BETTY TURNER, "YOYO LOVE" C/W "STAY AWAY FROM JIM" (INFINITY 019, REL. 6/1962)

The Infinity Records label is a no-brainer for me. Owned by John Maralasco, one of the architects of rock ‘n’ roll, it has a consistent roster of talented performers, most in the r&b/early soul idiom, and Maralasco, who wrote or co-wrote such early rock classics as “Rip It Up,” “Goodnight My Love” and “Good Golly, Miss Molly,” supervised and often penned material for its releases.

Betty Turner was a solo vocalist who made two of her five singles for Infinity. Today’s platter pairs two Maralasco songs in an excellent mash-up of the girl group sound and more traditional rhythm and blues. Prepare yourself for an ear-worm…

“Yo Yo Love” opens with a bass voice chanting an irresistible hook, as in Ernie K-Doe’s chart-topper “Mother in Law.” Turner has a sassy femme chorus in support as she lays down the law to a hot-and-cold boyfriend whose wandering eye has her most irked. The chonky sound is mighty appealing and add a ragtag trumpet solo and you’ve got yet another record that sounds like a hit but was overlooked when new. That’s new story here, isn’t it? Ms. T evokes the sound of The Shirelles’ Shirley Alston, and it’s not a stretch to imagine that better-known group tearin’ it up with this song. Maralasco loved getting cover versions of his material; were he on the East Coast at the time, it’s possible he’d have pitched this and other songs to girl groups who dominated the scene there.

Hear it >>>>> HERE. <<<<<

Cash Box advises us to eye it. Eye, eye!

“Stay Away from Jim” is total girl-group goodness, with a classic ballad fakeout that leads to a drivin' dancer worthy of any soul DJ's turntable. The interactions of the backup vocalists and Betty are in perfect sync. Thicc bass and walloping drums, plus a piano solo, give this hand-clapper tremendous oomph. Yes, it’s a complete riff on “Please Mister Postman” by The Marvelettes, but when a record sounds this good and is performed with such verve, who can complain? My only cavil is an often-heard one here: too short! Another 30 seconds wouldn’t have killed anyone, and the side would still be well within the accepted time-frame of a 1962 pop single. These people from the past never heed my advice; it gets so frustrating!

Hear it >>>>> HERE. <<<<<

Betty Turner made an earlier single for Infinity which is more ballad-y than this one; her most sought-after single is her last—a one-off side for Liberty Records which caught the collective ears of the Northern Soul lads and lasses. She seems to have drifted away from music after 1966 and, I hope, has had a good life. Anyone who makes a record like today’s deserves the best life can offer.

Tomorrow: a record I’d have placed in my new book One-Record Wonders, had it been on my radar while I wrote it—a crazy teen rocker by the singular Gary Von Ilg made for Capitol Records in a fit of divine madness sometime in 1959. Thee wildest rocker, coupled with the eeriest ballad for a platter that truly matters—unforgettable stuff! Don’t miss this one!