The Doodletown Pipers embody '60s soft pop at its most white-bread and wholesome -- and that's not necessarily a bad thing, truth be told. There's something weirdly but undeniably charming about music this defiantly straight-laced -- the arrangements are elevator-ready and the harmonies seem ported directly from a Lutheran choir performance, but just try listening to these dull-as-lint readings of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'," "A Lover's Concerto," and "Under the Sea" without cracking a smile. The blame, such as it is, lies more with producer
Al Capps than it does the Pipers themselves -- the material is completely unsuited to the group's candy-floss approach and can't help but suffer in comparison to the original hits. Still, yesterday's atrocity is today's ironic pleasure, and on both counts the Doodletown Pipers deliver in spades.
