The Dells - Anthology (1999) CD-Rip

The Dells were one of the few groups that rode the transition from doo wop to smooth soul without missing a beat and without falling off the charts. Just as remarkably, the group did so without declining much in quality, as Hip-O's definitive double-disc Anthology proves. Throughout these 36 tracks, the music changes, from street-corner R&B to string-drenched disco-soul, but in all their incarnations, The Dells always sound wonderful. There are a handful of minor hits missing, but all the big singles – including both the Vee-Jay and Cadet versions of "Oh, What a Nite" and "Stay in My Corner" – are here, assembled chronologically.
As such, it tells an epic story of a group whose history mirrored the story of R&B vocal groups from the '50s through the '70s. The latter-day material may pale somewhat in comparison to the band's early classics, but it holds up well against other '70s soul. The final cut, the group's surprise 1991 hit "A Heart Is a House for Love" – their contribution to Robert Townsend's The Five Heartbeats, which was a loose tribute to The Dells themselves – illustrates that the group sounded terrific well into their third decade of performing, which is a true sign of greatness. Anthology is a testament to their greatness, offering solid proof that they were one of the greatest vocal R&B groups of their time.



Tracks:

CD1
01 - Darling I Know
02 - Dreams of Contentment
03 - Oh, What a Night [Vee-Jay Version]
04 - Pains in My Heart
05 - The (Bossa Nova) Bird
06 - Stay in My Corner [Vee-Jay Version]
07 - O-O I Love You
08 - There Is
09 - Wear It on Our Face
10 - Love Is So Simple
11 - Stay in My Corner [Cadet Version]
12 - Always Together
13 - Does Anybody Know I'm Here
14 - I Can't Do Enough
15 - I Can Sing a Rainbow - Love Is Blue
16 - Oh, What a Night [Cadet Version]
17 - Open Up My Heart [Long Version]
18 - Long Lonely Nights
19 - Oh, What a Day
20 - The Love We Had (Stays On My Mind)
21 - The Glory of Love

CD2
01 - Give Your Baby a Standing Ovation
02 - My Pretending Days Are Over
03 - I Miss You
04 - I Wish It Was Me You Loved
05 - Learning to Love You Was Easy
06 - We Got to Get Our Thing Together
07 - Slow Motion
08 - Our Love
09 - Betcha Never Been Loved (Like This Before)
10 - Private Property
11 - Super Woman
12 - I Touched a Dream
13 - Passionate Breezes
14 - Stay in My Corner [Chi-Sound Version]
15 - A Heart Is a House For Love