Excerpts from Bye Bye Birdie, vol. 3 - Various artists

In 1961 the musical Bye Bye Birdie opened in London's West End, after its Broadway debut a year earlier. The role of the titular Conrad Birdie was played by Marty Wilde. Together with Chita Rivera, Peter Marshall and others the story revolved around a popular singer going off to the Army and its effect on a group of teenagers in a small town in Ohio. There were obvious parallels to Elvis Presley being drafted to go to Germany in 1957. The name of the rockstar, 'Conrad Birdie', was word play on the name of the then-popular Conway Twitty.

The EP presents five songs from the musical, two of which were performed by Marty Wilde: 'One last kiss' together with the ensemble, and 'A lot of livin' to do' with Sylvia Tysick and a group of teenagers. With its big band sound, the tracks border on jazz at times.

My collection: 7" single no. 7747
Found: Discogs.com, received 30 August 2025
Tracks: 'Hymn for a Sunday evening', 'One last kiss' / 'What did I ever see in him?', 'A lot of livin' to do', 'Kids'