Four Freshmen - Graduation Day

Epitome of harmony

The music of the Four Freshmen, though thoroughly rooted in earlier barbershop vocal traditions, has become forever associated in the glossy white world of the 50s American Dream, as exemplified by car ads and white picket fences around neat lawns and verandas. Vocally superb, they served as a template for Brian Wilson’s arrangements for The Beach Boys, and they were among the first to produce themed albums. This collection is drawn from the years 1951-56, and covers a variety of musical reference points from show tunes to pop via jazz. While tracks such as Goodbye and Graduation Day (the latter covered by The Beach Boys) are real showcases for the harmonies, it’s actually on the perky up-tempo tracks that they seem to be most at ease. Proficient musicians themselves, The Freshmen loved to integrate prominent brass in their arrangements, none more so than the trombone/trumpet interchanges on After You’ve Gone. Elsewhere though, especially on Cole Porter’s Every Time We Say Goodbye, there is a feeling that their musical perfection is at the cost of genuine interpretation and reaching the soul of the song. Nevertheless this is a valuable part of our rich musical heritage.

Él ACMEM | 122 CD

Reviewed by Kingsley Abbott
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