If you have listened to 60's music at all you will have heard Jean Thomas, either as a girl group member, or as a backing vocalist, appearing on many hundreds of tracks, and backing such well known singers such as Ella Fitzgerald, Connie Francis, Lesley Gore, Neil Diamond, Barbara Streisand, Sarah Vaughn, Eydie Gorme and many others. She is also the writer of over 80 songs, and is perhaps most famous as the lead singer of The Rag Dolls, which were Bob Crewe's creation of a female Four Seasons. In the early 60's her brother Don learned to play guitar, and together they harboured ambitions of a career in the music industry, so they wrote some songs together and took them to Paul Anka's publishing company, who signed the pair to an exclusive song-writing contract. In October of 1961 her vocals at an audition were noticed by Archie Bleyer of Cadence Records, who offered to record her, and in January 1962 she recorded what for some is the definitive version of 'Moon River'. Her second single was a Jean and Don original, with 'He's So Near' being more in the 'girl group' style than the ballad of 'Moon River'. In tandem with her burgeoning career as a solo singer she was still writing songs and recording demos with her brother, as well as finding plenty of work as a session singer providing backing vocals. Her session work at MGM led to them offering her two original Chip Taylor originals for release as a single, with 'I Don't Miss You At All'/'Don't Make Me (Fall In Love With You)' appearing in 1964. By early 1964 Thomas had teamed up with fellow songwriter/backing vocalist Ellie Greenwich and an old friend from Sarasota Mikie Harris, to provide a 'girl group' backing to many hit singles from 1964 to 1967. Quite often record producers put together an ad hoc group which included Thomas, to record a one-off single, and so she was a member of such obscure groups as The Angels, Angie And The Chicklettes (with a novelty record commenting on Ringo Starr's recent marriage, included here as an example of these one-offs), The Surfer Girls, The Tomboys, The Ramblers, The Telltales, and when her voice was heard by Bob Crewe, as part of The Rag Dolls. The group was named after the Four Seasons hit of the same name, and Thomas's sweet vocal was felt to be the female equivalent of Frankie Valli's distinctive falsetto. The Rag Dolls released three singles in 1964 and 1965, but at the same time Thomas was still writing and recording demos for other artists, as well as issuing singles under her own name of Jeannie Thomas, such as 'Life Of The Party'/'Too Good To Be Bad' on the New Voice label in 1965. This collection focusses on a very small part of her career, and features just the songs issued as singles under her own name, along with the odd demo, plus that Ringo novelty single, and it shows that Thomas could handle just about any genre of music, as well as penning some great songs, both for herself and for other artists.
Track listing
01 Moon River (single 1962)
02 My Ideal (b-side of 'Moon River')
03 He's So Near (Yet So Far Away) (single 1963)
04 Seven Roses (To Pledge My Love For You) (b-side of 'He's So Near (Yet So Far Away)')
05 The Boy That I Want Doesn't Want Me (single 1963)
06 Too Young To Be Yours (previously unreleased)
07 I Don't Miss You At All (single 1964)
08 Don't Make Me (Fall In Love With You) (b-side of 'I Don't Miss You At All')
09 Treat Him Tender, Maureen (Now That Ringo Belongs To You) (single 1965)
10 Tommy (b-side of 'Treat Him Tender, Maureen (Now That Ringo Belongs To You)')
11 Life Of The Party (single 1965)
12 Too Good To Be Bad (b-side of 'Life Of The Party')
13 If You Could Only Be Me (demo)
14 Don't Tell Me Not To Love You (demo)
15 You're The Root Of My Evil (single 1966)
