ELLA SINGS THE BEATLES

Artist: ELLA FITZGERALD; Title: CAN'T BUY ME LOVE; Label: VERVE; Format: 7"; Cat. No.: VS 519; Year: 1964; Country: UK

Jazz themed post for today - inspired by a local jazz singer I've had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know recently. So Nina - this one's for you.

Released in 1964 this is Ella's take on the Beatles' "Can't Buy Me Love" - which until recently (ie last weekend) I didn't realize that she'd recorded at Abbey Road studios.  As she wanted to record her version in the studios where the original was created.  It's this rather excellent version, that Ella pretty makes her own, that open a lot of doors for Lennon & McCartney/The Beatles as it meant that the serious music establishment began to take notice of what they were doing. Plus also giving them a lot more creative control as a consequence.

The flip side is Ella's version of the Richard Rogers' "The Sweetest Sounds" - again recorded at Abbey Road - with arrangements like those on the A Side by Johnnie Spence.  Although I'm wondering who's the producer on this - was it Verve's label boss Norman Granz - or could it even be George Martin?

Artist: ELLA FITZGERALD; Title: SAVOY TRUFFLE; Label: REPRISE; Format: 7"; Cat. No.:RS 20875; Year: 1970; Country: UK

Next up this promo copy of the other Beatles track Ella did - and one that probably not a lot of people are aware she did.  A cover of George Harrison's "Savoy Truffle".  It's from Ella's first album for Reprise - and the parent LP also includes a cracking N. Soul styled version of 'Get Ready' as well as a sublime cover of Smokey's 'The Hunter Gets Captured By The Game'.  It comes within a year of another cover of George Harrison song - Sinatra's version of 'Something' which was also released on Reprise (and ironic that of all the Beatles songs out there - Ole Blue Eyes went for one of George's).  Back to the music, and again as Ella genereally does she makes the song pretty much her own.

The flip side is an okayish version of Bacharach & David's "I'll Never Fall In Love Again".

FRANCOISE SINGS THE SHIRELLES (AND BURT)!

Artist: Francoise Hardy; Title: L'Amour S'En Va; Label: Vogue; Format: 7"EP; Cat. No.: EPL. 8076; Year: 1963; Country: France

Kind of sticking my neck out on this one a little bit - but if I'm wrong then so be it!  Today's post is this 1963 EP from la belle Francoise.  The lead track is "L'Amour S'En Va" ('Love Goes Away' for the non-french speakers out there) and is the song that she sung when she represented Monaco in that year's Eurovision song contest, and the thing that stands out is that her voice is stronger with the jazz-flavoured backing and production of Marcel Hendrix. Good, but not as excellent as the subsequent UK recorded material with Charles Blackwell - which Francoise rates as her best work of the 1960s.  Side One's rounded off with "Je Pense A Lui" - English title 'Wonderful Dream' and again with the french translation penned by FH herself.

Side Two opens with the track that's the focus for this post - the excellent "L'Amour D'Un Garcon".  Written by Bacharach and David as 'The Love Of A Boy' and released by Dionne Warwick (B Side to her 2nd single issue in the UK on Pye International) this version sounds like Francoise's being very close attention to the work of The Shirelles, and her phrasing is pure Shirley Owens (lead Shirelle).  And here's my problem - after doing some digging I'm unable to come across a released Shirelles version of it - so whether they only cut a publishers demo, which Francoise subsequently heard (which would be ironic as Dionne Warwick famously started out doing demos for the bulk of Burt & Hal's tunes) is the best solution I can come up.  The last track on the EP is a Francoise original "Comme Tant D'Autres".

(THERE'S) ALWAYS SOMETHING THERE TO REMIND ME - THE ORIGINAL!

Artist: Lou Johnson. Title: (There's) Always Something There To Remind Me. Label: London. Format: 7". Country of of issue/origin: UK. Cat. No.: HLX 9917. Year: 1964.

Today's dig from the collection spotlights this '64 offering from Lou Johnson.  The A Side is the original version of "(There's) Always Something There To Remind Me" - and a UK hit for Sandie Shaw.  The song was penned by Burt Bacharach & Hal David and (like most of their songs in the 60's) demoed by Dionne Warwick - whose own version was issued in 1968.  The backing vocals are the so-called super sessioners - namely Doris Troy, Dee Dee Warwick, and Cissy Houston, and you can certainly hear Doris Troy and Dee Warwick on this one. Bacharach was intent on pushing this version as a potential hit here in the UK even bringing Lou Johnson over to promote the song, only for it be gazumped by Sandie Shaw's manager Eve Taylor getting her signing's version out before the Johnson original - a practice common with UK acts issuing their cover before the US original versions.  And guess who had the hit?

The flip side is a rather good N. Soul flavoured track in the shape of "Wouldn't That Be Something".  Although not having quite the dancefloor impact of Lou Johnson's subsequent 'Unsatisfied' issued the following year, this is still a bit of good 'un.  Valuewise, a mint copy of this is worth in the region of £25.