The Leiber & Stoller Story, Vol. 2: On the Horizon 1956-1962

by Leiber & Stoller

Overview

The second of Ace Records' chronological three-volume history of legendary songwriters and producers Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller picks up the story in 1956 and carries it through 1962 (the first volume, called Hard Times: The Los Angeles Years, covers 1951 to 1956), with the center shifting to New York City. This isn't a greatest-hits survey of Leiber & Stoller's career, although some of the big hits are certainly here, but it focuses instead on more obscure releases and versions of the pair's songs, making this a record collector's dream but not the place to find all the classic singles by the Drifters, the Coasters, Big Mama Thornton, and the other artists the duo worked with (all of that material is easily available elsewhere, however). So instead of Ben E. King's famous version of "Spanish Harlem," listeners get one by another former Drifters lead singer, Clyde McPhatter, and in place of the Robins' rendition of "Smokey Joe's Cafe," there is a fascinating version by Buddy Holly, who cut it a month before he died. Some of the covers are fascinating combinations of artists to songs, like skiffle king Lonnie Donegan's marvelous version of "Sorry, But I'm Gonna Have to Pass" from 1961, which is a pleasing blend of pop and country over a subtle baion rhythm on an obscure song that had previously only been a B-side for the Drifters. Then there's Muhammad Ali's (he was then still known as Cassius Clay) surprisingly passable turn at Ben E. King's "Stand by Me" from 1964, a track that is admittedly more a curio than a necessity, but is still worth hearing. There are other obscure gems here, too, like Young Jessie's (Obediah Donnell Jessie) "Here Comes Henry," which features his vocal dubbed over the backing track for "Shattered Dreams" by the Youngsters, but emerges as fresh as if the whole thing were a completely live recording. Not everything is an obscure cover, though. The original single of "Alligator Wine" by Screamin' Jay Hawkins is collected here, in all its manic strangeness, as is the debut production Leiber & Stoller did for the Drifters, "There Goes My Baby," which features an innovative string arrangement from Stanley Applebaum set over a subtle South American rhythm. Atlantic's Jerry Wexler, upon first hearing "There Goes My Baby," hated it, calling it "an exercise in cacophony," and was stunned when it soared to the top spot on the R&B charts in 1959. Needless to say, he made sure Leiber & Stoller kept working with the Drifters. This second volume in the Leiber & Stoller story, like the first, is a fascinating listen, and the rarities it contains makes it something special and not just another greatest-hits saga. ~ Steve Leggett

Product Details

Release Date:	07/25/2006
Label:	Ace
UPC:	0029667020527
Rank:	108533

Tracks

1. Love Potion No. 9  -  Clovers  - Jerry Leiber  - Mike Stoller
2. Here Comes Henry  - Jerry Leiber  - George Motola  - Mike Stoller  -  Young Jessie
3. One Kiss Led to Another  -  Coasters  - Jerry Leiber  - Mike Stoller
4. Lucky Lips  - Ruth Brown  - Jerry Leiber  - Mike Stoller
5. Old Fashioned  -  Dillard  - Jerry Leiber  - Mike Stoller
6. Smokey Joe's Caf¿¿  - Buddy Holly  - Jerry Leiber  - Mike Stoller
7. Alligator Wine  - Screamin' Jay Hawkins  - Jerry Leiber  - Mike Stoller
8. There Goes My Baby  -  Drifters  - Jerry Leiber  - Benjamin Nelson  - Lover Patterson  - Mike Stoller  - George Treadwell
9. Lips  - Roy Hamilton  - Jerry Leiber  - Mike Stoller
10. You're the Boss  - LaVern Baker  - Jerry Leiber  - Jimmy Ricks  - Mike Stoller
11. Spanish Harlem  - Jerry Leiber  - Clyde McPhatter
12. Your Old Lady  -  Isley Brothers  - OKelly Isley  - Jerry Leiber  - Curtis Ousley  - Mike Stoller
13. An Open Fire  - Jerry Leiber  - Johnny Mathis  - Mike Stoller
14. I'm a Woman  - Christine Kittrell  - Jerry Leiber  - Mike Stoller
15. Sorry, But I'm Gonna Have to Pass  - Lonnie Donegan  - Jerry Leiber  - Mike Stoller
16. On the Horizon  - Ben E. King  - Jerry Leiber  - Mike Stoller
17. What's Wrong with Me and You  - Jerry Leiber  - Babs Tino
18. Yes  -  Jay & the Americans  - Jerry Leiber  - Mike Stoller
19. Keep Tellin' Yourself  - Ellie Greenwich  - Marv Johnson  - Jerry Leiber  - Tony Powers  - Mike Stoller
20. Bossa Nova Baby  - Jerry Leiber  - Mike Stoller  -  Tippie & The Clovers
21. Some Other Guy  - Richard Barrett  - Jerry Leiber  - Mike Stoller
22. Searchin'  - Jerry Leiber  - Alvin Robinson  - Mike Stoller
23. Stand by Me  - Muhammad Ali  - Jerry Leiber  - Benjamin Nelson  - Mike Stoller
24. Caf¿¿ Espresso  -  Leiber & Stoller Orchestra  - Jerry Leiber  - Mike Stoller

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Leiber & Stoller   Primary Artist
Johnny Mathis   Primary Artist
Lonnie Donegan   Primary Artist
Roy Hamilton   Primary Artist
Screamin' Jay Hawkins   Primary Artist
Richard Barrett   Primary Artist
Marv Johnson   Primary Artist
Tippie & The Clovers   Primary Artist
Buddy Holly   Primary Artist
Young Jessie   Primary Artist
The Isley Brothers   Primary Artist
Jimmy Ricks   Primary Artist
LaVern Baker   Primary Artist
Ruth Brown   Primary Artist
Jay & the Americans   Primary Artist
Muhammad Ali   Primary Artist
Leiber & Stoller Orchestra   Primary Artist
Babs Tino   Primary Artist
Varetta Dillard & The Cookies   Primary Artist
Alvin Robinson   Primary Artist
The Clovers   Primary Artist
The Coasters   Primary Artist
The Drifters   Primary Artist
Christine Kittrell   Primary Artist
Clyde McPhatter   Primary Artist
Ben E. King   Primary Artist
Mike Stoller   Conductor
Alan Lorber   Conductor
Stan Applebaum   Conductor
Leroy Kirkland   Conductor

Technical Credits

Rob Finnis   Photo Courtesy
Joe Sherman   Direction,Arranger
Jerry Leiber   Composer,Producer,Vocal Producer
Jerry Wexler   Producer
Richard Barrett   Composer
Norman Petty   Producer
O'Kelly Isley   Composer
Mike Stoller   Arranger,Composer,Producer,Vocal Producer
Alan Lorber   Arranger
Buddy Holly   Vocal Producer
George Treadwell   Composer
Mitch Miller   Producer
Ahmet Ertegun   Producer
Stan Applebaum   Arranger
Curtis Ousley   Composer
Benjamin Nelson   Composer
Ray Ellis   Arranger
Arnold Maxin   Producer
Adam Skeaping   Mastering
Garry Sherman   Direction
Tony Powers   Composer
George Motola   Composer,Producer
Shelby Singleton   Producer
Mick Patrick   Liner Notes
Fred Norman   Arranger
Ellie Greenwich   Composer
Tony Rounce   Archive Research
Lover Patterson   Composer