Various Artists - Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1957: Pop Gold

11 CD DEBUTS! - ALL ORIGINAL 45 RPM SINGLE VERSIONS - DIGITALLY REMASTERED FOR HIGHEST QUALITY SOUND

Who 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) Album Description

Hard to find 1957 hits

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. August 30, 2008

Hard to find Jukebox Classics 1957 Pop Gold by

Not only did I really like this CD, my wife does as well, which is unusual. It is a real trip down Memory Lane. If you were a Teenager in the Mid Fifties, you'll really like this CD. August 25, 2008

and the nostalgia continues...

You know, it never ceases to amaze me how wonderful hits from the past can so easily become "obscure" or simply forgotten. Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1957: Pop Gold is a CD that gives us so much to remember from the airwaves and turntables of yesteryear; and it's a great addition to anyone's "oldies" collection. The sound is excellent and the artwork is very nicely done.

Paul Anka sings "Diana" really well; he truly delves into this number to make it all his own and the percussion helps to mark the beat. Hooray for Paul Anka! Ricky Nelson's "You're My One and Only Love" is an excellent example of a slow dance rock and roll hit that just doesn't get as much recognition as it deserves these days. Ricky Nelson could really sing well and I like this number very much. Similarly, Tommy Sands' "Teen-Age Crush" has some mighty fine electric guitar and the touch of doo wop enhances the natural beauty of this number. Great!

"A Teenager's Romance" is another great Ricky Nelson number; and the backup chorus bolsters Ricky's performance. Ricky's voice never sounded better--it's rich, warm and very strong. I love it! "A Teenager's Romance" also has a very pretty melody. "Four Walls" by Jim Lowe features Jim Lowe front and center--and you really have to stop and wonder why Jim didn't have so many more great hits. Jim Lowe is a perfect example of a great singer with so much talent who is completely ignored these days--thank goodness for this CD! In addition, Margie Rayburn turns out "I'm Available" has a very catchy, upbeat melody that is absolutely infectious as well! Margie sings this with all her heart and soul and just one listen proves it. The Fontane Sisters also score a huge hit with their rarely heard on CD tune entitled "The Banana Boat Song."

"The Girl With The Golden Braids" has a great treatment from Perry Como; he was born to sing numbers like this and Perry's voice is unmistakably warm and energetic. Perry sure could sing! I always liked Perry Como. Betty Johnson's "Little White Lies" is a great rendition of this classic ballad; and I could never tire of hearing Betty singing this tune. Johnnie Ray also does great on "Yes, Tonight Josephine." "Yes, Tonight Josephine" features Johnnie singing and swaying brightly to deliver this song with panache. In addition, listen for "When the Swallows Come Back to Capistrano" by the great Pat Boone. Pat sings this with heart and soul; there's so much depth in this song that I listened to it several times over before I reviewed this CD! Jane Morgan's "Fascination" is easily a major highlight of this album; the violins are very sweet and Jane delivers this like the pro she always was!

"True Love" by Jane Powell shines brighter than silver and gold; I love it! There's also "Open Up Your Heart (and Let the Sunshine In)" performed by The Cowboy Church Sunday School; they do this to perfection and it brings back good memories for me! The CD ends well with "He's Got the Whole World In His Hands" by Laurie London. Laurie aces this easily and I'm very impressed.

Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1957: Pop Gold is a wonderful CD that I can't recommend highly enough. If you like the "oldies," get this and enjoy it--I'm sure you will love it!
June 1, 2008

Rarities from '57

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. March 14, 2008

Lots of tunes that you will find nowhere else!

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!
February 24, 2008

More reviews at Amazon.com ...