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Tonight's the Night | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | December 1960 | |||
Recorded | 1959–60 | |||
Genre | R&B, pop, soul | |||
Length | 27:23 | |||
Label | Scepter Records S-501 | |||
The Shirelles chronology | ||||
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Tonight's the Night is the debut album by American girl group the Shirelles, released in December 1960 by Scepter Records. It contains the hit song "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" as well as "Tonight's the Night", which became a minor hit for the Shirelles. The album was remastered and restored by Cornbread Records. It was then reissued in 2017 on 180 Gram Vinyl with 2 bonus tracks, one track was " Look A Here Baby" on the end of side A and the second track was "A Teardrop And A Lollipop" on the end of side B.
In 2022, the album was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry. [1]
Although Shirley Owens was the group's main lead singer, Tonight's the Night also features lead vocals by Doris Coley and Beverly Lee; all four members share lead for "Doin' the Ronde". Later on in 1963, "Unlucky" was covered by Dionne Warwick for her debut album. "Boys", which had been the B-side of "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" and a regional hit on its original release, became better known after it was covered by the Beatles on their debut album Please Please Me in 1963.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic |
In his retrospective review of the release, Richie Unterberger for AllMusic wrote "For the most part, even more so than some other Shirelles' long-players, the LP evokes a bygone era when innocuous young love and its accompanying hurts were the centers of many teenagers' universes, fretted over with the detailed seriousness of international diplomacy." [2] The New Rolling Stone Album Guide rates this album three out of five stars, noting that this period of early Scepter albums was the band's most commercially and critically successful, due to the high-quality but risk-averse production from Luther Dixon. [3]
All tracks are written by Various artists
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Tonight's the Night" | Luther Dixon, Shirley Owens | |
2. | "Johnny on My Mind" | Edward Lyons | |
3. | "Lower the Flame" | Barney Williams, Eddie Snyder, Stanley Kahan | |
4. | "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" | Carole King, Gerry Goffin | |
5. | "Doin' the Ronde" | Addie Harris, Beverly Lee, Doris Coley, Shirley Owens | |
6. | "You Don't Want My Love" | Luther Dixon |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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7. | "Dedicated to the One I Love" | Lowman Pauling, Ralph Bass | |
8. | "Boys" | Luther Dixon, Wes Farrell | |
9. | "The Dance Is Over" | Luther Dixon | |
10. | "Oh, What a Waste of Love" | Allyson R. Khent, Luther Dixon | |
11. | "Unlucky" | Bobby Banks, Lillian Shockley | |
12. | "Tonight at the Prom" | Barney Williams, Eddie Snyder, Stanley Kahan |
The Shirelles were an American girl group formed in Passaic, New Jersey in 1957. They consisted of schoolmates Shirley Owens, Doris Coley, Addie "Micki" Harris, and Beverly Lee.
Scepter Records was an American record company founded in 1959 by Florence Greenberg.
Shirley Alston Reeves, born Shirley Owens, is an American soul singer who was the main lead singer of the hit girl group the Shirelles.
Doris Coley was an American musician, who was best known as a member of the Shirelles. Doris was the lead singer on their biggest hit, "Dedicated to the One I Love". She initially left the group in 1968, but returned in 1975 after original lead singer, Shirley Owens, left. Through marriages, she became Doris Coley Kenner and later Doris Kenner Jackson.
"Boys" is a song written by Luther Dixon and Wes Farrell, originally recorded by the Shirelles at Bell Sound Studios in New York City and released as the B-side of their "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" single in November 1960. It was recorded more than two years later by the Beatles and included on their debut album in the United Kingdom, Please Please Me (1963).
"Will You Love Me Tomorrow", sometimes known as "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow", is a song written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King. It was first recorded in 1960 by the Shirelles; released as a single that November, it became the first song by an African-American girl group to top the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It has since been recorded by many other artists, including King on her 1971 album Tapestry.
Wesley Donald "Wes" Farrell was an American musician, songwriter and record producer, who was most active in the 1960s and 1970s.
The Blossoms were an American girl group that originated from California. During their height of success in the 1960s, the group's lineup consisted of Darlene Love, Fanita James, and Jean King.
Presenting Dionne Warwick is the debut studio album by American singer Dionne Warwick. It was released by Scepter Records on April 10, 1963 in the United States. Composers Burt Bacharach and Hal David provided three-quarters of the track listing, having met Warwick during the summer of 1961 at Bell Sound Studios when she was working as a background singer during the recording session for The Drifters' minor hit "Mexican Divorce" (1962). The songwriters would go on to become frequent collaborators on subsequent Warwick projects. Presenting Dionne Warwick peaked at number 14 on the UK Albums Chart and spawned the lead single "Don't Make Me Over" which reached number five on the US Hot R&B Singles chart and became a top-forty hit on several international charts.
"Mashed Potato Time" is a 1962 single written by Kal Mann and Bernie Lowe, and performed by Dee Dee Sharp, with backing vocals by The Orlons, on her debut album It's Mashed Potato Time. The song refers to the Mashed Potato dance move, which was a fad. It was one of several songs that at that time that referenced the dance, another being James Brown's "Mashed Potatoes U.S.A." The Marvelettes song "Please Mr. Postman" is mentioned in the lyrics and is copied in the arrangement. Also mentioned in the lyrics are the songs "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" by the Tokens and "Dear Lady Twist" by Gary U.S. Bonds. Sharp recorded a sequel to "Mashed Potato Time" called "Gravy ".
Baby It's You is a studio album by the Shirelles, released in 1962. It contains the hits "Baby It's You" and "Soldier Boy".
"Tonight's the Night" is a song by the American girl group the Shirelles, from their 1961 album Tonight's the Night. Written by Luther Dixon and Shirley Owens, the song dealt with a woman's feelings before losing her virginity and was released as the pre-album's second single in 1960. In 2010, Rolling Stone listed as one of the 500 greatest songs of all time.
Luther Dixon was an American songwriter, record producer, and singer. Dixon's songs achieved their greatest success in the 1950s and 1960s, and were recorded by Elvis Presley, the Beatles, the Jackson 5, B.B. King, Jerry Lee Lewis, Dusty Springfield, Jimmy Reed and others. As a producer, Dixon helped create the signature sound of the girl group the Shirelles.
Foolish Little Girl is a 1963 album by The Shirelles. The title track turned out to be the last of the group's big hits, stopping at number four on the U.S. pop charts. The album's other single, "Don't Say Goodnight and Mean Goodbye," was The Shirelles' last top forty US hit. Cash Box described it as "a tender, soft beat cha cha weeper...that the gals again polish off with finesse." Despite their weakening chart impact, the demand for Shirelles recordings continued to grow. The same year, they had provided material for the film It's A Mad Mad Mad Mad World. By this period, the main producer of The Shirelles, Luther Dixon, had gone to Capitol Records and production was taken over by Stan Green; some of Dixon's previously recorded tracks with the group appear on this album. Foolish Little Girl also contains material by Ellie Greenwich and Van McCoy.
Baby It's You! is a jukebox musical written by Floyd Mutrux and Colin Escott, featuring pop and rock hits of the 1960s, with a special emphasis on songs by the Shirelles and other acts signed to Scepter Records. The show "tells the story of Florence Greenberg and Scepter Records, the label Greenberg started when she signed the Shirelles." After several tryouts and premieres, the show debuted on Broadway in April 2011, directed by Sheldon Epps.
Florence Greenberg was an American record label owner, music executive, and record producer. She was the founder and owner of Tiara Records, Scepter Records, Hob Records, and Wand Records. She is best known for working as a record producer and music executive with several popular singers in the 1960s including Dionne Warwick, the Shirelles, Tammi Terrell, Chuck Jackson, and B.J. Thomas.
"Foolish Little Girl" is a song written by Helen Miller and Howard Greenfield and performed by The Shirelles. It reached No.4 on the Billboard Hot 100, No.9 on the R&B chart, and No.38 on the UK Singles Chart in 1963. The song appeared on their 1963 album, Foolish Little Girl and was ranked No.57 on Billboard magazine's Top Hot 100 songs of 1963.
The Shirelles Sing to Trumpets and Strings is the sophomore album from American soul girl group The Shirelles, released in 1961. The album has received positive reviews from critics.
The Shirelles and King Curtis Give a Twist Party is a 1962 collaborative album between American blues and rhythm and blues saxophonist King Curtis and girl group The Shirelles. In 1968, the album was re-released as Eternally Soul.
Hear & Now is a 1965 studio album by American girl group The Shirelles.