Various Artists - Best Of Classic Country 50`s

Artist:

Various Artists

UPC:

610583173628

Description:

Liner Note Author: Charles McCardell.
Modern country really began in the early `50s, which saw the country music genre increasingly centered in Nashville, where a ready pool of skilled session musicians and songwriters soon gathered. By understanding the pop charts (but not necessarily emulating pop itself -- that would come early in the next decade) and fighting off rock & roll by absorbing its key elements, the purveyors of the emerging modern country sound ended up crafting a true golden age of classic releases, several of which are assembled here. Like all Time Life collections, this one features the original hit single versions and not re-recorded facsimiles, which is a definite plus, and even a bit of a revelation, since several of these hits were quite strikingly recorded. Included are Hank Snow`s versatile shuffle "I`m Moving On" from 1950, Hank Williams` timeless "Cold, Cold Heart" from 1951, Kitty Wells` astute "It Wasn`t God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels" from 1952, Tennessee Ernie Ford`s hit version of Merle Travis` "Sixteen Tons" (complete with finger snaps and horns) from 1955, Don Gibson`s haunting and stoic "Oh Lonesome Me" from 1958, and Johnny Horton`s spirited take on a reconfigured old fiddle tune, "The Battle of New Orleans," from 1959. Also included here are a pair of songs generally considered to be central to the advent of rock & roll, Elvis Presley`s "Heartbreak Hotel" from 1956 and Jerry Lee Lewis` "Great Balls of Fire" from 1958, both of which show how closely allied modern country and rock & roll actually were in the beginning. A solid set of timeless standards, Best of Classic Country: `50s doesn`t miss the target once through 17 tracks. ~ Steve Leggett

Track Listing:

DISC 1

1. I`m Moving On - Hank Snow
2. Always Late (With Your Kisses) - Lefty Frizzell
3. Wild Side of Life, The - Hank Thompson
4. It Wasn`t God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels - Kitty Wells
5. Slowly - Webb Pierce
6. Cold, Cold Heart - Hank Williams
7. Crazy Arms - Ray Price & the Cherokee Cowboys/Ray Price
8. Sixteen Tons - Tennessee Ernie Ford
9. Cattle Call, The - Eddy Arnold
10. I Walk the Line - Johnny Cash/The Tennessee Two
11. Heartbreak Hotel - Elvis Presley
12. Great Balls of Fire - Jerry Lee Lewis
13. Four Walls - Jim Reeves
14. Oh Lonesome Me - Don Gibson
15. White Lightning - George Jones
16. Paso, El - Marty Robbins
17. Battle of New Orleans, The - Johnny Horton

Album Information

Release Date:

03/28/2006

Type:

Collection

Genre:

Oldies

Subgenre:

Rockabilly

Label:

Warner Bros.

Producer:

Charles McCardell (Compilation)

Catalog Number:

19174

Original Release Year:

2006

# of Discs:

1

Studio/Live:

Studio

Mono/Stereo:

Stereo

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