I have commented on a few other Gene Pitney albums in the past so check those out for biographical details.
I have said this in the past before: “Gene was a consummate (if occasionally melodramatic) vocalist. What he did do was take any song and not always make it his but certainly imprint it so you can’t mistake it for someone else. His operatic pop ballads are "classics" of the genre and define a lot of 60s pop. Having said that, operatic pop up-tempo ballads weren't novel (think Elvis' "It’s Now or Never" from 1960 or "Surrender" from 1961) but Gene made a career out of it. The emotion is worn on his sleeve and he created some of the most divine pop tunes of the 1960s. And as I have said before (elsewhere) if you are going to do pop you can’t look for a better era than the 60s”.
By the late 1960s the 50s rockers and early 60s pop stars were finding the going hard. Many turned to more contemporary sounds and/or started writing their own confessional material to find their place in the music world.
It is perhaps surprising that Pitney (from the records I heard) didn’t really move into the singer songwriter style because he was quite adept at writing songs and started his career as a songwriter. He wrote “Hello Mary Lou” (for Ricky Nelson), “He’s a Rebel” (for The Crystals), "Today's Teardrops" (for Roy Orbison) and “Rubber Ball” (for Bobby Vee) to name a few.
What held him back, I suspect, was his voice.
And, by that I mean his voice was too good.
The guy could sing like a bird.
My wife (who studied opera singing at the conservatorium) thinks Pitney strains his voice on some of the sub-operatic songs and maybe he does but I think that is just his "style" and that is given credence by the fact that his voice held up till the end.
Perhaps we are so used to non-singers or cookie cutter singers in rock and pop that he does sound strained in comparison?
One thing for certain is that Pitney never claimed to be a opera singer.
He is a pop singer, albeit one that draws some of the drama and hyper emotion that you see in opera.
The magnificence is in that excess placed into pop.
And, it's not easy to do – have you ever heard a opera star successfully doing pop?
Pitney could never do a quiet, introspective ballad but then he didn't need to (and probably didn't want to). Within the world he creates fro himself, one of sleeve worn heightened emotions, there is no room for introspective ballads – everything is up front, and plainly spoken.
And there is genius in this.
It's a form of musical honesty
I wish I had 1/10th of the voice Pitney had.
I've also said in relation to Gene that despite his writing ability that "when you can sing that well there is little impetus to concentrate on song writing"
And that is the case here.
Despite the "Golden Greats" title this is not a compilation but, rather Gene doing other peoples "golden greats".
Most of the songs are of recent vintage so Gene really has to try to stamp the songs in his own style.
And, largely, he does that. Some of the songs don't work but, at least, they sound like Gene.
He has moved closer to blue eyed soul territory – though he mixes it up a little.
The only fault is, perhaps, the overuse of background singers but that's the sound Gene was looking for given he produced the album with George Tobin.
Clearly, he is having fun with the "golden greats".
He must be 'cause his next album had him covering The Platters – commercial suicide in 1967, perhaps, but fascinating today.
Tracks (best in italics)
- Bus Stop – (Graham Gouldman) – a good version of the great Hollies song from 1966. Interestingly there is a na na na ne na, na na ne ne nah at the end of the song which is lifted from ….fark, I can't remember. Brain freeze. Mitch Ryder?
- Stop! In the Name of Love – (Lamont Dozier / Brian Holland / Eddie Holland) – well sung but it misses the earthiness of the original Supremes Motown version from 1965.
- Cara Mia – (Lee Lange / Tulio Trapani) – fark, Gene nails the Jay and the Americans hit (1965) here and comes close to outdoing the original. This is teen angst taken to it's logical operatic extremes. Perhaps the opera excesses are meant to tie in with the Italianate title but the music and especially the voice transcend the meaning. And he sings, not screeches.
- Baby I Need Your Loving – (Lamont Dozier / Brian Holland / Eddie Holland) – not too bad but not as good as the Four Tops (1964)
- A Groovy Kind of Love – (Carole Bayer Sager / Toni Wine) -good but adds nothing to the American song covered by the English group The Mindbenders who had a hit with it in 1965.
- Green, Green Grass of Home – (Curly Putman) – country Gene – not so unusual as he had recorded country pop duets with George Jones…. this is quite effective. This has been done by everyone but Tom Jones had been riding high on the charts with it in 1965 (#11)
- Count Me In – (Glen D. Hardin) – this Gary Lewis and the Playboys song (1965) suits Gene perfectly
- You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' – (Barry Mann / Phil Spector / Cynthia Weill) – a good version of the Righteous Brothers hit (#1 1964) and a valiant attempt but the great original and Elvis' subsequent immortalisation make all other versions redundant
- Time Won't Let Me – (Tom King) – a good pop song which is quite deceptive. Originally the garage band The Outsiders had a hit with it in 1966 (#5). Gene has turned it into a cute ditty about as tough as a Banana Splits tune. But, underneath, there is a lot going on. It is a bit of a novelty but an affecting one.
- Crying – (Joe Melson / Roy Orbison) – it doesn't reach the ethereal emotional cataclysm that is Roy Orbison's version (1961) but still not too bad.
- Mission Bell – (William Michael ) – fluffy, even by fluffy standards. This was a hit for British based American, PJ Proby, in Australia only (#3, 1965).
And …
Flawed but great fun, and great fun for parties…. I'm keeping it.
Chart Action
Nothing in the major markets
Sounds
Bus Stop
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mLEH7HDy5KY
Stop! In The Name Of Love
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVAv_kR2QaY
Cara Mia
Mp3 attached
(You've Lost That) Lovin' Feelin'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knoXlnK7Z9I
Mission Bell
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Op0A5gm1ZeI
Others
1960s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Cxhl8AwOf0
00s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZj4bWURkfk
Review
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Bio
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_Pitney
Website
http://geocities.com/genepitney/
http://www.genepitney.com/
http://genepitney.webs.com/
http://genepitney1.blogspot.com.au/
Trivia
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