Brixton-born entertainer Jess Conrad has been involved in every facet of showbiz over a career spanning seven decades: theatre, film, television, commercials, cabaret, reality shows, and pop music.  The latter field is, naturally, the subject of Cherry Red and El's new 2-CD, 63-song anthology Jess for You: The Definitive Collection which packs hits, rarities, and seven never-before-released tracks.

Conrad made a big splash in the first wave of rock-and-rollers to come from Great Britain.  He was voted the NME's 1961 poll as the country's Most Popular Male Singer on the strength of the early sides included here as originally released on the Decca label.  Conrad was often compared to American teen idols in the Fabian mold, and that influence is indeed clear here.  The first disc chronicles the period of 1960-1963 with selections culled from singles, albums, and EPs including Conrad's biggest hit, the Trevor Peacock composition "Mystery Girl."  Just three months after "Mystery Girl," Conrad recorded what might be his most infamous record.  "This Pullover," about a sweater gifted to the song's narrator by his girlfriend, has been pilloried over the years as one of the world's worst records, a fact now embraced by the singer.  (Conrad notes in his introduction to this set, "It was fellow pop star Joe Brown who once told me that he'd heard an even worse record.  I told him, he couldn't have done.  I didn't want to be known as the world's number two worst record.  I had to be number one!")  While its hyperbolic lyrics lend themselves to parody ("When I touch it, I can see you clearly/When I clutch it, I can feel you near me/When I'm lonely, I simply wrap it 'round me/And I feel I'm holding you so tight...so tight..."), it plays today like a charmingly innocuous relic of a bygone era.

The early Decca sides also include an Ivor Raymonde arrangement of Goffin and King's "Every Breath I Take," a U.S. hit for Gene Pitney; "Hey, Little Girl," featured in a promotional short advertising knitting patterns and men's tops (Conrad and sweaters having been closely associated!); and a twist novelty, "Twist My Wrist."  Among the tunes here from Conrad's Decca long-player also entitled Jess for You are the Sherman Edwards/Hal David-penned "An Angel Cries," a couple of Pomus and Shuman songs ("Rag Doll" and "Little Ship"), and another Pitney favorite, "(I Wanna) Love My Life Away."  Two previously unreleased demos are featured: Les Vandyke's "Swimming in Tears" and pop songwriter-turned-Oliver!-tunesmith Lionel Bart's "Didn't Want You To."

The second disc here opens with Conrad's move to EMI's Columbia label, at which he continued working with songwriters Gordon Mills and Les Vandyke and arranger Charles Blackwell.  During this time, Conrad continued his acting career on films, sometimes introducing songs in his movies (such as Mitch Murray's "Things I'd Like to Say" in 1964's The Golden Head).  Next moving to Pye, the singer worked with producer Joe Meek on "Hurt Me" b/w "It Could Happen to You," the B-side of which featured Ritchie Blackmore on guitar.

Conrad soon began concentrating on stage work in cabaret and the West End, but he did record three singles for Ed Kassner's President label between 1969 and 1971, all of which are presented here.  At President, Conrad reunited with Ivor Raymonde who not only arranged his final two President singles but co-wrote the A-side "Here She Comes Again."  Conrad's President singles were still in a pop vein with a slightly theatrical bent, but were nonetheless far-removed from the youthful rock-and-roll sound of a few years earlier.

This Conrad sampler continues with a few tracks from 1976's EP A Souvenir of an Evening Spent with Jess Conrad (such as Rod McKuen's "Without a Worry in the World" and Gary Geld and Peter Udell's "First Thing Monday Morning" from their musical Purlie) plus subsequent singles for the Antic and EMI labels.  The set concludes with a nostalgic medley from the 1988 LP Legends of Rock and Roll and a previously unissued recording of "Seven Nights to Rock."

Jess Conrad was awarded an OBE in 2011, and continues to be a beloved and enduring figure on the British music scene.  Cherry Red's anthology is an enjoyable walk down memory lane, with remastering by Oli Hemingway and a 24-page booklet boasting the artist's introductory message, extensive liner notes by Graham Hunter, and an afterword by classic rock legend (and Conrad friend) Rick Wakeman.  Jess for You: The Definitive Collection is available now at the links below!

Jess Conrad , Jess for You: The Definitive Collection (Cherry Red/El ACMEMD348CD, 2019) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

CD 1

1. Cherry Pie
2. There's Gonna Be a Day
3. Out of Luck
4. Unless You Mean It
5. Mystery Girl
6. The Big White House
7. This Pullover
8. Why Am I Living
9. I See You
10. Oh! You Beautiful Doll
11. Every Breath I Take
12. Walk Away
13. Hey Little Girl
14. Twist My Wrist
15. Pretty Jenny
16. You Can Do It If You Try
17. It's About Time (7-Inch Version)
18. As You Like It
19. Swimming in Tears
20. Didn't Want You To
21. You Can Kiss Me If You Like
22. That's My Weakness Now
23. You Too
24. Rag Doll
25. (I Wanna) Love My Life Away
26. Little Ship
27. An Angel Cries
28. Just the Two of Us
29. Maybe You'll Be There
30. It Tears Me All to Pieces
31. It's About Time (EP Version)
32. I Don't Care (What People Say)
33. One of These Days
34. Down Town Tonight

CD 2

1. Take Your Time
2. I Know You
3. Pussy Cat
4. Tempted
5. Things I'd Like to Say
6. Don't Turn 'Round
7. Hurt Me
8. It Can Happen to You
9. A Little Bit of Loveliness
10. Tin Pan Alley Rag
11. The Other Side of Life
12. See the Tinker Ride
13. A Conspiracy of Cards
14. Crystal Ball Dreams
15. Pussycat
16. Here She Comes Again
17. My Idea
18. Don't Lock Me Up
19. These Are Not My People - Men
20. Be-Bop-a-Lula
21. First Thing Monday Morning
22. Without a Worry in the World
23. Dizzy Miss Lizzie
24. Give Me a Star
25. Save It for a Rainy Day
26. Lock Up Your Daughters
27. Hey Little Girl (Promotional Film Version)
28. Johnny B. Good/Oh Carol/Little Queenie
29. Seven Nights to Rock

CD 1, Tracks 1-2 from Decca single F 12236, 1960
CD 1, Tracks 3-4 from Decca single F 12259. 1960
CD 1, Tracks 5-6 from Decca single F 11315, 1961
CD 1, Tracks 7-8 from Decca single F 11338, 1961
CD 1, Tracks 9-10 from Decca single F 11375, 1961
CD 1, Tracks 11-12 from Decca single F 11394, 1961
CD 1, Tracks 13-14 from Decca single F 11412, 1961
CD 1, Tracks 15-16 from Decca single F 11511, 1962
CD 1, Tracks 17-18 from Decca single F 11620, 1963
CD 1, Tracks 19-21 previously unreleased demos
CD 1, Tracks 22-27, 30 from Jess for You, Decca LK 4390, 1961
CD 1, Tracks 28-29 from Mystery Girl, Decca EP DFE 6666, 1961
CD 1, Tracks 31-34 from The Human Jungle, Decca EP DFE 8524, 1963
CD 2, Tracks 1-2 from Columbia single DB 4969, 1963
CD 2, Tracks 3-4 from Columbia single DB 7223, 1964
CD 2, Tracks 5-6 from Columbia single DB 7561, 1965
CD 2, Tracks 7-8 from Pye single 7N 15849, 1965
CD 2, Tracks 9-10 from Pye (South Africa) single PY 133, 1966
CD 2, Tracks 11-12 from President single PT 269, 1969
CD 2, Tracks 13, 18, 27 & 29 previously unissued
CD 2, Tracks 14-15 from President single PT 292, 1970
CD 2, Tracks 16-17 from President single PT 357, 1971
CD 2, Track 19 from Antic single K 11508, 1974
CD 2, Tracks 20-24 from A Souvenir of an Evening Spent with Jess Conrad, SRT SRTS/CUS 046, 1976
CD 2, Tracks 25-26 from EMI single 2682, 1977
CD 2, Track 28 from Legends of Rock and Roll, Happy Face LP MM 1037, 1988