Honey and Wine: Another Gerry Goffin and Carole King Song Collection

Overview

Like the previous Ace compilation A Gerry Goffin & Carole King Song Collection 1961-1967, this CD has 26 vintage recordings of Goffin & King compositions, this one spanning the early '60s to the early '70s. And like its predecessor, it mixes familiar smash hits with rarities and obscure versions of songs that might be more familiar as interpreted by different artists. That guarantees a certain unevenness, but for anyone interested in Goffin & King or the Brill Building in general, it's a very good group of songs overall, illustrating varying facets of the team's songwriting genius. It's true that the big classic hits here -- the Drifters' "Up on the Roof," Maxine Brown's "Oh No, Not My Baby," Gene McDaniels' "Point of No Return," the Monkees' "Pleasant Valley Sunday," and Gene Pitney's "Every Breath That I Take" -- overshadow most of the rest of the tracks. But some of the rarer cuts are almost as good, foremost among them the Hollies' brooding, grooving "Honey & Wine," one of the group's best mid-'60s non-45 efforts; the Myddle Class' sinister "I Happen to Love You," one of the finest '60s garage-pop singles; the Rising Sons' (with Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder) version of "Take a Giant Step," more famous as done by the Monkees; Peter James' "Stage Door" (perhaps more familiar to collectors in the rendition by ex-Searchers member Tony Jackson), which sounds like it might have been a suitable tune for Gene Pitney to do; Chuck Jackson's minor hit soul ballad "I Need You"; and Marianne Faithfull's "Is This What I Get for Loving You," for which Phil Spector (who produced the original version by the Ronettes) also got a songwriting credit. You also get the original version of "Go Away Little Girl," by Bobby Vee (though it took Steve Lawrence to make it a hit), and Jody Miller's little-known cover of one of Goffin & King's strangest compositions, "He Hit Me (And It Felt Like a Kiss)" (originally done by the Crystals). If much of the rest of the CD has an also-ran feeling, it's seldom less than interesting, including Goffin & King songs by notable artists such as Barbara Lewis, Ben E. King, Jan & Dean, Freddie Scott, Nancy Wilson, and the Turtles.

Product Details

Release Date:	04/14/2009
Label:	Ace Records Uk
UPC:	0029667035729
catalogNumber:	1216

Tracks

1. Every Breath I Take
2. Oh No, Not My Baby
3. Up on the Roof
4. Not Just Tomorrow, But Always
5. Tell Daddy
6. He Knows I Love Him Too Much
7. Point of No Return
8. The Best Friend I Ever Had
9. Make the Night a Little Longer
10. Go Away Little Girl
11. Brand New World
12. They're Jealous of Me
13. I Need You
14. That Boy I Used to Know
15. Stage Door
16. He Hit Me (And It Felt Like a Kiss)
17. Don't Forget About Me
18. Pleasant Valley Sunday
19. A Long Way to Be Happy
20. Honey & Wine
21. Take a Giant Step
22. Is This What I Get for Loving You
23. Child of Mine
24. I Happen to Love You
25. So Goes Love
26. No Easy Way Down

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Artie Butler   Conductor
Claus Ogerman   Conductor
Garry Sherman   Conductor
Phil Wright   Conductor
David Whittaker   Conductor

Technical Credits

Steve Douglas & the Rebel Rousers   Producer
Carole King   Arranger,Composer
David Gates   Arranger
Gerry Goffin   Composer,Producer
Terry Melcher   Producer
Gene Page   Arranger
Billy Strange   Arranger
Phil Spector   Composer,Producer
Lou Adler   Producer
Bert Berns   Producer
Jan Berry   Arranger,Producer
Artie Butler   Arranger
Calvin Carter   Producer
David Cavanaugh   Producer
Claus Ogerman   Arranger
Don Costa   Producer
Ernie Freeman   Arranger
Ken Friedman   Illustrations
Tommy "Snuff" Garrett   Producer
Arthur Greenslade   Music Direction
Bones Howe   Producer
Bert Keyes   Arranger
Chips Moman   Producer
Andrew Loog Oldham   Producer
Ron Richards   Producer
Garry Sherman   Arranger
Steve Tyrell   Producer
Stan Green   Producer
Douglas Farthing Hatlelid   Producer
Tony Rounce   Liner Notes,Illustrations
Alec Palao   Illustrations
Jim Pierson   Illustrations
Luther Dixon   Producer
Phil Wright   Arranger
Mick Patrick   Liner Notes,Illustrations
Rob Hughes   Illustrations
David Whittaker   Arranger
Michael Randolph   Cover Photo
Eddie Martin   Arranger
David Allen Young   Illustrations
Eric Charge   Illustrations