| Track by Track Review
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Evelyn Knight & The Stardusters - Powder Your Face With Sunshine
An old school pop tune with a real musical theater vibe, this is fun, but not my thing. |
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Derrell Felts - It's A Great Big Day
1950s rock and roll is on the menu here. I like the changes to this cut, and the track has some rockabilly in the mix.
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Toni Dee - June, July And August
A high-energy cut, this has plenty of rock and roll along with doo-wop in the mix.. I like the guitar solo and the slightly raw edge of the tune is cool. |
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Gene & Billy - It's Hot
A classic rock and roll progression is at the heart of this tune. I'm reminded to a good degree of Chuck Berry on this song. I like the guitar fills on the number. This song is pretty classy. |
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Pee Wee Crayton - Rockin' The Blues
There is a down-home rock and roll meets jazz concept at play here. This is fun, but not one of the standouts here. |
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The Dovells - Summer Job
This bouncy little groove is fun. It has some doo wop styled vocals. |
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The Del Vikings - The Sun
The doo wop ballad concepts of this tune are classic and classy. The lead vocal line is mostly spoken on the tune. |
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Gerald Sims - Cool Breeze
I dig the drums that lead this track off. The cut works to a more mainstream 50s rock sound from there. It has a bit too precious arrangement via the backing vocals and strings, though. |
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The Videls - Now That Summer Is Here
Speaking of a precious arrangement, this one definitely has that. It's a doo-wop styled ballad. It's pretty lightweight stuff, even in comparison to the rest of the music here. |
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Joe Jones - California Sun
This bouncy number with jazz and rock and roll is a real highlight. It's a well-known tune, and a catchy one at that. |
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The Charades - Surf N' Stomp
Bouncy doo-wop styled music is on the menu here. It's pretty fun, if dated.
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The Pyramids - Bikini Drag
Now, this is more my kind of thing. I love surf guitar music, and that's what we've got here. It also includes a scorching saxophone solo, all in a tasty instrumental arrangement. This is a highlight of the disc for me. |
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Annette Funicello - Bikini Beach Party
Bouncy energized old-school rock and roll, this is fun stuff. I suppose since "fun" is in Funicello's name, you should expect that, right?
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Andrea Carroll - Please Don't Talk To The Lifeguard
This feels like musical theater to me. It seems like something that would have fit in "Grease." It's silly, but also entertaining. |
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The Andrews Sisters - Her Bathing Suit Never Got Wet
Theatrical, this cut is fun. It's a tasty jazzy romp. |
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Dick Glasser (a.k.a. Dick Lory) - Jeannie's Bikini
Old school rock and roll, the piano and vocals really steal the show on this number. |
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Edmundo Ros & his Orchestra - Summertime
This jazz instrumental piece has some cool melodies and great textures. |
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Debbie Reynolds - Summer Romance
A song built around the pop music of the era, this is a balladic piece that's pretty effective. |
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Jimmy Daley & The Ding-A-Lings (Kip Tyler) - Summer Love
A bouncy rock and roller, this tune is a lot of fun. I love the guitar soloing that explodes out later. |
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Richard Barrett & The Chantels - Summer's Love
A pretty ballad, this is set in that classic 50s ballad style. |
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The Sh-Booms - Short Skirts
This is a bouncy and fun little tune. |
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The Shades feat. The Knott Sisters - Sun Glasses
Doo wop is the order of business on this tune.
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Jerry Lee Lewis - Milkshake Mademoiselle
This rockabilly stomper is unmistakable Jerry Lee Lewis. It's a fun cut with some crazed piano. It's another highlight of the set. |
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Don Carroll - Seven Up And Ice Cream Soda
A rather silly tune, this is bouncy and fun. |
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Lorrae Desmond - Soda Pop Hop
Another that's bouncy, I like this. It's silly and very dated, but it's also particularly catchy and entertaining. |
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Jan Raye Quartet feat. Lilyann - Soda Pop
This has a swinging jazz arrangement. The vocal hooks are infectious and the saxophone wails. It's another standout tune.
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Donny Baker With The Dimensionals - Drinkin' Pop-Sodee-Odee (Pop Pop)
While this is fun, it's not as effective as the last couple pieces were. I like the crowd singing parts, and the musical punctuation is cool. |
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Dean Martin - In The Cool, Cool, Cool Of The Evening
With the jazzy kind of arrangement you'd expect from Dean Martin, this number is a lot of fun. He always had such a smooth voice, and it shines here. |
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The Four Mints - Night Air
A high-energy romp, this is fun. |
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Mel Tormé - Moonlight Cocktail
Speaking of smooth voices, Mel Tormé might be the poster-child for that label. I like the jazz arrangement here, particularly when it drops to a piano dominated movement. This song is all class, and actually another highlight of the set. |
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Joey Welz & His Rock-A-Billy Piano - Shore Party
This is one of those old school rock and roller with no lyrics other than the title. This is a fun romp, and another standout tune.
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King Curtis & The Noble Knights - Beach Party
I dig the smooth groove of this cut. |
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The Kirby Stone Four - In The Good Old Summertime
Old fashioned music is at the heart of this. The tune is a musical theater kind of song. It's not my thing, but it's fun. |
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