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A close look at this album reveals just how ambitious Atlantic Records could be in the early 1960s, in generating LPs. Technically speaking, Ben E. King's debut long-player is a concept album -- or, at least, a thematic album. Put together in the wake of his first solo hit, "Spanish Harlem," a Latin flavor and beat run all the way through this 12-song platter, which, at times, is really more of a pop record than a soul record. The dense, busy string section that characterized most of King's work of this era is present, and a lot of his singing may recall more the work of Sammy Davis, Jr. than that of any R&B artist one might think of from this period. And apart from the Jerry Leiber/Phil Spector co-authored title hit, most of what is here dates from a decade or more (sometimes several) earlier -- "Frenesi," "Besame Mucho," and "Perfidia" were standards during the big-band era, and most of the rest is of similar or even older vintage. All of which doesn't mean that it is bad -- King's version of "Besame Mucho" is a very successful reinterpretation in a Latin soul vein, and "Perfidia" never sounded better than it does in his hands, even if it and a lot of the rest is a long way from what most of us define as "soul." And for better or worse, the production is first-rate within the context of King's established sound, with a phenomenal string section and a percussion section to die for.
© Bruce Eder /TiVo
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Sunny Skylar, Writer - Ricardo López Méndez, Writer - Romeo Penque, Flute - Ben E. King, Vocals, MainArtist - Gary Chester, Drums - Jerry Leiber, Producer - Mike Stoller, Producer - Danny Kessler, Percussion - Alan Hanlon, Guitar - George Barnes, Guitar - George Duvivier, Double Bass - Moe Weschler, Piano - Gabriel Ruíz, Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing ℗ 1960 Atlantic Recording Corporation for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
Romeo Penque, Flute - Ben E. King, Vocals, MainArtist - Gary Chester, Drums - Jerry Leiber, Producer - Mike Stoller, Producer - Danny Kessler, Percussion - Alan Hanlon, Guitar - George Barnes, Guitar - George Duvivier, Double Bass - Moe Weschler, Piano - Norman Gimbel, Writer - Pablo Beltrán Ruiz, Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing ℗ 1961 Atlantic Records
Romeo Penque, Flute - Ben E. King, Vocals, MainArtist - Gary Chester, Drums - Jerry Leiber, Producer - Mike Stoller, Producer - Danny Kessler, Percussion - Alan Hanlon, Guitar - George Barnes, Guitar - George Duvivier, Double Bass - Moe Weschler, Piano - Osvaldo Farrés, Writer - Al Stewart, Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing ℗ 1961 Atlantic Records
Romeo Penque, Flute - Ben E. King, Vocals, MainArtist - Gary Chester, Drums - Jerry Leiber, Producer - Mike Stoller, Producer - Danny Kessler, Percussion - Alan Hanlon, Guitar - George Barnes, Guitar - George Duvivier, Double Bass - Moe Weschler, Piano - Alberto Domínguez, Writer - Milton Leeds, Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing ℗ 1961 Atlantic Records
Romeo Penque, Flute - Ben E. King, Vocals, MainArtist - Gary Chester, Drums - Jerry Leiber, Producer - Mike Stoller, Producer - Danny Kessler, Percussion - Alan Hanlon, Guitar - George Barnes, Guitar - George Duvivier, Double Bass - Moe Weschler, Piano - Dorothy Dodd, Writer - Aguirre del Pino Agustin Lara, Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing ℗ 1961 Atlantic Records
Romeo Penque, Flute - Ben E. King, Vocals, MainArtist - Gary Chester, Drums - Jerry Leiber, Producer - Mike Stoller, Producer - Danny Kessler, Percussion - Alan Hanlon, Guitar - George Barnes, Guitar - George Duvivier, Double Bass - Moe Weschler, Piano - Otilio Portal, Writer - Geroge Thorn, Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing ℗ 1961 Atlantic Records
Romeo Penque, Flute - Ben E. King, Vocals, MainArtist - Gary Chester, Drums - Jerry Leiber, Producer - Mike Stoller, Producer - Danny Kessler, Percussion - Alan Hanlon, Guitar - George Barnes, Guitar - George Duvivier, Double Bass - Moe Weschler, Piano - Osvaldo Farrés, Writer - Joe Davis, Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing ℗ 1961 Atlantic Records
S.K. Russell, Writer - Romeo Penque, Flute - Leonard Whitcup, Writer - Ben E. King, Vocals, MainArtist - Gary Chester, Drums - Jerry Leiber, Producer - Mike Stoller, Producer - Danny Kessler, Percussion - Alan Hanlon, Guitar - George Barnes, Guitar - George Duvivier, Double Bass - Moe Weschler, Piano - Charles Carpenter, Writer - Borras Alberto Dominguez, Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing ℗ 1961 Atlantic Records
Romeo Penque, Flute - Ben E. King, Vocals, MainArtist - Gary Chester, Drums - Jerry Leiber, Producer - Mike Stoller, Producer - Danny Kessler, Percussion - Alan Hanlon, Guitar - Doc Pomus, Writer - George Barnes, Guitar - George Duvivier, Double Bass - Moe Weschler, Piano - Morty Shuman, Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing ℗ 1961 Atlantic Records
Sunny Skylar, Writer - Romeo Penque, Flute - Ben E. King, Vocals, MainArtist - Gary Chester, Drums - Jerry Leiber, Producer - Mike Stoller, Producer - Danny Kessler, Percussion - Alan Hanlon, Guitar - George Barnes, Guitar - George Duvivier, Double Bass - Moe Weschler, Piano - Consuelo Velázquez, Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing ℗ 1961 Atlantic Records
Romeo Penque, Flute - Ben E. King, Vocals, Writer, MainArtist - Gary Chester, Drums - Jerry Leiber, Producer - Mike Stoller, Producer - Danny Kessler, Percussion - Alan Hanlon, Guitar - George Barnes, Guitar - George Duvivier, Double Bass - Moe Weschler, Piano
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing ℗ 1961 Atlantic Records
Romeo Penque, Flute - Ben E. King, Vocals, MainArtist - Gary Chester, Drums - Jerry Leiber, Producer, Writer - Mike Stoller, Producer - Danny Kessler, Percussion - Alan Hanlon, Guitar - George Barnes, Guitar - George Duvivier, Double Bass - Moe Weschler, Piano - PHIL SPECTOR, Writer
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing ℗ 1960 Atlantic Recording Corporation for the United States and WEA International Inc. for the world outside of the United States.
Album review
A close look at this album reveals just how ambitious Atlantic Records could be in the early 1960s, in generating LPs. Technically speaking, Ben E. King's debut long-player is a concept album -- or, at least, a thematic album. Put together in the wake of his first solo hit, "Spanish Harlem," a Latin flavor and beat run all the way through this 12-song platter, which, at times, is really more of a pop record than a soul record. The dense, busy string section that characterized most of King's work of this era is present, and a lot of his singing may recall more the work of Sammy Davis, Jr. than that of any R&B artist one might think of from this period. And apart from the Jerry Leiber/Phil Spector co-authored title hit, most of what is here dates from a decade or more (sometimes several) earlier -- "Frenesi," "Besame Mucho," and "Perfidia" were standards during the big-band era, and most of the rest is of similar or even older vintage. All of which doesn't mean that it is bad -- King's version of "Besame Mucho" is a very successful reinterpretation in a Latin soul vein, and "Perfidia" never sounded better than it does in his hands, even if it and a lot of the rest is a long way from what most of us define as "soul." And for better or worse, the production is first-rate within the context of King's established sound, with a phenomenal string section and a percussion section to die for.
© Bruce Eder /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 12 track(s)
- Total length: 00:31:18
- Main artists: Ben E. King
- Label: Rhino Atlantic
- Genre: Soul/Funk/R&B Soul
© 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing ℗ 2005 Atlantic Recording Corp. Manufactured & Marketed by Warner Strategic Marketing
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