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- Release Date: December 02, 2003
- Type: Collection (various artists)
- Genre: Rock
Review
Mersey Beat is one of the better collections of its kind to come directly from EMI, encompassing obvious high points in that company's mid-'60s history (though not the Beatles, who cannot be compiled without their permission), along with some too-little-regarded tracks from the vaults. Thus, alongside "How Do You Do It" and "You'll Never Walk Alone" by Gerry & the Pacemakers, "A Little Loving" and a soaring rendition of "The In Crowd" by the Fourmost, "Good Golly Miss Molly" and "Hippy Hippy Shake" by the Swinging Blue Jeans, and "Do You Want to Know a Secret" from Billy J. Kramer & the Dakotas, listeners get "I Know" and "Am I Dreaming" by Tiffany; "Tears on My Pillow" and "You Don't Have to Whisper" by her backing band, the Dimensions; the thumping harmony-highlighted rocker "I Really Do" by Earl Royce & the Olympics; and the frantic-paced "Rip It Up" by the Valkyries. This is all entertaining stuff, plus there are three genuine lost classics, the devastating "Break-A-Way" by Beryl Marsden; the pounding, smooth Kinks-like hard rocker "I Gotta Woman" from the Black Knights; and "Magic Potion" by the Koobas, done at a tempo half as fast as the version by the Searchers. Much of this material (though not all) is available elsewhere, though not mastered as cleanly or brightly as it is here. The annotation is minimal, but the sound quality and the combination of sounds are so compelling that even this reviewer, who has a shelf full of this kind of material, had to buy this as soon as he saw it. And the Koobas cut will be a real revelation for anyone only familiar with their later stuff. ~ Bruce Eder, All Music GuideTracks
| Track Title | Composers | Performers | Time |
| How Do You Do It? | Gerry & the Pacemakers | ||
| A Little Loving | The Fourmost | ||
| Good Golly Miss Molly | Robert "Bumps" Blackwell, John Marascalco | The Swinging Blue Jeans | |
| Do You Want to Know a Secret? | John Lennon, Paul McCartney | Billy J. Kramer, The Dakotas | |
| I Know | Barbara George | Tiffany | |
| I Really Do | Earl Royce & the Olympics | ||
| Rip It Up | Robert "Bumps" Blackwell, John Marascalco | ||
| I Gotta Woman | |||
| Tears on My Pillow | The Dimensions | ||
| Magic Potion | Burt Bacharach, Hal David | ||
| The "In" Crowd | The Fourmost | ||
| What's Your Name | |||
| Little Children (Lyrics) | Mort Shuman, |
Billy J. Kramer, The Dakotas | |
| Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be) | Ray Evans, Jay Livingston | Earl Royce & the Olympics | |
| I Like It | Gerry & the Pacemakers | ||
| You Don't Have to Whisper | The Dimensions | ||
| Angel of Love | |||
| America | Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim | Rory Storm & the Hurricanes, |
|
| I Love Her | |||
| Ferry 'Cross the Mersey | Gerry & the Pacemakers | ||
| Am I Dreaming | Tiffany | ||
| Bad to Me | John Lennon, Paul McCartney | ||
| The Hippy Hippy Shake (Lyrics) | Chan Romero | The Swinging Blue Jeans | |
| Break-A-Way | Sharon Sheeley | Beryl Marsden | |
| You'll Never Walk Alone | Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II | Gerry & the Pacemakers |
