Brian's Weekly Sleevenotes - 4 April 15

How Many Tears - Bobby Vee

Bobby Vee

Written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin this was a relative failure in The States only reaching number sixty-three but became his third consecutive top ten hit in the UK. The record was released soon after he had completed a new five year deal with Liberty records that didn’t include his backing band, the Shadows. He then began a three week tour of Australia and New Zealand during which time 'How Many Tears' was released in America as a double "A" side with 'Baby Face' an action that probably stopped the record from becoming a bigger Stateside hit.

I'm Livin' For You Girl - The Grass Roots

The Grass Roots were an American hit Machine with no less than fourteen American top forty hits to their name between 1966 and 1972 without ever troubling our charts despite their ultra commercial material. Originally working as a band performing covers of other people’s songs, they found themselves in the hands of producer Steve Barri who transformed them into a multi-million selling act. The first single from this album, 'Leaving It All Behind' was 'I’d Wait A Million Years' released prior to the completion of all the tracks and reached number nineteen in the Hot 100 but this is the opening track on side one, 'I’m Livin’ For You Girl'.

In Thoughts Of You -Billy Fury

To give the composers their full names, they were Christian Charles Arnold and Geoffrey Stanton Morrow, this became Billy’s nineteenth and final single to make the UK top twenty and the following year he changed labels from Decca where he’d been since the start of his career, to a lucrative deal with EMI’s Parlophone where he released no less than eleven quality singles, but none of them managed to chart.

Chills and Fever - Tom Jones

Tom Jones

Tom’s career really began in 1963 when he became the front man for local Welsh group, Tommy Scott & The Senators who the following year recorded several tracks under the supervision of Joe Meek but armed with the material, he was unable to secure a record deal. Running out of possibilities, Decca suddenly showed renewed interest after Gordon Mills spotted the group in a local working men’s club but was more interested in the singer who he renamed Tom Jones. His first release for the label was a cover of a minor American hit in 1961 for Ronnie Love, 'Chills And Fever'.

Warpaint - The Brook Brothers

Ricky and Geoff Brook really were brothers and originally called The Brooks Brothers. In 1958, they entered and won a talent contest in Southampton that was broadcast on Southern TV’s “Home Grown”. The following year they were signed to the Top Rank label and placed under the supervision of up and coming writer and producer, Tony Hatch. After releasing a couple of singles for the label, Hatch’s talent was recognised by the bosses of Pye Records who offered him a better deal that he accepted taking the brothers along with him and releasing their first single for the label, 'Say The Word' as well as dropping the ‘s’ from their name. When the record failed to make sufficient impact, Hatch found the boys an obscure song written by Barry Mann and Howie Greenfield called 'Warpaint'. The record looked as though it was going to be another flop but after almost four months after its initial release, the record began picking up airplay and entered the charts on March 30th 1961 and a few weeks later reached number five.

Common Sense - Adelaide Hall

Brooklyn born Adelaide Hall’s career in show business spanned an amazing seventy years encompassing jazz, cabaret, pure pop, variety, film and stage musicals as well as straight theatre. In the twenties she made appearances and recorded with Duke Ellington and starred at the London Palladium in 1931, introducing her to life in the UK where she became a much in demand performer. Still treading the boards in her eighties, this extraordinary lady also left a legacy of varied and fascinating recordings including this 1960 release that she recorded in London for Oriole. Adelaide died in England at the Charing Cross Hospital in November, 1993 aged ninety-two and at her own wishes was buried at the Cemetery of the Evergreens in Brooklyn.

(Love is Like A) Heatwave - Martha Reeves & The Vandellas

Martha Reeves & The Vandellas

Their breakthrough single in The States being the first to make it into the top twenty. Martha Reeves, one of eleven children, was born in Eufaula Alabama on July 18, 1941. She moved with her parents Ruby and Elijah to Detroit, Michigan before her first birthday. Reeves spent most of her childhood singing and working in her grandfather's church. She attended Russell Elementary on Detroit's eastside and was taught vocals by Emily Wagstaff. North Eastern High School was where she studied voice under the direction of Abraham Silver, who also coached Florence Ballard and Mary Wilson of the Supremes, Bobby Rogers of The Miracles.

Up On The Roof - Julie Grant

The song was written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin and originally recorded by The Drifters with successful UK cover versions by both Kenny Lynch and Julie Grant. Her record producer, Tony Hatch was determined to get Julie into the charts and was convinced 'Up On The Roof' was a hit song but unbeknown to him, Kenny Lynch’s record label had the same idea and managed to release their version a week ahead of Julie’s thus gaining a majority of the sales but nevertheless it gave Julie her first taste of the charts.

Highway Of Dreams - Vanity Fare

The group were formed in 1966 in Kent and were originally called The Avengers playing local clubs before being spotted by record producer, Roger Easterby who also became their manager. Changing their name to Vanity Fare after the novel by William Makepeace Thackeray although the spelling was different, they signed to Larry Page’s Page One Records where their first release, 'I Live For The Sun', a cover of a 1965 record by American group The Sunrays made our top twenty in 1968 with two further hits the following year, 'Early In The Morning' and 'Hitchin’ A Ride' both of which making top twenty status in America. Lead singer Trevor Brice now sings second tenor with the City of Bath Male Choir, who reached the finals of BBC One’s Last Choir Standing in 2008.