Various 1959 Pop Gold (CD)

(Hit Parade Records) 27 tracks (70:00) 12 page booklet.

The world of pop music in the ’50s was indeed a golden place – where rock stars and teen idols mingled with sultry jazz singers and polished pop crooners, alongside future game show host Wink Martindale and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir! Hit Parade’s latest release, Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1959: Pop Gold, captures a snapshot of that diverse, golden era – a 70-minute snapshot filled with classics rarely heard on any CD – many never heard before in pristine stereo.

Most oldies discs serve up the same old songs over and over. One of the best things about Hit Parade’s Jukebox series is the way it rescues terrific tracks from obscurity – though most were big hits in their day (19 of these made the Top 30). You know Guy Mitchell’s great “Singing The Blues,” for instance – and you probably own several copies of it. Instead, 1959: Pop Gold gives us “Heartaches By The Number,” a #1 hit overlooked by most collections. Everyone knows Nat King Cole’s rendition of “Unforgettable,” but 1959: Pop Gold captures Dinah Washington’s equally wonderful interpretation – a Top 20 hit in its own right. Even more, you’ll get great, hard-to-find hits by Steve Lawrence, Paul Anka, Jerry Wallace, and Ray Peterson.

But it’s the stereo junkies who will love 1959: Pop Gold the most. Seven tracks make their stereo debut here, and two more have never been heard in stereo on any compact disc. Patti Page’s multi-tracked vocals on “Old Cape Cod” simply must be heard in stereo to be fully appreciated, and Joni James’ “There Must Be A Way” sounds even more gorgeous in living stereo. But, you’ve never heard anything more spectacular than the Mormon Tabernacle Choir’s mind-blowing performance of “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” – and the original single version makes its stereo debut right here!

Hard To Find Jukebox Classics 1959: Pop Gold contains only the true, original hit versions – a guarantee you’ll never see at any download service like iTunes! And, unlike standard MP3 albums, all Hit Parade discs come with complete song-by-song annotation and extensive liner notes – these by Greg Adams, whose 10 pages of histories and biographies will fascinate you for more than the full hour it will take you to listen to this treasure chest of tunes!