The Five Royales [180 Gram Vinyl] in Bloomington, MN

The group's last album for the
King
label is less impressive than
The Five Royales Sing for You
or
Dedicated to You
, but that's only because it's a little bit shorter in duration, and the first six songs are a bit too oriented toward what one might define as
doo wop
music. These
ballads
aren't as inventive as those on the earlier records, and the first side's rhythm numbers generally lack some of the catchiness of their predecessors -- then come the second six songs, where
Lowman Pauling
's guitar comes to the fore, and
the Five Royales
deliver up a half-dozen songs that are in a league with anything on
. There were lots worse ways that this band could close out their history in the LP format, and they sound like they still have quite a few good years left in them (which, in fact, they did). ~ Bruce Eder