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bbed of achieving 'hit' status. During her brief tenure with Bell Records between 1970 and 1972, actress/vocalist, Connie Stevens managed to crank out a few magical recordings with producer, Thom Bell. The unexpected musical marriage of a pop songstress stepping into the R&B/soul musical territory of the then burgeoning, 'Sound Of Philadelphia', had her heading from Hollywood eastward for the recording sessions at Joe Tarsia's, Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia. For those familiar with Connie's previous recordings, to feast their ears on this new side of her vocal talent had to be jaw dropping for fans as well as those in the music biz.. It was unfortunately, her cast into cement image of a vivacious, blonde and perky talent that was ultimately also a curse in regard to the success of her Philadelphia recordings with Thom Bell. Disc jockeys more than likely tossed her new discs on the Bell label off to the side without even a listen. Connie's first outing with the Philadelphia crew was the original version of 'Keep Growing Strong' from the fall of 1970 (Bell 922) that would be recorded two years later again at Sigma with Thom Bell and the vocals of the Stylistics. Given the new title of 'Betcha By Golly, Wow' along with a new backing track, it went straight to hitsville. Connie version is an absolutely stellar production with a flip side track, 'Tick- Tock', that was an full-blown, skull crunching production. If given the proper promotion, either side could have really changed Connie's musical destiny. The passing of time has created quite a demand for that very Bell single and commands a nice sum of cash among collectors of soul records. Finally, the tune, 'La La Means I Love You' recorded in the spring of 1971. Although it is a cover version of the Delphonics hit from 1967 with Thom Bell, he gave the classic tune a wonderful new take on it. An impressive performance by all of those involved has become an elusive mystery regarding the release and actual pressing of 45 rpm discs. With a catalog number, Bell 992, the flip side was a slick jazz infused tune entitled 'I Don't Know' but there has yet to surface an actual copy of the recording on styrene or vinyl. Happy hunting to all of those interested. If discovered, you will have indeed struck gold with some wonderful Philadelphia musical magic that deserves to be celebrated.