Compilation of the quartet's complete RCA-Victor recordings from April through August of 1956, including alternate takes. The array of sounds, including elements of rockabilly, dance-oriented R&B, and pop, may surprise fans of the Four Seasons. The vocals by Frankie Valli, then known as Frankie Valley, share the spotlight with lead guitarist/singer Thomas DeVito and rhythm guitarist/singer Henry Majewski, and their overall sound is just a little too derivative of other records that were a...   [ read more ]

CD $21.83

Leave it to the Bear Family label to release a six-CD set by a folk act that isn't mentioned in any reference book in the field -- and, what's more, it's all good stuff (make that great if you like the Kingston Trio). And, since there isn't a single track by the Easy Riders available anywhere apart from this box set, anyone curious about their work is going to have to buy it (or dig up the original albums and singles -- good luck). Not only is the trio's complete recorded output here, but so is all o...   [ read more ]

CD $142.48

Only Bear Family Records would think of bringing out a two-CD set of the complete early-'50s sides of an artist who never had a single record on the charts. The 32 RCA-Victor sides here are all good, and a few, like "School Boy Blues," "Reliefin' Blues," "Rampaging Mama," and "Looped" (all from just the first disc) are as fine examples of R&B as you can find during that era. The first eight songs comprise Melvin Smith's recording history fronting Blow Top Lynn and His House Rockers, who play a har...   [ read more ]

CD $42.73