Diane Renay - I Had A Dream (1969)

Renee Diane Kushner was born on 13 July 1945 in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and started singing at an early age, taking voice lessons from Artie Singer, a voice teacher who also managed Danny and the Juniors, and had co-written their classic single 'At The Hop'. Singer encouraged her to pursue a recording career, and as record producer/songwriter Pete DeAngelis was a frequent customer at the Kushners' family jewellery store, her parents arranged for her to audition for him. DeAngelis was impressed with her talents and got her signed to the Atco Records label under the new stage name Diane Renay. Her first single for the label was 'Little White Lies', which was released in 1962, but it failed to chart nationally, as did the follow-up 'A Dime A Dozen', and Atco dropped her from the label. However, Bob Crewe, who had written and produced material for Renay's second recording session, then signed her to a new recording contract whereby he would write and produce records for her. Crewe arranged for her to be signed to the 20th Century Records label, and under his guidance the then 17 year old singer released her biggest hit 'Navy Blue' in late 1963, backed with another Crewe co-write,  'Unbelievable Guy', which came alive as an energetic, assertive production, and which featured a tougher, more confident vocal than the sweet, longing tone of 'Navy Blue'. The song told the story of a girl, lonely for her steady boyfriend away from home in the U.S. Navy and anxious to see him again, and it reached No. 6 on the Hot 100 in March 1964, soaring to No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary singles chart, and the song was followed by her debut album of the same name. Renay's only other single release to crack the national Billboard chart was another 'nautical-based' song, with 'Kiss Me Sailor' reaching number 29 later in 1964. After leaving High School she was able to concentrate on her recording career, and time was made for studio sessions with Bob Crewe in control, using top-notch backing singers including Ellie Greenwich and 14-year-old Patti Austin. 

'Growin' Up Too Fast' was a co-write by Crewe and The 4 Season's Bob Gaudio, and tapped into a timeless dilemma facing teenage girls ('Mama said we can't get married!'), while 'It's In Your Hands' took an older, more adult-sounding approach in an attempt to sustain her middle-of-the-road persona, but ultimately this was an area which didn't really suit her. For a moment it appeared the 20th Century-Fox connection might lead to an acting career, with the studio giving her a screen test, although nothing came of it. The next single, 'Watch Out, Sally!' ranks among her best efforts, with Renay involved in a tough-girl tug-of-war over a guy named Tony, and it was a one-off release on the MGM label. Her next few singles were released on Crewe's own New Voice label, but they varied in dynamic approach and her brassier post-'maritime' hits showed unfulfilled promise. Some of her subsequent singles were hits in certain local markets such as Salt Lake City, Las Vegas and Miami, but failed to break nationally. There was a one-off single for United Artists, 'Dynamite', and a dance version of the Jerome Kern-Oscar Hammerstein Showboat tune 'Can't Help Loving That Man', but then in 1969 she emerged again under Philly soul producer Thom Bell with a large-scale pop production of Harry Noble's 'Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me', backed with a cover of 'Yesterday', and although it received a smattering of radio play from disc jockeys previously entangled in her nautical spell, it wasn't a success. She left the business soon afterwards to get married and she gave birth to a daughter, but after a time she wanted to record again, and she made a few records for small labels during the 1980's, though she no longer performs in public.

Track listing

Disc One: 1962-1964
01 Little White Lies (single 1962)
02 Falling Star (b-side of 'Little White Lies')
03 A Dime A Dozen (single 1963)
04 Tender (b-side of 'A Dime A Dozen')
05 Navy Blue (single 1963)
06 Unbelievable Guy (b-side of 'Navy Blue')
07 Kiss Me Sailor (single 1964)
08 Soft-Spoken Guy (b-side of 'Kiss Me Sailor')
09 Growin' Up Too Fast (single 1964)
10 Waitin' For Joey (b-side of 'Growin' Up Too Fast')
11 It's In Your Hands (single 1964)
12 A Present From Eddie (b-side of 'It's In Your Hands')
13 Watch Out, Sally! (single 1964)
14 Billy Blue Eyes (b-side of 'Watch Out, Sally!')

Disc Two: 1965-1969
01 I Had A Dream (single 1965)
02 Troublemaker (b-side of 'I Had A Dream')

03 LIve Abd Learn (previously unreleased demo)
04 The Company You Keep (single 1965)
05 Words (b-side of 'The Company You Keep')
06 See How They Run (previously unreleased demo)

07 Happy Birthday Broken Heart (single 1965)
08 Cross My Heart, Hope To Die (b-side of 'Happy Birthday Broken Heart')
09 Soldier Boy (single 1966)
10 Please Gypsy (single 1966)
11 Dynamite (b-side of 'Please Gypsy')
12 Can't Help Loving That Man (single 1968)
13 It's A Good Day For A Parade (b-side of 'Can't Help Loving That Man')
14 Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me (single 1969)
15 Yesterday (b-side of 'Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me')