The Shangri-Las
Myrmidons of Melodrama - RPM Records 1995
Tracks: 1. Remember (Walkin' In The Sand) / 2. It's Easier To Cry / 3. Leader Of The Pack / 4. What Is Love / 5. Give Him A Great Big Kiss / 6. Maybe / 7. Out In The Streets / 8. The Boy / 9. Give Us Your Blessings / 10. Heaven Only Knows / 11. Right Now And Not Later / 12. The Train From Kansas City / 13. Never Again / 14. I'm Blue / 15. What's A Girl Supposed To Do / 16. The Dum Dum Ditty / 17. You Cheated, You Lied / 18. I Can Never Go Home Anymore / 19. Bull Dog / 20. Long Live Our Love / 21. Sophisticated Boom Boom / 22. He Cried / 23. Dressed In Black / 24. Past, Present And Future / 25. Paradise / 26. Love You More Than Yesterday / 27. Wishing Well / 28. Hate To Say I Told You So / 29. Give Him A Great Big Kiss (Alt. Take) / 30. Radio Spot #1 How Pretty Can You Get? / 31. Radio Spot #2 Revlon Endorsement / 32. Radio Spot #3 Good Taste Tip From Mary Weiss / 33. Radio Spot #4 Dating Courtesy Tip From Mary Weiss
Comments:
If you are not a Shangri-Las completist then I belive that this CD release contains the essentials of what the group recorded in its relatively short lifetime from 1964-68. The group released two albums and a fairly large number of fine singles.
The first album "The Leader of the Pack" from February 1965 is a rather uneven collection of songs, which were probably quickly put together based on the success of the singles "Remember Walking in the Sand", "The Leader of the Pack" and "Give Him a Big Kiss. These three are clearly the best-produced songs on the album, where some of the others are characterized by a raw and somewhat cheap sound. The best of these are , besides the three aforementioned ones, to be found here ("It's Easier to Cry", "What is Love", "Maybe" and Bulldog ") - perhaps should have been included" So Much in Love "too.
The group's next album "Shangri-Las 65!", which perhaps is most important in the genre "Girl-groups of the 1960s", fortunately is found here in its full extent. Almost every song from this excellent album is a potential hit. The best known probably are "Give Us Your Blessings", "Out in the Streets" and "Right Now and Not Later"; but it could just as well have been "Heaven Only Knows", "The Dum Dum Ditty" or "The Train From Kansas City". Much originality in the arrangements and lots of inspiration from The Beach Boys and Phil Spector ”
All of the non-album singles released on Red Bird are also included here. Best among these are "I Can Never Go Home Anymore", "Paradise", "Past, Present and Future", "He Cried", "Dressed in Black" and "Love You More Than Yesterday".
The group released two more singles on the Mercury label, all of which you will have to look for elsewhere. However, none of the four songs reach the level of the best Red Bird recordings.
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