Carl Dobkins, from Cincinnati, was born in 1941 and was a typical aspiring teenage pop artist who formed a band at school in the 1950s before he got noticed performing with his band The Seniors when they started being promoted by a local radio station. Once signed by the Fraternity label, his first record, featuring his own songs, got some attention, leading to his next records coming out on Decca, and they included his million-selling No.3 hit My Heart Is An Open Book.

Written by Hal David and Lee Pockriss, My Heart Is An Open Book featured on his 1959 Decca album Carl Dobkins, Jr and ranked No.19 on Billboard’s Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1959. Covered numerous times, notable versions were cut by Dean Martin and Cliff Richard who released a version of the song on his 1965 EP, Take Four.

He was never able to repeat that success but became a fixture on the scene through into the 1960s. Dobkins scored two other Hot 100 entries with Lucky Devil (No.25 in 1959), and Exclusively Yours (No.62 in 1960). This 28-track collection features all the A & B sides from his singles on the Fraternity and Decca labels, plus all the tracks from his Carl Dobkins Jr album not otherwise released on singles.

He appeared 14  times as a guest on Dick Clark’s American Bandstand, and toured with such singers as Bobby Vee, Frankie Avalon, and Jan & Dean. He did not record prolifically, so this entertaining album offers about as thorough and comprehensive of his primary career as a teen idol as could be achieved. He died on 8 April 8 2020, at the age of 79.

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