Georgia Gibbs Greatest Hits CD

Though Georgia Gibbs' first album for Epic was passed off as a hits compilation, it found Gibbs simply reprising her hits from the '50s, most of them in versions even more whitebread and insipid than the originals. The Etta James-stifling "Dance With Me Henry" and the LaVern Baker-stuffing "Tweedle Dee" rub shoulders with more suitable adult-pop chestnuts like "Arrivederci, Roma" and "Baubles, Bangles and Beads," plus a few more stabs at R&B crossover ("Ballin' the Jack," "Kansas City"). Sadly, just as during her stint with Mercury, Gibbs never had the opportunity to record very much sympathetic material, in a similar fashion to most of the pop singers trying to face down the rise of teenage-driven R&B and rock & roll during the late '50s and early '60s. [A nearly pointless reissue by Collectables added bonus tracks compiled from a pair of 1963 singles, plus the unreleased "Sugar Puff," which doesn't quite do its title justice.] ~ John Bush

In the 1950's, cheerful & sentimental traditional pop vocalist Georgia Gibbs became a mainstay on the records charts scoring thirty big hits. This original recording features Gibbs' work on Epic Records. Includes four bonus tracks, 'Sugar Puff', 'Nobody's Asking Questions (But Everybody Wants To Know)', 'Tater Poon', & 'Nine Girls Out Of Ten Girls'. Collectables. 2003.

Originally released on Epic (26059).

Personnel: Georgia Gibbs (vocals).