Sterling Tries Something New!

Good Day!

First, I'd like to offer up yet another vintage song-poem ad (two of them, in fact) as supplied by Vinnie. The top one is for Columbine, one of the kings of the 1980's song-poem world, and a label I've barely featured here due to my not being able to stand well over 95% of their output. The other ad... Well, I have no idea. 

I love the early Sterling label records. They have a sound and a style unlike any other song-poem label. And even when they got to be more bland in the late 1960's and early 1970's, the singing was still stellar, as it was usually coming from the magnificent Norm Burns. After Norm's VERY sudden death, they turned largely to Gary Roberts, who was the anti-Norm - a man who could barely carry a tune at times, and had a guileless, yet at the same time virtually charmless way of performing. Throughout what was at least a 10-15 year period under both these singers, the label presented a very pop oriented feel. Norm occasionally was asked to sing songs which had titles that implied a certain level of soul, or at least earthiness, and he once had to take on a lyrical role suggesting that he was something that he most certainly was not. But even on those records, the MOR feel and a definite "Whiteness" prevailed. 

That makes today's record more than a bit startling. Because after the departure of Gary Roberts, Sterling's next (and final) male singer was Mel Moore. And by a few years after Mel took over, roughly 1978 it would appear, Sterling released this record: 

If you simply played this song for me and told me it was a song-poem and asked me to guess the label, I doubt I would ever get around to guessing Sterling. This record is heavily influenced by Soul and Jazz trends from the late '70's, particularly the records of George Benson, and it bears no resemblance to the God-Awful Gary Roberts records, or the often wonderful Norm Burns records. This is as complete a makeover as I can remember hearing from a song-poem label, and in pretty quick order, too. I'm not saying this is good - it's not, at least to my ears - but it's certainly a surprise. 

The song was written by someone named Gutmundur Reynisson - whose first and last names each sound like a nonsense word you'd use when you can't remember the name of some little thing you're looking for. However, someone with a nearly identical name has credits on at least three albums released during the 1970's. I'm guessing none of those songs sound like Mel Moore and Image performing "Take it All Easy", though. Have a listen: 

Download: Mel Moore and Image - Take It All Easy

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For the flip side, "My Woman", Mel Moore seemingly left his band ("Image") at the bar they were playing at and took the band van back to the studio by himself, because they're not credited on this one. Yet there's a band, such as it is. On this one, the closest hit records that are perhaps being emulated are no longer the ones by George Benson, but something closer to... Barry Manilow? 

God knows what the song-poet did, but he apparently thinks his woman is a saint for putting up with what seems to have been a whole bunch of crappy behavior. And he's gonna tell us how much he appreciates it. And then tell us again. And again. Or maybe he's only telling one person. Let's hope she decided to stay. 

Download: Mel Moore - My Woman

Play: