CLIFF RICHARD/CLIFF'S HIT ALBUM 33SX 1512 (-64) UK MONO

 Here's one for us who still remember Cliff's early days, containing cuts recorded 1958-62, whereof four topping the UK list, eight reaching #2 and two more top 10. On all but two backed by The Shadows, on "Move It" and "Living Doll" while they were still named The Drifters. Even if he's been going strong and kept quality through the decades I do prefer his early days when there were more simple tunes with less studio meddling. Here I get a mix of early rock tunes like "Move It", "Please Don't Tease", "Nine Times Out Of Ten" and "Do You Wanna Dance", coupled with classic up-tempo ballads as "Living Doll". This is the Cliff for me, what I heard back then in the late fifties and early sixties as a very young lad in front of the valve radio. The audio here is just right, taking me back to times where everythíng worked out better both for me and the world. Originally also issued on vinyl in Canada, Scandinavia, South Africa, Israel, Downunder and Japan and as UK reel, cassette and 8-track. Japan 2007 CD on Odeon (TOCP-70175) came with six bonus tracks. This UK mono was re-released many times in the sixties and also showed up as stereo early seventies (SCX 1512). Not sure which of the mono variations was ablsolutely first, but as the label on this copy has both "Recording First..." and "Sold In UK..." it's probably from 1964. It came in a laminated flip/back cover. (CXÄ*)