El Asu: CD-levy Vuosi: 2019, 19.07.2019 Kieli: Englanti
In the early 1960s, prior to Beatlemania, JESS CONRAD was considered a Golden Boy of Pop. Dubbed by the NME as “The Face of ‘61”, he came to prominence via TV shows like Wham!, Boy Meets Girls, Thank Your Lucky Stars and Ready, Steady, Go!
As an actor, Jess appeared in over 28 films, including The Boys and Konga, and enjoyed a prolific recording career, notching up British hits between 1960-62 with ‘Cherry Pie’ (No.39), ‘Mystery Girl’ (No.18) and ‘Pretty Jenny’ (No. 50).
This long overdue double CD collates most of Jess’s recorded output from 1960 to the noughties, including his work with the legendary Joe Meek (‘Hurt Me’, ‘It Can Happen To You’), a rare South African only release (‘Little Bit Of Loveliness’), and later recordings made for both Columbia Records (written and produced by Charles Blackwell, Mitch Murray and Les Reed) and President (with Cy Payne and Ivor Raymonde arranging and producing).
Also included is a one-off single as Men (with Dave Dee and Troy Dante) and previously unreleased takes from a private collection, including a favourite recording by Jess of Moon Mullican’s ‘Seven Nights To Rock’ (from 2016).
The accompanying booklet is packed with detailed sleeve notes and nostalgic pictures, which complement this unique set and pays tribute to an artist who wove himself into the very fabric of preBeatles Pop Britain.
Some of Jess’s records are now deemed worthy of cult status, such as ‘This Pullover’. Such was his success on Kenny Everett’s ‘World’s Worst Records’ (based on his highly rated Capital Radio programme) that three of Jess’s recordings made the resulting compilation album in 1978 (‘This Pullover’, ‘Why Am I Living’ and ‘Cherry Pie’). And some of Jess’s singles are collector’s items: most notably ‘Pussy Cat’, which has caught the ears of Mod/Beat collectors and has been seen on sale for up to £150.
