1968 (Here are two great tracks from Shirley Bassey's 1968 LP titled, '12 Of Those Songs'
The first song is a cover of the Petula Clark and Chris Montez Hit, 'Call Me' written by Tony Hatch; Shirley's arrangement is that of a smooth and sensual melody. It's a great song and I enjoy all versions and arrangements of it. The second song is an American Standard called, 'It's One Of Those Songs' and Jimmy Durante used to perform it in his live acts.
Dame Shirley is one of the last vocalists of her generation who is a bridge between yesterday's generation of songs and the newer songs of today. Because of her tremendous vocal capabilities she has recorded nearly 700 songs spanning the genre spectrum of music. She does have a song for everyone!
ABOUT the song, Call Me:
"Call Me" is a song composed by Tony Hatch for Petula Clark which became an easy listening standard via a hit version by Chris Montez. "Call Me" first appeared as the title cut on a Petula Clark EP released in 1965 by Vogue in the UK. "Call Me" and the three other tracks on the EP: "Heart", "Everything in the Garden" and "Stangers and Lovers" were released in the US as tracks on Clark's I Know A Place album.
Also in 1965 Chris Montez, who had scored the hit "Let's Dance" in 1962 and subsequently dropped out of the music business, was invited to resume recording by A&M Records' founder Herb Alpert. Alpert was unhappy when Montez began recording for A&M in his previous Chicano rock style and personally suggested Montez shift to easy listening choosing "Call Me" as the song to be Montez's debut single on A&M. Released in November 1965, "Call Me" entered the Easy Listening Top 40 in Billboard that December entering the Billboard Hot 100 in January 1966; that March "Call Me" peaked on the Easy Listening chart at #2 and on the Hot 100 at #22. Montez's version of "Call Me" was released as a single in the UK on the Pye label in January 1966 but failed to chart: "Call Me" was also a non-charting UK single release in 1966 for Lulu.
Georgia Gibbs recorded "Call Me" as the title cut for her final album released in 1966. Other versions of "Call Me" have been recorded by Shirley Bassey, Vikki Carr, Eliane Elias, Astrud Gilberto, Peggy Lee, Trini Lopez, Mimì Bertè [Mia Martini], the New Classic Singers, Frank Sinatra, Nancy Sinatra, Joanie Sommers and Nancy Wilson. In October 2007, as part of his album Romancing the '60s, Frankie Valli also covered this song.
LYRICS - Call Me:
If you're feeling sad and lonely
There's a service I can render
Tell the one who loves you only
I can be so warm and tender
Call me
Don't be afraid, you can call me
Maybe it's late but just call me
Tell me and I'll be around
When it seems your friends desert you
There's somebody thinking of you
I'm the one who'll never hurt you
Maybe that's because I love you
Call me
Don't be afraid, you can call me
Maybe it's late but just call me
Tell me and I'll be around
Now don't forget me
'Cause if you let me
I will always stay by you
You've got to trust me
That's how it must be
There's so much that I can do
If you call I'll be right with you
You and I should be together
Take this love I long to give you
I'll be at your side forever
Call me
Don't be afraid, you can call me
LYRICS - It's One Of Those Songs:
Well, this is one of those songs that you hear now and then,
You don't know just where and you don't know just when.
It's one of those songs that are over and then,
It's one of those songs that start playin' again.
Yes, it's just one of those songs that you hear for awhile.
That comes into fashion then goes out of style.
It's one of those songs that you think you forgot,
But it's one of those songs you cannot.
Because it's one of those songs that can make you recall
A ride in the spring time a walk in the fall,
A day in the country, a night on the town,
The sun coming up or the rain coming down
Or else the evening you parted
The morning you met,
The love of your life you can never forget
The reason is simple the memory belongs to one of those wonderful songs
Because it's one of those songs that's so easy to hear
You listen just once then you play it by ear
It's hummed on Veranda's it's strummed on Guitars
It's all you remember is "la da da da but later on you recall it's sung by the year
You may start to smile you may she'd a tear
You find that one part of your life time belongs
To one of those wonderful,
To one of those wonderful,
To one of those wonderful songs
Special Thanks to Pieter, Astrid and others from the Shirley Bassey blog, Tal from the Diamond Bassey website, and all those who have contributed wonderful pictures of Shirley!
