1. Suzie Baby (2:49) - This song, released in 1959, was Bobby's first hit. The song must have been a bit long for its time. In those days songs tended to last 2 minutes or even under; those that exceeded 2 1/2 minutes generally did not sell well. How times have changed; nowadays songs tend to last over 4 minutes. A drum roll fills the first 6 seconds, but after that guitars are the only instruments I hear. The narrator wonders where Suzie is; has she left him for another man?
2. What Do You Want (1:40) - If the girl doesn't want money, gold, or other material items, the narrator wonders what she does want; he hopes she will want his love. The tempo is fast. The lead instrument sounds half like a guitar, half like a piano. Other instruments include the violin and cello, which are also heard in most subsequent songs.
3. One Last Kiss (1:57) - In Bobby's rendition of a song from the musical Bye Bye Birdie, the tempo is moderate and swing. In the musical, Conrad Birdie wants a final kiss from a fan before he leaves for the Army. In this case, the narrator wants a final kiss from the girl so he will feel better once they're apart.
4. Devil Or Angel (2:18) - This song had previously been a hit for the Clovers. In Bobby's version, the tempo is slow and in 12/8 time; the drums play only the second and fourth beats. I like the bass background vocals. Instruments include a guitar and a piano. The narrator can't decide whether the girl is a devil or an angel, but he misses her, needs her, and loves her.
5. Rubber Ball (2:31) - This song has a fast, rolling tempo. The women singing behind Bobby sing "Bouncy bouncy" most of the time, but when he sings, "You bounce my heart around," they respond with "You don't even put her down." I see irony; isn't the girl the rubber ball here? She's the one who bounces between loving the narrator and loving another guy.
6. Everyday (2:14) - Bobby's version sounds remarkably like the original version by Buddy Holly. The bell-like instrument is in both versions and the tempo is the same: moderate, but with the "drums" (actually Jerry Allison of the Crickets slapping his knees) in eighth beats. Bobby even uses Buddy's accent.
7. Stayin' In (2:02) - This moderate-tempoed song was banned from the radio because of the first line, "I punched my buddy in the nose after lunch." The narrator did it because the other man told him lies about the narrator's girlfriend. The narrator gets detention, hence the title; still, he is not the least bit sorry for what he did.
8. More Than I Can Say (2:27) - This slow song, the B-side of the previous one, was not a big hit either. In the first verse the piano plays; at the second verse the string instruments are added. In the instrumental the piano sounds out the melody. The narrator loves his girlfriend so much, words cannot express it; he'll love her twice as much tomorrow as he does today.
9. How Many Tears (Can You Cry) (2:05) - The tempo in this song is fast. Women sing "lum diddy dum diddy dum" periodically. At 1:27 the key rises a step. The narrator wonders how many tears one can cry after being dumped by a lover like he has been.
10. Take Good Care Of My Baby (2:38) - My favorite Bobby Vee song. In the first several lines, the tempo is slow, and the piano plays each whole beat. Then the tempo accelerates to moderately fast. The piano is audible between lines in most verses. The narrator rues being untrue to his girlfriend, who is now with the man to whom he is singing. A little later, Dion released his version of this song, minus the slow intro.
11. Run To Him (2:13) - Another big hit, this song has a slow swing tempo. The narrator can tell that his girlfriend has met a new man who appeals more to her than the narrator does. He tells her to go on with the other man; his tears will dry once he finds that the girl does what is best for her.
12. Walkin' With My Angel (2:24) - The "drum solo" in the first measure is actually the stomping of leather-soled shoes onto a board. In the next few measures, I again hear the instrument whose sound is between the sounds of guitar and piano. During the middle instrumental, the piano is the lead instrument. The narrator's girlfriend is the most beautiful in town; whenever they walk together, every other guy envies him.
13. Please Don't Ask About Barbara (2:03) - The tempo is slow, sometimes rolling, other times in eighth beats. The narrator tells people not to ask about his former girlfriend Barbara because he would try to act happy, but his true sadness would soon show. Interestingly, this song was rejected for play on American Bandstand because by this time AB's host, Dick Clark, had just been divorced by his wife Barbara.
14. Sharing You (2:01) - This song has a moderate swing tempo. The narrator can sense that his girlfriend loves him when she's with him, but when they're apart she loves another man. But he is helpless to do anything about it, just like in the story of King Arthur, Queen Guinevere, and Sir Lancelot. The narrator tells the girl that though he's sharing her, she'll never be sharing him.
15. Punish Her (1:59) - Like "Take Good Care," this song has a slow introduction with only piano and vocals. The tempo is the same, too. In fact, Bobby once thought of this song as "Take Good Care" played sideways. The narrator tells his buddy what to do if his girlfriend has left him but he doesn't want to give up. "Fill her with kindness," "Buy her red roses," "Blind her with kisses," and all that, would we really think of that as punishment? Sounds more like incentive for her to come back to the narrator's pal. The funny thing is, when I first heard this song, the title sounded like "funny shirt"!
16. The Night Has 1000 Eyes (2:40) - This song has the fastest tempo of all songs on the album. In the first verse the narrator's girlfriend denies rumors that she's running around him, and in the second verse she calls him periodically to tell him she's lonely and truly cares about him. But he can sense that she really is being untrue, so in the third verse he warns her that one day he will do the same to her and she will be sorry.
17. Charms (2:21) - The tempo is moderate, with both eighth beats in each second and fourth beat accented. The bell-like instrument is most audible during the first verse; at the second verse the string instruments are added. During the instrumental the lead instrument apparently is an oboe. The charms are like bells ringing to the world that the girl's love belongs to the narrator.
18. Be True To Yourself (2:04) - This song has the same tempo as the previous one. Besides the string instruments, which enter at 1:10, this song features horns and piano. The narrator has faith that his girlfriend's heart won't lead her astray; as long as she's true to herself she'll be true to him.
19. Yesterday And You (2:25) - The tempo is moderate and swing. Especially in the left speaker, I can hear some instrument, apparently a piano, rolling during the first minute. Horns are added at the 1-minute mark. The narrator sits alone in the cafe where he and his ex-girlfriend used to eat when they were together. As he listens to their favorite song on the jukebox, he wonders what she thinks when hearing that same song on a jukebox. This song was written by David Seville (of Chipmunks fame) under his real name, Ross Bagdasarian.
20. I'll Make You Mine (2:23) - The tempo is moderately fast. During the "da da da" parts a harmonica plays. The narrator has difficulty deciding what he wants to say to the girl whose heart he hopes to win. He doesn't talk very fancily, but he tells her that he will find some way to make her his.
21. Look At Me Girl (2:36) - In this faster song, hands clap on every second and fourth beat and a tambourine shakes during every beat. I really like how the tambourine rattles after each verse. The narrator wants the girl to look at him so she can realize that he thinks of her everywhere he goes.
22. Come Back When You Grow Up (2:52) - When the drums in this moderate-tempoed song sound out the even-numbered beats, they sound like the ticking of a clock; the second beats are the ticks, the fourth beats the tocks. The narrator tells the girl that she is too immature to be worthy of his love, but if and when she grows up, she may come back to him. When I was in high school, I too had a girlfriend who was a couple of years my senior but had the intellect of a 6-year-old. Looking back, I'm sort of glad that relationship fizzled out.
23. Beautiful People (2:18) - The tempo is fast, with every even-numbered beat accented. Instruments include an organ, a regular chime, and a low-pitched chime. The narrator tells the girl she's one of the world's most beautiful people, and he loves her. She's beautiful physically, perhaps, but also in terms of personality.
24. Maybe Just Today (2:27) - Again, every second and fourth beat is accented, but this time the speed is moderate. During the breaks in the regular drums, tick-tock-like drums sound the second and fourth beats. Lyrically, this is a carpe-diem song.
25. Medley: My Girl/Hey Girl (2:32) - First, Bobby sings the first verse and the chorus to the Temptations hit "My Girl." Second, a verse in "Hey Girl," the only hit for Freddie Scott. Third, the second verse and chorus to the first song. Finally, another verse in the second song. By doing so, he first tells ABOUT the girl and how she makes him happy, then he talks TO her about what will happen to him if she ever leaves him. The tempo is moderately fast, with the second and fourth beats accented by the guitar as well as by the drums.
26. Bobby Vee Radio Spot (0:59) - This commercial was for Bobby's album Take Good Care Of My Baby. The sound clips are from the title song, Bobby's version of the Shirelles hit "Will You Love Me Tomorrow," "Walkin' With My Angel," and "Run To Him."