This is an odd album, mostly owing to the widely differing sounds represented on it. Though often credited exclusively to
Gene Chandler, about half of it is comprised of
Chandler's work with the Dukays, the group of which he was a part until the release of "Duke of Earl" (which was a Dukays recording released as a
Chandler solo single). The Dukays material is fine if relatively undistinguished late-'50s R&B harmony vocal material, mostly consisting of pleasant romantic ballads.
Chandler's work, by contrast, casts him in a mode very similar to
Ben E. King's immediate post-
Drifters recordings (he even does "Stand by Me" here). There's a considerable chasm between the doo wop and the solo sides, and some listeners might even get dizzy after a few switches back and forth. And the album is dominated by the later tracks, circa 1965, most notably "Turn on Your Love Light," where
Chandler moves into the upbeat soul sound that would carry him from the mid-'60s all the way through into the 1970s (and a professional rendezvous with
Curtis Mayfield). The sound is excellent, and if you can take the switches in style and mood, this is a fun album. [The original 12-song album has been reissued on CD in Japan under the same title and with the same cover art, with audiophile sound and five bonus cuts drawn from deeper in the Vee-Jay library.] ~ Bruce Eder