(As published in the Times of Acadiana ... )
Van and Grace
The Original 1960’s Recordings
(CSP)
Van is Van Broussard, the sexagenarian crane operator and Swamp Pop hall-of-famer. Grace is Van’s sister and the Grace in Dale and Grace, best known for “I’m Leaving It All Up to You” (1963) and “Stop and Think It Over” (1964). This twenty-four-cut compilation spans 1961 to ’69 and duplicates only five selections from 1993’s sixteen-cut The Early Years, and it’s almost as special. These were songs cut in the confident belief that with a little luck the Broussards could become popular enough to lip-sync on American Bandstand, and that optimism enlivens nearly every one of these performances. Not that there aren’t hints of desperation: “Blues Stay Away from Me” is an Everly Brothers imitation, “She’s Just Teasing You” a thinly veiled rewrite of Willie Turbington’s “Thank You John.” But back then imitating the stars and bleaching R&B music were parts of the game. And even minus Van’s “Hot Nuts” this collection beats any of Pat Boone’s. Rating: Three-and-a-half love letters in the sand out of five.
Van and Grace
The Original 1960’s Recordings
(CSP)
Van is Van Broussard, the sexagenarian crane operator and Swamp Pop hall-of-famer. Grace is Van’s sister and the Grace in Dale and Grace, best known for “I’m Leaving It All Up to You” (1963) and “Stop and Think It Over” (1964). This twenty-four-cut compilation spans 1961 to ’69 and duplicates only five selections from 1993’s sixteen-cut The Early Years, and it’s almost as special. These were songs cut in the confident belief that with a little luck the Broussards could become popular enough to lip-sync on American Bandstand, and that optimism enlivens nearly every one of these performances. Not that there aren’t hints of desperation: “Blues Stay Away from Me” is an Everly Brothers imitation, “She’s Just Teasing You” a thinly veiled rewrite of Willie Turbington’s “Thank You John.” But back then imitating the stars and bleaching R&B music were parts of the game. And even minus Van’s “Hot Nuts” this collection beats any of Pat Boone’s. Rating: Three-and-a-half love letters in the sand out of five.
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