Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Gary Lewis & the Playboys. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Gary Lewis & the Playboys. Sort by date Show all posts

Friday, March 12, 2010

Gary Lewis & The Playboys - The Legendary Masters Series

Original members

Gary Lewis - Drums and vocals

David Walker - Guitar

Allan Ramsay (died in 1985) - Bass

David Costell - Guitar

John West - "Cordovox" (electronic accordion)

***
The group auditioned for a job at Disneyland, without telling Disneyland employees about Lewis' celebrity father. They were able to do this because they were known then as Gary & The Playboys. They were hired on the spot, audiences at Disneyland quickly accepted them, and the Playboys were soon playing to a full house every night. Band leader Les Brown had known Jerry Lewis for years, and he told record producer Snuff Garrett that the younger Lewis was playing at Disneyland. After listening to the band, Garrett thought using Gary's famous name might sell records. Garrett took them into a recording studio with the song "This Diamond Ring" in a session financed by Jerry Lewis' wife Patti. However, according to Lewis, the Playboys weren’t allowed to play their instruments except on the backing tracks. Garrett wanted to maximize the chances for a hit, so he insisted on using experienced studio musicians for the overdubs, which included guitar and keyboard solos, additional bass and drum overdubs, and timpani. These musicians included Tommy Allsup on guitar, Leon Russell on keyboards, Joe Osborn on bass, and Hal Blaine on drums. Session singer Ron Hicklin did the basic vocal track. Garrett then added Gary’s voice twice, added some of the Playboys and more of Hicklin. "When I got through, he sounded like Mario Lanza," Garrett commented.

****
Who Gary Lewis is should already be known by many. The son of Jerry Lewis started with a bang with THIS DIAMOND RING, a number one smash at a time were American Rock and Roll was just starting to revitalize itself, (Lovin' Spoonful, Paul Revere and the Raiders, Buckinghams, Association, etc.... Of course, "This Diamond Ring" is usually all radio plays now. This is sad, because "we" children of the sixties do remember his many top ten tunes, all unique, all different, all pure pop.

"Count Me In", "Save Your Heart For Me" (makes you want to swing), "Everybody Loves A Clown" followed in rapid succession, all top 5, and all classic 60's. If a DJ doens't have these, he is not a 60's DJ.

The hits continued, but top ten, as he released "She's Just My Style", "Sure Gonna Miss Her" , "Green Grass" (one of my favorites), " My Heart's Symphony ", "(You Don't Have To) Paint Me A Picture" and "Where Will The Words Come From". THESE ARE ALL EXCELLENT TUNES, and considering the times, this is a substantial string of hits.

Also during this time, his flip sides and other album cuts are a cut above the normal group of the 60's "I Don't Wanna Day Goodnight" and "I Can Read Between The Lines" are excellent flip sides. Then he served time in the Armed Forces. This left him out of the mainstream to long, and his career never fully recovered.

He did have two minor hits with Brian Hylands "Sealed With a Kiss" followed by "Jill". Gary Lewis continues to tour today with oldie shows and is quite popular.

This CD is similar to the others in the Legendary Masters series. with outtakes and background chatter which make it interesting, as well as commericals. For the price, its much better than the other collections. It does miss out on some good album cuts such as "One Track Mind" and "Heart Full of Soul", but overall, is a great buy and for 11 bucks you get more top ten hits then most others.

A "Highly Recommended" CD.

By R. Barnes "Music Collector"

****
The Legendary Masters Series 1990

1. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - This Diamond Ring (2:14)

2. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Count Me In (2:31)

3. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Little Mis Go-Go (2:56)

4. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Doin' the Flake (3:08)

5. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Save Your Heart For Me (2:03)

6. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Without a Word of Warning (2:28)

7. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Everybody Loves a Clown (2:25)

8. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Time Stands Still (2:02)

9. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - She's Just My Style (3:11)

10. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - I Won't Make That Mistake Again (2:08)

11. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Sure Gonna Miss Her (2:32)

12. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - I Don't Wanna Say Goodnight (2:38)

13. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Face In a Crowd (2:20)

14. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Green Grass (2:15)

15. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - I Can Read Between the Lines (2:24)

16. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Autumn (2:50)

17. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - My Heart's Symphony (3:04)

18. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Tina (2:05)

19. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - (You Don't Have to) Paint Me a Picture (2:34)

20. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Where Will the Words Come From (2:01)

21. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Way Way-Out (2:04)

22. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - The Loser (With a Broken Heart) (2:19)

23. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Girls In Love (2:26)

24. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Jill (2:22)

25. Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Sealed With a Kiss (2:26)

Friday, November 27, 2009

VA - Jukebox Hits of 1951-1965 Part 10 (1965 )


Mp3\375Mb
*****
MUSIC WEEKEND FROM JANCY

This is last CD box from Jukebox Hits series
******
Vol.1:

1. Petula Clark — Downtown [03:10]
2. The Beach Boys — Help Me Rhonda [02:48]
3. Gary Lewis & The Playboys — Count Me in [02:33]
4. Len Barry — One Two Three [02:24]
5. Roger Miller — King of the Road [02:29]
6. Jackie DeShannon — What the World Needs Now Is Love [03:10]
7. Sam Cooke — Shake [02:51]
8. Shirley Bassey — Goldfinger [02:49]
9. Del Shannon — Keep Searchin' [02:12]
10. Vic Dana — Red Roses for a Blue Lady [02:49]
11. Little Anthony & The Imperials — Hurt So Bad [02:18]
12. The Four Seasons — Bye Bye Baby [02:31]
13. Brenda Lee — Too Many Rivers [02:48]
14. Bobby Goldsboro — Little Things [02:28]
15. Lesley Gore — Sunshine Lollipops & Rainbows [01:38]
16. Gene Pitney — Last Chance to Turn Around [03:06]
17. The Lettermen — Theme from A Summer Place [01:58]
18. Bobby Vinton — Long Lonely Nights [02:28]
19. The Dixie Cups — Iko Iko [02:04]
20. Johnny Rivers — Midnight Special [02:36]
21. Trini Lopez — Lemon Tree [02:55]
22. Roy Orbison — Goodnight [02:29]
23. Johnny Tillotson — Heartaches by the Number [02:38]
24. Wayne Newton — I'll Be with You in Apple Blossom Time [02:27]
25. The Chiffons — Nobody Knows What's Goin' On [02:22]
26. Connie Stevens — Now That You're Gone [03:05]
27. The Ventures — Diamond Head [02:03]
28. Ricky Nelson — Mean Old World [02:18]

Vol.2:

1. Bobby Vinton — Mr. Lonely [02:45]
2. Gary Lewis & The Playboys — Everybody Loves a Clown [02:30]
3. Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass — A Taste of Honey [02:48]
4. The Vogues — You're the One [02:12]
5. Jewel Akens — The Birds and the Bees [02:10]
6. The Toys — A Lovers' Concerto [02:44]
7. Eddy Arnold — Make the World Go Away [02:43]
8. The Spokesman — The Dawn of Correction [03:28]
9. Petula Clark — I Know a Place [02:50]
10. Frank Sinatra — It Was a Very Good Year [04:30]
11. Skeeter Davis & Bobby Bare — A Dear John Letter [01:57]
12. Sam the Sham & The Pharaohs — Wooly Bully [02:25]
13. Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders — The Game of Love [02:10]
14. Billy Joe Royal — Down in the Boondocks [02:40]
15. Fontella Bass — Rescue Me [02:54]
16. Peter & Gordon — To Know You Is to Love You [02:41]
17. Buddy Holly — I Gambled My Heart [02:45]
18. Barry McGuire — Eve of Destruction [03:37]
19. Jay & The Americans — Cara Mia [02:34]
20. Barbara Mason — Yes I'm Ready [03:10]
21. Jack Jones — The Race is On [01:49]
22. Barbara Lewis — Baby I'm Yours [02:32]
23. Ellie Greenwich — You Don't Know [03:18]
24. Roger Miller — England Swings [01:55]
25. The Four Seasons — Let's Hang On [03:21]
26. The Beach Boys — California Girls [02:41]
27. The Supremes — Stop! In the Name of Love [02:51]

Vol.3:

1. Chat Allen & The Guess Who — Shakin' All Over [02:58]
2. The Association — Cherish [03:23]
3. Glen Campbell — Guess I'm Dumb [02:43]
4. Donovan — Colours [02:47]
5. Duane Eddy — Around the Block in 80 Days [02:22]
6. Glenn Yarbrough — Baby the Rain Must Fall [02:24]
7. Billy Williams — I'm Gonna Sit Right Down [02:11]
8. Jack Scott — Looking for Linda [02:48]
9. Frank Sinatra — Moonlight Serenade [03:33]
10. The Sorrows — Take a Heart [03:19]
11. Johnny Tillotson — Things [01:51]
12. Roy Orbison — Claudette [01:59]
13. Manfred Mann — If You Gotta Go Go Now [02:34]
14. Gary Lewis — Little Miss Go Go [02:26]
15. Jan & Dean — Freeway Flyer [02:40]
16. The Ivy League — Tossing and Turning [02:31]
17. Buddy Holly — Fool's Paradise [02:33]
18. The Hollies — I'm Alive [02:29]
19. Connie Francis — La Vie En Rose [02:16]
20. Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass — Zorba the Greek [04:26]
21. Jay & The Americans — Some Enchanted Evening [02:20]
22. Shirley Bassey — Moon River [03:01]
23. The Beach Boys — Barbara Ann [02:08]
24. Brook Benton — Love Me Now [03:02]
25. The Chiffons — Tonight I'm Gonna Dream [02:49]
26. Petula Clark — Gotta Tell the World [02:15]
27. Perry Como — Dream On Little Dreamer [02:24]
28. The Crickets — Now Hear This [02:02]

Vol.4:

1. Roy Orbison — Breakin' Up Is Breakin' My Heart [02:11]
2. Ricky Nelson — Since I Don't Have You [02:36]
3. Garnet Mimms — Welcome Home [03:03]
4. Wayne Newton — Red Roses for a Blue Lady [02:25]
5. The Everly Brothers — Donna Donna [02:15]
6. Johnny Tillotson — Oh Lonesome Me [02:32]
7. Nancy Sinatra — So Long Baby [03:11]
8. Sonny & Cher — Baby Don't Go [03:14]
9. The Supremes — I Hear a Symphony [02:45]
10. Al Martino — Spanish Eyes [02:49]
11. The Lettermen — Secretly [02:20]
12. Gary Lewis & The Playboys — She's Just My Style [03:11]
13. Fats Domino — On a Slow Boat to China [01:56]
14. The Drifters — At the Club [02:57]
15. Duane Eddy — Movin' N Groovin' [01:56]
16. Roy Orbison — Ride Away [03:32]
17. Del Shannon — I Go to Pieces [02:30]
18. Linda Scott — If I Love Again [02:35]
19. Roger Miller — Do Wacka Do [01:48]
20. Connie Francis — Souvenirs [02:11]
21. Bobby Goldsboro — Broomstick Cowboy [02:35]
22. Chubby Checker — Do the Freddy [02:28]
23. Bobby Darin — Venice Blue [02:39]
24. Sam Cooke — Win Your Love for Me [02:47]
25. Johnny Rivers — Where Have All the Flowers Gone [03:23]
26. Gene Pitney — Princess in Rags [02:45]
27. The Ronettes — He Did It [02:35]
28. Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass — Tijuana Taxi [02:09]
29. Paul Anka & Rita Pavone — Kiddy Kiddy Kiss Me [02:41]
*****

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Gary Lewis & The Playboys - Everybody Loves A Clown (1965) She's Just My Style (1966






Gary Lewis & the Playboys' albums are inevitably a less than satisfying experience -- Lewis' vocal abilities were good enough that, with Snuff Garrett, Leon Russell, and a cadre of L.A.'s top session musicians surrounding him and the best possible tunes to work with, he could generate hit singles. Putting together a dozen good songs at a time, however, was beyond anyone's ability where Lewis was involved. This, his third album, is highlighted by some halfway decent covers of familiar fare such as "Tossin' and Turnin'," Don Everly's "('Til) I Kissed You," "My Special Angel," and "Sha La La," all of which are more memorable as songs than the title track, a number of which Lewis is embarrassingly proud to have co-authored. "Sha La La" is the best track on the album, and the only one that requires no apology -- it wouldn't make the members of Manfred Mann lose any sleep, but it is a smooth and very appealing number. And the closing track, "Dreamin,'" is a positively catchy, upbeat number with Lewis exploiting the hooks magnificently. Of course, Lewis put another original in between these two numbers just to make sure no body takes any of the music making here too seriously -- "Time Stands Still," a slow ballad that only refocuses the listeners on the limitations of his voice. Not that this was too much of a concern for the people buying this album, the playing was enthusiastic and the arrangements occasionally inspired ("Sha La La," "Dreamin'"), but Lewis' voice was so limited that it is difficult to get through this album in one sitting.


The title track on this, Gary Lewis & the Playboys' fourth album, is so fine a piece of pop/rock that it would automatically elevate the value of any LP on which it appeared. Leon Russell's guitar solo by itself on that track is almost worth the price of admission on its own terms, and, in this case, the title track heralded a new sound for the group, as is evident throughout this, their best original LP. This time out, Lewis, producer Snuff Garrett, and all concerned evidently decided that they were going to do an album that people enjoyed hearing more than once, and they delivered it. She's Just My Style is much more of a rocking album than its predecessor, with a leaner sound and more upfront presence on the guitars and bass, and a pretty fair choice of covers (including a pair of Lennon and McCartney songs), all of them solid as rock & roll numbers. Playboys guitarist Tommy Triplehorn even turned up his amp to capture the raunchy side of Jeff Beck's fuzz-tone part on "Heart Full of Soul" and gets a cool, "dirty" sound on Lewis' cover of the Beatles' "Run for Your Life." The group gives "You Didn't Have to Be So Nice" an even more lyrical reading (with more bells, too) than the Lovin' Spoonful's original. What's more, even Lewis' one co-authored original here, "I Won't Make That Mistake Again," is more than adequate to fill a slot on this first-rate pop/rock album, the high point of the group's LP output.



Thursday, December 12, 2024

Saturday, October 13, 2012

Gary Lewis & The Playboys Hits Again...(1966)



One of the most commercially successful US pop groups of the mid-60s, the original Playboys comprised Gary Lewis (b. Gary Levitch, 31 July 1946, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA; vocals/drums), Alan Ramsey (b. 27 July 1943, New Jersey, USA; guitar), John West (b. 31 July 1939, Unrichville, Ohio, USA; guitar), David Costell (b. 15 March 1944, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; bass) and David Walker (b. 12 May 1943, Montgomery, Alabama, USA; keyboards). Group leader Gary Lewis was the son of comedian Jerry Lewis and had been playing drums since the age of 14. After appearing at selected Hollywood parties, the ensemble was offered a residency at the Disneyland Park and soon after was signed by Liberty Records and producer Leon Russell. Their debut single, ‘This Diamond Ring’ (co-written by Al Kooper and originally intended for former idol, Bobby Vee), topped the American charts in February 1965 and spearheaded an remarkable run of Top 10 hits that included ‘Count Me In’, ‘Save Your Heart For Me’, ‘Everybody Loves A Clown’, ‘She’s Just My Style’, ‘She’s Gonna Miss Her’ and ‘Green Grass’. The latter, although written by UK composers Cook And Greenaway (alias David And Jonathan), predictably failed to make any impact in the UK market where the group remained virtually unknown.
Undoubtedly the bestselling US group of the mid-60s without a UK hit to their name, they nevertheless enjoyed healthy record sales all over the world, appeared regularly on television, and even participated in a couple of low-budget movies, A Swingin’ Summer and Out Of Sight. Their relative decline in 1967 probably had less to do with changing musical fashions than the induction of Gary Lewis to the US Armed Forces. By the time of his discharge in 1968, a set of Playboys were ready to return him to the charts with a remake of Brian Hyland’s ‘Sealed With A Kiss’. A revival of the Cascades’ ‘Rhythm Of The Rain’ pointed to the fact that the group was running short of ideas while also indicating their future on the revivalist circuit. After disbanding the group at the end of the 60s, Lewis was unsuccessfully relaunched as a singer-songwriter but later assembled a new version of the Playboys for cabaret and festival dates.




Sunday, November 22, 2009

Coca Cola Commercials vol.2


From Jancy
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01 - The Seekers
02 - The Seekers
03 - Fontella Bass
04 - Tom Jones
05 - Tom Jones
06 - Petula Clark
07 - Petula Clark = 06 long version
08 - Jay & The Americans
09 - Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders
10 - Jan & Dean
11 - Freddie Cannon
12 - Freddie Cannon
13 - Gary Lewis & The Playboys
14 - Gary Lewis & The Playboys
15 - Petula Clark
16 - Petula Clark
17 - Petula Clark = 16 long version
18 - The Supremes
19 - The Supremes = 18 long version
20 - The Supremes
21 - The Troggs
22 - The Troggs = 21 long version
23 - Lee Dorsey
24 - Lee Dorsey
25 - Leslie Gore
26 - Leslie Gore = 25 long version
27 - Leslie Gore
28 - The Vogues
29 - The Vogues = 28 long version
30 - The Vogues
31 - Roy Orbison
32 - Roy Orbison = 31 long version
33 - Roy Orbison
34 - Roy Orbison = 33 long version
35 - Roy Orbison
36 - Roy Orbison = 35 long version
37 - Roy Orbison
38 - The Drifters
39 - Ray Charles
40 - Nancy Sinatra
41 - Joe Tex
42 - Moody Blues
43 - Moody Blues = 42 long version
44 - The Fortunes
45 - Lulu
46 - Lulu
47 - The American Bread
48 - The American Bread
49 - Jay & The Techniques
50 - Jay & The Techniques
51 - Aretha Franklin
52 - Aretha Franklin

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