Various Artists - Here Come the Girls, Vol. 3: Run Mascara (@320)

 

Here Come the Girls, Vol. 3: Run Mascara Review by Jason Ankeny.

The third volume in the essential Here Come the Girls series is maybe the least essential of the ten discs; instead of unearthing long-lost girl group obscurities from across the Atlantic or assembling American soul gems, the set instead focuses on homegrown chart hits of the mid-'60s, many of which are readily available on other collections. In other words, for dedicated collectors there's little to discover on Run Mascara. Conversely, of course, for more casual fans the disc is a golden opportunity to revisit some of the more memorable artifacts of the girl groups' heyday. Obscure or not, the unequivocal highlight is the Toys' "A Lover's Concerto," a singular fusion of classical melody and Motown-inspired production that remains one of the three or four best singles the girl group era ever yielded; other perennials include the Essex's "Easier Said Than Done," the Raindrops' "He's the Kind of Boy You Can't Forget," and Shelley Fabares' "Johnny Angel," although the lesser-known material is of a similarly high quality as well.

 

Tracklist:

 

1            The Essex–Easier Said Than Done

2            The Essex-A Walkin' Miracle

3            The Essex–She's Got Everything

4            The Exciters–Run Mascara

5            The Exciters–I Want You To Be My Boy

6            The Exciters–There You Go

7            The Raindrops–The Kind Of Boy You Can't Forget

8            The Raindrops– What A Guy

9            The Raindrops– That Boy Is Messing Up My Mind

10          The Girlfriends–My One & Only Jimmy Boy

11          The Girlfriends–For My Sake

12          The Toys–A Lover's Concerto

13          The Toys–What's Wrong With Me Baby

14          The Carolines – Can't Stop Lovin' The Boy

15          Elena – Evening Time

16          Toni Wine–A Girl Is Not A Girl

17          Shelley Fabares–Johnny Angel

18          Shelley Fabares–He Don't Love Me

19          Earl-Jean*–I'm Into Something Good

20          Earl-Jean*–We Love And Learn

 ****