LOU CHRISTIE - GYPSY BELLS - COLUMBIA RECORDINGS 1967

UK collection. At long last, a CD full of the falsetto pop king's wonderful Columbia recordings - including all the singles and 15 previously unreleased masters. Lou Christie's four-octave range is one of the most exciting and readily identifiable sounds of 1960s pop. Gypsy Bells uncovers a rather confusing and largely buried chunk of the Christie catalogue. His co-manager Stan Polley engineered a switch from MGM to Columbia at the peak of his fame, less than a year after 'Lightnin' Strikes' had been a US #1, and such a monster hit that it had pushed two cash-ins from Christie's previous labels into Billboard's Hot 100 in it's wake. No question, Lou Christie was hot at the start of 1967. It felt like Columbia couldn't really fail. They wisely kept on producer/arranger Charlie Calello - who, in 1967, was also working with the 4 Seasons, the Cyrkle and Laura Nyro - as he'd given 'Lightnin' Strikes' it's irresistible, dynamic energy. The label sat back and waited for more sparks to fly. The titles of Christie's Columbia singles alone spelled out a confidence in his unique vision: 'Back To The Days Of The Romans', 'Self Expression (The Kids On The Street Will Never Give In)', 'Shake Hands And Walk Away Cryin', 'Don't Stop Me (Jump Off The Edge Of Love)'. Commercially, though, the results of his time at Columbia would be a crushing disappointment. If either had done better, then there would have been a Lou Christie album released in late 1967. There were more than enough songs recorded but a paltry six were released at the time.

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