Save The Last Dance For Me

This CD is an expanded and somewhat altered version of the 1962 Save the Last Dance for Me LP. Based on the music alone, Anthology Three ought to rate higher than it does, but there's one problem -- it's been transformed by the addition of earlier singles from the same period into something more akin to a Best of the Drifters: 1959-1961 collection, with Ben E. King's representation as a singer greatly increased. This is fine, except that this repertoire is well covered on All-Time Greatest Hits & More: 1959-65, and it's difficult to imagine a fan of this era's Drifters not already owning that set. Additionally, some pretty fair numbers have been shunted onto the next CD, including "Jackpot," a superb number in its own right that might've made as good a song for Elvis Presley as "Money Honey" did five years earlier. However, the sound is excellent and the annotation, which details the success of the reconstituted group starting in 1959 and the comings and goings of key members, is extremely thorough. ~ Bruce Eder|