Don't Play That Song! Ben E. King

• 1 Don't Play That Song [You Lied] 02:58
• 2 Ecstasy 02:33
• 3 On The Horizon 02:24
• 4 Show Me The Way 02:20
• 5 Here Comes The Night 02:30
• 6 First Taste Of Love 02:20
• 7 Stand By Me 03:00
• 8 Yes 03:03
• 9 Young Boy Blues 02:22
• 10 The Hermit Of Misty Mountain 02:27
• 11 I Promise Love 02:08
• 12 Brace Yourself 02:06
• Total Runtime 30:11

Info for Don't Play That Song!

„Ben E. King's third album is a little short in running time but very high in quality, in terms of the dozen songs here. The title track was the selling point, but couldn't help but be seduced by the exquisite production of 'Ecstasy' and 'On the Horizon,' the latter making about as fine use of harps and an ethereal chorus as one imagines possible -- and when the strings come in, violins and cellos alternately, the sheer beauty of the track just overflows. 'Show Me the Way to Your Heart' isn't too far behind, and then 'Stand by Me' shores up the opening of the second side -- not that anything here needed shoring up, but it's good that they got the single onto a long-player so it didn't go to waste. Even the lesser material, like 'Here Comes the Night' and 'First Taste of Love' (the latter a Jerry Leiber/Phil Spector song that bears an uncanny resemblance to Arthur Alexander's 'You Better Move On'), is interesting to hear for the lively production. This album, like its predecessors, dates from a period in which producers and engineers were figuring out what one could do with soul and R&B in terms of engineering, and the sound separation and textures are nothing if not vibrant and alluring in their own right, separate from the music.“ (Bruce Eder)

Ben E. King, vocals

Digitally remastered

Ben E. King
began his career while still a high-school student singing in a doo-wop group, the Four B's. He later joined The Five Crowns who, in 1959, assumed the name The Drifters. King was the featured lead vocalist and occasional composer on several of their recordings including "There Goes My Baby" and "Save The Last Dance For Me" (written by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman).

After leaving the group in 1960, he recorded the classic single "Spanish Harlem" (1961), which maintained the Latin quality of the Drifters' work and deservedly reached the US Top 10. The follow-up, "Stand By Me" (1961), was even more successful and was followed by further hits, including "Amor" (1961) and "Don't Play That Song" (1962).

Throughout this period, King's work was aimed increasingly at the pop audience. "I (Who Have Nothing)" and "I Could Have Danced All Night" (both 1963) suggested show business, and Bert Berns' "It's All Over" (1964) was a superb song.

"Seven Letters" and "The Record (Baby I Love You)" (both 1965) prepared the way for the rhetorical "What Is Soul?" (1967), which effectively placed King alongside such soul contemporaries as Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett and Joe Tex. King later re-signed with his former company and secured a US Top 5 hit in 1975 with "Supernatural Thing Part 1." In 1977, a collaboration with the Average White Band resulted in two R&B chart entries and an excellent album, "Benny And Us."

King's later recordings included "Music Trance" (1980) and "Street Tough" (1981). He briefly joined up with Johnny Moore in a version of the Drifters, still plying their trade on the cabaret circuit. In 1986, "Stand By Me" was included in a film of the same name, reaching the US Top 10 and number 1 in the UK.

This album contains no booklet.