1. There's No Other Like My Baby (2:31) - This song has a slow, 12/8 tempo. As the narrator and her boyfriend dance, he tells her in a soft voice that they'll marry someday. I'm glad that verse was written, for this is one ballad to which a couple can dance and tell each other how unique they are.
2. Oh Yeah Maybe Baby (2:25; Pattie lead) - This song, with a moderate speed, opens with the popping of castanets. Other instruments include orchestral strings (common throughout this album). The placement of a phrase of certainty ("oh yeah") next to a word of UNcertainty ("maybe") seems contradictory at first. But what the narrator knows for sure is that she gets chills and funny feelings; what she's not sure of yet is whether she's falling in love with the guy to whom she's singing.
3. Uptown (2:20) - Castanets are featured in this song too. Guitars play rapidly (in 16th notes if not faster) during the 17-second intro. The narrator's boyfriend has to endure strife at work by day, but by night he is happy with her at her low-rent apartment. The tempo (moderate) suits the pace at which he would walk to her place. Roy Orbison sang a different song with the same title.
4. What A Nice Way To Turn 17 (2:41) - The narrator of this slow, 12/8 song is as happy as she can be, with her boyfriend by her side in her darkened bedroom on the night of her 17th birthday.
5. He Hit Me (It Felt Like A Kiss) (2:33) - I've read that Gerry Goffin and Carole King were inspired to write this song after Little Eva told them about an abusive boyfriend of hers. Radio stations banned it in the 60s, and they sure would now, considering that domestic violence is recognized as a problem nowadays. In any case, I skip this song whenever I play this disc. It's one of the worst songs ever written. More recently, 90s alternative band Hole sang it.
6. No One Ever Tells You (2:18) - The tempo is moderately slow, with jingle bells ringing softly. Love seems wonderful at first impression to adolescent girls (and boys too). But I don't know about no one ever telling them about how love can break hearts. Parents warn their teenage children all the time that falling in love can be dangerous if not handled right. A drum solo plays softly at fadeout.
7. He's A Rebel (2:26; Darlene) - The moderate swing tempo matches a strutting pace at which the narrator's boyfriend would walk. A piano plays clearly during the opening measures. The girl doesn't care how different her guy is from other people. All that does matter is that he gives her tender love. This song was written and previously sung by Gene Pitney as "She's A Rebel."
8. I Love You Eddie (1:58) - In this slow song, the only percussion I hear is a tambourine, and even then I have to listen closely. The narrator and a girl named Betty both love Eddie. Now it's time for him to choose between them. It's a hard decision, for one girl will end up heartbroken.
9. Another Country, Another World (2:56) - The tempo is the same here as in the previous song. In this one, castanets roll softly. Just how the narrator met the man and what country he is from are unclear, but distance doesn't prevent her from loving him.
10. Please Hurt Me (2:14) - Although this song is not quite as bad as "He Hit Me," I don't listen much to it either. The narrator tells the guy that if he's gonna hurt anyone, he should hurt her.
11. He's Sure The Boy I Love (2:42; Darlene) - This song, somewhat faster than moderate, has a spoken intro with a single beat of a drum (and blow of a horn) just before each line. Other instruments include jingle bells. The narrator used to dream of falling in love with a rich man. She ended up falling for a poor boy, but his poverty doesn't bother her.
12. Look In My Eyes (2:47; no distinct lead) - The narrator of this slow, 12/8 song apparently has been starving for attention from her boyfriend. She pleads for him to look in her eyes and tell her he loves her; otherwise, she'll leave him.
13. Da Doo Ron Ron (2:17) - I read that Phil originally had Darlene sing lead, then he met LaLa and decided to release the song with her on lead instead. Anyway, the fast tempo goes well with the rate at which the narrator's heart beats for a guy named Bill whom she met one Monday. Her heart races from the time they go on a date till well beyond the time he takes her home. The Carpenters' version sounds nice too.
14. Heartbreaker (2:34) - This song, slightly faster than moderate, features handclaps and a sax. The guy is 17 years old, and apparently so is the narrator--plus or minus a year. Although he is a "heartbreaker, hip shaker, [and] troublemaker," she chooses to stay with him, believing he'll change his ways when he gets older. I don't know, though--putting up with infidelity is more likely to reinforce it.
15. Then He Kissed Me (2:35) - The tempo is fast. Instruments include castanets and a tambourine. In the first verse the guy asks the narrator to dance, and she accepts. In the second verse she tells him she loves him, and he answers by saying the same. In the third verse she meets his parents, he proposes to her, and her eyes fill with tears of joy. The Beach Boys later sang this song as "Then I Kissed Her."
16. I Wonder (2:50) - This version has a similar tempo to a later one by the Ronettes, but here the first verse is sung as a slow intro. Also, each version contains some lyrics that the other doesn't. But both versions are good. (Speaking of the R's, they sang a few songs as the C's.)
17. Little Boy (2:59) - This moderately fast song features jingle bells. The narrator is so in love with the boy that he will do anything to persuade him to "let [her] be [his] little girl."
18. Girls Can Tell (2:36) - Here's yet another song featuring castanets. The tempo is somewhat faster here than in the previous song. Girls are intuitive, aren't they? The one who sings this song can tell how much her boyfriend loves her, and how true he is to her, both by his words and by his actions.
19. All Grown Up (2:30) - The narrator of this fast song is excited for the day she comes of age, the day she will gain the freedom to do adult things like dating guys, getting kisses from them, staying out late, and wearing beehive hairdos.