Embassy goes digital

I chanced upon these two CDs while browsing Amazon this week. Readers of this blog will no doubt be au fait with the old Woolworth's label, and the slew of bargain-priced cover records it released. These two CDs are now available for aficionados, providing a comprehensive overview of the years under the spotlight:

The 1960 collection includes hits like You Got What It Takes (Hal Munro); Cathy's Clown (Dick Jordan); Three Steps To Heaven (Rikki Henderson); Only The Lonely (Don Duke); Save The Last Dance For Me (Rikki Henderson)...

1961 features Rubber Ball (Bobby Stevens); Calendar Girl (Don Duke); Will You Love Me Tomorrow (Jean Campbell); Take Five (Gordon Peters Quartet); Johnny Remember Me (Bobby Stevens)...

Of course it's all a far cry from the Technicolor world of 1970s covers albums, but here, in these old tapes made for pressing to 45, are the seeds of the later cover versions we know and love. Some collectors will have heard a clutch of old Embassy singles without realising it - they make up Hallmark's two "Revived 45s" albums, without a sniff of a credit!

On the subject of Embassy, this CD is also currently available:

Some of these cuts are also on "Revived 45s", while the Typhoons themselves are quite highly regarded by those in the know for their work not just on Beatles covers but several 1960s hits by what could loosely be termed 'beat groups'.

Great to see that these recordings are being preserved, as their place in cover version history deserves. Check them out!