The Fleetwoods - Mr. Blue (1959)

Artist: The Fleetwoods
Title Of Album: Mr. Blue
Year Of Release: 1959 (CD 1997)
Label: Vanmeter Recordings
Genre: American Pop, Doo Wop
Quality: FLAC (image+.cue+.log)
Bitrate: Lossless
Total Time: 34:44
Total Size: 165 MB (Covers)

Gretchen Christopher, Barbara Ellis, and Gary Troxell formed the Fleetwoods while attending high school in Olympia, WA. Originally, the group consisted only of Christopher and Ellis, but the duo soon asked Troxell to accompany them on trumpet. Shortly after his arrival in the group, Troxell abandoned the trumpet and concentrated on singing once the other two members heard a portion of a song he had written. With some notable contributions from Christopher and Ellis, the group wrote "Come Softly to Me" and began performing the song at various events around Olympia, eventually gaining the attention of Bob Reisdorff, who ran the Seattle-based label Dolphin Records.

Dolphin released "Come Softly to Me" early in 1959 and the song became an instant hit, climbing to number one on the pop charts and number five on the R&B charts; it also reached the Top Ten in U.K. The Fleetwoods weren't able to immediately produce a follow-up single as successful as their debut, but their third single, "Mr. Blue," was a number one pop and Top Five R&B hit in the U.S. in late 1959. By the time of its release, Dolphin had changed its name to Dolton. For the next three years, the Fleetwoods had a string of minor pop hits. The group wasn't able to consistently place singles in the upper regions of the charts partially because Troxell was drafted into the Navy at the height of the group's popularity at the end of 1959. Troxell was replaced by Vic Dana, who would later have a string of his own hit singles in the early '60s.

The Fleetwoods' last Top Ten single arrived in the spring of 1961, when "Tragedy" climbed the U.S. charts. The group disbanded two years later, after releasing its final single, a cover of Jesse Belvin's "Goodnight My Love." Over the next three decades, the Fleetwoods reunited occasionally to perform concerts and appear in oldies revues. In 1973, the group recorded an album with producer Jerry Dennon, but the resulting recordings were unsuccessful.

allmusic.com biography

Tracklist:

01. Confidential
02. The Three Callaberos
03. Raindrops, Teardrops
04. You Mean Everything To Me
05. Oh Lord, Let It Be
06. Come Softly To Me
07. Serenade Of The Bells
08. Unchained Melody
09. We Belong Together
10. Come Go With Me
11. I Care So Much
12. Mr Blue
13. Confidential (Stereo) [Bonus track]
14. Come Softly To Me (Stereo) [Bonus track]
15. Come Go With Me (Stereo) [Bonus track]

Originally Produced by Bonnie Guitar and Bob Reisdorff. Reissue Produced by John Sellards.
Mastered by Denny Purcell at Georgetown Masters, Nashville, TN.


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