Sherwood Schwartz who would later create and produce "The Brady Bunch",created and produced this awesome series about seven stranded castaways on Gilligan's Island. Here are the episodes from the first season,1964-65. Bob Denver is Gilligan,a sailor. The late Alan Hale is the Skipper,who has a love/hate friendship with Gilligan. The late Jim Backus,famous for the voice of the animated Mr. Magoo,is a wealthy man named Thurston Howell III. The late Natalie Schaefer is Lovey Howell,Thurston's wife. Tina Louise is a young,beautiful film actress named Ginger Grant. This season,in which the episodes were black and white,featured recurring characters,a professor and a young girl named Mary Ann,respectively portrayed by Russell Johnson and Dawn Wells. Those characters were not mentioned in the theme song since they were recurring. They were part of "all the rest". Thurston is referred to as "the millionaire" and Ginger is "the movie star". One highlight from this season is the episode or few episodes where a young Kurt Russell guest-starred. He was then 13 years old. Colorized versions of these episodes aired on cable television's TNT(Turner Network Television). To the best of my knowledge,this series is the only one in which colorized versions of black and white episodes aired.

This collection features 10 of Carly Simon's previously released recordings from her self-titled debut,ANTICIPATION,NO SECRETS,PLAYING POSSUM and HOTCAKES. Anybody who purchased Carly's first five albums before this one will not need this. The best song is YOU'RE SO VAIN. That one features Rolling Stone Mick Jagger on background vocals. Also the song was recycled for a song on Janet Jackson's ALL FOR YOU album. MOCKINGBIRD is pretty cool. That's a duet between Carly and James Taylor who was her husband at the time of recording(1974). I like NIGHT OWL,THE RIGHT THING TO DO and (WE HAVE)NO SECRETS,from 1972's NO SECRETS. From Carly's self-titled debut are THAT'S THE WAY IT ALWAYS SHOULD BE. The title track from ANTICIPATION,Carly's 2nd album,was featured in several Heinz ketchup commercials. ATTITUDE DANCING from PLAYING POSSUM is quite awesome also. Carole King and Andrew Gold sing background vocals on that one. The other songs are good. After this album,Carly recorded her BOYS IN THE TREES album,her last on the Elektra label. Since recording BITT,Carly went to Warner Bros.,Epic and Arista.

On this compilation,Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel give their fans their very best,of course. It was released in 1972,the same year as Simon's self-titled solo debut. MRS. ROBINSON from the 1967 movie "The Graduate",was just one of a handful of their #1 hits. THE BOXER from 1969's BRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATER lacks a verse later heard,surprisingly on THE CONCERT IN CENTRAL PARK. The title track from BRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATER is cool. THE SOUNDS OF SILENCE is not the original recording from WEDNESDAY MORNING 3 AM,S&G's 1964 debut. This version has added percussion,as heard on the 1966 album,SOUNDS OF SILENCE. SCARBOROUGH FAIR is a nice,easy listening piece. HOMEWARD BOUND and FOR EMILY,WHEREVER I MAY FIND HER were recorded live. Also from SOUNDS OF SILENCE is I AM A ROCK. AMERICA is a nice piece. I wonder if that inspired the three-guitarist band of the same name. All the other songs are good. Most songs on this album were recorded for THE CONCERT IN CENTRAL PARK in 1981. S&G split before the release of this album and Garfunkel also went out on his own.

The spring of 1981 saw the release of Van Halen's fourth million-selling album FAIR WARNING. The album title is spoken by frontman David Lee Roth on the first track,MEAN STREET. UNCHAINED is the only Top 20 hit from this album. SUNDAY AFTERNOON IN THE PARK is instrumental. Other great tunes include PUSH COMES TO SHOVE,SO THIS IS LOVE and SINNER'S SWING.

March 1980 saw Van Halen's release of their third album,WOMEN AND CHILDREN FIRST. The album title comes from a lyric to COULD THIS BE MAGIC?,track 8 on the CD. TORA TORA!,track 5,is short and instrumental. Other great tracks include AND THE CRADLE WILL ROCK,EVERYBODY WANTS SOME,FOOLS,LOSS OF CONTROL,TAKE YOUR WHISKEY HOME and IN A SIMPLE RHYME.

Contractually,Van Halen put out their second album just one year after their self-titled debut. This was 1979,and it was originally released on Warner Bros. new label design,which was solid white. This design lasted through the vinyl phaseout which began in 1989. The album opens with YOU'RE NO GOOD,first recorded by Linda Ronstadt on her 1974 album,HEART LIKE A WHEEL. DANCE THE NIGHT AWAY was the only Top 20 hit on the album. All the other songs are good.

David Lee Roth,Michael Anthony and brothers Alex and Eddie Van Halen began their band as Mammoth in the early or mid-70's. I don't know what inspired the name change,but several years later they became Van Halen. This album was originally released in 1978,on Warner Bros. Burbank label,which features a view of Sunset Boulevard(the last year Warner Bros. albums,even past ones bore the Burbank label). Hits from the album include Ray Davies' YOU REALLY GOT ME,first recorded by Davies' band,The Kinks. RUNNING WITH THE DEVIL was a hit also. JAMIE'S CRYIN' is pretty cool. YOU REALLY GOT ME was heard in the 1997 Paramount film,PRIVATE PARTS. Guitarist Eddie and drummer Alex both can play both instruments. But during recording sessions,Eddie stuck with his guitar and Alex stuck with his drums. Anthony is the bassist and Roth is the lead vocalist. Roth's fellow members sing background on most songs they recorded. Seven years after this album was released,Roth was fired from the band and experienced persistent success with a solo career.

In 1982,Van Halen put out their fifth consecutive album DIVER DOWN. This album is only 32 minutes in length. This album features covers of (OH)PRETTY WOMAN,and HAPPY TRAILS. Ray Davies composed WHERE HAVE ALL THE GOOD TIMES GONE?. I'm not sure if Davies' band,The Kinks,recorded that one. (OH)PRETTY WOMAN was a hit for the late Roy Orbison in the early 60's and HAPPY TRAILS was recorded by the late Roy Rogers and the late Dale Evans(composed by Evans). Instrumental tracks include CATHEDRAL,INTRUDER and the introduction of LITTLE GUITARS,which was a separate track. Another cover song,which was a hit like (OH)PRETTY WOMAN,is DANCING IN THE STREET,first recorded by the R&B group Martha & The Vandellas in the 60's. The song was covered in '85 by David Bowie and Mick Jagger.

Here's what you'll see in this collection: Moe,Larry and Curly by order of their wives take a job as salesmen. They try to sell Brighto,which they initially think is a multi-purpose cleaner. It removed paint from somebody's car & made a hole in a cop's uniform jacket. Not realizing Brighto is actually medicine,the Stooges' boss fires and rehires them. So they sell their entire supply to a hospital administrator,who owns the car the Stooges ruined! The Stooges exterminate termites at a black-tie party. Moe,Larry and Shemp fix a doorbell and serve as cooks and waiters at a party. After being fired from various jobs,they study dentistry and go out West to practice by the suggestion of their college dean. They also concoct a "fountain of youth" that works beautifully on their drugstore landlord's elderly wife but turns the landlord into a gorilla! Shemp,in order to receive bequeathed money by a deadline,marries a not-so-attractive chorus student. The titles are DIZZY DOCTORS(1937),TERMITES OF 1938(1938),BRIDELESS GROOM(1947),THE TOOTH WILL OUT(1951),LISTEN JUDGE(1952) and BUBBLE TROUBLE(1953). BRIDELESS GROOM was later used for 1956's HUSBANDS BEWARE. LISTEN JUDGE is basically the same as 1941's AN ACHE IN EVERY STAKE and 1943's THEY STOOGE TO CONGA. BUBBLE TROUBLE is a remake of 1947's ALL GUMMED UP. THE TOOTH WILL OUT is actually leftover footage from MERRY MAVERICKS.Director Edward Bernds decided to make another short out of the leftover footage rather than shelve it. Smart move,Ed! Other directors include Del Lord and Jules White.

In SPOOK LOUDER,the Stooges are hired by an inventor to sublive in his home while he takes a business trip to Washington. But they're met by three burglars in Halloween costumes. FRIGHT NIGHT(don't let the title befuddle you) is where the Stooges(Shemp's first,replacing his ill,popular brother Curly) are fight managers and are ordered by mobsters to make sure that their boxer friend,Gorilla Watson wins a fight against Chopper Kane. In SHIVERING SHERLOCKS,the Stooges inspect an estate mansion that their friend Gladys Harmon(Christine McIntyre) is selling. In MUMMY'S DUMMIES,set in Egypt,the Stooges swindle the Chief of the Palace Guards by selling him a broken down used chariot(it fell apart upon his leaving the dealership). In THE GHOST TALKS,the Stooges as movers,remove the contents of a haunted mansion but have a hard time with a live knight in shining armor. The knight leaves with his love,Lady Godiva on horseback. In HOCUS POCUS,the Stooges help their friend Mary who pretends to be a wheelchair-bound invalid in order to collect money from an insurance company. FN,TGT,HP and SS were later remade respectively as FLING IN THE RING,CREEPS,FLAGPOLE JITTERS and OF CASH AND HASH. Great moral support from Christine McIntyre,Vernon Dent,Mary Ainslee,Symona Boniface,Stanley Blystone,Phil Arnold and Kenneth MacDonald.