Gold

by

The Righteous Brothers

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For years, the definitive Righteous Brothers collection was Rhino's 1989 2-disc ANTHOLOGY. With that release long out of print, Polydor's 48-track GOLD fills the void nicely. (And at $14.99, makes Polydor's 1990 12-track ANTHOLOGY obsolete.)

The term "blue-eyed soul" may not have originated specifically to describe the Righteous Brothers, but they were the epitome of the genre. If Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield had never recorded anything other than the classic "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'," they still would have earned a special place in rock 'n' roll history. It is the perfect example of Phil Spector's Wall of Sound recording technique.

The songs are presented chronologically (according to their original recording dates), beginning with their 1962-63 Moonglow recordings (tracks 1-15). Their highest charting single during this period was the Bill Medley original "Little Latin Lupe Lu" (#49, 1963). [Note: It would become a top 20 hit three years later for Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels.]

The Righteous Brothers hit their stride after teaming up with producer Phil Spector on the Philles label (tracks 16-24), including such classics as "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" (which was a No. 1 hit in both the U.S. and the U.K.), "Just Once in My Life," "Unchained Melody" and "Ebb Tide."

In early 1966, MGM bought out their contract and released their debut single for the label on the subsidiary Verve (disc two, tracks 1-9). "(You're My) Soul and Inspiration" was produced by Medley and went straight to No. 1 and sold more than a million copies. Unfortunately, it would be their last top 10 single until the reunion single "Rock and Roll Heaven" went to No. 3 in 1974.

From 1968 to mid-1974, Medley and Hatfield pursued solo careers. All three of Medley's charting singles are included ["I Can't Make It Alone" (#95), "Brown Eyed Woman" (#43) and "Peace Brother Peace" (#48)], but Hatfield's lone charting single "Nothing Is Too Good for You" (#84) is not. However, there are several non-charting singles from both, including Hatfield's "Hang Ups" and "My Prayer."

GOLD finishes with their final two reunion singles, "Give it to the People" (#20) and "Dream On" (#32), both from 1974. With the recent death of Bobby Hatfield, GOLD stands as a testimony of the lasting impact of their music. ESSENTIAL