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COUNTRY,
BLUEGRASS & OLD-TIMEY
Dwight Yoakam -> Faron Young
| DWIGHT YOAKAM |
Reprise 25372 |
Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc. Etc. |
● CD $11.98 |
1986 album by one of the brightest talents to emerge on the
country scene in the 80s. This album features the 6 songs that were on
Dwight's self produced mini LP of a year earlier plus four extra songs.
Dwight is a wonderful singer with a powerful nasal twang and is a brilliant
songwriter whose songs range from some beautiful honky tonk ballads like
It Won't Hurt and my favorite South Of Cincinnati
to upbeat
rockers like I'll Be Gone and the splendid song about mining
Miner's Prayer dedicated to the memory of Dwight's grandfather. Dwight
is backed by a solid no nonsense band featuring some fine fiddle by Brantley
Kearns, pedal steel by Jay Dee Maness and kicking drums by Jeff Donavan.
Along with the fine original songs are some powerful interpretations of some
classic old songs like Honky Tonk Man and Heartaches By the
Number. (FS)
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| DWIGHT YOAKAM |
Reprise 25567 |
Hillbilly Deluxe |
● CD $9.98 |
A great follow up album to Dwight's killer
Guitar, Cadillacs, Etc.. this new one features 7 new songs by Dwight and
all of them are very fine, particularly the tragic Johnson's Love,
the powerful Readin', Rightin', Rt 23 and the rockin' drinking song
This Drinking Will Kill Me but all are excellent. There are three covers
including dynamite versions of Stonewall Jackson's Smoke Along The Track
and Elvis's Little Sister . Musical arrangements are superb with hot
guitar by album's producer Pete Anderson and tremendous fiddle by Brantley
Kearns. There are occasional guest musicians including steel guitarist Tom
Brumley who worked for many years with Buck Owens. Highly recommended. (FS)
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| DWIGHT YOAKAM |
Reprise 25749 |
Buenas Noches From A Lonely Room |
● CD $11.98 |
A vast improvement over the slightly phony-sounding
"Hillbilly Deluxe". Dwight's vocals are better, his original material is
his best ever. What I Don't Know and One More Name tackle
cheating with nary a hint of BS. His wit and flair for imagery shines on
I Got You and the brilliantly executed mini-tragedy I Sang Dixie.
Even Hold On To God sounds like some ageless southern hymn. Lazy
Lester's I Hear You Knockin' probably came from his producer Pete
Anderson, a blues fan. Hank Locklin's Send Me The Pillow That You Dream
On is a restrained, dignified duet with Lone Justice's Maria McKee. The
showpiece, of course, is Streets Of Bakersfield, a memorable duet
with musical mentor Buck Owens, spoiled only by inappropriate accordion and
mandolin. For God's sake, this is BUCK OWENS! Where's the Telecasters? No
matter, this is Dwight's best since his first one. (RK)
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| DWIGHT YOAKAM |
Reprise 26344 |
If There Was A Way |
● CD $11.98 |
This 1991 album was Dwight's first new album in two years
featuring 14 songs, as well- done overall as anything he's done in the past.
His own songs are excellent, especially The Distance Between You and Me,
If There Was A Way, Sad, Sad Music and Since I Started
Drinkin' Again, a smart-alecky, unapologetic number about boozing.
You're The One, complete with strings, is change of pace, but hardly a
step toward crossover. Dwight and Greek C & W songwriter Kostas (no, I'm not
making it up) penned the hot Turn It On, Turn It Up, Turn Me Loose.
The duet with Patty Loveless, Send A Message to My Heart, is good,
but less significant than the song he wrote with Roger Miller, It Only
Hurts When I Cry, a throwback to Roger's days before stardom when he was
known as one of the best writers in the business. Biggest waste of time is
Dwight's version of Wilbert Harrison's Let's Work Together, which
just doesn't fit him. (RK)
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| DWIGHT YOAKAM |
Reprise 45241 |
This Time |
● CD $11.98 |
11 tracks, 42 min., recommended. 1993 album. L.A. cowboy
Yoakam has a voice that is more distinctive than great, an unerring ear for
taking country traditions that border on rock and reshaping them into his
own statements. The songs are, if a bit familiar, also instantly catchy and
inviting. Most of all, Yoakam has in Pete Anderson a priceless producer-
arranger-music director-guitarist-bandleader who carefully crafts every song
into something that sounds like a major statement. And it's good, too.
Anderson's Luther- Perkins-meets-Duane-Eddy approach to guitar holds the
music together and makes it even more distinctive, although the band, with
fiddles, pedal steel and riveting drumwork, is equally excellent. From the
hard rocking Wild Ride, through heart tuggers like Home for Sale
and that sense of desperate loneliness in A Thousand Miles from Nowhere,
Yoakam, Anderson and band are a cut above most the country-rock crowd, and
at least a couple of thousand miles from Nashville. (LK)
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| THE YORK BROTHERS |
B.A.C.M. 160 |
Going Back To The Sunny South |
● CD $13.98 |
27 tracks, 75 mins, recommended
Complementing Collector
2861 abd Cattle 251 this is another fine collection of early sides by this
Detroit based duo featuring sides recorded between 1939 and 1942 mostly for
the Mellow label and its predecessors Universal and Hot Wax along with two
sides from Decca. The earliest seven sides here features the duo Leslie &
George accompanying themselves on acoustic guitars - subsequently Leslie
switched to electric guitar which allowed him to provide some nice fills
and they were subsequently joined by bassist Jonnie Laneder who helps
provide a richer sound. Quite a few of the songs are rather similar
sounding "heart songs" with some bluesy titles providing some welcome
variety and their fine Home In Old Tennessee has a nice traditional
feel. Good sound and informative notes by dave Sax. (FS)
THE YORK BROTHERS: A Merry Christmas To The Boys Over
There/ Blue Skies Turned To Gray [sic]/ Conscription Blues/ Gambler's
Blues/ Going Back To The Sunny South/ Going Home/ Going To The Shindig/
Goodbye And Luck To You/ Got To Get Rid Of My Worried Mind/ Hillbilly Rose/
Home In Tennessee/ I Don't Want No Part Of You/ I'll Be Happy Again/ I'm
Saying Goodbye/ If I Would Never Lose You/ It Makes Me Jealous Hearted/
Just Wanting You/ Kentucky's Calling Me/ Life Can Never Be The Same/ Long
Gone/ Maybe Then You'll Care/ Mother's Sunny Smile/ My Little Honeysuckle
Rose/ Not Over Thirty-five/ Sweetheart Darling/ That Nagging Young Husey
[sic]/ We're Gonna Catch That Train
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| THE YORK BROTHERS |
Cattle 251 |
Hamtrammck Mama |
● CD $18.98 |
27 track collection of sides recorded between 1939 and 1950
by this fine brother duo based out of Detroit. As far as I can tell
there is
no duplication with Collector 2861. It includes three versions of their most
famous song Hamtramck Mama - two from around 1939 just featuring the
two of them and then a 1946 version for Bullet with a small group. Lots of
fine stuff - often with a bluesy boogie flavor featuring fine lead guitar
from Leslie York.
THE YORK BROTHERS: Blues Why Don't You Leave Me Alone/ Detroit Hula Girl/
Got Ramblin' And Gamblin' On My Mind/ Gravy Train/ Hail, Hail Ol' Glory/
Hamtramck Mama (no. 2)/ Hamtramck Mama (no. 3)/ Hamtramck Mama (no.1)/
Highland Park Girl/ I Got My Eyes On You/ I'm Not Fooling/ It Taint No Good/
Kill Her With Kindness/ Memories Of You/ Mine In Dreams/ Motor City Boogie/
My Tears Will Never Make You Change/ Naggin' Young Woman/ New Trail To
Mexico/ Riding And Singing My Song/ Road Of Sadness/ Rose Of The Rio Grande/
Speak To Me Little Darling/ Yesterday's Love/ York Brotherss Blues/ You Took
My Sunshine With You/ You'll Pay For It All
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| THE YORK BROTHERS |
Collector 2861 |
Detroit In The 40s & The 50s |
● CD $16.98 |
First in a series of four discs to reissue recordings from
the poorly documented Detroit scene. This features a selection of sides by
the fine and bluesy York Brothers including their original recording from
1939 of the classic Hamtramck Mama. Most of the early sides are from
obscure Detroit labels like Universal, Hot Wax and mellow and sound is
pretty rough - later sides are from better recorded issues on bigger labels
and sound is better.
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| CHIP YOUNG |
Music Mill 70009 |
Having Thumb Fun With My Friends |
● CD $7.98 |
Originally on the Belle Meade label.
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| FARON YOUNG |
Bear Family BCD 15493 |
The Capitol Years |
● CD $94.98 |
It was 1952 when Capitol Records' A & R man Ken Nelson,
visiting Shreveport, signed Faron after hearing him filling in for Webb
Pierce on Webb's KWKH radio show. During the next decade he had 42 chart
hits, 25 of them Top Ten and several of them standards: Goin' Steady,
If You Ain't Lovin', Live Fast, Love Hard, Die Young, Don
Gibson's Sweet Dreams and the hit version of Willie's Hello Walls.
All those are here, a total of 157 songs on five CD's. Though he started out
solidly in the Hank Williams style, he eventually developed his own sound.
Though his primary focus remained hard country, he recorded a bit of gospel
and in 1958 an entire pop LP, "The Object Of My Affection". Much of the
time, the material is pretty pedestrian, though it has its moments.
Everything is beautifully presented, though unlike most Bear box sets, on
this one, the songs aren't in chronological order. The chronological
arrangement usually makes it easier to run through the material and the
discography at the same time. I hope this is a one-time experiment. The 48
page booklet with rare photos was written by Colin Escott from Otto
Kitsinger's research and includes a complete discography. (RK)
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| FARON YOUNG |
Capitol (UK) 96855 |
This Is Faron Young/ Hello Walls |
● CD $11.98 |
24 tracks, 53 mins, highly recommended. Two LPs from 1959 and
'61 respectively. "This" features many of Faron's great early hits like
Live Fast, Love Hard & Die Young/ Goin' Steady/ Sweet Dreams/ It's A Great
Life (If You Don't Weaken)/ I've Five Dollars & It's Saturday Night and
others. This is great honky tonk country with Faron's expressive vocals
accompanied by top West Coast musicians like Speedy West on steel. "Walls"
includes the title song, an early classic from the pen of Willie Nelson and
a #1 country hit for Faron. There are some other hits from the early 60s
here along with fine non-hits. Arrangements are a little poppier than the
early sides but continue to feature fine singing from Faron. (FS)
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| FARON YOUNG |
Collector's Choice 162 |
The Complete Capitol Hits |
● CD $27.98 |
Two CD set featuring all 41 songs that reached the Billboard
country charts between 1953 and 1962 by this fine country artist including
several not previously available on a domestic CD. Lots of classic
performances like Goin' Steady/ A Place For Girls Like You/ If You Ain't
LOvin' You Ain't Livin'/ Live Fast, Love Hard, Die Young/ All Right/ It's A
Great Life (If You Don't Weaken)/ I've Got Five Dollars And It's Saturday
Night/ Sweet Dreams/ Turn Her Down/ I'm Gonna Live Some Before I Die/ Alone
With You/ I hate Myself/ Hello Walls and many more. Includes booklet
with notes by Colin Escott.
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| FARON YOUNG |
Country Stars CTS 55413 |
The Radio Shows, Vol 1 |
● CD $11.98 |
22 tracks, 52 min; good From a series of live radio shows in
Nashville in 1965, this album features Faron and his group The Country
Deputy Band (honest!) performing straightahead country versions of mostly
other people's hits of the day, including He'll Have To Go/ Unmitigated
Gall/ Detroit City/ The Race Is On/ Open Up Your Heart and Think Of
Me When You're Lonely (both with second vocalist Darrell McCall) and 16
more. The Country Deputies are a good band, and Faron's goofy phrasing has
yet to get out of hand; consequently, this is an enjoyable, if slightly
predictable, album. (RP)
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| FARON YOUNG |
Curb 77334 |
All-Time Greatest Hits |
● CD $10.98 |
10 Capitol sides including Hello Walls/ Live Fast, Love
Hard, Die Young/ Sweet Dreams/ Country Girl/ Riverboat/ Your Old Used To Be,
etc.
|
| FARON YOUNG |
Disky 857342 |
Faron Young |
● CD $9.98 |
15 fine Capitol sides, 1952-63 - all of them top ten country
hits - Hello Walls/ Country Girl/ You're Still Mine/ Goin' Steady/ I've
Got Five Dollars/ I Miss You Already (And You're Not Even Gone)/ That's The
Way I Feel/ Face To The Wall, etc.
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| FARON YOUNG & OTHERS |
Collectables 5330 |
Hi-Tone Poppa |
● CD $11.98 |
14 tracks, 34 mins, recommended CD issue of Krazy Kat 830. A
great collection of country recorded for Webb Pierce's Pacemaker label in
1950 and '51 and subsequently leased to Ivin Ballen's Gotham label. There
are six tracks by Faron Young from 3 different sessions - his first
recordings. Two the lively title song and the hot Hot Rod Shotgun Boogie,
No 2 were originally issued as by Tillman Franks & His Rainbow Boys.
There are four tracks by a very young Claude King doing his best to sound
like Ernest Tubb and two fine tracks by Teddy Wilburn of the Wilburn
Brothers. The album is rounded out with two tracks by the fine and obscure
Tex Grimsley. Accompaniments are consistently fine - often by members of
Webb Pierce's band. Good sound and there are extensive notes by Phil Tricker
which are in very tiny print. (FS)
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