Four Song-Poem Stalwarts on One EP

Happy March! 

First, here are the links to the posts I have fixed, in this case, from October of 2013: There is a fairly awful performance on Tin Pan Alley (that post also contains a link to a truly horrendous vanity release, also on Tin Pan Alley), an acetate from 1972 which sounds like it's from 1952, a very late period MSR release, which, against all odds, is actually interesting, and a Gene Marshall/Vietnam record. 

Today, we have another EP on the "Air" label, a label which seems to have existed largely, if not entirely, to release the works of other song-poem factories. Even after all these years, I have no real insight into why such an arrangement was made. Every one of the three song-poem outfits represented here had their own typical way of releasing their product, even if two of them didn't have their own specific "house" label. I'm pretty sure I'll never understand this particular side of the business.

As mentioned in the title, this particular EP contains performances from four different singers, one each from the Halmark and Lee Hudson production companies, and two from the Globe song-poem factory.

Side one starts with Sammy Marshall (Globe), here cunningly disguised as Sonny Marshall, with a song titled "God's Bouquet" one which certainly has it's lyrical heart in the right place, yet manages to stay well within a world I would call "aggressively trite". God made flowers in all sorts of colors, you see, and made people in all sorts of colors, too. We love all the flowers. Why can't we love all the people, too? Sing it, Sammy-Sonny!

Download: Sonny Marshall - God's Bouquet
Play:

Next up is Halmark's entry, "How Much Do I Love You?", identified as being sung by one "Bob Parker", who sounds a lot more (to me) like the singer most often identified (when he's identified at all on Halmark's inconsistent releases) as Bob Storm. This is typical Halmark bombastic, over-emoted garbage, not good at all, of course, but also not ridiculous enough for me to recommend it.

Download: Bob Parker - How Much Do I Love You?
Play:

~~

With side two, we return to the Globe company, and a somewhat more rarely heard vocalist, albeit one who recorded extensively for the label, Joan Auburn (sometimes credited as Joanne Auburn). She's heard here with a slow countrified ballad titled "Meaning of Love". She has a warm, inviting voice, and makes this material far better than it deserves.

Download: Joan Auburn - Meaning of Love
Play:

The folks at Air saved the best (by far the best) for last, with Lee Hudson's favorite vocalist (and maybe mine, too), Cara Stewart, singing "I Love You So". I've said it before, and surely I'll say it again: this sounds much like many of her other records, but God, what a sound that is, and what a wonderful singer.

Download: Cara Stewart - I Love You So
Play: