Meet Me at the Hop: 33 Cruisin' Dreams/ Various - Meet Me At The Hop: 33 Cruisin' Dreams (Various Artists)

This lovely compilation on Bear Family could well be the alternative soundtrack to cult movies like 'American Graffiti', 'American Diner', or 'Lemon Popsicle'!'Cruising' is as much a part of America's history as Kennedy, Marilyn, Coke, and the hula-hoop.On 33 tracks from 1954-1964, the heyday of rock 'n' roll, a culturally extremely vibrant decade is rediscovered, whether as a 'soundtrack' in your car or as a musical enhancement to the next party!There are plenty of titles that were often heard on the (car) radio at the time and invite you to cruise in a stylish vintage automobile.Doo-Wop is strongly represented, including really rare recordings, especially Ding Dong by a certain Tony Orlando, played extremely fast considering it's Doo-Wop!There's plenty of teen rock with Ricky Nelson, Fabian, Troy Shondell and Darrell McCall, plus a terrific instrumental by the Viscounts.Ed Townsend, Ronnie Love and Larry Tamblyn are all part of the so-called popcorn sound, and there's even an early blues/rock trailblazer from Hank Ballard!The 16-page color booklet includes producer Marc Mittelacher's remarks on each song and many photos and illustrations, some of them rare.Imagine it's summer, with the sun up in the blue sky, cruisin' in a fancy '50s automobile with this compilation playing on the car stereo! Cruising is still prevalent in the USA today. If there wasn't a dance going on in high school, you didn't know where else to go. You took your dad's car and shuttled between the milk bar, the local diner and the drive-in movie theater. You met in streets for wild car parties, participated in illegal races, or broke into the bathhouse at night, not just to swim! If you already had your sweetheart/lover by the hand, you usually went to 'Lover's Lane' to... or to a romantic lake outside the city.