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Vince Edwards - "Why Did You Leave Me?" b/w "Squeelin Parrot (Twist)" 1962

 



 

 

 Vince Edwards - "Why Did You Leave Me?" b/w "Squeelin Parrot (Twist)" Russ-Fi Records 1962

Our inaugural outing comes from Dr. Ben Casey himself, actor and sometimes singer Vince Edwards. If you’re not a septuagenarian and don’t restrict your television viewing to the likes of MeTV, then the name might not mean anything to you. Vince Edwards played Dr. Ben Casey on a television program of the same name on ABC, from 1961 - 1966. Back when fresh-faced young talent had to be hyphenates to be a viable product in the Hollywood machine (not just an actor but an actor-singer-dancer-director-whatever), it wasn’t uncommon for young actors, or even middle-aged ones, to cut pop records. And it wasn’t uncommon for musicians to take a stab at acting. I mean, who can forget Roy Orbison in The Fastest Guitar Alive, right?

This single is the only hint I have at Vince’s vocal prowess, but let’s just say I’m glad he didn’t put all of his eggs into this one particular basket.

This single came out on Russ-Fi Records in 1962. Russ-Fi Records is, as noted, a division of Russell Films. As you’ll also note, the single was produced by Frank Russell, whom I presume is the “Russ” and Russell in question. I have no additional info on him or his alleged media business empire.

The tune on the A-side is “Why Did You Leave Me?”, a not-so-tolerable warbling crooner that makes Elvis’s post-war output sound like The Clash’s pre-Combat Rock output. The real joy is on the B-side, of course, which is why it’s the tune I chose to share today. Is it a good song? Define “good”. It’s genuinely fun, and therefore I declare it subjectively “GREAT!” I’ve put it on a number of compilations I’ve made for myself over the years, to listen to while I drive around in my car or do housework.

When I choose records for the this project, I do so mostly at random. Sometimes I guide my hand towards a certain genre, if there’s something I’m in the mood to talk about, but I don’t sift through my collection looking for specific songs, or even a specific artist, to talk about. For this, my initial post on this re-vamped blog, my hands strayed to the “Nuts!” section of my collection. Yes, I have a special selection of records classified as “Nuts!”, which means they are generally novelty songs, genuinely bonkers, and 100% my favorite thing to listen to. I don’t mean that in an arch manner, either. I’m not listening to these tunes with ironic intent; they genuinely make me so happy. Why? Ask my therapist. When I get one.

The Russ-Fi label appears to have only put out two records en total over the course of 1962. Aside from this title, and a couple re-presses that puts our spotlight B-side on the A-side and slaps a completely different tune on the B-side, they only put out one novelty instrumental by the infamous Kim Fowley in the guise of Kim And The Skippers.

One of my favorite things about singles–aside from the music, of course–is the sense of individual label design that comes with each one. They’re genuinely like baseball cards to me; checking out the different logos, each with their own individual personality, the color choices on the labels and the various typefaces used. Here we have a fun magenta and cream duo-tone label with a utilitarian-but-tasteful sans-serif (looks like Futura, but my BFA in graphic design lapsed decades ago) font for the text and a nice thin-slab serifed font for the company logo. 

Try not to shake your groove thang to this one!

Enjoy!

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