History of Rock: The 50s, Pt. 2 is a much more varied collection than the previous volume. Along with great
doo wop cuts by
the Mystics ("Hushabye"),
the Nutmegs ("Story Untold"), and
the Students ("I'm So Young"), there is early
rock & roll from
Jerry Lee Lewis ("Great Balls of Fire"),
the Everly Brothers ("Wake Up Little Susie"), and
Carl Perkins ("Blue Suede Shoes"), teen idol sounds from
Fabian ("Turn Me Loose") and
Frankie Avalon ("Venus"), as well as some wonderful
novelty songs from
Bobby Day ("Rockin' Robin") and
the Royal Teens ("Short Shorts"). The collection plays like an hour or so of really fun and diverse '50s oldies radio, something that is getting harder to the point of impossibility to find on your radio dial any more. The only thing that makes the disc less than ideal is having two songs by some of the artists (
Jerry Lee Lewis,
the Everly Brothers). As great as the songs are, it would have been nice to add two more artists. That is a minor point, however, and shouldn't keep anyone from picking up this entertaining disc. ~ Tim Sendra, All Music Guide
