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Critic's Review
Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide
There are no less than 80 songs on this three-CD box set, 58 of them unreleased, spanning 1959-1964. As Barry Mann was one of the greatest Brill Building songwriters (usually in collaboration with Cynthia Weil), your appetite might be sparked for a lost treasure chest. But it's best to approach this package with caution even if you're a Brill Building enthusiast, and certainly don't expect anything on the order of "On Broadway," "We've Gotta Got Outta of This Place," or "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'." Like Brill Tone's retrospective of fellow Brill Building giant Carole King (Brill Building Legends: Complete Recordings 1958-1966), more than half of this consists of demos of a quality far below the composer's famous classics. It's also important to note that only four of the 58 previously unissued tracks were Mann-Weil compositions; that some of them were not even written or co-written by Mann, although he's on vocals; and that Mann does not sing on a half-dozen of the selections. Those vocals get turned over to either unidentified female singers, Cynthia Weil (for "The Home of the Boy I Love"), or Neil Sedaka (for "My Ex-Best Friend"). The unreleased songs, regardless of whatever their connection to Mann is, are usually mawkish and formulaic late-'50s/early-'60s pop. Some of these were eventually recorded by artists like Sedaka, Frankie Avalon, or Bobby Vee (or total no-names like Lori Martin and Noeleen Batley). At times it's obvious that Mann was probably trying to tailor a tune to a specific artist; one of the best, "The Smile That Breaks My Heart," was obviously designed for the Everly Brothers, right down to the Chet Atkins-like guitar that opens the demo. At other times, particularly the novelty-oriented tunes, it's difficult to believe anyone could have taken their prospects seriously; "A Teenager in Heaven" is an absolutely ridiculous recounting of a dream in which God's judgment is pronounced upon a soul, "Teenage Has-Been" is a tongue-in-cheek teen idol satire, and "Charlie Chan, Can You Get Me a Man?" is self-evidently ludicrous. On "Too Far Out," Mann seems to be moving into somewhat bolder and more adult lingo and subject matter, but for the most part it's hard to envision most of these making it past the first listen in the demo go-round. Disc three is by far the most listenable of the trio, as it's comprised primarily of material Mann actually released, including his entire 1961 LP Who Put the Bomp (In the Bomp, Bomp, Bomp (paced by the hit title track) and rare non-LP singles he did for ABC, Colpix, JDS, and Red Bird between 1959-1964. The 1961 album is okay but unmemorable Brill Building pop, aside from "Who Put the Bomp (In the Bomp, Bomp, Bomp" itself. The singles, though quite rare and thus appealing to serious collectors, are similarly lightweight, although the 1964 45 "Talk to Me Baby" is fair white soul-pop that's similar to the Reflections' "(Just Like) Romeo and Juliet," and his 1959 JDS 45 is a pretty spot-on early Paul Anka sound-alike. Overall this set certainly has value to dedicated Brill Building historians, but to appreciate the true legacy of Mann, you have to hear the best covers of the Mann-Weil songs by other artists.
