James Darren
Even more than the typical teen idol, James Darren's roots in authentic rock & roll were tenuous. Darren began recording for Colpix in the late '50s at the beginning of a screen career that saw him star in numerous films, most notably Gidget. More at home with standard MOR, show tune-like material than rock, and not much of a singer in any case, Darren was nonetheless marketed as a pop/rock performer to his predominantly young female constituency. He ran off quite a few novelty-tinged hit singles in the early '60s, of which "Goodbye Cruel World," which made number three, was the biggest and best. Top Brill Building pop songwriters -- including the Goffin-King, Mann-Weil, and Pomus-Shuman teams, as well as Bob Crewe, Gloria Shayne, and Howard Greenfield -- gave Darren material, albeit material that was well below their usual standards. He recorded quite a bit after his early-'60s heyday, reaching the Top 40 in 1967 with "All" and charting as late as 1977 with "You Take My Heart Away." During the '90s, Darren co-starred on the Star Trek spin-off Deep Space Nine as hologram crooner Vic Fontaine, reprising songs from the series on the 1999 album This One's From the Heart.
© Richie Unterberger /TiVo
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Didn't We
Miscellaneous - Released by Warner Music Group - X5 Music Group on 24 Feb 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Hand In Hand
Jazz - Released by Black & Partner Licenses LLC on 3 May 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Music of Carole King - It Might As Well Rain Until September (Recordings of 1962)
James Darren, Ann-Margret, Paul Anka
Pop - Released by American Songbook Classics on 26 Jan 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Gettin' Gone
Country - Released by 5382659 Records DK on 15 Mar 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Album No. 1 (Mono Version)
Pop - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1961
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Needles (Atlantis Soundtrack)
Soundtracks - Released by 3659507 Records DK on 27 Mar 2022
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Better Late Than Never
Alternative & Indie - Released by Sondar Records on 29 Feb 2020
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Let It Snow
Jazz - Released by James Darren Corporation on 9 Oct 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Goodbye Cruel World
Jazz - Released by Stars and Stripes on 13 Oct 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Gypsy Woman (feat. Crystal Waters)
Dance - Released by Attic Recordings on 20 Sep 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Essential James Darren
Rock - Released by Classic Records on 9 Jan 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Goodbye Cruel World (Billboard Hot 100 - No. 03)
Alternative & Indie - Released by Music Manager on 19 Dec 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Presenting James Darren
Pop - Released by Universal Digital Enterprises on 3 Dec 1958
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo