The Imaginations, "Guardian Angel" c/w "Hey You," Bo Marc 301 (rel. early 1962)

Once your friends know you collect 45s, records come to you at unexpected moments. I attend a monthly lunch with a group of elderly collectors of all sorts of ephemera. I am the token record collector, though I share other interests with this august group of afficionados. 
    One member whose appearances are infrequent called to me in the parking lot outside the Chinese restaurant where we hold court. He beckoned me to the trunk of his car. Inside was a cardboard box filled with un-sleeved singles. "You want these? My wife bought these back in the day." 
    She came from New York, and the records date from 1961 to '69. Most were familiar hits; a few were the kind of intriguing records that I've not heard or didn't know about. Her earliest purchases were doo-wop, white and Black. 1961 was a year of renewed interest in the vocal group sound--borne, in part, by the success of The Marcels' "Blue Moon," itself almost a parody of the doo-wop sound. Marginalized old-school fans uttered a chorus of "Finally!" as demand for first-generation vocal group records grew. Record labels re-issued singles that were collector favorites and gave flop records a second chance.
    This revival cemented the status of second-generation vocal groups. Many were European or Caucasian. The best tended to be Italian-American teens who lived in the metro New York area. They were exposed to the same atmosphere and music as their Black forefathers, and like the white college students who studied 1920s folk and blues singers, these youths absorbed the dynamics, drama and playfulness of 1950s vocal groups. 
    Anglo-Saxon youth who explored the same course tended to sound, well...white. Their intentions were good but something was lost in translation. The best of the New York groups remains exciting, passionate and sometimes-bizarre music.
    The Imaginations' story is typical of this genre: five teens from Bellmore, Long Island shared a love of doo-wop. They practiced, a cappella, in tiled shower rooms, where the natural reverb made them sound like they were on a recording. Among the quintet was future pop star Bobby Bloom, whose "Montego Bay" was a Top 10 hit in 1970. He co-wrote "Mony, Mony," a smash for Tommy James and The Shondells and "Heavy Makes You Happy" for The Staple Singers, among other successes.
  When they'd gotten good reactions from people not taking showers, The Imaginations auditioned for a local influencer. He recommended them to Music Masters, a label affiliated with his studio. Three singles resulted; the second, which we'll hear today, was issued thrice in one year--each time on a different label. (They did this just to confuse record collectors of the future!)
    The copy I inherited is from the record's final go-round on the Bo Marc label--one of a thousand short-run, small-time imprints in the boroughs of The Big Apple. As produced by Tony Serafino, it has a big, powerful sound that shows off the vocal talents of this fivesome to fine effect.
    "Guardian Angel" was a cover version of a rival group's original. The Selections recorded their song in 1958; like today's single, it got three issues to no avail. This superb up-tempo side was the B-side of both singles, but outshines the A with its bold vocals and exciting, sparse production.
    Sharp rhythm guitar (which might be by the great Mickey Baker) drives this bright mover, with creates that train-in-motion feeling that I find irresistible. Bobby Bloom sings first tenor on both sides. Though it's a straight cover of The Selections' recording, it's imbued with real feeling and joy and is a superior version. Nonsense syllables abound, but not to silly effect; they're abstract exclamations of romantic delight. This was an obvious hit song that went, like so many of its kind, un-noticed when new.
    

Quick-beat outing or softie rock survey: your choice!

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/5fcz7c9u6e30e369hws6h/2146a.mp3?rlkey=2xiqsa6548brpbkro9upd8353&st=2rokt52z&dl=0

"Hey You" is the group's fine original. It drips with vocal-group atmosphere and benefits from a massive sound that belies how few elements went into its making. Reverb makes those five voices sound like 50; a simple rhythm section supports their voices. 
  These guys win my heart: (a) they have great pitch and sing on-key; (b) they absorbed the intense, otherworldly vibe of a great doo-wop ballad and (c) none have any affectation of sounding Black. Almost all Italian-American vocal group sides suffer from one of those demerits. 
    While cut from familiar cloth, "Hey You" is delivered with such sincerity and power that its standard-issue songform becomes something special. While "Guardian Angel" was the clear radio-friendly side, this is a classic of the dreamy, spectral sound of doo-wop's ballad mode.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/bhknfdw8gfv323pya46ep/2146b.mp3?rlkey=49wupny8z507p3lhcqfcchv40&st=wwnyt19c&dl=0

The group financed their third single and created the label Ballad 500 Records for it. Rust Records distributed; it went nowhere despite sounding more like up-to-date Black vocal group sounds. In 1963, they recorded as The Expressions for Parkway Records in Philadelphia; again, nothing happened to a fine single.
    In 1976, the group reunited for a final single issued on producer Harvey Mandell's Harvey label. It's the most valuable of the group's handful of releases; Bobby Bloom rejoined the quintet for this return to simpler days of youth and laughter.

Tomorrow: Gregory Carroll and Bo Diddley's singing partner Peggy Baskerville team up on a rowdy, likable 1957 pair of r&b duets for the Ro-Nan la-bel.