Jamie and the J. Sylvia Singers (MP3s)

1. This Is All I Ask (3:08)
2. A Taste of Honey (2:21)
3. Days of Wine and Roses (2:40)
4. Yesterday (2:48)
5. It's Not Unusual (2:18)
6. Lost in the Stars (3:09)
7. Nature Boy (1:50)
8. A Lover and His Lass (1:59)
9. The Shadow of Your Smile (2:28)
10. Eight Days a Week (1:53)
11. We Can Work It Out (2:28)
12. Softly as I Leave You (2:44)

Following their three-album tenure at Capitol, Joe Sylvia took the J's with Jamie over to ABC records, restored the original Jamie and the J. Silvia Singers name, and produced a new album with a full orchestra under the direction of Don Costa, who had provided arrangements for Frank Sinatra's recordings. Once again, the album lacks a copyright, but using The Beatles' "We Can Work It Out" as a guide puts this album at 1966 at the earliest.

Fans of earlier J's with Jamie recordings are in for a surprise, as the swinging jazz sound has been replaced with a more AM-radio-friendly supper club orchestra sound. Jamie is relegated to harmonies for much of the album, particularly the Beatle covers.

That's not to say any of this is bad. There's excellent singing and musicianship throughout, but much of what makes the group's earlier recordings so special gets lost in the attempt to create a broader appeal. "This Is All I Ask" comes closest to the classic J's sound, with Jamie's lovely lead vocal taking center stage. The harmonies on "Nature Boy" are so smooth that you may need to hear it a few times to realize it's an a capella track. "It's Not Unusual" rounds out the highlights of the album. The one original track, "A Lover and His Lass," was penned by jazz legend Dick Hyman and injects a bit of swing into the mix.

It's a pleasant listen, but ultimately it's hard to separate this from the abundance of vocal pop that drove Tom Donohue to flee AM radio in the 1960s. The squeal of delight that comes from the thought of the J's taking on The Beatles fades when you hear by-the-numbers arrangements and production. It's done just as well as any of the other vocal group recordings of the day, it's just not done better. Fans will want to add this to their collections, but the uninitiated would be better served getting to know the group's Columbia recordings to understand their enduring popularity.

Comments

[Upandaway]

Can but agree to the above. Apart from "Lover and His Lass" and "This is all I ask" this is a remarkably stale recording. And the Beatles covers are the worst of the bunch...

But, then again, that was what the old folks back then wanted to hear!

[Ron]

Great. What a fantastic voices. There seems to be other albums on ABC. Hope to see them at WFMU. Thank you very much.

[Burt Burdeen]

Jamie and The J's. Based out of Chicago. Made many local radio and tv appearances. I got them to make a brief jingle for me when I was programming the Chess FM station in Chicago, WSDM....the station with the girls and all that jazz......
Great sounding group. I have to find some of the other albums in my collection.
thanks

[Jana Silvia]

you misspelled "Silvia"

that's my mom.

[Jana Silvia]

Message from Jamie (my mom): It was Columbia, not Capitol Records. 1966 is correct. Jamie agrees with comments about comparison of Columbia and ABC albums. She's grateful for continued interest in her music!

[Dan Nowicki]

This LP was advertised in the Aug. 20, 1966, issue of Billboard.

[Robert]

Thanks for this information! Our 4th grade chorus sang "Lover and His Lass" in 1969 or so, and we used this album as a reference to learn the lyrics and arrangement. I've been trying to track it down for a while...

[Bill Clausen]

To Jane Silvia: I decided to google "Jamie and the J's" and this came up. Long into short, if you get this post, or if any of you have contact with Jane, I am Marty Clausen's son (he's still alive and well). Long into short, we moved to Santa Barbara and lived there from 1973-2005. Totally unknown to us, your Dad moved there too and I got to know him having no idea that he and my dad worked together in Chicago. One night my dad came to my work to drop off dinner and your dad ran out and yelled "Marty Clausen?!" Your dad and mine renewed their friendship until your dad passed away. We had a lot of good times with your dad after that and he is missed by many in Santa Barbara. Feel free to contact me at [email protected] or 805-698-2031. -Bill-

[YETI]

I found this at a thrift store. I thought it was one of the previous posts (the one with dear heart, what now my love, sleep away). This was still nice though.

[Peter]

Jess Cain at WHDH, Boston, whose morning show shall forever reign, played "Lover and his Lass" (words by Shakespeare, duh) and I had it on a tape, un-ID'd. I had to find it, and years later, I did. I'm glad to hear someone's 4th grade took the trouble to learn it. It's a hit, in my heart at least.

[Tony Puleo]

Jana Tell your mom that over the years those LPs as they used to be called gave me great pleasure and whenever I think I singing "the Days of wine and Roses I hear the arrangment in my head." I also loved "Nature Boy" perhaps my favorite of all songs. For it brings us the simplest message but it is one the world needs to hear time after time.
Tony Puleo
Florida