Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. The Purple People Eater - Sheb Wooley
2. Little Serenade - Eddie Calvert
3. Rave On - Buddy Holly
4. Sugar Moon - Pat Boone
5. The Purple People Eater - Jackie Dennis
6. I'm Sorry I Made You Cry - Connie Francis
7. Torero Cha Cha Cha-Renato Carosone & His Sextet
8. Sick And Tired - Fats Domino
9. Tom Hark - Ted Heath
10. When The Boys Talk About The Girls - Valerie Carr
11. Torero - Julius La Rosa
12. Sally Don't You Grieve - Lonnie Donegan
13. Betty Betty Betty - Lonnie Donegan
14. Chanson D'Amour - Art & Dotty Todd
15. Endless Sleep - Marty Wilde
16. I'll Always Be In Love With You - Michael Holliday
17. Ooh My Soul - Little Richard
18. The Only Man On The Island - Tommy Steele
19. When - Kalin Twins
20. I Know Where I'm Going - George Hamilton IV
21. Hard Headed Woman - Elvis Presley
22. Trudie - Joe 'Mr. Piano' Henderson
23. Patricia - Perez Prado
24. Think It Over - The Crickets
25. The Only Man On The Island - Vic Damone
26. Splish Splash - Bobby Darin

Disc 2:

1. Jacqueline - Bobby Helms
2. Endless Sleep - Jody Reynolds
3. Wonderful Things - Frankie Vaughan
4. Splish Splash - Charlie Drake
5. Hello My Darlings - Charlie Drake
6. The Right To Love - David Whitfield
7. Yakety Yak - The Coasters
8. Fever - Peggy Lee
9. Everybody Loves A Lover-Doris Day
10. Poor Little Fool - Ricky Nelson
11. Stupid Cupid - Connie Francis
12. Carolina Moon - Connie Francis
13. Little Bernadette - Harry Belafonte
14. Little Train - Max Bygraves
15. Gotta Have Rain - Max Bygraves
16. Secretly - Jimmie Rodgers
17. Volare - Dean Martin
18. Early In The Morning - Buddy Holly
19. If Dreams Came True - Pat Boone
20. Got A Match - Russ Conway
21. Volare - Domenico Modugno
22. Girl Of My Dreams - Tony Brent
23. Moon Talk - Perry Como
24. Mad Passionate Love - Bernard Bresslaw
25. Rebel Rouser - Duane Eddy
26. Bird Dog - Everly Brothers

Disc 3:

1. Move It - Cliff Richard
2. Born Too Late - The Poni-Tails
3. A Certain Smile - Johnny Mathis
4. Little Star - The Elegants
5. Midnight - Paul Anka
6. Lonesome Traveller - Lonnie Donegan
7. King Creole - Elvis Presley
8. It's All In The Game - Tommy Edwards
9. Volare 0 Marino Marini Quartet
10. Western Movies - The Olympics
11. Come Prima - Marino Marini Quartet
12. Am I Wasting My Time - Frankie Vaughan
13. My True Love - Jack Scott
14. Ginger Bread - Frankie Avalon
15. Someday (You'll Want Me To Want You) - Jodie Sands
16. More Than Ever - Malcolm Vaughan
17. Susie Darlin' - Robin Luke
18. Tea For Two Cha-Cha - Tommy Dorsey Ork
19. Hoots Mon - Lord Rockingham's Xl
20. More Than Ever - Robert Earl
21. Volare - Charlie Drake
22. I'll Get By - Connie Francis
23. Love Makes The World Go Round - Perry Como
24. Summertime Blues - Eddie Cochran
25. Someday (You'll Want Me To Want You) - Ricky Nelson

Disc 4:

1. Rockin' Robin - Bobby Day
2. It's Only Make Believe - Conway Twitty
3. Come On Let's Go - Tommy Steele
4. Lonnie's Skiffle Party (Medley) - Lonnie Donegan
5. Mr. Success - Frank Sinatra
6. Tom Dooley - Lonnie Donegan
7. Fallin' - Connie Francis
8. High Class Baby - Cliff Richard
9. It\x{2019}s So Easy - The Crickets
10. I Got A Feeling - Ricky Nelson
11. Mandolins In The Moonlight - Perry Como
12. Tom Dooley - The Kingston Trio
13. More Party Pops (Medley) - Russ Conway
14. The Day The Rains Came - Jane Morgan
15. Topsy - Cozy Cole
16. Gee But Its Lonely - Pat Boone
17. Real Love - Ruby Murray
18. The Son Of Mary - Harry Belafonte
19. Winter Wonderland - Johnny Mathis
20. As I Love You - Shirley Bassey
21. Woman From Liberia - Jimmie Rodgers
22. To Know Him Is To Love Him - The Teddy Bears
23. Kiss Me Honey Honey Kiss Me - Shirley Bassey
24. You Always Hurt The One You Love - Connie Francis
25. Chantilly Lace - The Big Bopper

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #18173 in Music
• Released on: 2009-02-23
• Number of discs: 4
• Formats: CD, Box set
• Dimensions: .53 pounds

CD Description
Welcome to the seventh edition of the British Hit Parade series. Once again we present in chronological order every disc to chart on the hit parade as published in The New Musical Express. By 1958 other weekly music publications had become well established. The jazz orientated Melody Maker, although still suspicious and overly critical of the new sounds of rock and roll, had, by necessity, embraced the genre and was publishing its own regular pop chart, as was the Record Mirror. For this 1958 edition we have extracted from both of these charts several records that failed to find a place on the NME chart. Those titles are identified by either (RM) or (MM) after their title in the track listings. As with previous editions we are not including EPs or LPs that were listed on the NME chart. In 1958 there was only one item - Elvis Presley s Jailhouse Rock EP which reached No. 18. As introduced during 1956, the NME chart now contained 30 positions, so once again we are presenting 1958 split into two 4-disc sets. This second volume covers the charts of June 21st December 27th, and the rest of the year can be found on FVQD001 Part One: January June, which contains the charts from January 4th June 14th.

Customer Reviews

1958 Part 2 is part of an excellent series of music compilations
1958 Part 2 is just one collection in a series of music compilations which chronicle the NME's British Hit Parades from their inception at the end of 1952 up to the latest addition to the project, this year's release, which is for 1958. I would guess that these collections can now be made because of the expiration of the fifty year period of protection for the copyright in recorded music in the UK. This means that these discs can now be offered at such competitive prices, and why each one is released in the year after a fifty year gap has elapsed. The details of how that works are contained in the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, and all these recordings are cleared through the MCPS. We may well expect to see 1959 released early next year (2010) and a move into the sixties in subsequent years - I hope so!

The discs build nicely into a collection that will suit fans of fifties pop tunes and also serious music collectors alike. I will treat each year as part of a collection, rather than review each one individually; I can then add the review to each compilation to link them together. However, if you are just looking for music from your favourite year I would still recommend checking the others out as well, the quality is consistently very good indeed and, as far as I can tell, it is always the original recording featured.

I will try to explain why the CD sets for some years are more expensive to buy than others, and how the chart developed over time. Starting in 1952 the New Musical Express launched the first British Pop Chart on November 14th. All fifteen titles which were featured in that first chart, plus twelve additional titles which represent all the new entries up to the end of 1952, are included on the disc. The actual chart was just twelve positions but there were some tied places making up the fifteen. There is also a fully illustrated booklet included containing all the historical facts regarding the launch and detailed information on all the songs and artists. The first year's chart is contained on just a single CD and is called The First British Hit Parade. Amazon has a track listing and audio clips.

1953 is a 3 CD set comprising every record that entered the UK chart from January 3rd to December 19th in chronological order of the first entry - with the exception of multiple versions of the same song which have been separated for ease of listening, the compilers say, and it makes good sense. This is the same format used in all subsequent years as is the inclusion of a really informative illustrated booklet in each set. The year's set is called 1953 British Hit Parade, subtitled Britain's Greatest Hits Volume 2 - to avoid confusion, 1952 is actually Volume 1; there is no 1953 Volume 1! Amazon has provided a complete listing for the 75 tracks featured here.

1954 is a 4 CD set comprising every record that entered the UK chart from January 9th to December 18th in chronological order of entry, with the same exception of multiple versions as previously. This was the year that saw the first signs of the Rock 'N' Roll revolution! The year's set is called 1954 British Hit Parade, subtitled Britain's Greatest Hits Volume 3. Amazon has provided a complete listing for all 85 tracks featured here.

1955 is expanded to two 3 CD sets because the chart increased to twenty places, which means that it now takes six compact discs to feature all of that years chart entries. The first 3 CD set comprises every record that entered the UK chart from January 8th to July16th in chronological order of entry. The second 3 CD set comprises every record that entered the UK chart from July 16th to December 24th in chronological order of entry. The two sets are called 1955 British Hit Parade, subtitled Britain's Greatest Hits Volume 4, then each set has a purple corner flash stating either Part 1 or Part 2. I've mentioned this in detail as Amazon's listings for all of these discs in general is not consistent and could be a little confusing - the image shows the exact product. Unfortunately there is no track listing for either 1955 collection provided by Amazon, but the information can be found elsewhere on the web.

1956 was the year when the chart was expanded to thirty places and means that it is presented as two separate 4 CD sets. Set one features the first six months and set two the second. It becomes clear that this was the year that Rock `N' Roll really began to make its presence felt! The two sets are called 1956 British Hit Parade, subtitled Britain's Greatest Hits Volume 5, then each set has a green corner flash stating either Part 1 or Part 2. Amazon has a full track listing for the 95 tracks on Part 1 and the 92 tracks on Part 2.

1957 is another year divided into two 4 CD sets - January 5th to June 29th and July 6th to December 28th. The two sets are called 1957 British Hit Parade, subtitled Britain's Greatest Hits Volume 6, then each set has a blue corner flash stating either Part 1 or Part 2. Amazon has a full track listing for the 96 tracks on Part 1 and the 89 tracks on Part 2.

All the years so far have been issued by the Acrobat label, the latest addition, 1958, is now released on the Fantastic Voyage label which is a part of Future Noise. This is another two 4 CD set year, January 4th to June 14th and June 21st to December 27th. It is slightly different in presentation to its predecessors and also includes a card slipcase. It is, however, produced by exactly the same team as before and refers back to the earlier releases; the title follows a similar format and is Volume 7 Parts 1 & 2. There are full track listings for the 101 tracks on Part 1 and the 102 on Part 2.

All the compilations are produced by names which will be familiar to music collectors, and have been well engineered sound-wise. I am not sure what master sources are available to be used for this type of release, but whatever they are the results are very good. The few tracks which do sound a bit below par are mentioned in the notes and apologies made about the difficulties in sourcing some of the music.

If you grew up in the fifties you will find contained within these discs the music that was on your radio day by day and year by year - and for me, most of my parent's record collection! I never thought I would hear again Eamon Andrews dulcet tones echo the words horned toads of the thorny chaparral! (The Shifting, Whispering Sands, 1956, a double sided disc - both sides thoughtfully included). That and many other delights are contained within this series.

Each disc in the series has around 25 tracks and contains about an hour to 70 minutes of music. Whether you choose just one year or all of them you will find excellent quality and value, and many memories, within these discs. It is also worth checking out Acrobat and Future Noise's other releases as they offer similar value and quality in music from the same era.

Great Collection and a Vast Improvement in Sound Quality
In my review of the 1957 collection 1957 British Hit Parade Vol 1 I complained about the poor quality of some of the tracks, but this and its sister collection The 1958 British Hit Parade Part One: January - June], now produced by Future Noise is a vast improvement. The content cannot be faulted and for us over the 55 year old mark it's the sounds we grew up with and would hear from the transmitter of the old Light Programme and Luxy. If the rest of the collections to come are as good as this in terms of quality and quantity and I see no reason why not, you couldn't ask for a better source of material covering the history of British pop charts. Buy it and save up for the rest. A real history lesson.

Terrific album
This same album was unavailable in the U.S., I found a few tracks I was looking for for many years. The package came very fast Royal Post and the price for me was decent. I have most of the other British Hit Parade albums. They truly reflect the fact that everyone covered music from everyone else in the fifties. The music is good and all the tracks are of excellent sound quality. This album is a must for any music collector on either side of the Atlantic.