Dee Clark - Hey Little Girl (CD)

All Music Guide

Hey Little Girl collects the best of Dee Clark's Abner, Falcon and Vee Jay sides from 19561963, including three early recordings he made as a member of the Kool Gents (listed here as the Cool Gents). The anthology contains every pop and RB hit he scored for the abovementioned labels, including the few that "bubbled under" Billboard's Top 100. Part of the reason why Clark isn't better remembered today may be that he didn't have an identifiable stylehe sounds like Little Richard on "Oh Little Girl," Sam Cooke on "Your Friends," and Clyde McPhatter on a number of the pop hits. Some of the latter forge an appealing sound with flutes and electric bass guitars dominating the airy arrangements, but RB purists may find these too poporiented for their liking. Even Clark's big hitsthe aggressive "Hey Little Girl" with its Bo Diddley beat and the pop ballad "Raindrops"sound like they could have been made by two different artists. Hey Little Girl is a thorough anthology of Clark's early sides, all... but one of which are presented in mono. The disc is more like listening to an RB compilation than the work of one singer, but has all the important cuts. - Greg Adams, All Music Guide Read more Less