Bobby Darin: The Singles (1966)

by Reina Riley
	Nineteen hundred and sixty six was an eventful year for Bobby Darin. He was still alive, which was an event in itself, considering his heart condition. He turned 30. He left Sandra. He began touring again from Las Vegas to London. He had his highest charting Easy Listening Hit (#3) with “Mame,” then the chameleon in him rose again and he evolved into a chart-busting folk-rock artist, with his smash single “If I Were A Carpenter.” Through it he earned credibility in the post-Beatles era.
The year also saw Darin recording three of his all-time best albums: BOBBY DARIN SINGS THE SHADOW OF YOUR SMILE, IN A BROADWAY BAG, and IF I WERE A CARPENTER. 1966 is one of Darin’s peak years as a creative artist, where his singing, composing and performing reached maturity. Amidst all this activity, it is amazing that he found the time to record and release five singles of astonishing versatility.
Key: Chart positions are listed in '()' after the song title Songs written by Bobby Darin are indicated by a '*'
THE BREAKING POINT/SILVER DOLLAR (Atlantic 2317) “The Breaking Point” is another Bobby Darin/Richard Wess gem. It’s filled with Darin swing and impish wit that begins with the first measure. Darin is most clever as he illustrates the meaning of the word “breaking” by chipping the word in two: “I’ve reached the “break - in’ point.” The lyrics are perfect for BD, whose clipped crispness just makes them come alive. The song is about a guy who has been around, but here he “goes again,” only this time he’s met a gal whose “curves affect his optic nerves” and he wants “to crrrush” her close. And then he feels a “big upheaval that fills his heart full of dreams,” followed by an “urge primeval” that makes him come apart at the seams--and so “it’s shoes and rice or else no dice,” because the fella fell in love tonight. This is exceptional Darin. The song (credited to Webster and King) is a perfect vehicle for Bobby Darin. Bravo.
	The B-side, “Silver Dollar” is an old chestnut from the Dixieland tradition. Written by Jack Palmer and Clarke Van Ness, the original lyrics talk about how a man without a woman is like a “ship without a sail,” but women fare much worse without a man, because like a silver dollar they can be handed from man to man--SO they better be good to their man. Bobby swings it and changes the racier lyrics to bring it home just a little down and dirty. Fun.
This is an excellent single release that didn’t sell many records in 1966 and has been collected on only three compilation CDs (two of which are currently out of print). Primo Darin.
	MAME (#53 Pop - #3 Adult)/WALKING IN THE SHADOW OF LOVE (Atlantic 2329) Bobby Darin sang the song “Mame” as the showstopper that it is and had a hit song with it. It is Bobby’s highest charting Easy Listening hit. It was released both on his LP IN A BROADWAY BAG and as a single. The song hit the charts before the show opened.
Bobby brings zest to his rendition of this southern Dixieland tune. Perry Botkin’s lively arrangement supports Darin with a terrific two-beat stomp, banjos and all. Bobby always has excellent enunciation, but I love the way in which he accentuates the word “blossom.” He makes it bloom. He also does a great job building up the words “special fascinational prove to be inspirational, we think you’re just sensational.” It’s lively all the way. An excellent trumpet solo bridges the two choruses. Just a note in passing though, in regard to the difference between 1966 and 2007: I’d like to think that in these days we would not be comfortable with a lyric line that talks about “you make the cotton easy to pick.” Ouch! The B-side, “Walking In The Shadow Of Love,” is one of Bobby’s last country recordings, and has another fine Botkin arrangement. Bobby’s vocal is excellent throughout. He carries the hook nicely as he walks through the steps of the shadow of love. By the third step the “clouds appear,” and by steps four, five, six and seven, the sun goes out of his heaven. Bobby sings the first chorus with a laid-back, simple style. As he begins the second chorus, he improvises on the melody and the lyric by adding Darinstyle curlicues and fill-ins that create a lively and danceable two-step. Darin is so relaxed, so at ease, he sounds as if he has been singing country all his life. This was another fine two-sided single.
WHO’S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF/MERCI CHERIE (Atlantic 2341) “Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf,” the 1962 Tony Award winning play by Edward Albee starring Uta Hagen and Arthur Hill, had by 1966 become the movie starring Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor. The excellent score is by Alex North, the noted film composer, who is credited with having written this song. I assume it comes from the film, I just can’t find any evidence that says so. Darin gives the lyrics of this beautiful melody a well-acted dramatic reading thus making the song better than it really is. It is truly beautifully sung and filled with poignance.
	The B-side is “Merci Cherie.” I’m sorry to say I have been unsuccessful in finding any information about this song. It is a bonus cut on the (currently out of print) BOBBY DARIN SINGS THE SHADOW OF YOUR SMILE/IN A BROADWAY BAG two-fer CD by Diablo. In the liner notes it says that the composer is unknown. It’s pretty bad. It has a faux Aznavour or Piaf feel to it. The militaristic, march-like drum is totally odd.
The lyrics feel like some terrible translation of a set of French lyrics. Maybe it works in French. I’m sorry to say that I find this Darin song unlistenable. I’m happy to say that it is the ONLY Darin song I find unlistenable. Merci, cheri. All in all, this is a disappointing single. I wonder what he was thinking?
	IF I WERE A CARPENTER (8)/*RAININ’ (ATLANTIC 2350) “If I Were A Carpenter” put Bobby back into the top ten on the Billboard Chart and was his biggest hit in three years. Its success made Bobby shelve an entire album’s worth of swing tunes such as “Lulu’s Back In Town” in order to take advantage of this recent success.
For the next two albums Bobby crossed over once again into a new genre, this time to folk-rock. Tim Hardin wrote the big hit single. Bobby always gave him credit for it, and he continued to record other Hardin songs. “If I Were A Carpenter” is an exceedingly important record for Bobby. It brought him into the mainstream of mid-60s music and showed that he could bridge all styles from the 30s to the 60s. Much is made of Bobby making a letter perfect copy of the Hardin demo. However, to tell the truth, I’ve heard the Hardin demo, and I don’t think it would hit the Top Ten. Bobby’s idea for a bass line and the addition of the flute solo midway contribute a great deal to its Billboard status and to its enormous success. The B-side is “Rainin’”. Darin-penned, it’s in the top ten faves of every Darin fan. If you have the DVD “Mack is Back,” then you can see the recording session of this beloved Darin song. He hired well-known and admired musicians of the Dixieland tradition (Darin’s personal favorite), and created a beautiful, memorable song of personal reflection with a haunting sax solo. This should have been a two-sided hit. Maybe the radio stations that were interested in playing Carpenter were less than interested in playing this throwback gem. “Weeping Willow,” a song of the same style was recorded on the same day. We still await its release. This was a very important single for Bobby. It gave him credence within what was happening midway in the 60s. Moreover, it is impossible to overestimate the importance of this single (for the reason stated above), and one other single, in Bobby's recording history. The other is “Splish Splash,” because of how deeply it has become embedded into the American culture. Someone has a birthday, we sing “Happy Birthday.” We want to lull a baby to sleep, we sing Brahms’ lullaby. We want to have fun bathing a child, we sing “Splish Splash.” That’s how BIG it is.
	THE GIRL THAT STOOD BESIDE ME (66)/REASON TO BELIEVE (Atlantic 2361) The last single for 1966 was “The Girl That Stood Beside Me.” Arranged by Donald Peake, it must have made Beatles’ arranger George Martin smile in recognition: Ringo style drumming and the addition of taped sounds played backwards. Could Bobby have been more au courant?
Still there is less here than meets the ear. The best it could do on the charts is reach a respectable 66. In its defense, I love the way Bobby uses strings on both the CARPENTER and INSIDE/OUT albums. They make me close my eyes and imagine I’m seeing Henry Fonda dance with Cathy Downs in an old John Ford movie by the name of “My Darling Clementine.” Because of that, the song works for me--because I’m bringing something to it from my own personal experience. The B-side is another Hardin original, “Reason To Believe.” Perhaps it should have been the A side. It’s an outstanding interpretation of an excellent song. As aggressively self-assured as Darin was singing those swinging love songs, he takes on an appealingly anti-Mack stance when on the losing end of love. He’s a dignified, marvelous singer of plaintive love songs. Towards the end of the arrangement, Peake builds in a wonderfully effective pause before proceeding into the last chorus. Also strong is the way the song trails off with a phrase of hopeless resignation: “...still I’d find a reason to believe.” Beautiful work by both Darin and Peake, this recording should have been a big hit in the “Carpenter” mold. 1967 would bring more songs from Darin that were in this folk/rock vein. They all deserve to be looked at anew, leading us to wonder what were the forces at work that prevented them from becoming the hits they should have been.
Reference sources for this article include: The Official Bobby Darin Website, Songfacts.com, “That's All: Bobby Darin On Record, Stage & Screen” by Jeff Bleiel, plus liner notes written by Fred Dellar for various CDs, Michael Orricchio for the “As Long As I'm Singing” box set, Bob Rolonitz for “Bobby Darin Sings The Shadow Of Your Smile,” and an unknown author for the CD “Rare ‘n’ Darin.”
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