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The Four Freshmen
Voices In Fun
Capitol Records
ST 1543
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Original 1961 album liner notes
Side 1
I WANT TO BE HAPPY 1:44
(Vincent Youmans-Irving Caesar) ASCAP
OLE BUTTERMILK SKY 2:06
(Hoagy Carmichael-Jack Brooks) ASCAP
I CAN’T GIVE YOU ANYTHING BUT LOVE 2:31
(Jimmy McHugh-Dorothy Fields) ASCAP
YOU MAKE ME FEEL SO YOUNG 2:09
(Josef Myrow-Mack Gordon) ASCAP
SAVE THE BONES FOR HENRY JONES 2:34
(Danny Barker-Vernon Lee) ASCAP
SWINGING ON A STAR 2:16
(James Van Heusen-Johnny Burke) ASCAP
Side 2
ON THE SUNNY SIDE OF THE STREET 2:28
(Jimmy McHugh-Dorothy Fields) ASCAP
MAÑANA 2:45
(David M. Barbour-Peggy Lee) ASCAP
ON THE ATCHISON, TOPEKA AMD SANTA FE 2:25
(Harry Warren-Johnny Mercer) ASCAP
AREN’T YOU GLAD YOU’RE YOU 2:05
(James Van Heusen-Johnny Burke) ASCAP
HAPPY TALK 2:48
(Richard Rodgers-Oscar Hammerstein II) ASCAP
AC-CENT-TCHU-ATE-THE POSITIVE 2:33
(Harold Arlen-Johnny Mercer) ASCAP
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Produced by Voyle Gilmore
Arranged and Conducted by Billy May
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The Four Freshmen – Voices In Fun
Gleefully aided by Billy May, the Freshmen combine their great musicianship and flair for comedy, bringing it all off in fine, happy style.
There are many sources of fun in this album. Sometimes it comes from adding a few hip lyrics, as in Sunny Side Of The Street. In Save The Bones For Henry Jones, the boys and Billy make no bones about kidding poor Henry, “‘cause Henry don’t eat no meat.” And after a brief May intro, the Frosh temporarily turn Mañana into a droll, a cappella ballad.
The tempo quickens in the stop-and-go vocalizing of I Can’t Give You Anything But Love, which also features some highly polished brass work. With Ross Barbour using what he calls his “Leroy” voice to suggest that being a mule or a pig has definite shortcomings, Swinging On A Star lilts along as a novelty should. And in Happy Talk, the “South Pacific” gem, the Four Freshmen are simply at their straightforward vocal best.
As their fans know, the Frosh (Bill Comstock, Ross Barbour, Ken Albers, Bob Flanigan – left to right in the cover photo) often help provide their own backing. But this time save for solos – Bob on trombone, Ken on trumpet – their instruments remain cased. Into the vacuum pours Billy May with a musical wit that finds a capricious partner in Dick Reynolds’ vocal arranging. Their partnership is tighter knit than most, because Dick wrote the first vocal chorus of each song as a departure point for Billy, who then voiced his orchestrations along the same lines, and finished the vocals arrangements.
But read no more. Listen. It’s fun!
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Among other Capitol Stereo albums by the Four Freshmen:
THE FRESHMEN YEAR ST 1485
VOICES AND BRASS ST 1295
ROAD SHOW (with Stan Kenton and June Christy) STBO 1327
FIRST AFFAIR ST 1378
FOUR FRESHMEN AND FIVE GUITARS ST 1255
CAPITOL FULL DIMENSIONAL STEREO
CAPITOL RECORDS HIGH FIDELITY RECORDING
STEREOPHONIC
THIS STEREO RECORD SHOULD BE PLAYED ONLY WITH A STEREO CARTRIDGE AND NEEDLE TO AVOID DAMAGE
© Capitol Records Inc.
Made in U.S.A. – Factories: Scranton, PA. – Los Angeles, Calif.
ST 1543
