The World Famous Ultimate Twang: Classic Album Review-Faron Young "The Young Approach"

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?