The Sound Of Love: The Very Best Of Darlene Love [Original recording remastered, Import]

"The Sound of Love: The Very Best of Darlene Love," comes to us with some of the signature songs by one of America's greatest, under-recognized, vocalists, finally, as of 2011, voted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Some of the songs on here have been many-times released, but might nevertheless be largely out of print. Others might not have been released when originally recorded, or for a puzzlingly long while.

Music legend Phil Spector himself hand-picked Love as a singer, for his immortal Phillies label, and the "Wall of Sound" technique he perfected. And he used her here, there and everywhere, in places you might not expect to find her. Spector, a shrewd man once upon a time, also suggested she take "Love" as a stage name: she says she always mistrusted Spector, we now know with very good cause, so she later legally changed her surname. She was, in fact, born Darlene Wright, a preacher's daughter, and is actually the sister of Betty Wright, who also sings a bit. (Betty Wright is a one hit wonder: she had a monster in "The Cleanup Woman," which, I understand was the first U.S. hit set to a Caribbean beat.)

At any rate, Love's is widely considered the voice that launched a hundred hits. During the 1960's mega girl-group era, she sang backup for artists like Sam Cooke, Elvis Presley, Doris Day, Nat King Cole, Cher, Dionne Warwick, the Righteous Brothers, Tom Jones and many others. She is surely also on some of Spector's greatest hits: every voice on the supposedly Crystals' "Da Doo Ron Ron" was hers; as was every voice on any Bobby Sox and the Blue Jeans hit. She played Maybelle Motormouth for three years in the Broadway production of "Hairspray:" (Queen Latifah took the part in the film.) Love co-starred with Mel Gibson and Danny Glover in all four of the Lethal Weapon 1-4 [Blu-ray] films. She also appeared in the last film made by Elvis Presley, in 1969,Change Of Habit [DVD] [1969], with Mary Tyler Moore. Love has long been a favorite of American TV personality David Letterman's; she has performed on his Late Night Christmas special since 1986. Her music has also been featured on over 22 movies soundtracks.

Some of the songs on this DVD are:
He's Sure the Boy I Love
He's a Rebel
Today I Met the Boy I'm Gonna Marry
Why Do Lovers Break Each Others Hearts?
Not Too Young to Get Married
Wait Til My Bobby Gets Home
Run Run Runaway
Lord, If You're a Woman

Many reviewers have commented on the absence of her great Christmas song, "Christmas Baby, Won't You Please Come Home," available on Phil Spector's memorable Christmas album. And I miss two of my favorites, "Da Doo Ran Ran," supposedly by The Crystals, and "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah," initially credited to Bob B. Soxx and the Blue Jeans. And some have commented negatively on the relative paucity of her material on here. This CD probably won't satisfy her biggest fans, but it will satisfy most of us, and is fine for people just coming to her work. Furthermore, and its biggest strength: it's available. Love is a great, longtime favorite of mine, and I've managed to read her autobiography, long out of print, and hard to find, unfortunately: My Name is Love: The Darlene Love Story. I've also managed to see her several times. At least twice at New York's late, lamented club, the Bottom Line (a site now absorbed into New York University), doing her Christmas show with Ronnie Spector, another of Spector's great stars, and also a long-time favorite of mine. And at New York's Central Park, in an open-air show with Nona Hendryx. And Love is still performing, if you ever get a chance at her: she may be no spring chicken, but her voice has lost none of its personality or power.

One of the finest singers of her era, Darlene Love's long overdue induction into the rock'n'roll Hall of Fame in 2011 is well deserved. All but one of these recordings were made between 1958 and 1965, with the exception being from 1975.

Darlene had her biggest successes with groups, although nine of the tracks here are solo recordings. The group recordings feature three tracks each from the Blossoms (a 1958 cover of No other love and two sixties tracks produced by Jimmy Bowen, who later became an important country music producer) and Bob B Soxx and the Blue Jeans (including Why do lovers break each other's hearts) and two Crystals tracks (He's a rebel and He's sure the boy I love). Darlene was not a regular member of the Crystals, but she certainly brought something a little different to their music.

Three minor American solo hits (Today I met the boy I'm gonna marry, Wait till my Bobby gets home, A fine fine boy) are featured along with one of their B-sides (My heart beats a little faster) and some other excellent solo tracks that one doesn't normally come across. The 1975 recording (Lord if you're a woman) is a little different, but I prefer the earlier music.

Along the way, Darlene recorded plenty of backing vocals on other people's records, though of course none are featured here although some are mentioned in the liner notes.

Apart from the music here, Darlene also features strongly in A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector. I'm not sure how much music Darlene actually recorded as a lead singer, but while I'd like to see a more comprehensive compilation, all the essentials are here except for those Christmas tracks, which should be very easy to find at the appropriate time of year if you haven't already got them.

Darlene Love as Darlene Wright was nothing to do with Betty Wright though she had a sister called Edna who was in the Honeycone.
Whcih makes me wonder whether people review CDs without knowing the first thing about the artists-the booklet for instance makes no mention of Betty Wright who was no more a relation than my penfriend Ginny Wright.
This is the 2nd Darlene Love collection-the first was on Ace last year.
At least the sleeve photos on both are a vast improvement on the Warhol looking sleeve of the 70s LP.
But why no mention of the Rebelettes?