Nearly complete collection with some stereo bonuses

With so many cheap Shangri-Las compilations arriving on digital download lately, you have to wonder if someone forgot to renew the copyrights. This set is a nearly complete accounting of the Shangri-Las official releases, including the tracks from their two albums (Leader of the Pack and Shangri-Las ’65), their pre- and post-Red Bird singles for Spokane, Scepter, Smash and Mercury, the well circulated alternate take of “Give Him a Great Big Kiss,” two ads for Revlon, and Mary Weiss’ period “good taste tip” radio spots. All that’s missing is their cover of “Twist and Shout,” as it appeared on their first album and single B-side. Perhaps the second, lo-fi version of “It’s Easier to Cry” that’s included here was supposed to be the missing track.

These appear to be all original recordings, mono except for 1, 3, 5, 9, 11, 17 and 26. The stereo mixes exhibit some differences from the mono versions anthologized on RPM’s Myrmidons of Melodrama [1 2], particularly in the instrumental balance. “Remember (Walkin’ in the Sand)” is 2:41 rather than the mono version’s 2:15, with the backing vocals panned left the handclaps and finger snaps panned right, and an ending that stretches the bass riff and backing vocals past Mary Weiss lead vocal. After the motorcycle crash sound effect, “Leader of the Pack” includes two extra vamps that aren’t present on RPM’s mono master. Assuming these are original stereo performances, they’re great bonuses for Shangri-Las collectors, but it’s a shame Goldenlane doesn’t provide any explanation of where these came from.

Track ordering mostly front-loads the group’s Red Bird era singles, though not uniformly. This leaves their pre-Red Bird singles as bonus tracks at collection’s end. Track-to-track volume levels aren’t perfectly balanced, though most MP3 players will fix this for you in playback. The packaging, or complete lack thereof, keeps this from reaching the pinnacle of reissue heights, but it’s hard to argue with thirty-nine girl group classics for less than the cost of a typical 12-track CD. [©2009 hyperbolium dot com]

Mary Weiss’ Home Page
Mary Weiss’ MySpace Page
Unofficial Shangri-Las Web Site

Several years ago I was listening to the Shangri-Las “The Train From Kansas City” and marveling at the lyric “I’ll be back in the time it takes to break a heart,” I started searching the web to see if I could find Greenwich’s address so I could see if there was a back story to this song, and on her home page found a link to a contact page. I expected a canned reply or a note from a publicist thanking me for writing, but a couple of days later I got a response directly from Ellie Greenwich. She couldn’t remember what inspired her and Jeff Barry to write the song, but was touched that someone would seek her out to ask about a 40-year-old lyric to a song that was never a hit.

I still find it difficult to wrap my head around one person writing or co-writing:

And Then He Kissed Me
Baby, I Love You
Be My Baby
Chapel of Love
Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)
Da Doo Ron Ron
Do Wah Diddy Diddy
Good Night Baby
Hanky Panky
He’s Got the Power
He Ain’t No Angel
I Can Hear Music
Leader of the Pack
Not Too Young To Get Married
Out in the Streets
River Deep, Mountain High
Then He Kissed Me
(Today I Met) The Boy I’m Gonna Marry
Why Do Lovers Break Each Other’s Hearts?

Not to mention lesser-known gems like Connie Francis’ “Don’t Ever Leave Me,” The Shangri-Las “Give Us Your Blessings,” The Chiffons’ “I Have a Boyfriend” (remade to perfection by Reparata & The Delrons) and dozens of sides for the Blue Cat and Red Bird labels that never made the charts. She recorded fine singles and albums under her own name and as part of the Raindrops, and discovered Neil Diamond.

Diane Warren said, “Those songs are part of the fabric of forever.” They’re certainly part of my forever.

Ellie Greenwich was 68 when she passed away on August 26, 2009. RIP.

Listen to Ellie Greenwich sing “Hanky Panky”