Elvis Presley - November 18th, 2008
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Label |
| BMG |
| Release |
| 2001 |
| Artist |
| Elvis Presley |
| Rating |
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Elvis Presley is certainly more recognised for his contributions to rock n’ roll rather than country music, but this album shows that at his roots he is capable of being an excellent country music musician in his own right. This album is massive and I mean it. With an amazing 51 songs, the fact that I downloaded it from iTunes for only £7.99 makes this an absolute bargain.
The album is made up of covers as you’d expect, but Elvis brings his own style to each of the records giving some of them old classics new leases of life despite the fact that they were recorded over 40 years ago. As much as I loved Bob Wills’ ‘Faded Love’, Elvis’ version is so much better as the arrangement combines orchestral instruments to a rock theme making it one of my favourite songs. There are some classic Hank Williams songs in there too such as ‘Your Cheatin’ Heart’ and Bill Monroe’s ‘Blue Moon of Kentucky’ which was also recorded by Elvis makes a welcome appearance. There’s also a beautiful version of Willie Nelson’s ‘Funny How Time Slips Away’, which I again prefer to Willie’s original. Kris Kristofferson’s ‘Help Me Make It Through the Night’ and ‘For the Good Times’ are also covered with a bit more of a pop sound which doesn’t detract from the quality of the originals at all.
There are quite a few songs which I don’t like too much on this album meaning if it had been halved to improve the overall standard I would have been more inclined to award this album 5 stars. I don’t think I’ll ever like ‘Make the World Go Away’…
As I’ve already hinted, there’s a good variety of songs on offer here so I’d recommend it to Elvis Presley fans and country music fans equally. If you like both then you probably already have it.
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Waylon Jennings - November 15th, 2008
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Label |
| Vagrant Records |
| Release |
| 2008 |
| Artist |
| Waylon Jennings |
| Rating |
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Of the members of the Highwaymen, Waylon Jennings was the last I got into and unitl only recently when I have started to listen to his early recordings have I realised just how good he was. I had heard his music many times before, but hadn’t appreciated it as much as I do now. Waylon Forever is an album arranged by Waylon’s son Shooter and it consists of the supposed last recordings made by Waylon before his death in 2002. The songs are updated versions of some of his timeless classic hits from the days where he rewrote the rulebook with his very own form of outlaw country music. This album is more country-rock, and sometimes just rock as the brilliant ‘Ain’t Livin Long Like This’ proves.
The songs sound as good as ever and Waylon’s voice is no worse off than the 70’s when he was at the top of his game. There’s a slightly deeper and darker tone to his voice than in his earlier recordings - the ballad ‘Outlaw Shit’ in particular has been reworked into a haunting and much more emotional piece of music.
The album contains welcome re-recordings of some of my favourite Waylon songs including ‘Lonesome, O’nry and Mean’ and ‘Are You Ready for the Country’. There’s only 8 songs on the album, a result I’m sure of Waylon slowing down towards the end of his career due to illness, but the quality of his singing is completely uncompromised. I’d say that it’s not quite as enjoyable to listen to as the likes of Dreaming My Dreams, Lonesome, On’ry and Mean, and Honky Tonk Heroes, but it is still fully deserving of 5 stars.
You’re not likely to get the chance to hear of any new Waylon Jennings albums coming out in the future so make the most of this album. I’d like to thank Vagrant Records for contacting me to review this album as it’s been a pleasure to listen to and they’ve done a great job ensuring Waylon signs off in his typical outlaw style.
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Merle Haggard - November 8th, 2008
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Label |
| Curb Records |
| Release |
| 1994 |
| Artist |
| Merle Haggard |
| Rating |
|
I knew sooner or later I’d review a Hag album on this site, and I can’t think of any better than 1994’s… 1994. An album with no real name and no cover artwork - the result of Merle rebelling against the lack of creativity and freedom allowed by record companies - made up for with songs of a quality that Merle rarely fails to produce.
As usual the lyrics are creative, the music seems more powerful than in other albums with heavy emphasis on electric guitar with songs like ‘Solid as a Rock’ and ‘What’s New in NYC’, adding a real rock sound to the album. Merle’s actually mixed a range of styles into this album including rock, rythm, blues and country which is what makes it pleasurable to listen to - a good variety of well-written songs. I do love the emotional songs such as ‘Way Back in the Mountains’ - the escapism that this song writes about is something that I can really connect with.
Troubadour is in my opinion one of Merle’s most well written songs and it’s undeniably catchy. “I’ll always be a minor-leaguer, probably never get no bigger, I just love to play my old guitar” says it all. ‘Ramblin Fever’ is one of my favourite songs of all time and I love the re-recorded for stereo version on this album, it’s got a great new rythm and beat to it.
The only low point of this album is ‘Set My Chickens Free’ which I don’t really enjoy listening to. Anyway, I think 1994 is one of Merle’s most underrated and overlooked albums and I’ve certainly never grown tired of it, even though it is already 14 years old!
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News - October 28th, 2008
I’d like to thank everyone from the following sites who have really helped to promote this site by linking to Misery and Gin from their own sites. I won’t mention any names, but thanks guys - you know who you are. Please visit their sites as well as mine as they all do an awesome job. The community of country music blogs on the Internet is much more friendly than others I’ve been a part of, and they always reply when you email. Trust me, I’ve had other blogs and I know how unhelpful people can be!
I’ve not had chance to add new posts recently as my Internet has gone down (thanks AOL!), and I’m having to switch provider. I’ll be back online soon, with a review of Waylon Jenning’s new (and last) album, so keep checking back.
Highwayman
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Kris Kristofferson - October 5th, 2008
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Label |
| New West |
| Release |
| 2007 |
| Artist |
| Kris Kristofferson |
| Rating |
|
I’ve been looking forward to reviewing this album some time as it’s actually Kristofferson album that got me into him as a solo artist. I always appreciated his legendary status, especially after his Highwaymen work, but this album is truly one that only a legend could produce. The songs are very simple, like Johnny Cash’s towards the end of his career they lean towards the purity of a man and his guitar which is a style which only true greats can pull off.
The songs are generally quite sad and seem to be a look back at his career and the careers of some of the greats he has worked with. There’s mentions of Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, June Carter, Lefty Fritzell, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Hank Williams and more. The song ‘Final Attraction’ is a beautiful reflection on the final performances of the old guy’s in country as they do it like they did back 50 years or some, ago. A list of dead music legends is reeled-off as he pays his respects to those who broke hearts during their careers.
The writing is as good as ever. Kristofferson is surely one of the best country music writers of all time and his raw, rough-edged voice compliments the sentiment of this collection of new songs perfectly. On the special edition we’re treated to an up-to-date version of Kristofferson’s classic ‘Sunday Morning Coming Down’ - there’s never a bad time to hear that song sung by the man who wrote it.
This album would be a fitting last album for Kristofferson as it closes the chapter on his career pretty much perfectly, but with the quality still as good as this I hope it is not his last.
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