The Spaniels "Goodnight, Sweetheart" 1953-1961 Their Original Albums Plus Both Sides Of All Their Singles And More

This is the most complete Spaniels package yet! For the first time, their complete A and B sides of all their Vee-Jay singles plus both of their original album releases are all featured on this great 2CD set. Includes the classics: "Baby It's You" and "Goodnight, Sweetheart, Goodnight" as featured on numerous TV commercials and in movies. Fully detailed liner notes cover the entire career of this fantastic group. This is yet another superb R&B release for Jasmine that adds to the ever growing collection of early R&B groups and artists! (Record Runner)Near the top of any list of the greatest Doo-Wop vocal groups would be The Spaniels of Gary, Indiana. Formed in 1952 while still in high school as Pookie Hudson & The Hudsonaires (lead Thornton James "Pookie" Hudson, 2nd tenor Willie Jackson, baritone Opal Courtney, Jr., 1st tenor Ernest Warren and bass Gerald Gregory) had changed to The Spaniels by the time they auditioned in 1953 for the newly formed Vee-Jay, launched by the husband-and-wife team of James C. Bracken and Vivian Carter Bracken (their given name initials formed the label name). The Spaniels became among the first artists signed by the label, with the ultimate Blues Hall Of Fame (1980) and R&R Hall Of Fame (1991) inductee Jimmy Reed recording their first release, High And Lonesome/Roll And Rhumba on Vee-Jay 100 in 1953.
But it was The Spaniels, who were on the second release, and earned the label its first of many national hits when the Hudson-penned Baby It's You clocked in at # 10 R&B that September b/w Bounce. However, although released as Vee-Jay 101, it only became a hit when the more established Chicago-based label, Chance, owned since 1950 by Art Sheridan, arranged a lease on Chance 1141 (interestingly, he also leased the Reed record and put it out as Chance 1142). Their second single, by which time Vee-Jay had relocated to Chicago, wasn't picked up later in 1953 and, with Vee-Jay still struggling to fund promotion, neither side of The Bells Ring Out/House Cleaning on Vee-Jay 103 went anywhere. That wasn't the case in early 1954, though, when they recorded one of THE seminal songs of the early R&R Era, and now an all-time Doo-Wop classic (also written by Hudson), Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite on Vee-Jay 107 b/w (Get Away Child) You Don't Move Me. By May it had peaked at # 5 R&B and # 24 Pop and also became the first solo hit for The McGuire Sisters whose cover on Coral 61187 made it to # 7 Pop in July, but the original is still the best with the (then) unique recording style of having Hudson sing into a microphone separate from the rest of the group.
The late summer 1954 Play It Cool/Let's Make Up (Vee-Jay 116) failed, as did the fast-paced Do-Wah b/w Don'Cha Go (Vee-Jay 131) in May 1955, but in October they returned to the R&B charts with the # 13 You Painted Pictures b/w Hey, Sister Lizzie on Vee-Jay 154. By now their success had earned them a spot on package shows involving the likes of The Drifters, Big Joe Turner, The Counts, Roy Hamilton and Erskine Hawkins, but changes were in order when Courtney was drafted, his eventual replacement being James "Dimples" Cochran, and then Warren went into the service at which point they decided to continue as a quartet. In early 1956 Hudson and Jackson departed, with their replacements being Carl Rainge and Don Porter for the recording of False Love/Do You Really? on Vee-Jay 178. It failed, and Hudson returned in time to lead the way on Dear Heart/Why Won't You Dance? (Vee-Jay 189), Since I Fell For You/Baby Come Along With Me (Vee-Jay 202), and Please Don't Tease/You Gave Me Peace Of Mind (Vee-Jay 229). These too failed to chart, but today Peace Of Mind is considered one of the classic Doo-Wop numbers.
In July 1957 they scored again when the Hudson-penned Everyone's Laughing rose to # 13 R&B and also got them back on the Pop charts at # 69 b/w I.O.U. on Vee-Jay 246 with the backing of the Al Smith orchestra. But after that it was all frustration for the better part of three years as all these failed: You're Gonna Cry/I Need Your Kisses (Vee-Jay 257) in 1957; I Love You/Crazee Baby (Vee-Jay 264) early in 1958; Great Googly Moo b/w the great rhythm piece Tina (Vee Jay 278) in mid-1958; an uptempo rendition of Stormy Weather b/w Here Is Why I Love You (Vee-Jay 290) late that summer; a re-release of Baby It's You b/w Heart And Soul (Vee-Jay 301) towards the end of 1958; Trees/I Like It Like That (Vee-Jay 310) early in 1959; and These Three Words/One Hundred Years From Today (Vee-Jay 328) later in 1959. By the time they recorded the failed People Will Say We're In Love/Bells Ring Out (Vee-Jay 342) early in 1960, further personnel changes had resulted in the group now consisting of Hudson, the returned Warren, Gregory and newcomers Andy McGruder and Bill Carey, and that August they had a # 23 R&B with I Know on Vee-Jay 350 b/w Bus Fare Home. Further roster changes in 1961 saw McGruder and Gregory departing, with Ricky Burden taking over as bass, but by now things were winding down. (George O'Leary, The R&B Review)trax disc 1:
01 Goodnight, Sweetheart, Goodnight 02 Bounce 03 The Bells Ring Out 04 Please Don't Tease 05 This Is A Lovely Way To Spend An Evening 06 Do You Really 07 You Gave Me Peace Of Mind 08 Baby Its You 09 I Need Your Kisses 10 Lets Make Up 11 Play It Cool 12 You Painted Pictures 13 House Cleaning 14 Doo Wah 15 I Know 16 Bus Fare Home 17 One-Hundred Years From Today 18 Crazee Baby 19 Heart And Soul 20 Stormy Weather 21 Everyone's Laughing 22 Little Joe 23 The Posse 24 So Deep Within 25 Baby Sweets 26 I Lost You
trax disc 2:
01 (Get Away Child) You Don't Move Me 02 Don'cha Go 03 Hey Sister Lizzie 04 False Love 05 Dear Heart 06 Why Won't You Dance 07 Since I Fell For You 08 Baby Come Along With Me 09 Jesse Mae 10 I O U 11 You're Gonna Cry 12 Lucinda 13 Great Googly Moo 14 Tina 15 Here Is Why I Love You 16 Lovey Dovey Baby 17 I'm Gonna Thank Him 18 A Rockin' Good Way 19 Baby It's You 20 Trees 21 I Like It Like That 22 These Three Words 23 Automobiles 24 Red Sails In The Sunset 25 People Will Say We're In Love 26 Meek Man 27 (I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons
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