Hey…Let Yourself Go! was Nelson Riddle’s third studio album, released in April 1957.[1]
Origin
Riddle’s first album consisted of a set of pop arrangements of Broadway tunes The Music from Oklahoma!, in 1955, followed by a collection of lush love songs The Tender Touch released a year later.
For Hey…Let Yourself Go!, Riddle assembled a dozen “carefree, up-tempo rhythms,” as the liner notes characterized them. “The twelve tunes presented here are an irresistible invitation to let yourself go and get on with the dance … “[2]
Reception
Hey…Let Yourself Go! was well received. Cash Box characterized Riddle’s work as “12 sparkling and inventive arrangements in dance tempo”, and dubbed the album a “happy, rhythmic offering”.[3] The album was said to have captured Riddle’s style “at its most frothy and effervescent”, with “upbeat numbers that swing, but with an easygoing grace”.[4]
It reached number 20 on the Billboard chart.[5]
At year’s end, Hey…Let Yourself Go! was ranked the ninth most popular album of the year in the Billboard annual disk jockey poll.[6]
Track listing
Side 1
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | “Let’s Face the Music and Dance“ | Irving Berlin | 2:29 |
| 2. | “You Are My Lucky Star” | Arthur Freed, Nacio Herb Brown | 2:37 |
| 3. | “You and the Night and the Music“ | Arthur Schwartz, Howard Dietz | 3:35 |
| 4. | “Younger Than Springtime“ | Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II | 3:27 |
| 5. | “You Leave Me Breathless” | F. Hollander, Ralph Freed | 2:40 |
| 6. | “You’re An Old Smoothie” | Buddy DeSylva, Lew Brown, Richard A. Whiting | 2:21 |
Side 2
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | “Then I’ll Be Happy“ | Cliff Friend, Brown, Sidney Clare | 2:28 |
| 2. | “I Get Along Without You Very Well“ | Hoagy Carmichael | 3:12 |
| 3. | “I Can’t Escape From You“ | Leo Robin, Whiting | 3:02 |
| 4. | “Have You Got Any Castles, Baby?” | Johnny Mercer, Whiting | 1:49 |
| 5. | “Darn That Dream“ | Eddie DeLange, James Van Heusen | 3:38 |
| 6. | “Let Yourself Go“ | Berlin | 3:10 |
References
- ^ “April Album Releases”. The Cash Box. New York NY. April 13, 1957. p. 36.
- ^ Hey . . . Let Yourself Go! (LP record). Nelson Riddle. Hollywood, California: Capitol Records. 1957.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ “Album Reviews”. The Cash Box. New York NY. April 20, 1957. p. 24.
- ^ Mark Deming. “Hey…Let Yourself Go!”. AllMusic.com. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
- ^ Levinson, Peter J. (2001). September in the Rain; The Life of Nelson Riddle. Billboard Books. p. 181. ISBN 0-8230-7672-5.
- ^ “The Billboard Tenth Annual Disk Jockey Poll”. Billboard. New York NY. November 11, 1957. p. 32.
