The Paris Sisters - Always Heavenly: The Paris Sisters Anthology [Remastered] (2016)

The Paris Sisters' I Love How You Love Me is one of the most enduring hits from the golden age of 1960s girl groups. What is less well-known is that the trio of Albeth, Priscilla and Sherrell Paris had a subsequent career of impressive consistency, making one great record after another through to the end of the decade. Ace Records' Always Heavenly - The Paris Sisters Anthology sets the record straight with the first-ever career overview of these talented siblings, whose breathy style is one of the signature sounds of 60s pop. Phil Spector famously shepherded them to the top of the charts with I Love How You Love Me but despite some excellent follow-ups, failed to repeat its success. Nevertheless, he established the classic Paris Sisters format by bringing Priscilla's cooing voice to the forefront. Jumping from label to label over the next eight years, the girls recordings benefitted from some of the best producers and arrangers in the business, including Jack Nitzsche, Terry Melcher and Nik Venet. Highlights abound on Always Heavenly, from the early 60s Gregmark sessions with Spector through to their swansong releases on Capitol and Crescendo in 1968. The Sisters recordings for MGM, Mercury and Reprise are state-of-the-art Hollywood girl pop, while the more obscure albums Songs From The Glass House and Golden Hits showcased a more experimental, folky side to the act, driven largely by the ambitions of Priscilla. Careful vault research has also thrown up several unheard gems including the Paris Sisters legendary unissued single for Columbia from 1963. Along with top-notch sound quality, the package also benefits from the full co-operation of the surviving Paris Sisters, Albeth and Sherrell. The Sisters story is a classic showbusiness tale that is gone into with great detail in the liner notes, and is profusely illustrated. Always Heavenly is a long-overdue celebration of one of the finest exponents of girl group pop.