- Dusty Springfield (RIP 1999) (aka Mary Isabel Catherine

  Bernadette O'Brien) -- vocals

- The Lana Sisters

- The Springfields

Genre: pop

Rating: ***** (4 stars)

Title:  Stay Awhile/I Only Wan To Be With You

Company: Philips

Catalog: PHM 200-133

Year: 1964

Country/State: Hampstead, UK

Grade (cover/record): VG / VG

Comments: mono pressing

Available: 1

Catalog ID: 5839

Price: $10.00

Dusty Springfield is one of my first musical memories - I can distinctly remember hearing 'Wishin' and Hopin' on AFN radio as a child.  I'm not sure how, or why, but also have clear memories of her stylized blond hairdo.  Interesting how those early childhood memories stick with us and seem to influence us throughout the rest of our lives.

As a member of folk-oriented The Springfields, Dusty quit the group in 1963, quickly reappearing as a solo act.  Signed by Philips (which had The Springfields under contract), her solo debut came out later that year:

- 1963's 'I Only Want To Be with You' b/w 'Once Upon a Time' (Philips catalog number 40162)  # 12 pop

A top-20 hit in the States, over the next year Philips quickly released a string of three charting follow-ups:

- 1964's 'Stay Awhile' b/w 'Something Special' (Philips catalog number 40180) # 38 pop

- 1964's 'Wishin' and Hopin'' b/w 'Do Re Me (Forget About the Do and Think About Me' (Philips catalog number 40207)  # 6 pop

- 1964's 'All Cried Out' b/w 'Wish I'd Never Loved You' (Philips catalog number 40229) # 41 US

As was standard marketing procedure, Philips took advantage of Springfield's chart successes to release a supporting LP in the States - 1964's cleverly-titled "Stay Awhile/I Only Want To Be With You".  As a marketing move the album compiled the four earlier 'A' sides while showcasing Springfield's amazing, soul soaked voice on a mixture of popular pop and soul hits.  Creatively it wasn't the most original collection you've ever heard, but the material was varied enough to give you a good feel for her varied talents.  Most of the set surrounded Springfield with Phil Spector-styled wall-of-sound arrangements.  Luckily while many singers would have simply drown amidst the heavy production, Springfield's voice was powerful and distinctive enough to power through the clutter.  The big surprise and one of the LP's highlights came in the form of the lone Springfield original - 'Something Special'.  You know it took some real effort for Springfield to convince Philips management to let her record an original song.  Not that you would have expected anything less from a woman who was kicked out of South Africa for refusing to perform before apartheid segregated audiences.

- To my ears 'I Only Want To Be with You' stands as one of Springfield's most pop-oriented releases.  Sporting a breezy, instantly memorable melody and powered by Springfield's instantly identifiable voice, if a song could be labeled fun', this was it.  It's been covered dozens of times over the years, but nobody's come close to the original.   rating: ***** stars

- In the early 1960s it wasn't unusual for an artist who'd enjoyed a hit to go back to the creative well and release a follow-up song with a similar feel and sound.  Sometimes it worked and sometimes not.  Tapped as a follow-up single, 'Stay Awhile' sounded more than a little like 'I Only Want To Be with You'.  Part of that similarity may have been due to the fact the track was penned by Mike Hawker and Igor Raymonde who'd also written 'I Only Want To Be with You'.  Regardless, 'Stay Awhile' was strong enough to succeed on its own.    rating: **** stars

- One of three Burt Bacharach-Hal David songs on the collection, '24 Hours from Tulsa' was one of my favorite performances. Gene Pitney had the original hit, but Springfield's slightly modified version of the song (this time out sung from a woman's perspective) was simply amazing.   rating: ***** stars  

- Springfield was reportedly a big girls group fan and her cover of 'Mama Said' aptly displayed that affection.  Maybe not quite up to The Shirelles original, but pretty darn close.  Wonderful and perhaps the most playful song on the album.   rating: **** stars

- In my humble opinion 'Anyone Who Had a Heart' was one of Springfield's creative zeniths.  Cillia Black had the UK chart topping hit with her version, but Springfield's cover was even better.  True, the lush, highly orchestrated arrangement (always loved the kettle drums at the end), may sound a little dated today, but there's simply no denying this was a killer Bacharach-David song and Springfield's measured performance was near perfect.   rating: ***** stars

- Springfield's blue-eyed soul vocals were always a great fit for Motown and her cover of 'When the Lovelight Starts Shining Thru His Eyes' was one of the best matches.  Musically her cover of the Holland-Dozier-Holland track didn't stray too far from The Supremes original, but once it kicked into gear, her version took off and never looked back ...   Would have made a fantastic single.    rating: ***** stars

- The album's third and final Bacharach-David cover 'Wishin' and Hopin'' was released as a US single, providing Springfield with her first top-10 US success.  Pretty and kind of funny with respect to the lyrical advice on how to catch a husband.    rating: **** stars

- One of the isolated disappointments, her multi-tracked cover of Charles and Inez Foxx's 'Mockingbird' was professional, but did nothing to improve on the original.    rating: ** stars

- 'Will You Love Me Tomorrow' was another mediocre girls group cover.   Forgettable compared to the original.    rating: ** stars

- Previously a hit for Leslie Gore, the don't-get-in-my-face 'You Don't Own Me' was a perfect track for the always independent Springfield.  It was made even more poignant coming on the heels of the subservient 'You Don't Own Me'.    rating: **** stars

- Yeah it was a piece of lightweight pop fluff, but the lone Springfield original, 'Something Special' was also one of the album highlights.  Great tinkling piano melody and chorus.    rating: **** stars

-  Arthur Alexander's 'Every Day I Have To Cry' was a classic 1960s soul tune and while Springfield's cover won't make you forget the original, her upbeat and bubbly version was really good and would have been a nice single.    rating: **** stars  

Yeah, this album's over 40 years old now but it's a classic. Check your grandparents collection out for a copy ... maybe they'll let you have their copy.

"Stay Awhile / I Only Want To Be With You" track listing:
(side 1)

1.) I Only Want To Be with You   (Mike Hawker - Igor Raymonde) - 2:32

2.) Say Awhile   (Mike Hawker - Igor Raymonde) - 1:50

3.) 24 Hours from Tulsa   (Burt Bacharach - Hal David) - 3:02

4.) Mama Said   (L. Dixon) - 2:03

5.) Anyone Who Had a Heart  (Burt Bacharach - Hal David) - 2:55

6.) When the Lovelight Starts Shining Thru His Eyes   (Brian Holland - Lamont Dozier - Eddie Holland) - 

(side 2)
1.) Wishin' and Hopin'  (Burt Bacharach - Hal David) - 2:55

2.) Mocking Bird   (Charles Foxx - Inez Foxx) - 2:35

3,) Will You Love Me Tomorrow   (Carole King - Gerry Goffin) - 2:41

4.) You Don't Own Me   (J. Madara - D. White) - 2:29

5.) Something Special   (Dusty Springfield) - 2:00

6.) Every Day I Have To Cry   (Arthur Alexander) - 2:23

SRB 11/2009

Genre: soul

Rating: ** (2 stars)

Title:  The Look of Love

Company: Philips

Catalog: PHS 600-256

Year: 1967

Country/State: Hampstead, UK

Grade (cover/record): VG / VG

Comments: stereo pressing

Available: 1

Catalog ID: 5840

Price: $10.00

As you can see from the other Dusty Springfield LPs on my small website, I'm a big fan.  That said, 1967's "The Look of Love" isn't one of my favorites.  Like a lot of other acts (think the Motown recording roster), by the mid-1960s a combination of record label pressure for continued popular successes and poor creative choices on her part saw Springfield flirting with and frequently embracing MOR moves.  This set was a perfect example of that ill advised creative drift.  Built around the success she'd enjoyed recording the title track for the James Bond "Casino Royale" soundtrack, the rest of the album found Springfield largely wasting her talents on a throwaway mixture of bland pop.   Anytime you see someone covering a Jacques Brel tune you know they're in trouble and that was certainly the case here.  If You Go Away'' was simply dreadful.  Too her credit, Springfield was too talented an artist to record an album without a couple of saving graces; in this case isolated numbers like '' and '' that still reflected a touch of her earlier soul influences.

COLGEMS catalog number COSO 5005

- Burt Bacharach and Hal David consistently provided Springfield with some of her best material, though she was 100% responsible for turning this into one of her sexiest performances.  Low keyed, almost jazzy, this one is amazingly slinky.  It also sported one of rock's best sax solos.  I haven't done a side-by-side comparison, but think this version is a little different than that featured on the soundtrack album.   rating: ***** stars

- A minor US chart success, 'Give Me Time (L'Amore Se Me Va)' exemplified the other side of adult contemporary - in this case a hopeless overblown and boring ballad.  Yech.   rating: * star

- Another Bacharach-David number, 'They Long To Be Close To You' was best known as one of The Carpenters' first hits.  Here Springfield gave the song her best Dionne Warwick impression.  Not a bad version, but won't make you forget Karen Carpenter's performance.   rating: *** star

- C'mon, why would anyone want to cover a Jacque Brel song like the insipid 'If You Go Away'?  Simply hideous and the French segment didn't help it much.  rating: * star

- Bobby Hebb's 'Sunny' is a classic song, but Springfield's decision to slow it down and jazz it up was wrongheaded.  The only saving grace here was that her version was mercifully brief (under two minutes).   rating: * star

- 'Come Back To Me' surrounded Springfield with a big band jazz arrangement.  Springfield had the chops to hold her own, but at least to my ears it was one of those things that probably looked better on paper than the final results.   rating: ** star

- Thankfully side two started out with one of the album highpoints - the atypical soulful 'What's It Gonna Be'.  Kicked along by a great bass line, an urgent melody and a great call and response opening, the song underscored the fact Springfield remained a great blue-eyed soul singer.  Only complaint was that the song simply wasn't long enough.   rating: ***** stars

- 'Awash in strings and backing singers, Welcome Home' was a pretty, but largely forgettable ballad.   rating: ** stars

- Starting out sounding like it was recorded in an echo chamber, it took awhile for 'Small Town Girl' to display it's charms.  The song itself was quite good, but once again the lush arrangement including strings and brass threatened to drown out Springfield's performance.  Would have been a lot better with a stripped down, funkier arrangement.   rating: *** stars

- Reflecting a distinctive Motown feel, 'Take Me for a Little While' was another album highlight.  Laidback and intense, the backing female chorus meshed perfectly with Springfield's impassioned lead.   rating: ***** stars

- 'Chained To a Memory' was another pretty song that was wrecked by an overly MOR arrangement.  Supper club soul ...   Shame 'cause with a better arrangement this one had potential.   rating: ** stars

The album eventually spun off two singles:

- 1967's 'The Look of Love' b/w 'Give Me Time (L'Amore Se Me Va)' (Philips catalog number 40465) # 22 pop and # 76 pop

- 1967's 'What's It Gonna Be' b/w 'Small Town Girl' (Philips catalog number 40498)  ' # 49 pop

Not an essential Springfield release, the album also marked the end of Springfield's longstanding partnership with Philips.  Her next release would be courtesy of Atlantic.

"The Look of Love" track listing:
(side 1)

1.) The Look of Love  (Burt Bacharach - Hal David) - 3:27

2.) Give Me Time (L'Amore Se Me Va)   (Melfa - Atmo - Peter Callendar) - 3:03

3.) They Long To Be Close To You  (Burt Bacharach - Hal David) - 2:24

4.) If You Go Away   (Jacques Brel - Rod McKuen) - 3:45

5.) Sunny   (Bobby Hebb) - 1:51

6.) Come Back To Me   (Lerner - Lane) - 2:18

(side 2)
1.) What's It Gonna Be   (Ragovoy - Shuman) - 2:11

2.) Welcome Home   (Taylor) - 2:44

3.) Small Town Girl  (Goland - Schroeder) - 2:04

4.) Take Me for a Little While   (Martin) - 2:12

5.) Chained To a Memory   (Rogers - Ahlert) - 2:30

For hardcore fans, Philips released the album with an alternative cover.  Given the ghastly color scheme, I'm assuming it was quickly dropped.

SRB 11/2009

Genre: soul

Rating: *** (3 stars)

Title:  A Brand New Me

Company: Atlantic

Catalog: SD-8249

Year: 1971

Country/State: Hampstead, UK

Grade (cover/record): VG / VG

Comments: minor ring wear; numbers written in magic marker along top edge; small record company label on flip side

Available: 2

Catalog ID: 4606

Price: $10.00

Cost: $66.00

On the heals of the critical success that greeted "Dusty In Memphis", 1970 saw Springfield heading to Philadelphia to take a stab at tapping into the city's burgeoning soul scene  Co-produced by Ugene Dozier and Roland Chambers, "A Brand New Me" featured contributions from the cream of local writers including Thom Bell, Kenny Gamble, Norman Harris and Leon Huff.  Curiously, throughout the rest of the world the album was entitled "From Dusty ... With Love".  Though there was no difference in the track listing, the US release sported slightly hipper packaging  than the UK original (see below).

original UK cover

Philips catalog number 7927

To my admittedly biased ears, this set is easily one of the top three releases in Springfield's catalog.  Unfortunately it had the misfortune of being released in the wake of "Dusty In Memphis" which meant it never stood a chance.  As a result, today the album's largely forgotten.  That's unfortunate since it captures Springfield at her mid-career peak.  Her instantly recognizable voice proved a great match for the silky Philly soul sound.  Literally any one of these ten tracks would have made a great single, but my nod goes to 'The Star of My Show', 'Let's Get Together Soon' and the sterling title track.  

- One of four singles pulled off the album, even though it was penned by Gamble and Huff, 'Lost' actually had more of a Memphis soul flavor to it than a Philly feel.  Great melody with one of Springfield's nicest vocals.  Should have been a big hit for her.   rating: **** stars

- With it's silky feel, 'Bad Case of the Blues' served as a perfect meld of Springfield's blue-eyed soul voice and Gamble and Huff's sophisticated Philly sound.  Up-tempo and highly commercial, this one also had exceptional commercial potential.   rating: **** stars

- 'Never Love Again' was a pretty, but somewhat bland ballad.  Springfield's performance was actually quite good, but by the time the song got to the hook you'd lost interest in it.   rating: ** stars

- Opening with acoustic guitar and light orchestration, 'Let Me In Your Way' took awhile to get going and when it did, the results were pretty, but ultimately more jazzy than soulful.   This one was tapped as another of the album's singles.   rating: *** stars

- Kicked along by a nice Norman Harris guitar, 'Let's Get Together Soon' offered up another ballad, but at least marked a return to a soulful sound.  Wonderful hook that wormed itself into you head and wouldn't let go.  I actually found myself humming this on the Metro one day.   rating: **** stars

- Side two started with the album's commercial highpoint - 'Brand New Me' had it all; great melody; fantastic arrangement, and one of Springfield's most impressive vocals.   Always loved the chirpy background vocals ...  A classic slice of early 1970s pop.   rating: ***** stars

- In contrast 'Joe' surrounded Springfield with an overwhelming slice of MOR sludge.  Horrible song that she simply couldn't sing her way out.   rating: ** stars 

- 'Silly, Silly Fool' surrounded Springfield with a more conventional and commercial Philly arrangement.  Great hook which explains why it was tapped as another single.   rating: **** stars

- Another song with a Memphis-feel, 'The Star of My Show' was probably the most conventional soul song on the album, though this time out the flavor was more Motown than Philly.   One of my favorite performances on the album.   rating: **** stars  

- 'Let's Talk It Over' ended the album with a slice of 'sophisticated' soul.  While I wasn't crazy about the song, Earl Young's drums were amazing and the hyper-speed chorus was fantastic.  rating: **** stars  

To the company's credit, Atlantic tapped the title track b/w 'Bad Case of the Blues' (Atlantic catalog number 45-2685) as a single.  Atlantic also went back to the album for three less successful follow-up singles:

- 'Silly, Silly Fool' b/w 'Joe' (Atlantic catalog number 45-2705) 

- 'Let Me In Your Way' b/w 'I Wanna Be a Free Girl' (Atlantic catalog number 45-2729)

- 'Lost' b/w 'Never Love Again') (Atlantic catalog number 45-2739).

It's a minor complaint, but the album would have benefited from a little more variety.  The heavy emphasis on mid-tempo numbers back to back got a little old after awhile.  Still, this was a great place for the curious or casual fans to start exploring Springfield's catalog.

"A Brand New Me" track listing:
(side 1)

1.) Lost  (Kenny Gamble - Leon Huff - Jerry Butler) - 2:27

2.) Bad Case of the Blues  (Kenny Gamble - Leon Huff - Roland Chambers) - 2:06

3.) Never Love Again  (Kenny Gamble - Leon Huff - Roland Chambers) - 3:21

4.) Let Me In Your Way  (Kenny Gamble - Leon Huff - Roland Chambers) - 2:45

5.) Let's Get Together Soon  (Kenny Gamble - Leon Huff) - 2:41

(side 2)
1.) Brand New Me  (Kenny Gamble - Thom Bell - Jerry Butler) - 2:25

2.) Joe  (Kenny Gamble - Norman Harris - Allan Felder) - 2:21

3.) Silly, Silly Fool  (Kenny Gamble - Leon Huff) - 2:30

4.) The Star of My Show  (Kenny Gamble - Leon Huff) - 2 :27

5.) Let's Talk It Over  (Kenny Gamble - Leon Huff) - 2:29

SRB 10/2009

Genre: pop

Rating: ** (2 stars)

Title:  Living Without Your Love

Company: United Artists

Catalog: UALA936-H

Year: 1978

Country/State: Hampstead, UK

Grade (cover/record): VG / VG

Comments: small cut out notch along top edge; original lyric inner sleeve

Available: 1

Catalog ID: 4225

Price: $10.00

Continuing her corporate wanderings, 1979's "Living without Your Love" found Dusty Springfield signed to United Artists in the States and Mercury in the UK and the rest of Europe.  Produced by David Wolfert the album found Springfield trying to find a niche in the rapidly changing marketplace.  Unfortunately her instantly recognizable throaty voice was largely wasted on a faceless collection of adult contemporary oriented ballads and mid-tempo numbers.  Taken in isolation ballads like 'The Somebody' and 'Get Yourself To Love' weren't all that bad (okay, 'Closet Man' was hideous), but back-to-back they quickly melded into a dull, sound alike mess.  Besides, who in their right mind would record two Carole Bayer-Sager songs on a single album?   Exemplified by 'Living Without Your Love' and 'Save Me, Save Me' her isolated stabs at more dance oriented material weren't much better.  Even her Motown cover ('You've Really Gotta Hold On Me') was dull.  So what was worth hearing?  Not much.  In spite of the dated arrangement, best of the lot was the funky 'You Can Do It'.   Yeah, sad to say but a disappointment ...  (Not to sound catty, but the perm was a bad move.)

"Living Without Your Love" track listing:
(side 1)

1.) You've Really Gotta Hold On Me   (Smokey Robinson) - 3:45

2.) You Can Do It   (E. Sands - R. Germinaro - B. Weisman) - 4:10

3.) The Somebody   (Melissa Manchester - Vinnie Poncia - J. Vastano) - 3:20

4.) Closet Man   (David Foster - E. Mercury - D. Gerrard) - 4:08

5.) Living Without Your Love   (David Wolfert - S. Nelson) - 3:33

(side 2)
1.) Save Me, Save Me   (Barry Gibb - A. Gaulten) - 3:03 

2.) Get Yourself To Love   (D. McCormick) - 4:09 

3.) I Just Fall In Love Again   (S. Dorff - L. Hersbtritt - G. Sklerov - H. Lloyd) - 3:11

4.) Dream On   (Carole Bayer-Sager - Frannie Golde - D. Mayoff) - 3:29

5.) I'm Coming Home Again   (Bruce Roberts - Carole Bayer-Sager) - 3:42