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. 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. false 2023-12-28 17:13:33 Don’t Play That Song! 9 2014 2014-06-02 2014-06-02 29 Hip Hop Pop Pop Soul Rock Soul 112783 2120664 37e2175a-aefe-4d7a-80a8-09f863bd7512 837555ba-012e-45f1-9a9c-9628da13ee54 41da1f33-f897-3e51-a650-ab49b380ebf5 /media/data/media5/Music/Ben E. King/Don’t Play That Song! (1962)/folder.jpg Ben E. King Ben E. King 1 Don’t Play That Song (You Lied) 02:54 2 Ecstasy 02:22 3 On the Horizon 02:20 4 Show Me the Way 02:16 5 Here Comes the Night 02:21 6 First Taste of Love 02:19 7 Stand by Me 02:55 8 Yes 02:50 9 Young Boy Blues 02:20 10 The Hermit of Misty Mountain 02:21 11 I Promise Love 02:05 12 Brace Yourself 02:02 Benjamin Earl King (né Nelson; September 28, 1938 – April 30, 2015) was an American soul and R&B singer and record producer. He rose to prominence as one of the principal lead singers of the R&B vocal group The Drifters, notably singing the lead vocals on three of their biggest hit singles "There Goes My Baby", "This Magic Moment", and "Save the Last Dance for Me" (their only U.S. No. 1 hit).As a soloist, King is best known as the singer and co-composer of "Stand by Me", which became a US Top 10 hit, both in 1961 and later in 1986 (when it was used as the theme to the film of the same name), and a number one hit in the United Kingdom in 1987. The single was also placed on the RIAA's list of Songs of the Century. His 1975 single "Supernatural Thing" became a top five hit on the Billboard Hot 100. Additionally, King was the original recording artist of songs such as "Spanish Harlem", "I (Who Have Nothing)", "So Much Love", "Don't Play That Song (You Lied)", "Groovin'", and "Till I Can't Take It Anymore" all of which have been covered by multiple artists to varying degrees of success. King was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988, as a member of the Drifters, and has been nominated as a solo artist. Along with the Drifter's "There Goes My Baby", King's songs "Stand by Me" and "Spanish Harlem" also appeared on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's list of 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll. Additionally, he was inducted alongside the Drifters into Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2000, as well as the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2012 with the Towering song award.