As most big fans of '50s and '60s rock know, Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman were among the greatest Brill Building songwriters of the period, writing mighty hits for Dion, Elvis Presley, the Drifters, and others. This 26-song compilation of versions of their songs (most written by Pomus and Shuman together, though some were composed separately or with other writers) inevitably contains much fine music, though it does seem indecisive as to whether to be a best-of or a more collector-oriented anthology. Some of their biggest and best hits are indeed here: Dion & the Belmonts' "A Teenager in Love," the Mystics' "Hushabye," Ray Charles' "Lonely Avenue," and the Drifters' "Save the Last Dance for Me," for instance, as well as pop and teen idol smashes like Andy Williams' "Can't Get Used to Losing You," Jimmy Clanton's "Go, Jimmy, Go," Terry Stafford's "Suspicion," and Fabian's "Turn Me Loose." Yet quite a few of their hits are missing -- all of the hit covers, in fact, recorded by Elvis Presley, as well as some by the Drifters. Much of the rest of the disc is filled out with pretty rare and obscure recordings that might not be known even to pretty knowledgeable rock & roll fans. The benefit of having such stuff on a Pomus-Shuman compilation is that a lot of these items are pretty hard to find, and some are pretty good, like early British rocker Marty Wilde's "It's Been Nice"; LaVern Baker's "Hey Memphis," an "answer" record to Presley's hit "Little Sister"; Gene McDaniels' "Spanish Lace," which is very much like the Latin-influenced work of the early-'60s Drifters; Irma Thomas' delectably soulful 1965 ballad "I'm Gonna Cry 'Til My Tears Run Dry"; and Presley's trashy, brassy "Double Trouble," which is not only the sole Elvis track here, but the last jointly copyrighted Pomus-Shuman composition. Yet some of the other rarities here are routine exercises that aren't nearly on the level of the famous Pomus-Shuman hits, even though some of them were done by hitmaking artists (including Bobby Darin, Barrett Strong, Ral Donner, the McCoys, and Bobby Vee). And while Del Shannon's "(Marie's the Name) His Latest Flame" carries some historical weight for having been recorded before Elvis' version, it can't compare to the hit recording of the same song by Presley. Still, you could argue that almost anyone interested enough in Pomus and Shuman to buy a whole CD of their songs is quite likely to have the missing Presley and Drifters hits in their collection already, and more interested in getting a chance to hear some of the more seldom traveled efforts in their catalog, both good and mediocre. That chance is certainly supplied by this compilation, with fine annotation outlining the basics of the songwriters' careers and explaining the sources of each track. ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide