Search - Shangri-Las :: Leader of Pack

Rev It Up!

Avalon Don | Huntington Beach, California United States | 12/14/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The bad girls of early spoken word rock debut album is finally on CD. The sound is very good. The liner notes are a brief long page introduction. The song selection is respectable considering singles were emphasized on album until The Beach Boys "Pet Sounds". Shangri-Las fans will like the mini-pictured pink colored badge and black patch included with the disc. If the question to purchase is based on the live material, don't bother. It's early 1960's ying-yang on par with a high school dance along the line of The Rolling Stones "Got Live If You Want It". Volume levels are inconsistent. Luckily the excellent bonus tracks finish the CD on a high note. There was always something different about Mary Weiss and company that set them apart from what was going on back then. Was it the (A) Harmony (B) Mystique (C) Dark Approach (D) New York Drawl or (E) Adolescent Issues? Try (F) - All Of The Above. Newcomers should best turn to the collected "Myrmidons" (Black Cover) which has some stereo versions as compared to muddy sounds of the (Red) Mercury "Best Of" before picking this up. Until Grace Slick and Janis Joplin came along, The Shangri-Las and The Ronettes were "The Leader(s) Of The Pack" in female rock."

The Shangri-Las Debut Album on CD

KC Ryan | 02/28/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Shangri-Las "Leader of the Pack" is a 2007 reissue on CD of the February 1965 debut album for this fantastic girl-group from the Red Bird label. The album includes the Number 1 hit title song, and two other singles: "Remember (Walking In The Sand)" and "Give Him A Great Big Kiss" all from Red Bird in 1964, plus 'B' sides; and six 'live' tracks, including two songs: "Maybe" and "Shout" that were released as a single by Red Bird in December 1964. Also included are a reproduction of the original liner notes by Faith Whitehill, and two 'fan club' items: a swatch of decorated fabric possibly for a doll's jacket, and a color photo button. The CD is rounded out with five bonus tracks, all from the Red Bird label, including "Out In The Streets" (April 1965) and concluding with two songs: "He Cried" and "Dressed In Black" (April 1966). This CD was designed by Brian Perry, and issued in 2007 by Goldenlane Records, a division of Cleopatra Records, with catalog number CLP 2074. As other reviewers have mentioned, the sound quality, especially in tracks 7-12, is not uniform; but this is a reissue of a debut album that was possibly rushed into release to capitalize on the success of the title track; and this CD includes some tracks not readily available elsewhere. This 2007 release on CD is an enjoyable sampler of some of the Shangri-Las greatest hits; it is not intended to be definitive; for that see the "Myrmidons of Melodrama" CDs from RPM; but it is a good starting place for listeners who are discovering one of the finest girl-groups in music history."