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From the Vault...
07/21/2002
#795 |
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info
The Teddy Bears
"To Know Him Is To Love Him"
© Dove Records
Year of Release: n/a<
Rating:
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track listing
To Know Him
Is To Love Him
Don't Worry
My Little Pet
Wonderful
Lovable You
Say You'll Be Mine
Oh Why
I Don't Need You
Anymore
If You Only Knew
You Said Goodbye
Don't Go Away
Seven Lonely Days
If I Give My Heart
To You
My Foolish Heart
Little Things
Mean A Lot
Long Ago And
Far Away
Tammy
Unchained Melody
True Love
To Know Him Is
To Love Him (Live)
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WSVNRadio Archives
The Teddy Bears related sites:
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The Teddy Bears
"To Know Him Is To Love Him"
The Teddy Bears were famous for one song: A song that was written by
Phil Spector in 1958, "To Know Him Is To Love Him." The song has an
interesting story: The phrase "to know him is to love him" came from his
mother, regarding Spector's late father. Spector took the phrase, and turned
it into a song that would become part of Rock N Roll History. This album was
reissued recently; it is the original 1958 release.
The typical 1950s sound is heard on "Don't Worry My Little Pet,"
with its male-dominated vocal (Marshall Leib). Likewise, the 1950s doo wop
is heard on "Wonderful, Lovable You."
"Say You'll Be Mine" has a more surf sound, being this album was
recorded in 1958, it was a sound that was yet to come. It's mostly
instrumental, with some "wah wah" vocals.
"Oh Why," "I Don't Need You Anymore" (both written by Spector),
and "If You Only Knew" features Annette Bard on vocals. They are
all nice, very well-done 1950s ballads. "If You Only Knew" has the
somewhat same accompanient, musically and vocally as "To Know Him Is To
Love Him." Another tune written by Spector also has a great early 1950s
sound, "Don't Go Away."
"You Said Goodbye," written by Spector, has a great sound;
its the typical heartbreak tune, and the sound can be compared to certain
tunes from the 1950s movie starring Sylvester Stallone and Henry Winkler,
The Lords of Flatbush.
"Seven Lonely Days" is very upbeat, and can be compared that of
Les Paul & Mary Ford, easily fitting the pre-Rock Adult Contemporary
era/format. "If I Give My Heart To You" has the piano standing out
on this particular tune, as it would be used in much later years and decades
in country music.
If you're familar with the format of "pre-Rock Adult Contemporary" (music
of the early 1940s to early 1955), there are a number of songs that easily
fits this format: "My Foolish Heart, "Little Things Mean A Lot"
(Kitty Kallen reached #1 with this song in 1954), "Tammy" (Debbie
Reynolds reached #1 with this song in 1957; the difference between Reynolds
and The Teddy Bears version is the orchestration. String accompaniment was
used on Reynolds version, where the guitar is mostly its main instrument on
The Teddy Bears version). "True Love" also fits the pre-Rock AC
category.
"Long Ago And Far Away" has well-done doo wop background vocals,
having the typical early 1950s Rock sound. "Unchained Melody" maybe
a bit uptempo than the famous Righteous Brothers version, yet this song is
a classic in any shape or form.
The closing tune is a live version of "To Know Him Is To Love Him."
Incredibly, there is hardly a difference than the live version as compared to
the studio version, yet the live version does have a more mono sound, and
audience applause at the beginning and end.
The songs that features Annette Bard's vocals are the standouts. This
album as a whole easily fits the early years of Rock and Roll, and most notably,
the pre-Rock to early years of Rock and Roll radio formats. The song "To
Know Him Is To Love Him" is easily recognized as one of early Rock's most
memorable tunes, yet the artists known as The Teddy Bears may not be as easily
recognized. Also, the song was written by Phil Spector, who would
later become a dominant record producer in the 1960s, creating a "wall of sound"
that would make famous the careers as The Ronettes and Darlene Love. It would
also be an inspiration to Brian Wilson, where he incorporated Spector's sound
into the music of The Beach Boys. In later decades, the trio of Linda Ronstadt,
Dolly Parton and Emmylou Harris would take "To Know Him Is To Love Him"
to #1 on the Country chart.
For the early discoverer of Rock music, it's fun to listen to other tunes by
The Teddy Bears, other than their most famous hit, "To Know Him Is To Love
Him." To some, they maybe considered a one-hit wonder. In a sense that
is true in only looking at what became most popular in their career. The album
To Know Him Is To Love Him is the original 1958 release that would feature
their only #1 hit, and become part of Rock and Roll History.
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Review or any portion may not be reproduced
without written permission. Cover art is the
intellectual property of
Dove Records
and is used for reference purposes only.
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