Golden Greats

This three-CD set is very attractive in some obvious ways -- listing for barely $11.00 and containing 75 songs, it's the most generously programmed Andrews Sisters compilation that one can buy, even outstripping the Readers' Digest collection from the '90s. That's more than three hours of music, and it's hard to complain about the programming, all drawn from the trio's Decca recordings (though one wishes the makers had found room for "The House of Blue Lights"). It doesn't get a higher rating than this, however, because none of the material is assembled in any discernible order whatsoever (except, perhaps, to maximize the variety and entertainment value at any given point on any of the discs); there would also seem to be better masters of several of the songs that do appear here. Additionally, there is not a single word of annotation, not that one would expect much at this price. On the plus side, there are quite a few numbers here that haven't made it onto MCA's major compilations of the group's work, including oddities from Don Raye such as "Scrub Me Mama with a Boogie Beat," "Rumors Are Flying." The result is an uneven collection that will satisfy and even delight casual listeners, but make more interested listeners thirst ever more for a Bear Family box devoted to the Andrews Sisters.