Classic Album Review-Faron Young “The Young Approach”
Today’s review takes us back forty-nine years, 1961, for a release from one of country music’s finest vocalists of that era, Faron Young. A hall of famer, I would still argue that his contributions have been greatly underrated. Think country music of that time, and one immediately thinks the likes of Johnny Cash, Buck Owens, George Jones, Patsy Cline, and Loretta Lynn; but often, Faron gets overlooked, despite 79 top forty country hits between 1953 and 1978, of which 41 reached the top ten. Perhaps it’s because Faron didn’t necessarily feature one “style” of singing; his hit list, as well as album tracks, include cuts that were pure honky-tonk, rockabilly, and country-pop. And he did each one, very well. Today’s album is proof. “The Young Approach” was Faron’s eighth album release, and it features two top ten singles.
The album starts out with the swinging “Backtrack”, a top ten hit for Faron in the fall of 1961, is one of his more underrated hits. Great song that has one of those melodies that will stick with you, and in this case, that’s a good thing.
Faron shows off his skills with a ballad on “Let’s Pretend We’re Lovers Again”. Here, we are hearing a smoothing of Faron’s sound, as he was getting away from the really hard country sound of his early hits. This is something we’ll hear throughout the disc. Faron was a great ballad singer, as this gem shows, and his early pop music start becoming apparent.
“The Part Where I Cry” is another strong track on this album. Again, we hear Faron’s great ballad skills.
Next, Faron tackles the Patsy Cline hit, “I Fall To Pieces”. While not in Patsy’s league on this track (and to be fair, who would be?), nevertheless, Faron puts on a more than acceptable performance.
“How Can I Forget You”, in my opinion, ranks as one of the standout tracks on this disc. Again, Faron taking another ballad and showing his incredible abilities with these style of songs.
Side one wraps with a remake of Faron’s 1st hit, “Goin’ Steady”. While the single is a pure country gem, this version brings a more rockabilly style, which, is okay, but I still prefer the original version or the later version that he recorded for Mercury, which also became a top ten hit.
Side two starts out with Faron giving us a taste of Willie Nelson’s “Three Days”. A top ten hit in the spring of 1962, like “Backtrack”, this is one of Faron’s more underrated performances. In fact, I’d rate this track as one of my top five Faron Young hits. Another bouncy track, a simply crafted song, but with a great melody that immediately grabs your attention and holds it until the last note. This is one of five songs on the album that Willie either wrote or co-wrote.
I’m not sure which Faron Young is best, the Faron Young that can swing, or the ballad Faron Young. And this album does not make the decision any easier. On “I Can’t Find The Time”, once again, we’re shown how well he takes the ballad and presents it in such a way that it’s pure pleasure to the ears.
“Trail Of Tears” is a song that I would rate as average, at best, but Faron makes it a significantly better track than it would be in the hands of most performers. The closest thing on the album to filler.
“A Moment Isn’t Very Long”, another ballad, another winner. Again, a ballad that allows Faron to show off his vocal talents, that at this time in his career, are at it’s peak.
Unlike most albums of the era, this one does not rely too heavily on covers, as Faron covers only his own “Goin’ Steady”, Patsy Cline’s “I Fall To Pieces”, and The Four Lads’ “Moments To Remember”. For those who are not familiar with The Four Lads, they were a popular 1950’s group, and this was one of their biggest hits, spending several weeks at number two in 1955. Faron’s version is another standout track on this album. I have to say that I like his version as much as the original.
Faron wraps the album with another Willie Nelson penned tune, “Things To Remember”. This track shows of a more rocking side of Faron, not so much rockabilly as much as straight ahead rock and roll, as one will hear with the guitar riffs throughout. Throughout his career, Faron wasn’t afraid to let loose on some songs, and this is a good example, one that works, well, too. A great track to close an excellent album.
To the best of my knowledge, it’s yet to see the light of day as a CD or MP3 download, if you want a copy, it’s used vinyl, and yes, I did find a few listed, online, ranging from $7 to about $30 per copy. Don’t know if I’d go $30, but for this album, $15 is quite reasonable, in my opinion.
This album is truly a forgotten gem of the 1960’s, from one of country music’s finest singers. If it ever gets remastered for CD release, it will be in my collection, to be sure. An easy 5 out of 5. Anyone agree or disagree?
Friday, June 4, 2010
Classic Album Review-Faron Young "The Young Approach"
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Classic Album Review-Eddie Rabbitt "Horizon"
Classic Album Review-Eddie Rabbitt “Horizon”
Today’s album takes me back to my early teenage years, 1980 and ‘81, to be exact, when Eddie Rabbitt was all over the radio, with two big hits, “Drivin’ My Life Away” and “I Love A Rainy Night”. And I mean all over the radio. I’d hear them on our local country outlets, such as WFMS and WIRE, along with Chicago’s WMAQ and Nashville’s WSM. Plus, the local top forty outlet, WIKS, and if I’m not mistaken, they even showed up on WIBC, the local full-service station. Those were the days when radio was still interesting and fun to listen to. Both singles came from what would be the most successful album of Eddie’s career, “Horizon”. A million seller, it would peak at number one on the country album charts, while climbing into the top twenty on the pop album list.
The album kicks off with what would actually be it’s second single, the mega-hit “I Love A Rainy Night”, which would top both the country and pop charts in early 1981. Still one of Eddie’s best works, in my opinion.
From there, we head into “747”, a song that has a rockabilly feel to it, though I wouldn’t call it pure rockabilly, due to the arrangement, which is more country-pop. Not a bad song, not particularly memorable, however, I think it would have come off better, if they had given it more of a rockabilly arrangement.
“Drivin’ My Life Away” is another classic. A country number one and pop top five in 1980, that was featured in the film “Roadie”. I consider this one to be one of the classic “trucker” songs in country music history. Again, like “I Love A Rainy Night”, one of Eddie’s best works (and he had a lot of great hits).
Like “747”, “Short Road To Love” also has that rockabilly feel to it, but again, I wish they would have given it a stronger rockabilly arrangement (to be fair, it is a bit closer than “747”), as it would have made a very good track, great, had they done so. But in 1980, a rockabilly sound wasn’t “in”, either in country or pop, so in both cases, they went with what was the hot sound of the time.
Ironically, the only track on side one that doesn’t rock is the song “Rockin’ With My Baby”. The only slow song on side one. I wouldn’t label this song a great one, but it is a nice track, enjoyable to listen to. Simply crafted, and again, a rockabilly feel, despite it’s slower tempo.
At the conclusion of side one, it may seem rather quick, and it is. Three of the five songs, are barely over three minutes in length, while the other two are only around two and a half minutes, each.
Turning over the disc, we now look at side two. Side two returns to the more country-pop sound that is heard on the majority of Eddie’s work, beginning with “I Need To Fall In Love Again”. Catchy refrain, with good lyrical content make this a very good track.
“So Deep In Your Love” doesn’t do it for me. The lyrics are good, but the melody has no flow, it’s not an easy track to listen to. I feel you have to invest too much, just to follow along.
On the other hand, “What Will I Write” is arguably the album’s hidden gem. Lyrically, it’s arguably the album’s strongest track, while the melody is haunting and memorable.
“Pretty Lady” is pretty average. A mid tempo track that I would consider simply filler. The album’s weakest track.
The album wraps with “That’s Just The Way It Is”. It reminds me a little bit, sound-wise, of “Suspicions” or “You Don’t Love Me Anymore”, two earlier Rabbitt hits. Again, a track that falls closer to average, nothing particularly memorable, it’s just there.
This album sat somewhere back in the dark vaults of Warner Bros./Elektra/Asylum, until re-entering the market, last year, as both a CD and MP3 download. I also found numerous used vinyl copies and even a few 8-tracks on the market.
This album could have easily been titled “Two Sides Of Eddie Rabbitt”. Side one shows a strong rockabilly influence, while side two is more of the country-pop ballad style that we most often associate with Eddie. Other than a couple of stumbles towards the end, this is a very good album worthy of a good rating, in which I will set at 4 out of 5. Do you think differently or the same?
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Classic Album Review-Tammy Wynette "The First Lady"
Classic Album Review-Tammy Wynette “The First Lady”
Here’s something to make you feel old; a look back to October, 1970. Wichita State University lost several football players in a plane crash, on their way to a game with Utah State; those born include television personality Kelly Ripa, actor Matt Damon, golfer Annika Sorenstam, and actor Kirk Cameron; Janis Joplin died of a heroin overdose; PBS began broadcasting; Merle Haggard wins the CMA “Entertainer Of The Year”; Lee Roy Yarbrough got his last NASCAR Cup win at Charlotte; Baltimore topped Cincinnati in the World Series; Anwar Sadat became president of Egypt; and “Doonesbury” is first published. October, 1970, was also the month of release for today’s Classic Album, Tammy Wynette’s “The First Lady”. “The First Lady” would climb as high as number two on the country album charts, and would include one single, “Run Woman Run”.
“Run Woman Run”, the first cut on the disc, was a number one hit for Tammy in October, 1970. An outstanding recording, a great ballad, that unfortunately often gets lost in the midst of other great hits such as “Stand By Your Man” and “D-I-V-O-R-C-E”. You could argue, though, that this may be one of her best cuts.
“I Wish I Had A Mommy Like You” is vintage Tammy Wynette. The song, itself, is okay, but Tammy’s vocals are among the best we’ll hear from her on any album. In a nutshell, we find out a little boy comes over to the neighbor’s house, because his mother is never home, apparently searching for what she’s not getting from the husband/daddy, who stays out at night, apparently, with the neighbor. Only in country music.
“True And Lasting Love” is yet another ballad, that has to be chalked up as another outstanding vocal performance by Tammy. The song, itself, is great, but the result with Tammy Wynette at the mic is magical.
“I Never Once Stopped Loving You” is a cover of a Connie Smith hit from the same year. This is an interesting comparison, because I think Tammy and Connie are similarly styled vocalists. Had Connie Smith not released this as a single, it could have easily been a hit for Tammy Wynette. Both versions are standout, and I’m not so sure if I had to choose, I just might pick Tammy’s.
“Safe In These Lovin’ Arms Of Mine”, a song with average lyrical content, but a good melody, as well as a good, up tempo beat. Another good vocal performance, as well, makes this a good cut to end side one.
As we take a look at side two, we start out with what has to be one of the album’s highlights, “Sally Trash”. How can you not like a song that compares a “white trash” woman to an overripe tomato? This is a song that one could easily hear Loretta Lynn sing, as it’s not unlike some of her hits in subject matter and lyrical content.
Since side 1 included a song featuring a little boy talking about his always absent mommy, isn’t it only appropriate that side two include a song about a little girl and an absent daddy? In this case, the little girl has substituted a “daddy doll” for her departed real-life father. Sappy but sad.
This album is heavy on ballads, including “The Lovin’ Kind”. An album cut, but certainly not just filler, this cut could have easily been a hit single. Great lyrics, music, and of course, an outstanding vocal performance by Tammy all make this track one of the standout tracks on the album.
“He’s Still My Man”, another ballad, is another winner, though, Tammy’s range is stretched on this one. She might have been in trouble had she been asked to sing any higher.
3 songs that talk about kids missing a parent, for me, is a bit much for one album, but for some reason, if someone is able to pull it off, it’s Tammy Wynette. The third cut of this type is “Buy Me A Daddy”; a little girl asks her mother to buy her a daddy, instead of any more toys. These songs threaten to come off sappy or syrupy in the hands of most vocalists, but somehow, they work for Tammy. And remember, she had success with these type of songs as singles, too. “I Don’t Want To Play House”, “Kids Say The Darndest Things”, and “Bedtime Story”, for example.
The album wraps with a kickin’ version of “Playin’ Around With Love”, a cover of Barbara Mandrell’s first hit, from that same year. Another excellent track is the best way to sum it up.
Based on my research, it looks as though this album has never been issued on CD, nor is it available as an MP3 download. What a shame! This is a true example of classic country music from the early ’70’s, arguably one of the best albums of that era, and it should be made available. That being said, I did find several used vinyl copies for sale, online, along with a few 8-tracks, and, get this, on Ebay, a reel-to-reel copy! How retro cool is that?
While I’ve not heard every album of her career, I would think this one would have to rank as one of her best, as the whole collection is a phenomenal work of country music art. Tammy was vocally at her peak, at the time of this recording, and the result is one of the most consistent and exceptional vocal performances of any album I’ve reviewed to this point. Tammy is like Merle Haggard, in that they sing in such a way, that you can see and almost experience what they are singing about. I don’t think that’s something that can be taught; you either have it or you don’t, and the vast majority of artists, don’t. While I’ve used the painting analogy, before, in Tammy’s case, she really does paint a picture with her vocal. This album is easily a 5 out of 5. Agreed?
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Classic Album Review-Steve Wariner "I Am Ready"
Classic Album Review-Steve Wariner “I Am Ready”
Steve Wariner is an interesting artist to look back on. His career lasted from 1980, through 2000, yet he wouldn’t really be considered a superstar, despite 48 country top forty hits, including 33 top ten hits.
He would also generally be considered more of a “singles” artist, scoring only 2 top ten albums, “Two Teardrops” and “Burnin’ The Roadhouse Down”, both of which came late in his career. Today, we look back at his 1991 release, “I Am Ready”, his debut effort for Arista, after leaving MCA. The album would only peak at 28, but contains 3 top ten singles, along with 2 more that also made the country top forty.
The disc kicks off with a good-sounding country track, titled “On My Heart Again”. You generally will not find anything groundbreaking in Steve’s work, but rather what seems to be a “tried-and-true” formula, which in most cases, works well for him, such as this track. Good, listenable track, pleasant sound.
Steve takes Bill Anderson’s “The Tips Of My Fingers” and turns a 1960’s classic into what at that time, was a contemporary sounding track, that did strike a chord with country listeners, making it a top ten hit. This was the fifth version to reach the country top twenty, following versions by Anderson, as well as Roy Clark, Eddy Arnold, and Jean Shepard.
“When Will I Let Go”, another nice, mid tempo tune that stays within that previously mentioned formula. While nothing special, it’s another what I’d call “nice” tune.
One may denote a bit of anger or attitude in the song “Leave Him Out Of This”, the building tension and anger of one whose having to compete with his lover’s memory of an old love. Steve is able to express these emotions, in a controlled, manner that makes this ballad work, perfectly. This is one of the album’s standout tracks, and understandably was a top ten hit, as well.
“Like A River To The Sea” was another country top forty hit for Steve. I’ve always thought this was one of the best singles of his career, despite it’s low chart placing. Great ballad. Very intimate, with great vocals that are not overpowered by the arrangement. And one of those songs that just sounded great, when playing on late-night radio, which I did, many times.
Side two opens with “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright”. It’s another good mid tempo sound that fits into the consistency of this entire disc, to this point. It’s interesting to note, that this track has a definite 1980’s feel throughout, as the arrangement sounds more along that era’s sounds, as opposed to the 1990’s.
The album’s third top ten hit is next. “A Woman Loves”. Another great ballad that stands out on this disc.
Steve kicks the tempo up a bit, for “My, How Time Don’t Fly”. Again, another good track, that provides a nice combination of good melody and lyrics, and just the right amount of arrangement, so as to not overpower the vocals.
“Gone Out Of My Mind” is a pure country ballad. A man who is waiting to either forget an old love or lose his mind, hence the line, “…til one of us has gone out of my mind”. Not a bad track, though not particularly special.
The album wraps with “Crash Course In The Blues”, the only track on the album that really cuts loose.
Another top forty release from the album, I would actually consider this the weakest cut on the disc, though it does highlight some stellar guitar work by Steve, that reminds us that, yes, he is one of those who have indeed been highly influenced by the legendary Chet Atkins. The smoking fiddle work on the track belongs to Mark O’Connor, while Terry McMillan is behind the harmonica. While the picking is great, to me, the song itself, is at best, average.
Not currently in print, but I did spot several new CD’s for sale, online, along with numerous used CD’s, as well as a few cassettes. Having been released in 1991, it was issued on vinyl (in fact, my copy is vinyl), as well, though I did not see any used copies for sale.
Overall, it’s a good album. There are 2-3 what I would consider standout tracks, with the rest being very good. Even the album’s one weak song, “Crash Course In The Blues”, would rank higher than just “filler”, due to the great instrumental work. While I won’t say this is Steve’s best album, it certainly ranks among his top 2-3. I will rank it 4.5 out of 5. Agree?
