Gary Lewis, son of comedian Jerry Lewis, was the lead singer and the drummer. The other Playboys were Jim Keltner, Ron Hicklin, Al Capps, and Stan Farber.
For Michael Van Belle's review of some Gary Lewis/Playboys songs, click here.1. This Diamond Ring (2:13) - The group's first hit, released in 1965, was also their first #1 hit. The tempo is moderate. Chimes play during the first several seconds. In the rest of the song, listen closely and you'll hear the big bass drum. The narrator's girlfriend has been untrue and given her diamond ring back to him; now he's offering the ring for sale to anyone whose lover is faithful. At the end, Gary repeats the first chorus and the song fades: "This diamond ring doesn't shine for me anymore . . . Let it shine for you." He overdubbed a second vocal track over the first, such that we hear "you" and the title simultaneously.
2. Count Me In (2:31) - The tempo is fast. This time the chime plays not only at the beginning of the song but also at the last two lines of each verse. The piano is the lead instrument in all instrumentals except the beginning. I'm not sure whether the rolls I hear periodically are by the piano or by the chimes. The narrator asks the girl to rely on him whenever she needs someone to cheer her up; he hopes she will count him first on her list of men who want her.
3. Little Miss Go-Go (2:54) - I'm not sure what instrument I hear at the beginning; perhaps it's an organ. This fast song is the first to contain backup vocals. Some of those are bass, others are falsetto. However, you won't hear them if you turn the balance knob clear to the left (or unplug the right speaker). A guitar plays lead in the middle instrumental. The title character has fun doing almost anything: beachcombing in the summer, skiing in the winter, "stayin' at home or goin' to a hot dog race."
4. Doin' The Flake (3:04) - The group recorded this song specifically for an EP that people could order by sending three tops from boxes of Kellogg's Corn Flakes; the other two songs on the EP were "Diamond Ring" and "Miss Go-Go." Thus this song was not officially released until this album was. The tempo here is slightly slower than in "Miss Go-Go." Again, listen only in the left channel and you will hardly hear the backup vocals. In the lyrics "the flake" is portrayed as a dance.
5. Save Your Heart For Me (2:01) - The tempo is slow, and the drums are hardly audible. In the beginning and during the middle instrumental, the guys whistle. Here is a third song in which, if you listen only to the left speaker, you hear Gary but not the other Playboys. The narrator tells his girlfriend that when they're apart for the summer, she may fling with other men, but she should reserve her truest love for him.
6. Without A Word Of Warning (2:28) - The tempo is slightly faster than moderate. The most audible instrument is a piano or something similar. The narrator was hurt by an untrue girlfriend, so he warns his buddy never to fall in love with her.
7. Everybody Loves A Clown (2:23) - The tempo is moderate and the lead instrument is a harpsichord. The narrator is the clown; he asks the girl why she doesn't laugh at his jokes when everyone else does.
8. Time Stands Still (2:00) - This is the slowest song on the whole album. The instruments are similar to chimes. First Gary sings the song in his normal voice. Then he speaks a few lines. Finally, he sings the song again, this time a la his father. According to Gary, he did that gag as a present for his father, whose birthday was in a few days.
9. She's Just My Style (3:10) - The song I like best by Gary and the Playboys peaked at #3. The tempo is moderately fast. When both speakers are on, the backup vocals overpower Gary's voice; but when you listen only to the left speaker, you hear only Gary's voice. The narrator doesn't know what about the girl attracts him to her, nor what to say to her to try to win her heart. But "she's just [his] style." After the bass singer sings "Don't you know that she's" and "Everything about her," the rest of the group sings "just my style" and "drives me wild," respectively.
10. I Won't Make That Mistake Again (2:05) - The opening piano solo in this moderately paced song sounds good. The mistake the narrator resolves never to make again is loving a girl who tells all his friends he's unfaithful when in reality she's the one running around.
11. Sure Gonna Miss Her (2:30) - The tempo is fast. Horns play during the instrumentals. The narrator regrets not having shown enough love for his girlfriend, for now she has left him and found another man.
12. I Don't Wanna Say Goodnight (2:36) - This moderately fast song starts off with a four guitar strums sounding whole beats. Then finger-snapping is added and the drums enter. The narrator is so attracted to the girl he can't stop it from showing. He doesn't want to say goodnight because he wants to stay with her.
13. Face In A Crowd (2:19) - The tempo is moderate and the featured instruments are the piano and the harpsichord. The narrator is trying to muster the courage to speak to a certain woman to try to win her heart, but it seems he was born to be just "another face in a crowd."
14. Green Grass (2:13) - In this fast song, the lead instrument is the harpsichord; the tambourine sounds every second and fourth beat. The narrator and his girlfriend are happy because the day they had waited for all winter is now here: a late spring day with green grass and sunny weather.
15. I Can Read Between The Lines (2:22) - I like the guitar strums in this moderately fast song. I also like the lyrics; the narrator tells his girlfriend that although she and her friends tell him that her love is still his, he can tell that it isn't, that she's found someone new.
16. Autumn (2:48) - The tempo is moderate. Just before each verse I hear a harpsichord. During the first verse the tambourine sounds out each second and fourth beat. But once the first verse is over, the drums enter and play all beats equally. In the first two verses the narrator talks ABOUT Autumn, while in the chorus and the third verse (with a different melody from the other two) he is speaking TO her.
17. My Heart's Symphony (3:02) - The tempo is fast. The classical instruments are an apt match for a title such as this. The narrator's heart played a symphony when his girlfriend first told him she loved him. Then, when she left him, his heart stopped playing the symphony. Just before the ending instrumental I hear a harpsichord roll.
18. Tina (2:03) - This is the second of three songs with a girl's name in the title ("Autumn" was the first). The drums play softly; the other instrument I hear is chime-like. The tempo is slow. The narrator tells Tina that he's under her spell, a slave to her kisses and charms, and he can't get free--not that he wants to.
19. (You Don't Have To) Paint Me A Picture (2:32) - Horns are featured in this moderately fast song. The narrator knew all along that the girl never loved him. He tried to pretend that she was faithful to him, but to no avail, so now he's decided to leave.
20. Where Will The Words Come From (1:59) - The tempo is moderate. The featured instruments are the classical string quartet. I hear drums every now and then, but they play softly. During the middle instrumental an oboe plays lead. Love has turned sour between the narrator and his girlfriend, and he is trying to muster the courage to tell her he no longer loves her.
21. Way Way Out (2:02) - Gary recorded this moderately fast song for inclusion on a movie of the same title, in which his father starred. The tambourine plays on every second and fourth beat. Gary starts the song by counting down from 10 to 1, as is done when a rocket is launched. The couple are not going to outer space literally; from lyrics such as "you'll see what the game of love's all about," I infer that they are going far romantically.
22. The Loser (With A Broken Heart) (2:17) - The women who sang behind Gary on this song were known as the Blossoms. This song, very fast, is the fastest on this album. A tambourine plays every second and fourth beat; horns are also featured. The narrator has always lost at love, and he feels that he always will.
23. Girls In Love (2:24) - For the first 11 seconds of this moderate-tempoed song, the low notes of the guitar play. Then the full guitar, the drums, and the horns enter. The narrator hopes that one day he will win the heart of one of the "girls in love."
24. Jill (2:18) - The third of the "girl's name" songs has a slow, swing tempo and starts with one pound of the bass drum. Each verse starts with soft singing and harpsichord-playing; a chime rings on every fourth beat. Then other instruments are added and the instruments and vocals crescendo until the next verse begins. During the middle instrumental the lead instrument is a clarinet. As the string instruments hold on the last note, Gary whispers Jill's name once.
25. Sealed With A Kiss (2:25) - In Gary's version of a Brian Hyland hit, classical string instruments and a piano are the featured instruments. The tempo is moderately slow. The narrator and his girlfriend are parting for the summer, but throughout the summer he promises to write to her daily and seal each letter with a kiss. Gary had by this time been drafted; this was an apt song to record just a few days before departing for the Army.
May The Best Man Win (2:20) - This song is slightly slower than moderate, with a drum sounding similar to a clock ticking. The narrator and his best friend wanted the same girl, so they let her decide which of them to marry. The phrase "best man" has double meaning: the best friend, she decides, would make the better husband for her; thus the narrator would be his best friend's chief attendant at the wedding.
Thanks to Marco Antonio De Bellis for informing me of (and submitting lyrics to) When Summer Is Gone, a song by Gary that was a hit in Brazil. It has the same theme as "Save Your Heart."
The anthology Collins listed (which I have--it's fabulous) includes every song that was released as a single plus all the flip sides--except one flip side, which happens to be my favorite flip (boy, was I annoyed). It's the flip side of Girls In Love (May 1967), and it's a great moderate-tempo love song called Let's Be More Than Friends. The rhythm has a wonderful sort of riding-on-a-carousel feeling--evokes that first love kind of memory. The narrator is talking to a girl he's known for years as a friend and finally revealing that's he's really been in love with her all along. But he was afraid to tell her. He finally gets her alone and works up the courage, asking her to prove their friends wrong by being more than friends. It's one of the best songs for Gary's fairly weak voice, because the boy sounds nervous and awkward, which is totally right for this mood. This song should have been released as the A side, especially since "Girls In Love" (which I also love) only peaked at #39.
She's Just My Style is a great tune. Gets me hopping every time. Musically it's the most sound, I think. Of course, they had all those great session musicians. The Playboys didn't play on any hits. It was people like Hal Blaine on drums, and other big names. My sentimental fave is Everybody Loves A Clown (reminds me of my sister, who played it over and over), but if I had to pick my all-time fave, it's hands down Count Me In. If the opening doesn't grab you, nothing will. And the lyrics are fun to sing.
Now this is Collins talking.
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