Atomic Baby: Hollywood R&B from the Platters First 'Dish' - Linda Hayes

Most of Linda Hayes' singles are on this 21-track compilation, including her number two 1953 R&B hit "Yes I Know" and her lesser-known 1954 Top Ten 45, "Take Me Back." These 1952-1956 recordings don't include every last one of her releases -- the 1954 single "Play It Right"/"Your Back's Out" and the 1959 single "Hubba Hubba"/"Take the Hand of a Fool" are missing, as are the early Platters singles on which she sang -- but otherwise everything seems to be here. There really isn't much separating the pleasantly full-voiced Hayes from many other singers straddling the early-'50s jump blues/R&B era and the dawn of rock & roll, other than her Platters association, a deeper tone than was customary for female singers in the genre, and those two hits. That makes this collection of almost exclusive interest to '50s R&B specialists, as the songs are on the rather formulaic side, though "Yes I Know" is a natural standout owing to its semi-novelty as a sassy answer record (to Willie Mabon's number one R&B smash "I Know"). Like some other vocalists who had a bit of early- to mid-'50s R&B success, she sounds like she might have been better cast as a jazz singer, not coming by the more raucous edge required by the changing times as naturally as some other performers -- a greater problem when some of her material edged closer to doo wop and rock & roll on her later recordings. Platters collectors will want to note the presence of a couple singles (including "My Name Is Annie," an "answer" record to the Midnighters' "Work with Me Annie") with the Platters on backup vocals; she also duets with her brother (and Platters singer) Tony Williams on "Oochi Pachi." ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide