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LIGHTNIN' STRIKES


New CD Release

      Amazon

Lou Christie
Gypsy Bells -
Columbia Recordings 1967

CDTOP 1601

all the singles and 15 previously unreleased masters

Shindig! No 149
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
      Vic Templar writes, No one makes music like Lou Christie, a man whose distinctive formula located the musical G-spot and delivered pop ecstasy. This archival release covers the 15 months he spent at Columbia, during which four singles were released, included here in Mono and Stereo, plus 15 unreleased tracks.
      With a few judicious covers in the mix [Jobim, Bacharach & David], it's primarily Lou and Twyla Herbert compositions, arranged by Charles Calello. The results are stunning. The immense 'Holding On For Dear Love' should have been a worldwide floor-filler and, if you appreciate the magnificence of 'Lightnin' Strikes,' prime yourself for 'Yellow Lights Say,' 'Don't Stop Me' [a prototype 'She Sold Me Magic'], 'Gypsy Bells', the smoldering soul of 'Paper and Paste' and the cabaret crooning of 'Escape.' Absolute solid gold.


Lou Christiie Songs Unvaulted
by Scott Tady
Beaver County Times


Music Reissues Weekly
by Kieron Tyler
Lou Christie - Gypsy Bells

First-time exploration of the ‘Lightnin’ Strikes’ hit-maker’s 1967 spell with Columbia Records


The Second Disc
by Joe Marchese
Gypsy Bells ... one of the most illuminating and worthwhile archival releases of the year


Lou Christie
Gypsy Bells -
Columbia Recordings 1967

      A long-overdue look at a little-heard side of the career of 60s pop giant Lou Christie – his great but ill-fated recordings for Columbia Records – most of which appear here for the first time ever! Lou hit the label right after a massive hit for MGM – and Columbia gave him plenty of time in the studio, and continued his work with producer Charles Calello – the genius who crafted so many wonderful settings for Christie, as well as the Four Seasons at the time. Calello's genius is in full effect here – creating these incredible backdrops for Christie's stunning vocals – really pushing him past simple pop into a whole host of different modes that make the whole thing a great "what if" – had the label not given up on Lou so quickly. The CD features great sound, detailed notes, and 24 tracks in all – 15 of which appear here for the first time ever – a blindingly great mix of tracks that includes "I Remember Gina", "The Greatest Show On Earth", "Blue Champagne", "Tender Loving Care", "Gypsy Bells, "Escape", "Standing On My Promises", "Shake Hands & Walk Away Cryin", "Self Expression", "Yellow Lights Say", "Meditation", and "How Many Days Of Sadness".
~ Dusty Groove


WebVANDA


Kenta's Nothing But Pop!


Mr. Bacharach Longs To Be Close To You


LOU CHRISTIE - Gypsy Bells:
Columbia Recordings 1967
(Ace) CD

      I once described singer-songwriter Lou Christie as a cross between Neil Sedaka and Scott Walker, and while that's not an adequate com-parison, it does capture the beyond-category status of this great and instantly recognizable artist. Though growing out of the Brill Building/Girl Group era, Christie and his longtime songwriting partner Twyla Herbert could produce creations from left-field such as "Egyptian Shumba" (written for the Tammys) and "If My Car Could Only Talk," and as a performer, Christie has always possessed smoldering sexuality (check out some of his old 1960s TV appearances online), which was both heightened and perhaps made more acceptable by his Brad Pitt/Troy Donahue style movie-star good looks. When people in the early '70s would rave to me about the sexuality of David Bowie's performances, I would sometimes ask, "Are you familiar with Lou Christie?"
      With his amazing vocal range and inimitable ecstatic flights into falsetto territory, his hits from the 1962-63 era ("The Gypsy Cried," "Two Faces Have I") are unforgettable pop-rock mini-symphonies, and after a break for military service, he came back in 1965-1966 for even greater fame at MGM Records, with the transcendent "Lightnin' Strikes" and "Rhapsody In The Rain." He was at the top of his game when he, along with his arranger Charles Calello, moved to the larger and more dominant Columbia label, where he spent 1967. Four singles (six songs) were released all in the classic Christie-Herbert style (with clever unique lyrical content such as the songs "Back To The Days Of The Romans" and "Shake Hands And Walk Away Cryin’"), and all with the patented Calello discotheque-friendly wall of sound and soaring Christie vocals. These sides found success in Alabama and in Christie's home territory of Pittsburgh, but nothing like the MGM hits, which is unfortunate since there are multiple instant-classics among the Columbia sides.
      More than enough material was recorded for an album, and all of those unreleased tracks are included here, also with mono versions of the singles. Without a hit, though, a Columbia album did not happen, and Christie moved on to Buddah Records, where the label's bubblegum orientation merged well with the artist's style, and he went on to have massive success with "I'm Gonna Make You Mine" and eventually released the acclaimed concept album Paint America Love (reissued in 2009 on Rev-ola). Lou Christie is still active as a performer and on social media.
~ Bill Shute, Ugly Things #66


Tight pants. High falsetto.
Smooth baritone.
Wild eyes. Pouting lips.
Wicked moves. Gyrating hips.
Something extra.
Something mysterious.
Something special.
Welcome to the world of
Lou Christie.
~ EnLIGHTNIN'ment:
The Best Of Lou Christie


He has the surname of a savior,
the Gypsy green eyes of a visionary,
the lyrical sense of a poet
and the five octave voice of an angel.
Lou Christie has it all.
Five Million-sellers.
Thirty-seven chart records.
Ethnicity. Electricity.
Sanctity. Sexuality.
Fantasy. Reality.
The history and mystery of Lou Christie.
~ Beyond The Blue Horizon:
More Of The Best Of Lou Christie


Record Collector Aug 2022
by Bob Stanley


This page is about the Lou Christie Fan Club founded by Harry Young in 1977. Harry Young has contributed to Lou Christie CDs released by ACE, Rhino, Taragon, Varese, RPM, Sequel and Collectables. From 1977 to 1999 the Lou Christie Fan Club published an underground fanzine titled Lightning Strikes The Lou Christie Newsletter (36 issues). In 2009 operations shifted to the Twitter / X account @EgyptianShumba

Other Lou Christie Fan Clubs:

Marti Antionette Nabozny 1962 - 1966
Heidi Hudson 1966 - 1967
Arlene Kramer & Fran Broz 1968
Connie DeNave
Diane Kirkland 1969 - 1971

And there is allegedly another *Fan Club*
but unfortunately Where FakeBook beginneth, there beginneth also the buzzing of the poisonous flies, disfigured (stolen) images and false credits written in liar's ink by one particular poison pen


Howard Stern:
Lou Christie
October 15, 2014


THE SAMBOLA!
INTERNATIONAL DANCE CRAZE
(FROM DAMSELS IN DISTRESS)
Lou Christie, Michael A. Levine & Mark Suozzo, songwriters
(Jeff Young & The World Sambola Chorus)

Official Video:
The Sambola!
International Dance Craze

LOU CHRISTIE.COM