The Everly Brothers - Beat & Soul (1965) [Vinyl]

For the second album in a row, the Everlys presented an entire LP of rock & roll covers (and one original), most of which had originally been hits in the 1950s -- "Love Is Strange," "Money," "Hi Heel Sneakers," "My Babe," "The Girl Can't Help It," "Lonely Avenue," and so on. While the performances are pretty good -- and the vocals perennially better than good -- it also seemed to be an indication that the pair were unwilling or unable to write or procure a decent supply of new material. Because of the overfamiliarity of most of the songs, it has to rate as one of the brothers' less interesting efforts, regardless of the high level of execution. Nevertheless, "Love Is Strange" almost made the Top Ten in the U.K., and the sole original, "Man With Money," was a quality effort that was covered by several British groups including, unexpectedly, the Who (though their version was not released until the 1990s). ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide