Terry Black, originally from Vancouver, B.C., became a teen sensation in Canada between 1964 and 1966. He had numerous hit singles released on the Arc Records label, mostly written and produced by the songwriting team of Philip F. Sloan and Steve Barri. In 1965, Arc Records released a collection of Black's singles under the album called "Only 16/Poor Little Fool," named after two of his biggest hits. In 1966, due to a job transfer, the Black family moved to Hollywood, CA. This put Black right in the center of the entertainment world. The movie industry got word of Black's huge success in Canada and soon Black was approached with a script casting him as
Elvis Presley's brother with the hope of making him the next Fabian or
Frankie Avalon. Unfortunately, Black was still under contract to Arc Records in Canada and the movie did not come to pass. To cash in on Black's international success and move to the U.S. market, in 1966 Arc Records compiled another collection of his singles and released them under the imaginative album title "The Black Plague." This album contained essentially the same songs as the "Only 16/Poor Little Fool" collection with the exception of three songs, the
Sloan/Berri-penned "There's Something About You," a traditional gospel song; "Dry Bones," arranged by Black; and a rousing rendition of "Sinner Man." The Black Plague became more successful than Black's first collection, especially in the U.S., mainly due to the album name and garage style of some of the tracks. The album is still sought after by record collectors and original pressings sell for large amounts in collector's markets around the world. This release by Unidisc Records is the very first CD reissue of the original 1966 Arc Records album. It is released at a budget price complete with original artwork, liner notes, and digitally mastered sound, but, unfortunately, it contains no bonus tracks. ~ Keith Pettipas