Consumer Guide Album

The Spaniels: Goodnight, Sweetheart 1953-1961 [Jasmine, 2012]
They stuck with a black-owned label that stuck around. They were blessed with two well-mismatched singers--lead tenor Pookie Hudson for slow romance, up-front bass man Gerald Gregory for comedy and change of pace. Also, Hudson could write--except for the "5" Royales' Lowman Pauling and biz lifer Harvey Fuqua, more resourcefully than any other performer on the doowop continuum. Slow romance was of course their specialty--"You Gave Me Peace of Mind" and "I'm Gonna Thank Him" are both deeper than their title song and greatest hit. But they had fun upping the tempo--the bassy "Bounce," the partying "A Rockin' Good Way," the mind-boggled "Play It Cool." Predictably, this double-CD is a little too much of a good thing: among 53 tracks that encompass both of their albums and all remaining A and B sides, there have to be generic moments. But the albums hold up as such--in the '50s!--and although Hudson is less spectacular than the Drifters' Clyde McPhatter or the Platters' Tony Williams, he's warmer than either, happy to fit in. In a vocal group, fitting in is a serious virtue, and the Spaniels were a great one. A−