Best Of…1958-1980: Come and Get Me is a generous collection of Jackie DeShannon's biggest hits, important album cuts, and obscure non-LP singles. The keys to DeShannon's talent lie not only in her own songwriting and ability to handle non-originals as if they were her own compositions, but her versatility as a performer. DeShannon's arsenal of orchestrated pop, rockabilly, the Phil Spector-inspired girl group sound, soul, gospel, folk-rock, and country-pop is rivaled by few. She could also pull off sentimental ballads and was believable when in the singer/songwriter mode. There are many peaks in this anthology, including the proto folk-rock of "Needles and Pins" (written by Sonny Bono and Jack Nitzsche) and "When You Walk in the Room" (a sole composition from 1964 that sounds like a Byrds tune as carried out by the Ronettes), as well as the soulful rocker "It's Love Baby" (which features a hot guitar solo) and the initial recorded version of "Bette Davis Eyes" (co-written by DeShannon and later a number one hit for Kim Carnes). A 4,000-word essay by longtime fan Glenn A. Baker rounds out the package.
Four CD set. SoulMusic Records is proud to present a first-of-it's-kind complete collection of all of the Atlantic and Stax recordings by Carla Thomas, released between 1960-1968. With a total of 94 tracks, Let Me Be Good To You celebrates 'The First Lady Of Stax Records' whose 1961 classic hit 'Gee Whiz (Look At His Eyes)' led to the Memphis-based label's distribution with Atlantic Records. Sequenced by session, the deluxe 4-CD set includes tracks from Carla's four solo albums, plus the famed 1967 King & Queen LP of duets with the late Otis Redding. The 'A' and 'B' sides of all of Carla's singles - including (28) non-album tracks - are featured including Carla's duets with her famous father, Rufus Thomas, along with five live recordings from Carla's 1967 performances in London and Paris with the famed Stax/Volt Revue. Produced by SoulMusic Records founder David Nathan, Let Me Be Good To You - The Atlantic & Stax Recordings (1960-1968) boasts a stellar 8,000-word extensive essay by renowned UK writer Charles Waring with 2020 quotes from Stax executive Al Bell, famed songwriter/producer David Porter, Carla's sister Vaneese (a recording artist in her own right) and former Stax publicist and songwriter Deanie Parker and others.