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James Darren was an actor who got his first movie contract with Columbia when he was twenty years old in 1956, appearing in several films and TV series until making his first record in 1958, and scoring his first hit early in 1959 when he sang the title song of the surf movie Gidget, in which he starred with Sandra Dee for the first couple of years he was called Jimmy Darren on his record labels. His screen and recording careers then went hand in hand, until in 1961 he had the biggest hit of his career with the US No. 3 Goodbye Cruel World, following it up with the No. 6 Her Royal Majesty and Conscience a No. 11. This excellent-value 57-track 2-CD set comprises all his US A & B sides on the Colpix label during these years along with all the tracks from his albums James Darren No. 1, Sings the Movies, Love Among the Young and Sings for All Sizes not otherwise released on singles. It naturally includes all the big hits mentioned above along with all his other chart entries from this era. Its a comprehensive collection that brings together all his outings on record during the first five years of his recording career which established him as a top-class performer, and its a substantial showcase for that talent. REVIEWS “This collection with the satisfying word 'complete' in its title rounds up everything from his early years and illustrates very clearly the tug of war between recording kiddie pop material and the aim to appeal to the more mature LP market. Although this collection does contain everything he recorded during this period, it is worth pointing out, as is made plain in the excellent liner notes, that his LPs were a bit of a hotchpotch of previously released singles along with newly recorded material.” – Gerry Stonestreet (In Tune Issue 331)
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