The World Famous Ultimate Twang: George Strait "Chill Of An Early Fall" Classic Album Review

Greetings from Asheville, where good music is always on the turntable or in the CD player. Today’s Classic Album Review is a 1991 release for George Strait. To date, George has released twenty-six studio albums, with Chill Of An Early Fall being his eleventh release. Released in March, by MCA Records, the album sold over a million copies, yet became his first studio album since 1982′s Strait From The Heart to miss the number one spot, as it peaked at four. Three of the four singles from the album climbed into the top ten, with “Lovesick Blues” missing out, peaking at twenty-four.

The title cut is the opening track of this collection. ”The Chill Of An Early Fall” is quite a song, an outstanding ballad, and frankly, one of George’s most underrated hits. Charting in the Fall of 1991, it would climb as high as three on the charts.

Sometimes, within the first few seconds, you can tell that a song is going to be great, and such is the case with “I’ve Convinced Everybody But Me”. Great bouncy rhythm, led by a heavy dose of steel guitar, stellar twin fiddles, great lyrics and melody. A strong Hidden Gem contender. Pure country at it’s best.

“If I Know Me” was the album’s first single, and in the Spring of 1991, it became George’s twenty-first number one hit. A quality piece, showcasing George Strait’s stellar capabilities with a ballad; something of which many must have agreed with, since it spent two weeks at number one.

Performing even better as a single is “You Know Me Better Than That”, spending three weeks at number one during the Summer of 1991. Bouncy and lite, I’ve always loved the lyrics of this piece. Great song.

Back in the mid-1960′s, Lefty Frizzell recorded a song titled “A Little Unfair”. ”Anything You Can Spare”, the album’s next track, has a similar melody, rhythm, and overall feel. Really like this track, another Hidden Gem contender.

Next, we begin a string of covers, starting with the Bob Wills classic “Home In San Antone”. While I don’t know that anyone can top the original version, this is an excellent cover of the Texas Playboy sound.

If there’s a weak track on the album, it’s “Lovesick Blues”. It’s an okay version, but as I’ve said before, simply no one can sing this song nearly as well as Hank Williams could, not even George Strait. Simply, no one should ever be allowed to record this song, as I don’t think anyone will ever be able to do it proper justice.

“Milk Cow Blues” is an old blues song, written by and first recorded by Kokomo Arnold, back in 1934. Over the years, artists such as Johnny Lee Wills (Bob’s brother) and Elvis Presley would record versions. I’ve never thought of George Strait as a blues singer, or for that matter, even having much blues influence in his style, but he pulls off this track quite well, actually. While it’s Texas swing-style, it still retains a strong blues feel to it. Good stuff, right here.

“Her Only Bad Habit Is Me” is a ballad, that again, has a little blues feel to it. While much slower in tempo, it still, like the previous track, has a nice mix of the blues and Texas country sound. One could hear Bob Wills doing this number. Would have been perfect for Tommy Duncan’s vocals.

The album returns to a straightforward country sound for the final track, the ballad “Is It Already Time”. This is George Strait at his best. A strong end to a strong album.

Originally released on vinyl, cassette, and compact disc, the album is still available on compact disc and MP3 download. Used compact disc copies appear to be mostly under $5, while used cassettes and vinyl, under $10.

The album’s Standout Track has three strong possibilities, but I have to go with “The Chill Of An Early Fall”. Again, some great contenders for Hidden Gem, my pick is “I’ve Convinced Everybody But Me”. ”Lovesick Blues” is my Weakest Track, simply for the reasons I mentioned, above.

Overall, I consider this an excellent album, one that deserves much more acclaim than it seemingly has received. George Strait fans already know how good this work is, but any fan of country music should like this collection. I rate this one a solid 5 out of 5.

Your thoughts?

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