A Girl Called Dusty
Dusty Springfield
1964
Album Summary
A Girl Called Dusty is the debut studio album by English singer Dusty Springfield. It was released on 17 April 1964 in the United Kingdom by Philips Records. The album peaked at No. 6 on the UK Album Charts and No.5 on NME charts in May 1964.
WikipediaAlright, so here's an album that was released in the mid-60s but sounds like it's from the 50s for the most part. A lot of the records on this list are ahead of their times but that's not the case here. Dusty gets points for some really great recordings of really great songs but they're mostly rips of other people's work. That was common for the time (especially among white performers covering songs by black artists) but it still makes me wonder why this was included in the list. It was enjoyable but nothing groundbreaking. Hence the 3 star rating.
I'm a sucker for the chanteuse who can make covering any song sound so easy. This album is but a foretaste of the feast to come regarding Dusty. But overall this one still grabs me, even if no one can really agree on song sequencing or even which songs appear on which version (American or British). The first time I ever heard of Dusty Springfield was when the Pet Shop Boys song, "What Have I Done To Deserve This" came on the car radio, and one of my high school friends said, "Ooh! Dusty!" and turned up the radio. I'm still not completely convinced he had any idea who Dusty Springfield was. Or the Pet Shop Boys for that matter.
Well-sang album. Unsure why an album composed solely of covers can be included in a list like this. I get it was commonplace in the 50s and 60s, but it's not exactly a spectacular composition.
Loved Dusty ever since that scene in Pulp Fiction - Go make yourself a drink and I'll be down in two shakes of a lambs tail. Summer Is Over makes me feel like I'm riding off into a desert sunset after victory at a high noon duel.
Sounds massively modern for 1964. A blueprint for all modern female soul/pop/RnB singers. Think Adele but in the 60s. This album must have been a revelation at the time. Best song: When the love light starts shining thru his eyes.
This was really, really, really good! Her voice is just amazing, the songs are all good and there’s some absolute belters in there too that I didn’t even know was Dusty! Absolutely tremendous album and will definitely be purchased in the future! Loved it!
The last Dusty album we reviewed ]had "Son of a Preacher Man" which is a song that can positively influence your rating and cover up a lot of blemishes. For this LP, we will find out what we really think of her. When this starts, I can't help but think she was influenced by white musicians from the Bobby Sox era. There are some songs where she tries to embrace Motown influences but she sure does sound white when she does this. If she wants to venture to Motown, shouldn't she get a guitar player and someone who can play either the trombone or sax rather than continuing with the orchestra? It's hard to pull off a Motown sound when you're relying on a dude in a suit with a baton. For perspective, this LP was released in 1964 and the Beatles didn't release albums with their first covers of Smokey Robinson until 1963/64 so it's not like there was a lot of guidance on how to adopt the sound. While I can cut her a bit of slack, there is no excuse for the baton still being in the house. Side 1: Anyway, "You Don't Own Me" is a very good song and there is no denying how good her voice is. The LP then moves onto the second tier songs. "Do Re Mi" and "When the Love Light . . ." have decent melodies although it's hard not to label Do Re Mi a weiner song. "My Colouring Book" put me to sleep but "Mockingbird" is fun. Side 2: The song "Nothing" is quite good and demonstrates she can sing songs that are uptempo and loud (by Dusty standards). "Wishing and Hoping" validates my point on her needing to move on from the suit with the baton. "Don't Ya Know", the Ray Charles cover that concludes the album, is fabulous and the best song on the LP. She is accompanied by band that can play this type of music and they sound like they are having a whack of fun. Final thought: She wasn't born with the name "Dusty Springfield"; she picked it and it's an incredibly cool name. How could she pick a name that cool and a hairstyle that lame? Ringo looked cool with that hairstyle but Dusty, not so much. My feelings about this album are really mixed. She has a great voice and I really want to like her more.
Incredibly generic early 60s cover album. I have no strong feelings one way or the other.
Soulful, liked it much better than I expected. Favorite songs were You Don't Own Me, Summer is Over
It was really good!! I don’t know I expected less. But I found this super.
Love Dusty! Almost forgot how many hits she had back in the 60s. But her joint project with the Pet Shop Boys was the best.
Loved this, even better than the other album even though that has the most well known tune. could listen again and again
This album was a treat. It contains all of the Dusty Springfield songs I already knew, plus some additional gems.
I just cannot get enough of this. The album is not a 5 Its very repetitive and the closing tracks are a little dull But god I'm all for that cute 60s love music. You Don't Own Me and My Colouring Book are really good
What a wonderful album and I want to do a cross reference on which of these were covers or originals. Beautiful songs in here and her voice is marvellous
I listened to this album on headphones during the car ride from Buffalo to Chicago, which was the perfect way to hear the buttery quality of Dusty's voice. I've heard a few of the songs before, but it was special to listen to a whole album of her. I haven't thought of the song "You Don't Own Me" in awhile and think its a beautiful mix of sweet and creepy. I loved the arrangement of "Mockingbird", with the backing vocals being as loud as the lead vocals. "Can I Get a Witness" really showcased her vocal range and I loved the screamy bits at the end!
Is there a better British Soul Singer than Dusty? I don't think so! "Can I Get A Witness" "You Don't Own Me" "Wishin' & Hopin'" "Anyone Who Had A Heart" the list goes on of classic soul/pop on this album. Brilliant, and reminds me of my childhood, you can hear here why the Pet Shop Boys wanted to revive her career in the late 80's. Iconic and strong role model! Love this album it reminds me of my childhood in the 60's
Wonderful, mournful 60s blue-eyed soul. You Don't Own Me is chilling and perfect.
Wow. Pure joy blasting out the speakers. They don’t make them like this anymore. I love how hard the drums are on a lot of these songs. Everything on here is gold but “Twenty-Four Hours From Tulsa” wrecked me. Also, she can really wail! "Don't You Know" in particular has some fantastic, soulful vocals in the second half. (I had to stream that one on the album "Dusty" for some reason.)
Superb cool mellow listening - What a voice she had ! So resonant, smooth yet with just enough emotion in it to believe what she was telling you. Totally recommended.
Actually really love this. 60s. Some covers of songs I've heard before. Super catchy!
MFATGG: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsT7riYDQGo My Best Friend's Wedding: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXTK1-aDSBk MFATGG: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRU4wJkMjZo
I fell in love with Dusty Springfield while listening to "Dusty In Memphis," and while that album has a particular magic of its own, this album, "A Girl Called Dusty," is no less amazing. Some truly iconic songs here. She puts so much into every song. If you're in the US and want to listen to the original UK tracklisting on Spotify, try this playlist here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/502kIR00kWHE9mhHS1EnFd?si=kpLMLADVRIO_tDZRKGz9kg&utm_source=copy-link This track order is far superior to what was released in the US.
Jaa ik hou van haar energie en haar stem. You don't own me, kende ik natuurlijk al maar heel het album is echt sterk met vooral een sterk middenstuk. Ik hoor graag meer van haar en van dit genre.
I love Dusty Springfield, and this album is chock-full of great songs done in her fantastic style. What’s not to love?
Wowee! Range is the word for this album. Songs cover a wide range of styles: there are a few covers of tunes made popular by American "girl groups" like The Shirelles and The Supremes, three Bacharach/David numbers, one written by Ray Charles, and one by Kander & Ebb. But Springfield also demonstrates remarkable vocal range, from a deep growl to a chill-inducing soulful belt to a lovely light head voice. (My husband kept asking, "Is this the same person?") The lyrics display sexual and romantic power that must have been unusual in 1964. Even Wishin' and Hopin', which advises us to give one's true self up to get a man ("Do the things he likes to do. Wear your hair just for him."), also encourages us to make the first move since it won't happen if we just sit passively wishing and hoping, etc. And it's fascinating to note the shift in tone when some of these songs, clearly written for men, are sung from a woman's perspective --- Twenty-Four Hours from Tulsa hits me very differently sung by Dusty Springfield than sung by Gene Pitney. I absolutely love this album. Can't get enough!
At first, I didn't get the depth and emotion and individuality here that I got listening to Dusty in Memphis. It seemed to sound very much like other 60s girl groups (which is not in any way a negative, mind you!). However, listening again, many of the songs being classics with well-known performances by others, I really got to appreciate the debut of a real talent. I really loved her performances of the classic songs, noting that I'm not sure I could pick Dusty or Dionne when it comes to Bacharach/David. (They both win!) It was "Don't You Know," though, that her singing really blew me away. I could listen to this one over and over and over.
bloody hell this is good. i didn't realise half of this was her. this is the 60s at its best, skittish drums, brass, strings, backing singers and melodies.
Ble Dusty Springfield-fan gjennom dette albumet. Herlig, rå, hvit soul med Dustys karakteristiske stemme. Kjente igjen mange klassikere, fx Son of a preacher man". Ikke visste jeg at vi hadde en hvit Aretha Franklin!
Sultry and soulful and just a touch raw, to keep it real, and the real deal this very much is: “My Coloring Book,” “Anyone Who Had a Heart,” and “Twenty-Four Hours to Tulsa" and “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow” are all excellent.
Cool tjej och en uppenbar inspiration och förebild för många kommande Norhern Soul-artister!
Not available on Spotify USA. Recreated using the American versions, but in this case, I think the US albums are better, including the singles/B-sides. Fantastic album either way. You Don’t Own Me, 24 Hours, and Nothing are all great. US ‘version’ is a 5 star.
Pretty good album with no big misses. It gets repetitive sometimes but some song really stood out
Good album with some standout songs but it dragged on for a little too long. It would be better if it didn’t have 20 songs 8.1/10
Live it Up made me think of Locomotion - haha. I’ll be honest, with a name like Dusty Springfield, I thought it was going to be more country sounding even though I knew deep down it wasn’t. I enjoyed this. Nothing necessarily profound but pretty fun. Given that this is her first album, I’d say pretty strong debut.
Lots of catchy ass tunes I’ve heard before but didn’t know were Dusty. Pleasantly surprised!
Had no idea who Dusty Springfield was and was pleasantly surprised to hear familiar beats and songs throughout her album, which somehow wasn’t on Spotify so I just found the track list online and went through each song in a queue. Definitely would recommend if you’re into classical music!
4 of the songs are unavailable on spotify. I decided to listen to it on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzSI9js1nGQ&list=PLowQCq3Ss89g7z4hUKG5BN8M_9R8TcD6T
Good blue eyed soul album. Timeless? Maybe not but a fun listen every now and then.
it’s so weird how well this British woman did Motown Fav track: mockingbird
Really good, great voice, and second-best Mockingbird rendition of all time
Good album. Expected country from the name Dusty, but I was WRONG. Here are some good sixties bops
There were a lot of songs on this album I was familiar with but couldn't tell you they were by Dusty Springfield. It was a fun listen. I enjoyed it.
Dusty. What else can you say? These are some of the biggest hits of the 60s. Countlessly covered, remixed, reused, recycled, and replayed. Do Re Mi is the album's low point, but I'm not sure if I can isolate its high point. It's all so good! I'm partial to Wishin and Hopin.