Guaranteed Album Discography
Guaranteed issued singles numbered 200-221, although 206 is not known. The primary hitmaker for the
label was Paul Evans, who when he signed with Guaranteed in 1959 at the age of 21 already had
somewhat of a track record of success. He had recorded for RCA in 1957, after writing the big hit
"When" for the Kalin Twins. His first single for Guaranteed, "Seven Little Girls Sitting in the Back Seat"
[Guaranteed 200], hit the national top 10 in the fall of 1959, and he followed it with two more hits,
"Midnight Special" [Guaranteed 205, #18], and "Happy-Go-Lucky Me" [Guaranteed 208, #10]. But his
fourth single, "The Brigade of Broken Hearts" [Guaranteed 210], only reached #81, and his fifth single,
"Hushabye Little Guitar" [Guaranteed 213], arguably one of his best, didn't chart at all. A switch to the
parent Carlton label for several more singles didn't help, so Evans returned to songwriting. There he had
several more successes, including Bobby Vinton's hit "Roses Are Red," Elvis Presley's "I Gotta Know,"
and musical scores for Broadway plays and movies.
There were a couple of other interesting artists on Guaranteed, along with a bunch of people no one ever heard of before or since. After Jack Scott left Carlton for Top Rank, his releases were switched to Guaranteed, but singles such as "What Am I Living For"/"Indiana Waltz" [Guaranteed 209] and ""No One Will Ever Know"/"Go Wild Little Sadie" [Guaranteed 211], as good as they were, failed to dent the charts in the face of much fresher material on Top Rank. A 1961 single by Chris Montez, "They Say"/"I Lost My Baby" [Guaranteed 217] anticipated his Monogram and A&M hits by at least four years. Other artists on the label included the Dynamics, Ralph DeMarco, the Nelson Trio, the Prancers (with a Christmas novelty), Al Byron, Penny Parker, Candy Anderson, Pat Leslie, the Galaxies, Laurie Davis, the Dreamers, and Danny Dell.
The Guaranteed album output was limited to a single issue, Paul Evans' Paul Evans Sings the Fabulous Teens [Guaranteed GU/GUS-1000], issued in 1960. By the time Carlton decided to issue another Paul Evans album (in fact, two more essentially simultaneously), he had been switched to Carlton, so the followup albums appeared on the parent label. The first Carlton album contained many of his Guaranteed hits, and all were in stunning stereo except "Seven Little Girls" and its flip. The second Carlton album was new material, with Evans reinventing himself as a folk singer.
Like parent Carlton, no one seems to know where the Guaranteed master tapes went. The Paul Evans material in stereo has great sound, but CD reissues or bootlegs have apparently not had access to or have not cared about stereo, so the stereo remains a unique aspect of the original vinyl.
We would appreciate any additions or corrections to this discography. Just send them to us via e-mail. Both Sides Now Publications is an information web page. We are not a catalog, nor can we provide the records listed below. We have no association with Guaranteed or Carlton Records, which are currently inactive. We have no idea where the master tapes are. Should you be interested in acquiring albums listed in this discography (which are all out of print), we suggest you see our Frequently Asked Questions page and follow the instructions found there. This story and discography are copyright 1997, 2003 by Mike Callahan.
