The latest entry in Ace Records' Producers Series, Sophisticated Boom Boom features a diverse selection of music produced by "East Coast Phil Spector," Shadow Morton.
Georgie Morton was a colorful character who earned his nickname based on his propensity for vanishing from the studio for weeks on end only to show up weeks later, none the worse for wear from his drinking/partying binges, creative as ever.
Morton also was known for being "street," bringing a real sense of Brooklyn tough to 7-inch vinyl, especially on the first few singles he recorded with those gum-smacking "bad girls," the Shangri-Las.
"Remember (Walking in the Sand)" and "Leader of the Pack" (the latter not featured on this collection), used sound effects recordings of seagulls, waves and revving motorcycles along with spoken-word narration and Greek chorus-style background vocals to create high teenage melodrama. The songs provided a fresh soundtrack to American teens growing up in the early 60s.
Th music from this period is presented in excellent, mono. Highlights include the title track, recorded by The Goodies, who Morton hoped might be his "next Shangri-Las," and a couple of tracks sung by his fellow songwriter, Ellie Greenwich, including the lost gem, "Baby," a 1965 should've-been-hit recently covered by Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward on the new She and Him album.
The album doesn't just stay in girl group mode, though, moving forward to take in Morton's work with teen prodigy Janis Ian, including her controversial first single "Society's Child (Baby, I've Been Thinking)" and the late 1960s "heavy rock" of Vanilla Fudge and Iron Butterfly. The mercifully short single version of "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" is included.
Things wind up with a Morton-produced single for glam rockers Mott the Hoople and two tracks by punk pioneers the New York Dolls, who were, in a lot of ways, a male Shangri-Las -- except they wore more makeup.
The album is a fun survey of Morton's work in all its creativity and diversity, and also includes a generous 40-page booklet featuring a detailed essay on Morton with lots of photos. Lovers of 60s pop in all its crazy forms will enjoy it.
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