Playin' Hard To Get

The Challenge label was formed in 1957 by singing cowboy actor Gene Autry. Though the company's most successful act was the instrumental group The Champs (with the No 1 hit Tequila), Challenge also recorded surf music, garage bands and, as this compilation readily testifies, some mighty fine girl vocal groups and solo singers.Of particular interest here are the sides by The Blossoms. With the exception of I'll Wait, the featured lead is by Darlene Wright. Phil Spector re-christened her Darlene Love and recorded her anonymously (along with various Blossoms) as The Crystals on the No 1 hit He's A Rebel and (with friend Bobby Sheen) as Bob B Soxx & The Blue Jeans on Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah.Donna Loren became nationally famous as the girl on a thousand Dr Pepper's billboards and for her modestly-clad roles in several beach movies of the surf era. One of the songs she sings here - Muscle Bustle - comes from the collective pen of surf legends Roger Christian, Gary Usher and Beach Boy Brian Wilson.Dorothy Berry, one-time Raelette and ex-wife of Richard Berry, delivers a diamond-hard coupling of the David Gates-penned Crying On My Pillow and a Wall-Of-Sound version of The Falcons' You're So Fine.The Delicates' five sides embrace a wide range of styles including Chicago dancers, soulful ballad and gospel rave-up. They went on to become sessions singers at Motown Records.If the West Coast never produced the level of girl group chart activity that happened on the East Coast (particularly in New York), this Challenge compilation shows that it wasn't either for lack of trying nor a shortage of available talent.

01 You're So Fine - Dorothy Berry
02 A Little Bit Of Soap - Yvonne Carroll
03 Stop Shovin' Me Around - The Delicates
04 Dream World - Donna Lauren
05 Crying On My Pillow - Dorothy Berry
06 He's A Big Deal - Renee Medina
07 Goodbye Jimmie - Panda Berry
08 You Haven't Seen Nothing - Dee Dee Young
09 Don't Mess Around With Me - Sister Rachel
10 Nothing To Write Home About - The Francettes
11 Love Bells - The Galens
12 Date Bait - Diane Maxwell
13 You Better Watch Out Boy - The Accents
14 Chinese Lanterns - The Galens
15 The Boy I Love - Renee Medina
16 Write Me A Letter - The Blossoms
17 I've Been Hurt - The Delicates
18 How Long Must This Fool Pay - Yvonne Carroll
19 I'll Wait - The Blossoms
20 I Want To Get Married - The Delicates
21 The Search Is Over - The Blossoms
22 Hard To Get - The Blossoms
23 Come On Everybody - The Delicates
24 I Gotta Tell It - The Blossoms
25 Big Talkin' Jim - The Blossoms
26 Mr Loveman - Yvonne Carroll
27 Comin' Down With Love - The Delicates
28 Muscle Bustle - Donna Loren