Handy Man (Del Shannon album)

Last updated
Handy Man
Handy Man (Del Shannon album).jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedOctober 1964
RecordedAugust 1963 – June 1964
Genre Rock and roll
Length28:41
Label Amy
Producer Embee Productions
Del Shannon chronology
Little Town Flirt
(1963)
Handy Man
(1964)
Del Shannon Sings Hank Williams
(1965)
Singles from Handy Man
  1. "Mary Jane"
    Released: February 1964
  2. "Handy Man"
    Released: June 1964

Handy Man is the fourth studio album by American rock and roll singer-songwriter Del Shannon. It features the singles "Mary Jane" and "Handy Man", the latter reaching No. 22 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August 1964. [1]

Contents

it included several contemporary hits with covers of "Ruby Baby", "A World Without Love", "Sorry (I Ran All the Way Home)", "Crying" and two Berlee Singles. [2] It reached No. 76 on the Cashbox albums chart where it stayed for 6 weeks. [3]

The album was released on compact disc for the first time by Beat Goes On on August 25, 1998 as tracks 13 through 24 on a pairing of two albums on one CD with tracks 1 through 12 consisting of Shannon's Final Bigtop album from June 1963, Little Town Flirt [4]

Edsel Records included this CD in a box set entitled Stranger in Town: A Del Shannon Compendium, which contains 14th of his studio albums and three compilation and was released on February 24, 2023. [5]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
New Record Mirror Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [6]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [7]

Billboard selected the album for a "Pop Special Merit" review, and stated that it does contain "Handy Man and 11 other in special rockin' style." [8]

Cashbox praised Shannon for his "rich, wide-range baritone and distinctive, lyrical delivery carries him in good stead on “That’s The Way Love Is,” “I’ll Be Lonely Tomorrow” and “World Without Love" [9]

Record Mirror described the album as a "excellently recorded, performed, and a great dance beat album." [6]

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Memphis" Chuck Berry 2:30
2."That's the Way Love Is"Del Shannon2:25
3."Ruby Baby" Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller 2:16
4."I'll Be Lonely Tomorrow"Maron MacKenzie2:11
5."I Can't Fool Around Anymore"George Katsakis2:22
6."Handy Man" Otis Blackwell, Jimmy Jones 2:14
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Crying" Joe Melson 2:37
2."Mary Jane"Maron MacKenzie2:28
3."World Without Love" John Lennon, Paul McCartney 2:42
4."Sorry (I Ran All the Way Home)"Artie Zwirn, Harry Giosasi1:47
5."Give Her Lots of Lovin'"Del Shannon2:03
6."Twist and Shout" Bert Russell, Bill Medley 2:37

Charts

Chart (1964)Peak

position

US Cash Box [3] 76
Singles
YearSingleChartPeak
1964"That's the Way Love Is""US Billboard Hot 100 [10] 133
US Cash Box122
"Mary Jane"UK Singles Chart [11] 35
US Cash Box124
"Handy Man"US Billboard Hot 100 [1] 22
US Cash Box [12] 19
UK Singles Chart [11] 36

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References

  1. 1 2 "Hot 100". Billboard . August 22, 1964.
  2. Reynolds, Robert (2019-12-26). The Music of Del Shannon. Lulu.com. p. 34. ISBN   978-0-359-89948-7.
  3. 1 2 Hoffmann, Frank W (1988). The Cash box album charts, 1955-1974. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press. p. 332. ISBN   0-8108-2005-6.
  4. "Little Town Flirt / Handy Man". allmusic.com. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
  5. "Stranger in Town: A Del Shannon Compendium". allmusic.com. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
  6. 1 2 Watson, Jimmy (13 February 1965). "Del Shannon: Handy Man" (PDF). New Record Mirror . No. 111. p. 11. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
  7. Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. p. 1250. ISBN   9781846098567 . Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  8. "Pop Special Merit: Handy Man". Billboard . Vol. 76, no. 41. October 10, 1964. p. 28.
  9. Cash Box. Cash Box Pub. Co. 1964-10-03. p. 30.
  10. Whitburn, Joel (1982). Joel Whitburn's Bubbling under the hot 100, 1959-1981. Menomonee Falls, Wis: Record Research. p. 148. ISBN   978-0-8982-0047-8.
  11. 1 2 "DEL SHANNON". Official Charts. Retrieved 2024-05-13.
  12. Downey, Pat (1994). Cash box pop singles charts, 1950-1993. Englewood, Colo.: Libraries Unlimited. p. 310. ISBN   1-56308-316-7.