I've just gone to nirvana and brought back 120 souvenirs.

Having made it through the 1950s rockabilly and 1960s psychedelia of the two Rhino boxed sets Rockin' Bones and Nuggets, I now find myself in the middle with ONE KISS CAN LEAD TO ANOTHER: GIRL GROUP SOUNDS LOST AND FOUND. The trouble with girl group music, it would seem, is that in regards to placing it comfortably within the ranks of music history, it has tended to be short-changed in the grand scheme of things, a fairly fluffy era of pop music that simply bought time for the British Invasion after a series of bizarre coincidences rendered rock & roll music lifeless. This particular sound invited itself all too easily to harsh criticisms concerning the construction of the music, particularly the cynical role of the producer, the faceless nature of the songwriting and the supposedly inconsequential roster of singers. No matter how many songs have endured, you look at the evidence collected by Gene Sculatii that has been taken from the Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock & Roll and you see that rockist attitude in full swing.

And the songs that have endured are rightfully considered grand pop gems, the kind that have gotten the respect of a wide variety of fans. The New York Dolls and Martin Scorsese are two of the most immediate and unlikely but true aficionados of this sound, whether you're listening to a song like "Trash" or digging the opening credits of Mean Streets, set to the sounds of the Ronettes' "Be My Baby." And these were the early 1970s we are talking about. What about the 1980s and the sounds of alternative rock and new wave, where you can hear it in both the Flirts and the Smiths? Then there's the 1990s and beyond, with En Vogue, Destiny's Child and even the Spice Girls. And one-named contemporary R&B singers and bands carry that torch just the same, from Aaliyah to Zapp. It still manifests itself every once in a while to remind you that wistful, emotionally charged and often contradictory pop music has a rightful place in our mental jukeboxes.

If you are to take the rockist revisionist history at face value, it's not even girl group music that gets the shaft, but even some of the most essential R&B and even legitimate rock artists of the time: Roy Orbison, Jackie Wilson, Sam Cooke, Etta James, the Beach Boys, Del Shannon, and so many others from Motown and Stax. And yet reading the liners to Rhino's equally essential multi-disc boxed set comp of girl group music, it's pretty dispiriting to think that this particular genre has been given the shaft. Rhino had previously issued a couple of volumes of hit single comps that are highly recommended for the volume of classics included: "Heat Wave," "Please Mr. Postman," "My Boyfriend's Back," "Leader of the Pack," "It's My Party," "Will You Love Me Tomorrow," "The Boy from New York City," "The Loco-Motion," "One Fine Day," "Baby It's You," "People Say," "Remember (Walking in the Sand)," "Nowhere to Run," and many others.

ONE KISS CAN LEAD TO ANOTHER thankfully resists the notion of trying to catalog the same old hits from these releases and instead shines a light on tons of relatively unknown and overlooked songs. I don't know too much about whether or not most of these songs have been catalogued before (so many such comps have gone out of print), but after the four-plus hours I spent with this set, I didn't care. In fact, I was ready to listen to it all again as well as research other artists who deserve to be seen on a follow-up box. Inside the booklet, you'll notice a few such names like Baby Washington and the Dixie Cups MIA from the set, and a brief archaeological dig turns up artists like the Pixies Three, the Orchids and the Bunnies (who had a song called "Rebel Without a Cause"). But the beauty of this set is that what you've got here is so consistent and often times highly essential, that it would be a heartbreaker just to think about screwing with the order. This is a labor of love and respect.

Before I start to run down the track listing, keep in mind that Sheryl Farber and Gary Stewart, the producers of this comp, have not limited the songs to merely groups of harmonious best friends and inner city girls who vocalized their way out of limited career choices. Notice how many UK soul and pop singers turn up on the track list, with the likes of Dusty Springfield, Cilla Black, Sandie Shaw, and Lulu. Both Wanda Jackson and Jackie DeShannon, who provided a couple of indisputable high points on the previous rockabilly collection, are represented here, as are Connie Francis, Brenda Lee and even Dolly Parton. And if you thought of Toni Basil as merely an eighties relic, you probably don't know about Village of the Giants and will be amazed to find a single from her recorded around the time of that movie. The songwriters, producers, musicians, and labels are all of importance, too, but I just want to start talking about the tracks. There's a wealth of shang-a-lang and swooning to be shared with you, so without further ado:

Disc one
1. "Needle in a Haystack," The Velvelettes. Five schoolgirls from Western Michigan University signed to Motown's V.I.P. and had minor hits with this and "He Was Really Sayin' Somethin'" (see disc four). Although reduced to four on this song, this hard-hitting, hand-clapping soul number about deceitful loverboys didn't get the respect it deserved until Northern Soul DJs spun it decades later.

2. "He's Got the Power," The Exciters. Best known for the song "Tell Him," this three-girl/one-guy outfit formed in Queens when they were all 17. Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller produced that earlier hit and the infectious "He's Got the Power," a particularly passionate powerhouse led by singer Brenda Reid, a girl blessed with a raw, confident set of pipes.

3. "Nobody Knows What's Goin' On (In My Mind But Me)," The Chiffons. A couple years after hitting big with "He's So Fine" and "One Fine Day," this rather hypnotic, early psychedelic pop song composed by Stephen "Brute Force" Friedland ably adapted the Bronx quartet's glorious harmonies for a more eccentric, cavernous sound.

4. "I'd Much Rather Be with the Girls," Donna Lynn. Lynn was a 14-year-old star on Broadway by the time she lent her vocals to this chiming piece of girl power originally penned by Keith Richards and Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham as "I'd Much Rather Be with the Boys." The inclusion of this makes amends for the fact her only other notable song was called "My Boyfriend Got a Beatle Haircut."

5. "Keep Your Hands Off My Baby," Little Eva. Brill Building team Gerry Goffin and Carole King treated the babysitter of their infants to a landmark performance on "The Loco-Motion," but this follow-up single, where Eva lays down the law to a close friend with designs on her boyfriend, went to #12 in 1962 and was once a live favorite of the Beatles.

6. "Nothing But a Heartache," The Flirtations. This New York outfit were discovered in London and scored the most success in the U.K. despite a minor Top 40 placement for this sizzling Northern Soul classic.

7. "You Don't Know," Ellie Greenwich. A solo number co-written and produced by Jeff Barry and Shadow Morton, Ellie pours her hopelessly devotional but conflicted heart out over a magical musical bedrock that shifts between quaint, soulful guitar chords and sparse bass to a rising tempo backed by orchestral strings, tympani drums and backing vocals.

8. "Boys," The Shirelles. Chances are you're familiar with "Will You Love Me Tomorrow," still definitive not just for being the first chart-topping girl group number, but this loose, frisky B-side with a hopping piano and sax ought to charm as much.

9. "Big Bad World," Cathy Saint. Leiber & Stoller's short-lived Daisy label only had four singles to their name, including this Jeff Barry-produced story about a bad boy who validates the warning passed on by mama to Saint's jilted young protagonist. File this under the "Why wasn't this a hit?" folder.

10. "Out in the Streets," The Shangri-Las. The fifth single by the Queens girl group once more had the craft of producer Shadow Morton and composers Barry/Greenwich, but the drama here is more somber and less theatrical than their signature tune, "Leader of the Pack." The boy tries to convince the girl he's changed from his hungrier, rebellious past, but she knows something's aloof and regrets even meeting the fella. Blondie covered it in 1999 on No Exit.

11. "Is It True?" Brenda Lee. No time to say I'm sorry, not when country crossover icon Lee rose to the challenge faced by the rise of the Limey Invasion by hooking up with Mickie Most and John Carter, as well as a session guitarist named Jimmy Page, for this Top 20 hit that legitimately rocks like it was Christmas all over again.

12. "Please Don't Wake Me," The Cinderellas. The Cookies are all over this boxed set more so than any other act, having made singles under the names the Cinderellas and the Honey Bees. There's even a solo track by Earl-Jean coming up soon. This is a glorious love ballad produced in the style of Phil Spector, whose own contributions are not included due to budgetary constraints (in other words: too damn expensive to license).

13. "I'll Keep Holding On," The Marvelettes. A finely-tuned Motown/Tamla single that was recorded away from the Motor City and instead in the Big Apple. Wanda Young handles the lead vocals, but her group mates seem conspicuously absent, as it is likely songwriters/producers William Stevenson and Ivy Hunter handled backing vox.

14. "Oh No, Not My Baby," Maxine Brown. A Goffin/King composition originally handled by the Shirelles. This version only went to #24 in 1965, but many worthy singers tried their luck at it afterwards: Manfred Mann, Dusty Springfield, Aretha Franklin, Linda Ronstadt, Rod Stewart, etc. Forget them all for a moment and enjoy this heart-meltingly smooth, time-tested version featuring Brown's devastatingly dramatic, gripping lead vocal, truly in a league of its own.

15. "May My Heart Be Cast into Stone," The Toys. "A Lover's Concerto" tarted up Sebastian Bach to huge success, but this stalled at #85 a couple of years later despite the combined vocals of June Montiero, Barbara Parritt and falsetto-voiced lead Barbara Harris turning a Biblically-influenced lyric into something really heavenly.

16. "Magic Garden," Dusty Springfield. Jimmy Webb's composed this for the Fifth Dimension, but you don't need to read Sheila Burgel's track annotation to be convinced that this was simply made for England's most soulful female vocalist, who soars on a lush piano-and-string arrangement.

17. "I Never Dreamed," The Cookies. The liner notes includes remembrances by lead singer Margaret Ross and Russ Titelman, who produced and composed this with Gerry Goffin (Carole King arranged the tune). The tropical guitar touches, clacking rhythm and Ross' "natural" lead all amount to what may be their most shamefully ignored single.

18. "He's a Bad Boy," Carole King. 21-year-old Carole King struck out when she released this single, more heavily inspired by folk music than most tunes she composed for other singers, in 1963, despite having a minor hit with "It Might As Well Rain Until September" the previous year. The world caught on eight years later with Tapestry.

19. "Happy, That's Me," Little Frankie. Acoustic, sprightly Britpop song that was released on Columbia records as the B-side of the Paul Anka-penned "It Doesn't Matter Anymore." The producer of that song, Graham Gouldman, wrote "Happy, That's Me" before he went on to greater success with 10cc.

20. "Dream Boy," Jackie DeShannon. The Beatles invited Jackie DeShannon as opening act for an English tour in 1964. Along the way, she fell in love with Jimmy Page and the two of them even wrote a hit for Marianne Faithful ("Come and Stay With Me"). "Dream Boy" has a Beatles-style rock & roll melody, but this was never officially released until three decades later.

21. "Try the Worryin' Way," The Fabulettes. Distress over possible infidelity and heartbreak as a dietary regimen for those who can't be bothered counting calories or exercising.

22. "I Can't Let Go," Evie Sands. Cruel fate seemed to have kept Sands from getting a proper hit. Jackie Ross, The Hollies and Merilee Rush have all had hits with songs she first gave voice to, including "Angel of the Morning" and this song, a particularly sparkling bit of ephemeral, Motown-influenced pop soul with a killer bass line.

23. "Go Now," Bessie Banks. The Moody Blues, meanwhile, elevated this track into a chart hit. The original version takes on more of a gospel feel which makes Bessie's vocal more raw and regretful than Denny Laine's.

24. "You're No Good," Dee Dee Warwick. And speaking of grossly underestimated original versions, Dionne's sister belted a ferocious lead on this gritty R&B/rock fusion (the guitar solo is short and spiky) that we all know thanks to Betty Everett and/or Linda Ronstadt, but whose covers do not have the same hard-hitting intensity of Warwick's version. Forget about the emotional implications, it's just simply "GO NOW!"

25. "Opportunity," The Jewels. An intervention on behalf of a boyfriend who becomes a victim of his own success and work ethic, but the arrangement is so good that James Brown reacted to it by allowing the Washington, D.C. girl group to open for him and even supported their 35th anniversary reunion.

26. "Life and Soul of the Party," Mally Page. A guitar-powered R&B track about being the odd girl out in the eyes of a playboy. She finally wises up and finds out he's not worth his easily-distracted, boring company.

27. "Break-A-Way," Irma Thomas. This upbeat Jackie DeShannon/Sharon Sheeley composition was the flipside to her more anguished, personal "Wish Someone Would Care." Not only did it get lots of airplay in her native New Orleans, but it was given a spirited rendition by British triple threat performer Tracey Ullman in 1983.

28. "What Am I Gonna Do with You," Lesley Gore. As sure as she could assert "You Don't Own Me," the versatile Gore could also find herself co-dependent and dedicated despite her reserves and anxieties. The pedigree behind this song alone is astounding: Russ Titelman and Gerry Goffin wrote
it, Quincy Jones produced it and Jack Nitzsche arranged it.

29. "He Did It," The Ronettes. Phil Spector would mold them into a band beyond your wildest dreams, but the essentials from this period are MIA (revisit track 12 for a brief explanation as to why). Instead, Ronnie Bennett and co. are heard belting out this DeShannon/Sheeley composition from their early years, and it's likely the best track they did during their more rock-informed phase in the early 1960s.

30. "Baby That's Me," The Cake. Meanwhile, Spector's "Wall of Sound" technique is alive throughout this grand little pop song written by Jack Nietzsche (along with Jackie DeShannon), but neither arranged nor produced by him. The Cake, meanwhile, were fairly active singers and songwriters who moved into more trippy territory (two of the members backed up Jimi Hendrix on vinyl and Ginger Baker on stage) although Nitzsche helped out by producing their first LP.

Disc two
1. "I Adore Him," The Angels. The three Jersey girls who happened upon singing "My Boyfriend's Back" in 1963 saw this ebullient, harmonious song of unflagging loyalty released as a follow-up, and it did peak at #25.

2. "The Train from Kansas City," The Shangri-Las. Once again powered by producer Shadow Morton and composers Barry/Greenwich, Mary Weiss leads this locomotive little ballad about greeting an old boyfriend at the station by showing him the ring on her finger.

3. "Please Go Away," The Shirelles. A neglected album track from the Passaic girl posse that had seen better days on the Scepter label before the mid-1960s.

4. "Let Me Get Close to You," Skeeter Davis. A Brill Building charmer built on soulful piano and plaintive strings that was recorded by a country singer unafraid to make a crossover, as based on her previous hit "I Can't Stay Mad at You." Covered by Alex Chilton in 1987.

5. "I Have a Boyfriend," The Chiffons. A small hit in 1964, this is more in tune with the buoyant Chiffons sound than the admittedly eccentric disc one, track three selection.

6. "I'm into Something Good," Earl-Jean. Earl-Jean McCrea from the Cookies received a solo number from Goffin/King, a pleasant, swinging love song that was remade to bubblegum immortality by Herman's Hermits.

7. "I'll Come Running," Lulu. Glasgow girl gets the glory and the gusto with this spunky little British rocker featuring Jimmy Page's rhythmic chords, but it's Lulu's growl that draws you in. She also managed to record the original version of "Here Comes the Night" around the same time before scoring her definitive hit ("To Sir with Love").

8. "If There's Anything Else You Want (Let Me Know)," Roddie Joy. Despite the hand of Motown engineer Bob Bateman, this Red Bird-released single carrying a pretty strong, hooky arrangement saw no chart action.

9. "When the Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes," The Supremes. After six failed singles, this Holland/Dozier/Holland comp finally gave Diana, Mary and Florence a Top 30 entry before they became Motown superstars.

10. "It Comes and Goes," Sadina. Georgia-born Priscilla Mitchell sung on this measured, bittersweet Neil Diamond-penned ballad.

11. "Baby, Baby (I Still Love You)," The Cinderellas. Russ Titelman collaborated with Mann/Weill on this A-side from an incognito but easily detectable and delectable Cookies (see the previous disc for the song that was the B-side).

12. "Girl Don't Come," Sandie Shaw. Shaw's classy but captivating U.K. hit about a boy stood up is very Bacharach in design, kind of a coincidence considering this was released after she hit with "Always Something There to Remind Me."

13. "That's When the Tears Start," The Blossoms. Darlene Love managed to find life after the Crystals with the girl group she joined in 1957, with the single "Good, Good Lovin'" released a decade later. This swaying, brassy number was relegated to the other side.

14. "What a Lonely Way to Start the Summertime," The Bitter Sweets. The spirit of the Shangri-Las infuses this escalating, entrancing song from a band of mystery girls but whose composer and producer was none other than Mr. Brute Force. This is one of the set's great finds in terms of rarities.

15. "Don't Drop Out," Dolly Parton. Buried beneath her success as a country singer is this rather fascinating effort whose title isn't exactly echoing the same sentiments of James Brown's "Don't be a Drop Out." Ray Stevens produced this track before he immortalized streaking in song.

16. "The One You Can't Have," The Honeys. Between Spector and surf rock lies this song, written, produced and arranged by none other than Brian Wilson himself and featuring Ginger Blake and the Rovell sisters, Diane and
Marilyn (who was Brian's wife).

17. "I'm Nobody's Baby Now," Reparta & The Delrons (with Hash Brown & His Orchestra). Jeff Barry wrote this "Wall of Soundalike" gem that was sung by an act who had been fairly neglected in regards to CD until 2005, when this song also turned up on an authorized anthology and a compilation of Spector-styled songs.

18. "You're So Fine," Dorothy Berry. Even David Gates, future Bread winner, had Spector's ear for dynamics down pat, and the result is too irresistible to simply dismiss as derivative.

19. "When You're Young and in Love," Ruby & the Romantics. Van McCoy wrote this wistful little ballad for the Akron, OH group which formed around one girl (Ruby Nash) and three guys (Ed Roberts, George Lee, Leroy Fann). Although they recorded the gold-certified "Our Day Will Come" prior, the Marvelettes made this song more of a success.

20. "My One and Only, Jimmy Boy," The Girlfriends. Mr. Gates strikes again writing and producing this more-than-proper stand-in for the Crystals, replete with hand claps, maracas, bells, and tympani. This was the lone official single of an all-girl outfit who had paid their dues singing for Richard Berry and Ike & Tina Turner.

21. "A Friend of Mine," The Geminis. Horns and cowbell are the order of this funky early songwriting effort from Nick Ashford and Valerie Simpson. Revived by Gladys Knight & the Pips in 1981, about 15 years after the release of the original.

22. "Chico's Girl," The Girls. The Girls were a sisterly group of legit musicians who were even sponsored by Fender guitars. This garage-friendly cover of a Mann/Weil composition originally intended as a Crystals single.

23. "Cause I Love Him," Alder Ray. A one-shot single from a Los Angeles session singer, with a voice uncannily like Darlene Love's, bore the talent for something that could've been a hit, with Marshall Leib of the Teddy Bears producing and Wrecking Crew bassist Ray Pohlman. I kind of wish they'd preserved the mono mix, but the song still shines with a glorious vocal hook.

24. "Bye Bye Baby," Mary Wells. Wells auditioned for Berry Gordy with a song of her own creation (her only original hit single), and it turned out to be a Top 10 hit when it was selected as her debut 45. Compare this to the more lax but lovely Smokey Robinson-helmed tracks that followed and you'll be impressed by the fire in her then 17-year-old voice. Just heard this in Kenneth Anger's film "Rabbit's Moon."

25. "The First Cut Is the Deepest," P.P. Arnold. Migrating from Los Angeles to London turned out to be the best thing for soul icon Arnold, who was persuaded by Mick Jagger to stay and sign with Immediate, the label owned by the Stones' manager. Her inaugural take of the Cat Stevens-written standard remains arguably the best despite popular versions by Rod Stewart and Sheryl Crow.

26. "I Won't Tell," Tracey Dey. A stomping beat and a particularly sonic force drives this Bob Crewe/Bob Gaudio composition in the vein of the Four Seasons, but with a teasing lyric about cheating that is far from naïve. This song makes its CD debut on this set.

27. "Egyptian Shumba," The Tammys. Offbeat and fun confection that must have inspired the B-52's in some way be it intentional or subconscious. Aside from spontaneous animal noises and a clarinet melody, this has one of the best nonsense phrases of the entire package: "Shimmy, shimmy, shimmy, shy-yi meece-e-deece!"

28. "I Sold My Heart to the Junkman," The Starlets. A particularly controversial track due to the machinations of producer/used car salesman Harold Robinson, who slapped Patti Labelle & the Blue Belles' name onto a song composed by an entirely different girl group from Chicago. A damn shame, but it was cool enough to get referenced in the opening line of a Tom Waits song ("God's Away on Business").

29. "Walking in Different Circles," Goldie & the Gingerbreads. Despite being a self-contained, skilled girl band that formed in New York, not even signing with Atlantic made them famous in the States. It took a trip to England to give them some due fame, but it would end badly. Rhino have lovingly salvaged this stomping bit of work that would've likely impressed Motown.

30. "The Hideaway," Young Generation. An incredibly rare recording from a folk-pop girl group that included 12-year-old Janis Siegel, later to join the Manhattan Transfer. Another bittersweet song about a wedding that involved a failed promise carved on a tree.

Disc three
1. "The Trouble with Boys," Little Eva. The B-side to Eva's sixth single posits that the trouble with boys is, indeed, "you just gotta love them." The sentiments go down smooth thanks to a bopping beat and backing vocals by the Cookies.

2. "Lookin' for Boys," The Pin-Ups. This was intended by the songwriters to be a knock-off of the hit they wrote for the Angels, "My Boyfriend's Back," but this has a particularly sunny and celebratory feel all its own.

3. "Dream Baby," Cher. Capitalizing on the success of "I Got You Babe," Sonny Bono struck a deal with Liberty Records for Cher to record a solo album, which mixed covers of Dylan and Seeger with established pop songs such as "Needles and Pins" (which Sonny co-wrote with Nitzsche) and Sandie Shaw's "Girl Don't Come." Cher acquits herself well on this very Spector single derived from experience at Gold Star Studios.

4. "Condition Red," The Goodees. At last, the album's first death ballad in the vein of "Leader of the Pack," replete with motorcycle, ambulance and heart monitor sound effects. Given that the Goodees recorded for Stax's pop music imprint Hip, and recorded both a song about unwanted pregnancy ("Jilted") and a cover of "Double Shot (Of My Baby's Love)," I am interested in hearing more from them in case of a sequel.

5. "Should I Cry [alternate take]," Jackie De Shannon. The drummer is hot stuff on this golden DeShannon/Nitzsche collaboration from 1964, originally included on a misleadingly titled odds and sods comp called "Breakin' It Up on the Beatles Tour!"

6. "I'm Blue (The Gong-Gong Song)," The Ikettes. The original three-girl backing squad behind Tina Turner made a splash on the pop charts in 1961, and a song which cannot even be found on much of their retrospective releases despite being their biggest hit and even being revamped by Salt 'N' Pepa as "Shoop." Appeared in the original Hairspray, too.

7. "I've Been Wrong Before," Cilla Black with George Martin's Orchestra. Astounding vocal performance by the jazzy-sounding Englishwoman born Priscilla White, wrapped around a gorgeous George Martin arrangement and with a songwriting credit to Randy Newman.

8. "Love's Gone Bad," Chris Clark. Motown rarely signed white artists, but Clark was an exceptional vocal talent who managed the task of providing a tough, confident delivery of this Holland/Dozier/Holland composition which is one of the most muscular grooves the team committed to vinyl.

9. "Nightmare," The Whyte Boots. "Get her! Get her! Push her to the ground! Get her! Get her! Push her down!" Lori Burton and Pam Sawyer wrote, produced and performed this particularly venomous Shangri-Las mimic under an adopted name.

10. "She Don't Deserve You," The Honey Bees. The Cookies recorded this tender, yearning composition once again provided by the Brill Building team of Titelman, Goffin and King under the Honey Bees moniker, and we'll soon hear more on disc four.

11. "Will You Be My Love," The Four J's. Doo-wop vocals adorn this recently unearthed lost single from the Los Angeles-based girl group featuring Brenda and Patrice Holloway.

12. "Take Me for a Little While," Evie Sands. The Brooklyn singer's debut single, which fell victim to misfortune when a copy of the record was smuggled to Chess Records and led to a hastily-recorded hit cover by Jackie Ross. The version presented here is astounding and intimate, and it's not surprising to think of this or "I Can't Let Go" when Dusty Springfield proclaims Sands her favorite singer.

13. "Funnel of Love," Wanda Jackson. Jackson had a particularly killer voice when it came to bold, outrageous rockers like "Fujiyama Mama" or the equally carnal but more Nashville-endorsed "Funnel of Love," which was later covered with the Cramps.

14. "I'm Gonna Destroy That Boy," The What Four. A spiky garage rock obscurity and a particularly dangerous admission of sex as a weapon ("He's gonna fall so fast it's absolutely frightening/My love is gonna hit him like a bolt of lightning").

15. "Terry," Twinkle. I first heard of her when the Smiths covered her "Golden Lights," but "Terry" is her most infamous song, a particularly detailed, solemn ode to a fallen motorcycle lover ironically banned by the BBC on the grounds of bad taste (just like the more theatrical "Leader of the Pack"). Jimmy Page played on the sessions for this track, which the Surrey-born Twinkle (real name Lynn Ripley) wrote herself.

16. "Untrue Unfaithful (That Was You)," Nita Rossi. Also hailing from England was Rossi, whose "Something to Give" was the danceable B-side which more people caught on to than the flute-laden ballad that was the main draw.

17. "Sophisticated Boom Boom," The Goodies. Shadow Morton was particularly hung up on the lead singer of the Goodies (not to be confused with the "Condition Red" singers), but he surrendered "Leader of the Pack" to the Shangri-Las and instead offered up "The Dum Dum Ditty"/"Sophisticated Boom Boom" as a single release. The Shangri-Las would cover the B-side.

18. "Saturday Night Didn't Happen," Reparta & the Delrons. Evocatively psychedelic in its production and with lyrics that hazily try to make sense of a wild night after waking up feeling tattered and torn on a lonely Sunday morning.

19. "Don't Ever Leave Me," Connie Francis. One of the earliest and most versatile female recording artists ever to achieve stardom, there's no reason not to fall back in love with her even when she takes on Barry/Greenwich's rock solid pop rocker, which the multilingual Francis translated into multiple languages.

20. "Don't Forget About Me," Barbara Lewis. With so many golden voices on this set, Lewis provides one of the most cooly soulful of the lot and brings out the very best in this Goffin/King number.

21. "Wanna Make Him Mine," The Emeralds. This group came and went so fast that there is no relevant information on who were singing this track, sadly. This was one of the two single A-sides that bombed on Jubilee Records, but has been preserved for posterity thanks to the producers.

22. "Only to Other People," The Cookies. "There was a lot of love in the studio when it was cut," said co-writer and Julliard grad Toni Wine (who also helped pen "A Groovy Kind of Love"), and you can hear it in this track. I'm still feeling no guilt over this Cookies binge the producers have placed me on.

23. "Big-Town Boy," Shirley Matthews and the Big Town Girls. Produced by Bob Crewe in the manner that befits a follow-up to "Da Doo Run Run," with a trumpet solo and optimistic lyrics. Another exclusive to this collection.

24. "Daddy You Gotta Let Him In," The Satisfactions. Guess who's coming to dinner? "One of Hell's Angels will be knocking on the door tonight," goes the chorus to this track, which has echoes of "Then He Kissed Me" except of course for the ultimate test of misunderstood boy loyalty. It doesn't look like it's been included on any other compilation.

25. "After Last Night," The Rev-Lons. Produced by Jimmy Bowen after he snatched them up away from trusted producer Gary Paxton, this failed but feathery R&B number is yet another surprisingly unsung catch.

26. "How Can I Tell My Mom & Dad," The Lovelites. Smooth Chicago soul concerned with being taken advantage of in the throes of love and being left as a "mother-to-be."

27. "Too Hurt to Cry, Too Much in Love to Say Goodbye," The Darnells. The Marvelettes recorded two songs that got released in October of 1963 as a sort of competitive singles race for Motown, the other being "As Long As I Know He's Mine." That Smokey Robinson composition won out and this "Darnells" ditty from Holland-Dozier-Holland was buried in the catalogue for a long while.

28. "Up Down Sue," Luv'd Ones. A precursor to the punk sound that's admittedly far from standard pop territory with its particularly fuzzy rhythm guitar. Leader Charlotte Vinedge devoted restless nights to getting her band attention, and the result is surprisingly potent and pre-Runaways.

29. "When I Think of You," Twiggy. Turbulent times as a supermodel and international star practically eradicated the memories of recording this track and "Beautiful Dreams" from the English performer's mind, but this Mod-friendly track is concise and catchy.

30. "Good, Good Lovin'," The Blossoms. The post-Crystals group led by Darlene Love was previously heard with "That's When the Tears Start," but this was the intended hit which didn't even rank into the top 100 pop singles chart. Quite a shame considering how ecstatic and pleasant this sounds as I transition to the final disc.

Disc four
1. "When the Boy's Happy (The Girl's Happy Too)," The Four Pennies. In 1963, the Chiffons recorded a batch of songs led by Sylvia Peterson that were released under a pseudonym for commercial reasons. This peppy tune was one of them, but the more unorthodox "Nobody Knows What's Going On (In My Mind But Me)" was attributed to their more popular name.

2. "Don't Drag No More," Susan Lynne. Writer/producer Artie Kornfeld, utilizing New York native Lynne, molded "Dead Man's Curve" into a girl group number whilst retaining the falsetto wails and surf guitar of Jan & Dean's classic tune.

3. "I'm Afraid They're All Talking About Me," Dawn. A one-
named singer from Philadelphia pulls off a dark, suspicious bit of inner voice drama.

4. "That's How It Goes," The Breakaways. The Liverpool trio dubbed the British Blossoms would be famous as backing vocalists for a handful of legendary names, but David Hatch allowed them a chance to slam dunk this splendidly produced and composed pop number.

5. "Some of Your Lovin'," The Honey Bees. This second-to-last taste of Cookies was made fresh when Dusty Springfield covered it for her Memphis record, but it's a sweet number no matter which brand you prefer. The rare original version just sounds grand.

6. "Peanut Duck," Marsha Gee [unknown singer]. Nobody knows who wrote this song, produced it or even sang it, as the English DJ who discovered this track from acetate simply affixed the name of an existing pop singer to it to protect his find. It wasn't even officially released, for God's sake. And yet, the balance between vampy lead vocals and impromptu duck calls (especially at the end) assures one of those wonderfully weird songs which has to be heard
to be believed.

7. "Thank Goodness for the Rain," Peanut. She was born Kathleen Kissoon in Trinidad and played in a couple of English outfits before touring as backup vocalist for Eric Clapton, Van Morrison and Roger Waters. On the basis of this song, a career-spanning collection is like a dream itself.

8. "Steady Boyfriend," April Young. The wife of Jerry Ross, Philly's April Young was given an ace in the hole of a pop song, and yet she remained merely a local name. No fault of her or the song, written with Kenny Gamble and Joseph Renzetti.

9. "He Was Really Sayin' Somethin'," The Velvelettes. At last making a return appearance after opening the first disc, the Motown act's most notable single (later covered by Bananarama) is worth it alone for the "Bop Bop Suki Do Wah Dah."

10. "I Know You Love Me Not," Julie Driscoll. Driscoll had a blue-eyed soul voice that rivaled Dusty Springfield's surprisingly enough, and against an overwhelmingly tuneful but classically-structured arrangement, she had a solo hit in England with this signature tune cut before she interpreted Dylan's "This Wheel's on Fire."

11. "Whatever Happened to Our Love," Maxine Brown. Another overdue encore from a gifted singer, this two-minute jam went woefully unreleased as a single and surfaced for the first time on a 1999 UK girl group compilation.

12. "Heart," Petula Clark. Known primarily as a British Invasion artist for hits like "Downtown" and "My Love," Clark co-wrote this track originally in French. The resulting English version shifts tempos with grace and energy, going from a crawl to a marathon and finally a few chord-based bursts in two and one-half minutes. It was covered rather effectively by the Remains (whose "Don't Look Back" was on the original Nuggets comp).

13. "I Can't Give Back the Love I Feel for You," Syreeta Wright. Motown receptionist and one time Stevie Wonder bride Wright recorded this rejected Diana Ross demo once again written by Ashford & Simpson, a particularly Supremes-sounding ballad on record.

14. "He Makes Me So Mad," Hollywood Jills. Written by Sax Kari of New Orleans, this girl talk-infused funk soul number finds our female hero much ado over a guy who smiles when she slaps his face and plays football on her birthday.

15. "I Can't Wait Until I See My Baby's Face," Dusty Springfield. Dusty is pondering how her two-timing boyfriend will react to the news that she's breaking up with him for this Baby Washington cover featuring backing vocalists Madeline Bell (one of Dusty's frequent collaborators) and Lesley Duncan.

16. "Crying in the Rain," Carole King. Another relatively unfamiliar folk-inspired solo number from the prolific writer/arranger that is appealing and fairly breezy at 1:53.

17. "We Don't Belong," Sylvan. Recorded around the time when death songs were starting to dwindle in popularity, but a grand effort nonetheless which was backed by a 70-piece orchestra and a spooky piano.

18. "You Don't Love Me No More," Madeline Bell. From Jersey she came but to England she fled with the hope of success, although she did record a solid LP called Bell's a Poppin' from which this luxurious Charles Blackwell-penned and produced effort was taken from as a second single.

19. "Hey, Tell Me Boy," Marie Knight. Recorded when she was pushing 40, Knight was an established gospel singer with the Millinaires before cutting such songs as "Come Tomorrow" and "I Don't Want to Walk Alone." This one, however, suffered the same fate as Maxine Brown's "Whatever Happened to Our Love."

20. "Brink of Disaster," Lesley Gore. "I'm your conscience, listen to me," Gore intones from the start in a low-pitched, mechanical voice that contrasts with her more full-bodied lead vocal, thus creating a sense of inner dialogue quite unique for a pop song if not exactly commercial stuff. A personnel shift at Mercury was particularly disheartening.

21. "Who Do You Love," The Sapphires. The only hit single from the Philly soul outfit led by Carol Jackson was offered not as a Bo Diddley cover but a Kenny Gamble/Jerry Ross original with a tropical lilt to it.

22. "I'm 28," Toni Basil. Written by Graham Gouldman (originally for British singer Friday Browne) and performed with knowing cynicism by choreographer and future new wave star Basil way back in 1966. You won't find this sitting next to "Mickey" on any album then, now or soon.

23. "They Never Taught That in School," Gayle Harris. Dick St. John, one half of Dick & Dee Dee, provided this song and "Here Comes the Hurt" for Pacific Northwest cult singer Harris, who sounds disappointed in her educational system when it comes to matters of love.

24. "Dressed in Black," The Pussycats. Originally cut by the Shangri-Las but resurrected with mordant, dramatic urgency when covered by the Pussycats, whose personnel remains unknown but whose lead singer wails and speak sings with conviction.

25. "Ain't Gonna Kiss Ya," The Ribbons. Marshall Leib produced and James Marcus "PJ Proby" Smith composed this track which turned out to break the Searchers big in the U.K. when they covered it alongside other more popular R&B songs for their first album.

26. "Every Little Bit Hurts [Del-Fi Version]," Brenda Holloway. Holloway is perhaps best known for the Tamla-released version of this elegant little number which she originally recorded for the Del-Fi label, with an organ providing the support instead of a string arrangement.

27. "Mister Loveman," Yvonne Carroll. A particularly prized artist amongst soul fans/vinyl scavengers, Carroll got lucky in recording a Keith Colley composition as her swan song for Challenge in 1965. At last, it's available without the financial hassle.

28. "Make the Night a Little Longer," The Palisades. This is the last time you'll hear the Cookies on this compilation, as this demo recording was released once again inconspicuously on vinyl in 1963. Still, with Goffin and King behind the track once again, I think I'm ready to give in and look for a decent hits album.

29. "Mixed Up, Shook Up, Girl [live]," Patty & the Emblems. This was recorded live at the Uptown Theatre in Philly during a Saturday night concert which also boasted Wilson Pickett, The Drifters and Barbara Lynn. You can sense that the crowd knows and loves this song, and Patty Russell and crew are backed by a decent band that makes one anxious to hear other, equally impressive live versions of popular girl group sound specimens.

30. "Good Night Baby," The Butterflys. "One kiss can lead to another/And baby, you know they always do." And it is with this last warm embrace that we either find ourselves tucked in ready to relive this four hour-long experience as a dream or wake up from it to face the world.

ONE KISS CAN LEAD TO ANOTHER can be seen as a companion piece to the two individual Rhino compilations and even the great box of Phil Spector productions, Back to Mono, which is as worthy of purchase as this set is. Expanding the parameters and digging deep enough to remind you of what most people have sadly missed, Farber & Stewart eclipse any and all issues with licensing and selection quibbles by providing what may as well be one of Rhino's recent crowning achievements in the boxed set business, which includes both collections superfluous (Whatever) and standout (Nuggets). Lots of these songs are making their commercial CD debuts in the U.S. for what feels like a long time coming. The packaging is cheeky and fun, a hat box with the CDs packaged individually like compacts and the generous, informative booklet bearing a diary's cover. But it's the universal sounds inside the box, brimming with realized and rich declarations of young love in all its uplifting and downfalling ebbs and flows, that transcend the mere clichés and reserves about the genre and push this into gift-worthy territory. So blow a kiss, and say good night, baby.