Search - Various Artists :: Vee-Jay Story

Great collection - revived in '04

Phil S. | USA | 10/04/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It's amazing to take note of countless Vee Jay CDs and CD boxed sets over the years. There's alot of recycling. Look through your record collection - you might find you already have 60% of the product!

Well-selected discs, with well-written liner notes by Billy Vera.

A major impetus for me in buying Vee Jay product is the chance of finding even a few seconds of "new" sound by Little Richard, who has a generally impressive catalogue for the label. I was distressed to find that one track, qualified as previously unissued in the USA, was the B-side of a 1965 USA release, that another song was a near-hit with the same substandard fidelity as on the '64 release; it was nice to have the Soul Classic, "I Don't Know What You've Got But It's Got Me" in it's 4:44 glory. But historains and casual fans alike: there's a rarely used alternate take of the song, significantly different, which could have been used in place of the very accessible two tracks mentioned. One more thing on the King: with reports of alternate takes of "Dance What You Wanna", and a never issued track called "Thank You", plus the chance to offer (if available) stereo pressings of even one of those all too well-known remakes, the fan is left, once again...to wonder.

That does not degrade the collection over-all. Even LR might say...Oh My Soul! hearing Fred Hughes' [presumptive] reference disc for Bo Diddley's super "Ooh, Baby" from '67, or the Dells' "It's Not Unusual".

Of course, the songlist speaks for utself - what a label - providing top-drawer commercial and artistic successes in several genres.

Vee Jay is surely one of the foundational labels...but to repeat, check your carousel first."