Radio Gold - Bigger In Britain Various Artists (Radio Gold)

£11.70

Genre:
Pop
Label:
Ace Records
Format:
CD
Catalogue Id:
CDCHD 1362

Given how little opportunity there was to hear it on the radio in the 1950s and early 60s, it’s astonishing how much great American music found its way into the UK Top 40 at the time, via the few hours of needle time the BBC had at its disposal (which was largely devoted to UK artists anyway) and the in-and-out signal of Radio Luxembourg from the early evening through to the small hours of the morning.

But the limited exposure their records received did not prevent US favourites from becoming equally popular on this side of the Atlantic (if not more so, in some cases), particularly after the Musicians’ Union relaxed their rules about allowing American acts to tour here. Once artists started to appear here regularly, the amount of US records that breached the UK charts grew considerably and continued to grow until four young men from Liverpool came along in 1962 to forever change the face of pop. Those who did visit regularly found that UK tours kept the big hits coming, often extending careers that were in recession on their home turf.

With that in mind, it’s good to be able to hail the return of our popular “Radio Gold” series with a project that concentrates on memorable US singles from the UK Top 40 that didn’t do as well in the land of their origin. It beggars belief that some of the titles that were “Bigger In Britain” fared so modestly on the US Hot 100 and that a good many of them did not chart at all back home. Virtually all of the featured tracks are so much a part of our musical lives that anybody could be forgiven for thinking that each and every one of them was a global smash.

It’s pleasing to be able to note that 23 of our 24 featured tracks have never appeared on Ace CD in any form, The only one that has, Brenda Lee’s superb ‘Here Comes That Feelin’’, appears here in its mono single take rather than in the stereo version with an alternate vocal heard on her “Queen Of Rock’n’Roll” CD. The content may be varied but it amply reflects the way we bought our singles back then, when artists such as Perry Como and Eddie Cochran rubbing chart shoulders was not as anomalous as it might appear from a distance of more than 50 years.

If you’re looking to relive the days when Pick Of The Pops was the highlight of every young record buyer’s week, look no further than this collection of household hits by household names. “Bigger In Britain”? Not ‘arf, Pop Pickers!


By Tony Rounce

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Track listing

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Side 1

  • 01 Preview Blue Bayou - Roy Orbison

  • 02 Preview Reminiscing - Buddy Holly

  • 03 Preview Giddy-Up-A Ding Dong - Freddie Bell & The Bell Boys

  • 04 Preview Swinging On A Star - Big Dee Irwin

  • 05 Preview Multiplication - Bobby Darin

  • 06 Preview My Little Girl - The Crickets

  • 07 Preview Welcome To My World - Jim Reeves

  • 08 Preview When Mexico Gave Up The Rhumba - Mitchell Torok

  • 09 Preview My Way - Eddie Cochran

  • 10 Preview Here Comes That Feelin' - Brenda Lee

  • 11 Preview Rockin' Through The Rye - Bill Haley & His Comets

  • 12 Preview Mountain Greenery - Mel Torme

  • 13 Preview Two Kinds Of Teardrops - Del Shannon

  • 14 Preview Pistol Packin' Mama - Gene Vincent & The Beat Boys

  • 15 Preview I'm Not A Juvenile Delinquent - Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers

  • 16 Preview Johnny Will - Pat Boone

  • 17 Preview The Folk Singer - Tommy Roe

  • 18 Preview I Dig You Baby - Marvin Rainwater

  • 19 Preview The Ballad Of Paladin - Duane Eddy

  • 20 Preview English Country Garden - Jimmie Rodgers

  • 21 Preview Mona Lisa - Conway Twitty

  • 22 Preview How Many Tears - Bobby Vee

  • 23 Preview Love Makes The World Go Round (Yeah Yeah) - Perry Como

  • 24 Preview Rawhide - Frankie Laine

Delivery & Returns

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We offer free P&P to UK addresses. For all other territories packaging is free and postage is charged on a weight basis.

We use Royal Mail First Class for UK deliveries and standard Air Mail for all other territories, very large orders will usually be sent via parcelforce. You may cancel your order at any time prior to your order being dispatched by emailing us at orders@acerecords.com ensuring that you quote your name, address and order reference number or by telephoning +44 (0) 208 453 1311 between 9am and 5pm GMT/BST, Monday to Friday. Please note: As music downloads are dispatched immediately after purchase, there is no possibility of cancelling these orders.

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You have the right to cancel your order within seven days of purchase, or seven days of receipt of the goods (whichever is the longer). If you choose to cancel your order, full payment will be returned to you. Returned items should be sent to: “Returns” c/o Ace Records, Such Close, Letchworth Garden City SG6 1JF, United Kingdom. Music downloads should be returned to us via the email address: orders@acerecords.com including a copy of your notice of cancellation and order number.

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