Henrietta And The Hairdooz, "Penn Station" c/w "It Might As Well Be Me," Liberty 55572 (rel. 5/63)

I was just a month old when today's single made its brief appearance in the final year of the 1950s, music-wise. Though huge winds of change were on their way to America, '63 saw a continuance of teen music sounds that began in 1955. The musical palette had broadened in those eight years beyond the four-chord "Blue Moon" progression, but those familiar changes still appeared in hundreds of songs. Composers like Carole King, Brian Wilson, Burt Bacharach and Mike Stoller strived to break from the patterns of old, and it's clear, in retrospect, that change was imminent. The old warhorse sounds of the 1950s, good as they were, needed replacement. 
        This record is a good exhibit of those changes-in-progress. The performers were a Black girl group who had several names: Baby Jane and The Rockabyes, The Elektras, Devours, Lullabyes and this nom de plume. They came from the Bronx and first recorded as backup for Baby Washington on four of her early singles made from 1959-61. As Baby Jane & Co., they were produced by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller; they also did song demos for those composers and for Bert Berns.
        As Henrietta and The Hairdooz, they made three singles in New York for Liberty Records. I have two of the three, and I could swear I played one of them back on Facebook, but I can find no trace of that post. Perhaps I didn't! If this is their Jukebox debut, it's a good one. 
        "Penn Station" was co-written by Al Kooper, Irwin Levine and Bob Brass, who penned dozens of songs in all styles in the early 1960s. Kooper writes about these early song-hustling days in his most readable memoir, Backstage Passes and Backstabbing Bastards, a 1998 book that could adapted to a TV mini-series. And though Kooper regards much of this early work with contempt, this trio's songs are quite good. If I see the Brass-Kooper-Levine credit on an unknown single, I'll pick it up.
        This dramatic story-song tells of a pair of lonely souls who meet in the massive New York transportation hub. Over a cup of coffee, they bond and go from strangers to lovers after getting to know one another. It's a happy narrative with a gritty feeling. Lead singer Madelyn Moore (who I believe is pictured in today's marquee) delivers this story with a serious edge that eliminates any kitsch factor caused by the record's ghastly first few seconds. As I've learned, a record of this era needs 20 seconds to make its point. It's easier to quick-judge '50s records which waste no time being either good or bad. You have to ease into this one (like a slow commuter train!) but the final destination is happiness.

 

Because I'm insane, I repaired missing type from the cut-off left side of this Cash Box review. I also removed a repeated word; hence the awkward gap on one line. Aren't you lucky I devote so much time and energy to this nonsense?

Telegraphic lyrics reveal the hand of master lyricist Hal David, who co-wrote "It Might As Well Be Me" with Sherman Edwards. The latter's elegant melody could almost be mistaken for early Burt Bacharach; it's a big sing-songy and not given to the berserk changes of that much-lauded composer. It's an elegant ballad with a light bossa-nova rhythm (a significant tell of 1963 pop records), an emotional stand by Ms. Moore and solid harmony backup by her Hairdooz. 

        It's in the easy-listening bag, but done with soul, which makes a world of difference. An Andy Williams or Robert Goulet's delivery of this song, which I can imagine, would be bland and wooden in comparison. Glad this song got to these Bronx bombshells! Cash Box considered this the topside, but the more raucous "Penn Station" received what little airplay this soon-forgotten single was apportioned.

A helpful history of this group may be found HERE: not as gnarly as some of Marv Goldberg's articles, but another example of the lengths an unknown group took in the pursuit of fame.

Tomorrow: Zydeco master Clifton Chenier with a house-rockin' 1955 single for Specialty Records. Something different for Saturday for the six people who check out that day's posts!