ultimate taboo among male peers. I would have been ostracized if anyone even suspected I liked a girl, or entertained thoughts of kissing one!!

Well, needless to say, the song had an impact on me. I found a few other singles by Jimmie Rodgers in my mom’s collection, and I gave them all a listen. They were all good songs, I thought. And, he had a nice voice, too.

You can read a lot more about Jimmie Rodgers at http://en.wikipedia.com but be aware that some of what’s there is inaccurate. I know that he was a folk singer early in his career and turned to pop music in the 50′s. And I know that virtually everything I took the time to listen to by Jimmie Rodgers was pleasant and listenable. Toward the end of his career (and life, unfortunately), he recorded a couple of songs that are still among my favorites, such as “T.L.C. (Tender Love And Care)” and “The World I Used To Know.”

You can find Jimmie Rodgers’ original charting hits at Amazon

Listen to some samples:

One of my all-time favorite “girl groups” from the early days of rock ‘n’ roll was The Crystals. They were among the first artists to record for Phil Spector’s Philles Records, and to feature his trademark “Wall Of Sound” production style. Now, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the 1961 founding of Philles Records, comes a new greatest hits reissue from this fabulous group, titled “Da Doo Ron Ron: The Very Best Of The Crystals.”

The first song I ever heard by The Crystals was not destined to become one of my favorites. It was 1961′s “There’s No Other (Like My Baby),” and it just didn’t grab me. It was a ballad in the soul music vein that I didn’t think was particularly distinguished. But in 1962, their song “Uptown” made me sit up and take notice. This more uptempo piece had a sound that was new to me. It had a flamenco sort of feel to it, with acoustic guitar featured in the brief opening strains, then opening up into a mini-symphony, blending powerful orchestral sounds with castanets, booming percussion and haunting vocals. I became a fan, and started listening for new material on the radio.

Their next release was just plain weird, titled “He Hit Me (And It Felt Like A Kiss),” and written by Carole King(!) It didn’t chart, but the next release did – big time. 1962′s “He’s A Rebel” became The Crystals’ only #1 charting Billboard hit. It was a fantastic song, which I later learned was written by Gene Pitney, that featured the Phil Spector “Wall Of Sound” in all its magnificent glory.

It Was, But It Wasn’t, The Crystals

As it turns out, “He’s A Rebel” wasn’t actually The Crystals. The first three recordings mentioned above featured the original line up, with Barbara Alston on lead vocals, backed by Mary Thomas, Dolores Kenniebrew, Myrna Girard and Patricia Wright. The Crystals were based in New York, while Spector’s Philles Records was in Los Angeles. Depending on whose story you hear, Spector was in such a hurry to release this new song that he couldn’t (or wouldn’t) wait for The Crystals to make travel arrangements. Instead, he brought in another of his groups, The Blossoms, fronted by Darlene Love, and had them record the song, which was then released under The Crystals name. The Darlene Love version of The Crystals had another hit in 1963 with “He’s Sure The Boy I Love,” which peaked at #11 on the U.S. Billboard charts.

The Real Crystals

The “Real” Crystals, as they are sometimes referred to, returned in 1963 to record again for Phil Spector’s Philles Records. This time around, though, Barbara Alston stepped down as lead singer, allowing Dolores “LaLa” Brooks (who had earlier replaced Myrna Girard) to take the spotlight. Alston was known for her shyness, and had always felt somewhat uncomfortable in the lead role, especially on stage.

This version of The Crystals recorded several more songs for the label, among them what might arguably be one of their most cherished, “Da Doo Ron Ron.” I say arguably because, although “He’s A Rebel” was The Crystals’ only #1 chart hit, “Da Doo Ron Ron” reached #3, and has been recorded (covered) by numerous artists, including Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, The Beach Boys and others. It remains a staple in rock music, even today. In 2004 Rolling Stone ranked it #114 on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs Of All Time. It’s also worth noting that Cher is listed among the backing vocalists on the recording.

There’s a bit more controversy involved with “Da Doo Ron Ron.” According to Darlene Love, it was actually she and The Blossoms who recorded the song. Phil Spector stripped out her vocal, replacing it with LaLa Brooks’ vocal – possibly due to some contractual misunderstanding. So this song remains a bit of a mystery: Is it The Crystals, The Blossoms, or both?

Among their other hits during this period (1963-64) were “Then He Kissed Me,” (#6 chart hit), “I Wonder,” “Little Boy” and “All Grown Up.”

All of the above, and more (18 tracks in all) are included in the new release/reissue “Da Doo Ron Ron: The Very Best Of The Crystals.” This CD marks the first release of Phil Spector’s Philles Records reissues on the Sony Legacy label. Sony acquired the licensing rights from ABKCO, the label that had previously released Philles reissues.

Is this CD worth adding to your collection?

In my opinion, yes. Even if you own previous releases of The Crystals material, I think you’ll find the sound quality improved here. I did a side-by-side comparison of this Sony Legacy CD to The Crystals’ tracks on the ABKCO boxed set “Back To Mono.” In my opinion, the remastering here is definitely better. These are still the monaural versions of the original hits, but they actually sound more “realistic” in terms of what the Wall Of Sound was really about.

First, it’s important to remember that the Wall Of Sound was not about sonic perfection. It was about BIG and about blending the cacophony of sounds into a UNIT. The effect was actually supposed to be kind of “dirty.” That’s not to say they were meant to sound muddy or distorted, just “big and nasty.”

Second, and for that reason,  none of these tracks was originally recorded in stereo. They were recorded to be heard, and sound good, on single-speaker AM car radios, transistor radios, and the simple “record players” of the early 1960′s, none of which was famous for true High Fidelity.

In my opinion, what’s been done with this CD is a remastering job that, while it improves the fidelity of the originals, manages to preserve the sound that was meant to be heard. That is the problem that’s been mentioned in reviews elsewhere concerning previous reissues of this material: They tried too hard to technologically improve the sound, sacrificing the integrity of the original sound Phil Spector worked so hard to create.

As to the issue of the lack of stereo versions, which many collectors have been seeking for decades, I can only repeat that most Philles Records tracks were not in stereo in the first place. Stereo versions of several songs have surfaced over the years, but they were not true stereo. They were binaural (two-track) re-mixes, or “electronically re-channeled for stereo” versions. There have also been re-recordings that have turned up, but these were not the originals, but re-creations which paled in comparison.

I am recommending “Da Doo Ron Ron: The Very Best Of The Crystals” for both serious collectors as well as for fans of The Crystals, as well as both fans and collectors of Phil Spector’s Wall Of Sound. Ultimately, it is your decision, of course. Beauty is in the ear of the listener.

Care Hear Some Samples?

Other releases in the Sony Legacy Phil Spector Philles Records Series:

Be My Baby: The Very Best Of The Ronettes

Sound of Love: The Very Best of Darlene Love

Wall of Sound: The Very Best of Phil Spector 61-66

I would be interested in your take on all of this. Please feel free to leave a comment below!

“Marianne” by The Easy Riders was one of those songs that I heard as a youngster that became more than just a song.

I first heard it in 1957 when I was 8 years old. It was one of those light-hearted songs, with a catchy melody, that kids just like. It had a calypso sort of rhythm to it, which was somewhat unique in pop music of the time. It had simple lyrics about a girl who spends her time at the seashore looking for seashells, and the guy who loves her from afar. Enchanting.

As a youngster, I didn’t pay too much attention to the artists singing it. I came to know more about them later. All I knew then was I liked the song and their sound.

It was probably just about a year later, in mid-1958, that I came to know the artists, and learned more about their talent. My parents took me to Hollywood, to the Grauman’s Chinese Theater to see a spectacular movie called “Windjammer.” Many of the songs performed in that movie were written by the same group who did “Marianne” – The Easy Riders. The movie was incredible, and the music was as delightful as anything I’d heard in my young life.

The Easy Riders – Terry Gilkyson, Richard Dehr and Frank Miller – were a talented group whose musical background was in country/western, folk and traditional songs and ballads. “Marianne” was their breakthrough into pop music, but their entire body of work transcended that simple melody. For example, I later discovered that they had written and performed backing vocals for Dean Martin’s 1956 hit, “Memories Are Made Of This.” I’d actually heard them a year earlier than I’d thought!

“Marianne” by The Easy Riders was actually the fore-runner to the popular folk music movement of the 1960′s. Their music gave rise to other folk artists such as The Kingston Trio, and later Peter, Paul & Mary, Bob Dylan, The Brothers Four and a host of others.

But it was that movie, “Windjammer,” that woke me up to all of this and made me interested in this trio of marvelous musicians. I paid homage to that movie, and provided some of the music to hear for yourself at Windjammer – The Movie

The movie is being restored for re-release soon. The Easy Riders music is largely out-of-print, but available in limited quantities.

Listen to some Easy Riders song samples:

All of the above selections, and 130+ more are available on the 6-CD Box Set, “The Easy Riders: Marianne”