This collection opens with the single edit of “Save Me,” the group’s first single and title track from the first album. It is a fun disco tune with a good rhythm, basically everything you want from a disco number. As I mentioned in my review of the expanded edition of the album, there aren’t a whole lot of lyrics to this song, or to most of the band’s songs for that matter, but that’s fine. There is an undeniable joy to this song. That’s followed by another song that was included on that first album, “Fly Robin Fly,” one of my personal favorites from that disc, with its catchy rhythm and equally catchy vocal line and its great use of strings. It won’t take you long to learn all the lyrics to this one, and there is a good chance you’ll find yourself singing along. “Fly, Robin, fly/Fly, Robin, fly/Fly, Robin, fly/Up, up to the sky.” On this disc, we get the stereo single long version.
“Tiger Baby” was also included on the band’s first album, and is another of that record’s highlights, in part because of its playful nature, with those deep tiger growls, but also because it contains some excellent vocal work. This one is also seriously catchy. The version included here is single radio edit. Then we get the first of this collection’s songs that was included on the band’s second album, Get Up And Boogie. The song, “San Francisco Hustle,” invites us to “Come and dance.” And though it’s a slower number, it’s still a good song to groove to. We return to music from the first album with “(There’s) Always Another Girl,” which on the album was titled “Always Another Girl.” This one has more lyrical content than the previous tracks, including brief spoken word passages, helping it to stand out.
“Fancy Party” is a total delight, with some funky and delicious work on bass. This one was included on Madhouse, the band’s second 1976 album. It too contains more lyrics than the collection’s first few tracks. “Look, there comes a teacher dressed up like a clown/Over there’s a preacher wears a silver gown/And the ragged beggar there is the mayor of this town/Fancy party, funky ball.” This one will get you dancing and smiling and forgetting the world’s troubles. That’s followed by the special disco edit of “I Like It,” a song that was included on the first album. This version was originally released in the UK in 1975, and was featured as a bonus track on this year’s expanded edition of Save Me.
The fun continues with “Get Up And Boogie,” which was used as the title track for the band’s second album. Here we get the single version, which is listed as “Get Up And Boogie (That’s Right).” This song was a big hit for the band, reaching #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. Like a lot of the band’s songs, there are very few lyrics. In fact, all the song’s words are contained within its title. On the LP, that song is the lead track, and is followed by “No, No, Joe.” Here it is likewise followed by “No, No, Joe,” a cool number with a funky element. “No, no, Joe/The party’s over and I gotta go/No, no, Joe/Oh no, you shouldn’t turn your lights down low/Mama won’t like it.” This is another highlight.
“Dancing in the aisle/On a 747,” the band sings at the beginning of “Dancing In The Aisles,” and I can’t help but think of that scene from A Very Brady Sequel when the Bradys sing “Good Time Music” on the plane. Until the flight attendant makes the announcement, “Would those of you dancing and singing in the aisles please sit down and shut up.” That scene is fun, and so is this song. This song was included on Madhouse, where it is titled “Dancing In The Aisle.” Here it is listed as “Dancing In The Aisles (Take Me Higher),” as it was on the single. On the LP, the song is followed by “Everybody’s Talking ‘Bout Love,” and so it is on this compilation. It begins with a spoken word section: “You know everybody’s talking about love these days/It’s just an everyday word/Turn on the radio and hear it/Buy a magazine and you read it/Why then is it so hard to find love in real life?” And the way they sing, “Love, love/Love, love” is adorable.
“Summernights,” which was used as the title track to the band’s first of two 1977 albums, finds them singing “Dancing in the streets,” which of course reminds us of the Martha And The Vandellas song. This song does have that carefree feeling of summer nights. “Summer nights, so sweet as wine/Summer nights, filled with music.” That’s followed by “Telegram,” which was also included on the Summernights album. Their vocal work on this one might remind you of ABBA, and this song, perhaps more so than the others, takes us back to a different time. Do young people even know what a telegram is? “Please forgive the things I said, stop/Didn’t mean to make you sad, stop/Operator, I’ll pay any rate/If my message will not be too late.” The version here is the single version, which is quite a bit shorter than the album version. Also included on Summernights was “Hot Shots,” which has a good, funky vibe, and features some great stuff from the string section. This single version is also significantly shorter than the album version.
“Spend The Night With Me” is a song that was included on the band’s final studio release, Love In A Sleeper, released in 1978. The version here is the promo single short version, approximately two minutes shorter than the album track. This is another totally catchy number, a pop song that features an excellent lead vocal performance, plus the addition of male vocals (that’s Jerry Rix). It also contains a nice lead on guitar. This is cheerful, enjoyable song, another of the disc’s highlights. It’s followed by “Café Au Lait,” which was not included on any of the band’s albums. It was released as a single in Germany. It’s a fun number, and it also has a bit more going on than many of the band’s songs. It’s one I hadn’t heard before, and I am seriously digging it. This compilation concludes with “Get It Up,” yet another fun number. This song was included on Love In A Sleeper, and it is a total delight. How was this one not a hit?
CD Track List
- Save Me (Single Edit)
- Fly Robin Fly (Stereo Single Long Version Edit)
- Tiger Baby (Single Radio Edit)
- San Francisco Hustle (Single Version)
- (There’s) Always Another Girl
- Fancy Party (Single Version)
- I Like It (Special Disco Edit)
- Get Up And Boogie (That’s Right) (Single Version)
- No, No, Joe (Single Version)
- Dancing In The Aisles (Take Me Higher) (Single Version)
- Everybody’s Talking ‘Bout Love (Single Version)
- Summernights
- Telegram (Single Version)
- Hotshot (Single Version)
- Spend The Night With Me (Promo Single Short Version)
- Café Au Lait
- Get It Up
Get Up & Boogie: The Worldwide Singles was released on May 31, 2024 through Omnivore Recordings.
No comments:
Post a Comment