MICKEY LEE LANE ROCKIN' ON...AND BEYOND NEW CD

Description: Additional Information from InnerSleeve Product Description This is an interesting yet flawed overview of the career of the odd and periodically compelling Mickey Lee Lane, one of the more curious figures on the periphery of the 1960s Brill Building scene. Not that Lane was at the heart of the Brill Building tradition, just that he was in that milieu, scuffling to get songs recorded, experimenting with studio production, and making some records of his own. Much of this 33-song CD is devoted to his best and most well-known ("well-known" being a highly relative term here) work for Swan in the mid-'60s. The highlights are certainly the soul-rock dance novelties "The Senior Class," "Shaggy Dog," "The Zoo," and "Hey Sah-Lo-Ney," which are in some senses crass attempts to capitalize on hit formulas of the day, yet performed with a cheerful sense of outrageousness and committed earthy fun. "She Cried to Me," "Little Girl (I Was Wrong)," and "She Don't Want To" are certainly lighter and more superficial pop tunes, yet catchy and enjoyable despite themselves. There's also his cover of "Tutti Frutti," which was rated by Little Richard biographer Charles White as the best version other than Little Richard's, although really it doesn't sound as exciting as that might lead you to expect. Interspersed with the '60s material (and some flotsam from the late '50s), however, are all manner of jams and bits of pieces (several less than a minute long) from unreleased recordings, sometimes serving as unnecessary link tracks, and not all that inspired. What's more, some of the CD's songs are obviously from the late '50s and '60s, yet given the date of 1997 on the track listings. One could assume that this means they are unreleased or have been slightly altered from their original demo form with additional overdubbed parts. Yet even after reading the extensive liner notes several times over, it's unclear where many of the songs came from, what year they were recorded, and whether they were subjected to remixes or overdubs. For that matter, the odd, bluesy folk-rocker "Something to Live On," with really eerie reverbed harmonica, is identified as a 1959 recording on the track listings, yet discussed as a late-'60s cut in the liner notes themselves, so who's to say if there aren't more such mistakes? This patchwork assembly job makes the music more difficult to appreciate and, most important, to listen to in one sitting, and if you're motivated enough to seek out a Mickey Lee Lane CD in the first place, you'll probably agree that he deserves better. Of course, he and his brother assembled the anthology themselves, so it's not as though a wrong-headed record label is accountable. ~ Richie Unterberger About InnerSleeve We offer unbeatable prices, quick shipping times and a wide selection of vinyl. Purchases come with a 30-day Satisfaction Guarantee (minus Shipping & Handling fees) on all unopened products. All items are from licensed Distributors. We do not deal with any Bootleg or Used items!

Price: 19.25 USD

Location: North Carolina

End Time: 2025-01-27T08:33:22.000Z

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