Well, here's a doozy of an album cover! My friends, Dan and Bradley, gave me this record this past Christmas, and they said they chose it because it was such a weird cover. They know me too well. I have to admit I was a little afraid to play this record for fear that it would be absolutely awful, but today I decided to record it for the blog and it's not as bad as I thought. I'm not saying it's wonderful - I'm just saying it's not as bad as I feared. But the cover makes up for it! Who the heck thought up this cover??? You can tell that Sharlene is pasted in there - she's not really sitting on that horse! And what's with the jousting outfit on the horse? Poor thing looks like he's one of the horses at Medieval Times. It's a pretty funky cover, all right - I'll be framing it and hanging it in my entryway - I'm serious!
I have absolutely no idea who Sharlene Sharp is (I'm assuming she's still with us), and I could find no information about her on the internet. But I did find out that Sonny Look had a famous restaurant in Houston called the Sir Loin Restaurant and Club, and that he died in 2003. I figure that Sharlene must've been an entertainer at his restaurant and he thought she was just wonderful so he had her record this album. The only other information I have on this album is that the liner notes were written by Mel Arvin (must've been a local Houston celebrity), and that the album was recorded by ACA Recording Studios in Houston. I don't know what year it was recorded but I'm thinking the late 60s, since "Sunny" was a Top-40 hit in 1966. If anyone has any info they can share about Sharlene and/or Sonny, please post a comment!
So, give old Sharlene a listen. Maybe (if she's still with us) we can track her down and convince her to come out of retirement and record another album.
Track listing for Sharlene Sharp - Rare and Well Done:
Side 1:
1. Your Nobody Till Somebody Loves You - (notice the misspelling of "you're" - but I put it the way it's on the album)
2. Where Are You?
3. Meditation
4. Might as Well Be Spring
5. Since I Fell for You
6. Hey Look Me Over
Side 2:
1. Born to Lose
2. Your Gonna Hear from Me - (again, "you're" is misspelled)
3. Masquerade is Over
4. Trolly Song - ("trolley" is misspelled)
5. There's a Tree in the Meadow
6. Sunny
