Dion is a legend. No lesser a luminary that Lou Reed has sung his praises … and given Reed's temperament, that is saying something.
A small portion of Lou's speech for Dion's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989, "It's been my pleasure to get to know Dion over the years and even, my idea of heaven,singing occasional backup for him. He has the chops, and he practically invented the attitude."Ruby Baby," "Donna the Prima Donna," "Runaround Sue," & "The Wanderer" … "I'll tear open my shirt and show her 'Rosie' on my chest," a line so good that twenty-odd years later I couldn't resist doing a variant on it for one of my own albums".
Allmusic: Bridging the era between late-'50s rock and the British Invasion, Dion DiMucci (born July 18, 1939) was one of the top white rock singers of his time, blending the best elements of doo wop, teen idol, and R&B styles. Some revisionists have tried to cast him as a sort of early blue-eyed soul figure, although he was probably more aligned with pop/rock, at first as the lead singer of the Belmonts, and then as a solo star. Drug problems slowed him down in the mid-'60s, yet he made some surprisingly interesting progressions into blues-rock and folk-rock as the decade wore on, culminating in a successful comeback in the late '60s
So why Dion?
He was very street. In his early period he rarely wrote material. That came later in the late 60s and early 70s. And when he wrote, he wrote quite well. What he does bring to his early stuff with Dion and the Belmonts, but more specifically in his early to mid 60s solo material, is the sound of a kid from the Bronx. Specifically an Italian–American kid, but generally, any poor kid from the wrong side of the tracks. Of all the teen vocalists from New York in the late 50s and early 60s only Bobby Darin and Dion transcended their material and brought magnificent individual voices to their music.
That era was rife with urban working class Italians like Dion belting out tunes: Frankie Valli, Lou Christie, Johnny Restivo, Bobby Darin, Fabian, Frankie Avalon, Jack Scott, Freddy Cannon, Johnny Rivers, Bobby Rydell, Bob Gaudio, James Darren (half of em are bona fide legends – IMHO) … and they generally sang about what they knew about ... their neighbourhoods and the people in them.
Listening to it now it may not sound like much, but at the time Dion's music was the sound of the street. And at its best his music beats with that sound ... at least it does with a couple of wines, with your eyes closed. It sounds like a wank but, truly, within the simple pop structure he has incorporated the cultures that made New York such a melting pot : Afro American R&B and doo wop, Jewish tin pan alley, early rock 'n' roll and Italian street corner singing. He also incorporated the vocalists he loved into his style … Skip James, Hank Williams, Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley. Later he would incorporate Greenwich Village folk, Bob Dylan and singer songwriter into his style.
He, in many ways epitomised New York rock and pop. And with his heart on his sleeve he travelled all the familiar roads of rock 'n' roll excess before it was fashionable … heroin addiction in the 1960s is the stuff of Burroughs not The Rolling Stones. He even left his Catholic faith and became an evangelical Christian in the late 70s … he returned and is now a practicing Catholic (once a Catholic always a Catholic).
I have seen him interviewed and he is a quietly soft spoken man, and quite thoughtful (and I saw him live in 1995 and he was like that live). I have seen Henry Rollins talk about him in admiration and being quite surprised at himself for doing so. What attracts such different people to him is his humour, his street wise knowledge and his music. Much like Elvis in the South in the early 50s Dion soaked up all the sounds of New York in the mid to late 1950s and injects that into the music. Though of course it helps that he can sing. So even though this album may be teen idol pop stuff, if you care to listen behind or between the lyrics, you can hear a kid from New York singing it as authentic as it comes. And I am not surprised that Reed is a fan and I wouldnt be surprised it David Johansen, Suicide and other New Yawkers weren't fans also.
This is New York's folk music.
This was Dion's first album after leaving the Laurie label, and Columbia wanted to change his image to that of an "adult" entertainer. Dion too was starting to flex his song writing talents here (and over the last couple of albums) and his songs are good (and occasionally great) though they aren't as consistent as the mini masterworks he would be writing in four or five years. Like most of his albums of this period the album is a mix of ballads and oldies punctuated by an up-tempo number. In a move away from Dion's rock roots the songs are pretty heavily orchestrated also – which was normal when trying to make a teen star into an "adult" entertainer. It was also the trend at the time in music. Side Two doesn't hold up as well as side one with and emphasis on ballads. Regardless, as I have said above, Dion has managed to squeeze the sounds of the New York across the album. And of course, he can sing.
Best Tracks (In Italics)
- Ruby Baby – The Wanderer may be Dion's signature song but this comes a close second. Written by Leiber-Stoller, two of the greatest songwriters in rock history. And forever associated with New York or Elvis.
- The End Of The World – a gentle low key, almost acapella ballad.
- Go Away Little Girl – the great Goffin-King song which was a hit for Steve Lawrence (#1, 1962) but everyone has done it. And this version is as good as any of the best.
- Gonna Make It Alone – a Dion original and a New York "street" song – a touch of R&B, a touch of street corner singing, but transcending both. You don't think Lou Reed was listening to this?
- Fever – the much covered Little Willie John song, though the lack of instrumentation (bongos only) makes it sound more like the Elvis version from 1960 (which was done with finger snaps only, and the occasional drum roll) rather than the Little Willie John version.
- My Mammy – I have always loved this song by Al Jolson. Well, ever since I saw "The Jolson Story" as a kid in the 70s. One of the fist albums I bought with my own money back in the early 80s was "The Best of Al Jolson" … but that's another story. Dion slows it down and whilst the song is not the over the top thumper like Jolson's version it still has enough singability in it to make it good … and he has taken out some of the schmaltz. The song is well covered.
- Will Love Ever Come My Way – a Dion original. A nice ballad.
- The Loneliest Man In The World – another Dion original. Fairly imitative of the ballads of the time.
- You Made Me Love You (I Didn't Want To Do It) – Another Al Jolson – though not as distinguished as "Mammy", I'm a sucker for this.
- He'll Only Hurt You – another Dion song and another love ballad for the chicks, with a touch of Roy Orbison.
- You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Loves You – the subsequent Dean Martin classic (from 1965) – here it's a pretty tune – though one can't help thinking of Dino when listening to it.
- Unloved, Unwanted Me – a strange song – wailing vocals and bass drums(?).
And …
Dion's best album? No.
But good enough to be a keeper.
Sounds
Ruby Baby
live
Gonna Make It Alone
attached
Fever
Will Love Ever Come My Way
He'll Only Hurt You
Unloved, Unwanted Me
Bio
A very good critical biography of Dion and rock n roll by Dave Marsh. A must if you want to understand this aspect of "rock" …
Website
Pictures
Dion recently
(originally posted: 11/10/2009)
