Going Solo with Steve Lawrence

Oldies fans remember Buddy Knox's chart-topper "Party Doll," but Steve Lawrence also enjoyed a number one hit with the song according to the Cash Box charts. By Billboard's accounting it went Top Five and is only one of several hits included on his first Coral album, Songs by Steve Lawrence. Taragon's CD reissue adds three bonus tracks to make the disc a complete collection of Lawrence's Coral hits, of which there were eight. The material is diverse, from light rock to orchestral pop to ethnic numbers like "The Banana Boat Song" and "(The Bad Donkey) Pum-Pa-Lum." Lawrence even released a competing version of Bobby Helms' crossover country hit "Fraulein," although Lawrence's rendition was made exclusively for the pop audience. Songs by Steve Lawrence is an excellent and concise summary of his Coral years.