If That Ain't Country

In this week's episode we're featuring another huge album from Conway Twitty: "Play, Guitar Play" (1977). There were two singles and two obligatory number ones. But sales and chart certification aside, this is an album as diverse and enjoyable as anything Conway ever put out. We'll work our way through some country boy rock 'n' roll, swing, a few recitations and the necessary two-steppers: and we'll also remember the side of Conway Twitty which commanded such longevity and loyalty from bandmembers and dedication from fans. A casual observer can get lost in the sheer volume of Twitty's single and album output during his heyday, but when one takes the time to listen more intently there's overlooked country gold to be had. "Play, Guitar Play" is no exception: highlights include an extremely original cover of "Wolverton Mountain", a recitation/tearjerker combo in "The Letter" and the dancehall-ready "I Can't Help It If She Can't Stop Loving Me".

In this week's episode we're featuring Merle Haggard's first album for the 1990s and his first for his new label, Curb: "Blue Jungle" (1990). After his former label's parent company (Columbia) fired Johnny Cash in 1985, Hag was mad. Cash's mistreatment and consistent disagreements over artistic direction pushed Haggard to buy his way out his contract and he signed with Curb. What could have been a renaissance, however, turned into a commercial curtain call for Merle - apparently the label routinely delayed the release of new music and put almost no promotion behind his work, and his three albums for Curb tanked on the charts. Add that to a 90s country radio scene already more attuned to "Young Country" and the decade was an exceedingly tough one for Haggard and other country icons. Musically, however, "Blue Jungle" has plenty of highlights - produced by Strangers pianoman Mark Yeary, the album is loaded with vintage Haggard chops and his rough and ready vocal stands up to the new decade well. Hitting several topical issues head on in typical Haggard style, "Me And Crippled Soldiers" and "My Home Is In The Street" address the current affairs of the day - Norm Hamlet is prolific on steel and the final track on the project co-written with hit 80s collaborator Freddy Powers is also the best of the ten song collection - a contemplative cut wondering what might have been if Haggard had never "made it" in "A Bar In Bakersfield".

In this week's episode we're featuring the third album from The Mavericks, "What A Crying Shame" (1994). With roots in Miami's alternative and punk scenes, country music became the common ground upon which the band came together, and after two albums with moderate sales success (including one for MCA) producer Don Cook was brought on board for their third. Cook's work with Brooks & Dunn was instrumental in the success of that duo - and he allowed The Mavericks a tight but diverse record on "What A Crying Shame". Given their name by an old manager, The Mavericks fell into it over time; causing country radio programmers headaches since the get-go with elements of Latin, country, blues, rock 'n' roll, vintage pop and rockabilly in their music - their product was hard to define. But anchored by the sensational Orbison-esque vocal of Raul Malo, The Mavericks wouldn't be pigeonholed. Despite sales of over a million units, radio's reaction to "What A Crying Shame" was luke warm. But for those willing to listen cover to cover there was some excellent country music to be had: a couple of updated Ray Price shuffles in "Just A Memory" and "Ain't Found Nobody", and a pair of excellent honky tonk floor fillers in "There Goes My Heart" and the belly-rubber "Pretend" are worth the listen alone.

In this week's episode, we're featuring George Jones' last album of the 20th Century: "Cold Hard Truth" (1999). After an association with MCA for most of the 90s which resulted in decent sales but not so many radio hits, he found himself signed to Asylum Records - a signing which turned out to be his last major label deal. At 68 years of age, Jones was still in sterling vocal form and all that was asked of him was that he "do the record he would have done 20 years ago had he been sober". Jones approached the project with vigour, laying down the vocal with the pickers live in studio for all ten tracks with the intention of coming back to touch up certain parts later. However, after a serious alcohol-related SUV crash, those touch ups never happened. The Possum's near-death experience scared him into sobriety for good, and while he was hospitalised, Asylum released the album's first single. "Choices" wasn't given the radio attention it deserved - but to many fans, and perhaps to Jones himself - it served as a bittersweet summary of his career. Alongside the stark title track this album saw Jones return to his hard country best - after half a century of doing it better than just about anybody else, despite his self-inflicted pitfalls.

In this week's episode, we're featuring a sensational album from bluegrass progressives The Country Gentlemen: "Joe's Last Train" (1976). The Gents boasted an excellent line up in '76, including of course founding member, guitarist and lead vocalist Charlie Waller, Doyle Lawson on mandolin and vocals and with Bill Holden on banjo this collection of songs reflects that talent. Labelled bluegrass progressives for their masterful combination of folk, country, gospel and bluegrass traditions - The Gents appealed to and influenced a broad range of listeners and their music marked a beautiful, respectful but nuanced shift in the music of Bill Monroe to a more expansive interpretation of the same tradition. Waller's vocal similarity to Hank Snow was one he played on and with his enthralling picking technique, this album hasn't many dull moments. From a banjo-driven cover of Willie Nelson's "Bloody Mary Morning"; to the title track and it's dealings with the timeless country and bluegrass themes of trains, hobos and ageing - The Gents have an absolute winner on their hands with "Joe's Last Train", and the four bandmembers dressed as railroad bums on the original album cover is only the beginning of the appeal.

In this week's episode, we're featuring Jean Shepard's return to form: "Slippin' Away" (1973). Absent from the Top 5 since 1964, Shepard enjoyed a re-entry therein with the title track, written by fellow Opry star Bill Anderson. "Slippin' Away" also marked a change of labels for Jean Shepard (from Capitol to United Artists) - and although her stay near the top was shortlived, it allowed the feisty, opinionated and staunch torchbearer for traditional country music to be introduced to a whole new generation of fans. Stu Basore's steel guitar is a highlight on the whole release - especially on a sublime rendition of Tammy Wynette's "'Til I Get It Right"; "Come On Phone" provided a follow-up single to the title track and "Think I'll Go Somewhere (And Cry Myself To Sleep)" was the second Bill Anderson tune on the album, and you'll be hard pressed to find a more sorrowful version of that song. A fair and accurate representation of Jean Shepard at her best.

In this week's episode, we're taking the time to remember the almost unrivalled charisma, vocal versatility and showmanship of Faron Young. We've spanned his entire career in this week's show - taken some of his big hits, some of his album tracks and lesser known stuff, added some stories about the Singing Sheriff and packaged it up into a three-hour tribute to Faron. There's a lot that could be said of the talents and upsides (and downsides) that came in the career of Faron Young, but suffice to say that Faron's ability with the microphone and with an audience was an absolute pillar upon which the success of country music was built. And that's not an overstatement.

In this week's episode, we're featuring the second album in as many years for road warrior Dallas Moore: "Tryin' To Be A Blessing" (2019). Moore has been touring the country relentlessly for the last three decades, and even after all that time on the road, it was during a 2018 collaboration with Dean Miller (son of Roger Miller) in which Moore says he finally found the honky tonk sound he'd been looking for. His sound. Our feature album is the second project with Miller, recorded in only two days in a "lightning in a bottle" type situation, as Moore puts it. "Tryin' To Be A Blessing" is refreshingly autobiographical and six of the nine songs come from Moore's own pen. The album is dedicated to his late parents, who were married for over 60 years and passed away within weeks of each other just before the record's conception. "Mama & Daddy" pays homage to his upbringing; "All I Need" has a little Bakersfield-style to it; "Everything But You" chronicles the downsides of life on the road for the hard working Dallas Moore and the title track is a beautifully composed slice of optimism bundled in a rough-hewn country package. It seems to this reviewer that when Johnny Cash sang about "the gravel in ya guts and the spit in ya eye" in "A Boy Named Sue" - that somehow Cash's gravel has ended up in the vocals of the gritty Dallas Moore. And that grit makes for some excellent raw and ready honky tonk listening.

In this week's episode, we're featuring Marty Robbins' third album (of four) for MCA Records: "Good 'N Country" (1974). After twenty years, Columbia Records and Robbins parted ways, and in the singer's own words: "I was just like a small fish in a big pond and it seemed like a good time to move on." He was soon on the roster at MCA, searching for a new direction. Marty Robbins truly was a musical chameleon - from Hawaiian love songs to western story songs, crooner through to hard country genius - Robbins could sing it all. And in the search for a new direction, he called banjo picker Haskel McCormick into a Wednesday night session and joined with Buddy Spicher on fiddle and Bill Johnson utilising a rare fuzzbox effect on his steel guitar - he cut "Twentieth Century Drifter". A relative hit for the smooth singing Arizonian, it became a somewhat of a theme song for Robbins, who made over thirty starts in NASCAR's top division. The bluegrass overtones of "Good 'N Country" resulted in relative sales success but by 1975, Robbins was back at Columbia and remained there for the rest of his career. Highlights are plentiful: Robbins dug into the archives for a version of Eddy Arnold's "I Couldn't Believe It Was True"; a pair of self-penned songs from a prison-themed album that never enventuated in "Georgia Blood" and "Mother Knows Best" and a glorious steel guitar part in "You're An Angel Disguised As A Girl". Dang good stuff.

In this week's episode, we're featuring the first album from Peggy Sue Wells, "Dynamite!" (1969). Famously the younger sister of Loretta Lynn and the older sibling of Crystal Gayle, Peggy Sue does indeed have hints of both those gals when she sings. However this "small bundle of dynamite" (as described by Loretta on the original LP liner notes) has certainly earnt her mention in conversations about the famous Webb family of Butcher Holler, Kentucky. Born ten years after Loretta, she grew up listening to and singing along with her older sister's records and by the early 60s, Peggy Sue had become a featured act on her show. With the success of "Don't Come Home A-Drinkin'" (which she co-wrote with Loretta) she eventually earnt a contract with the same label as her sister and was assigned the same producer for her debut project in Owen Bradley. Loretta & Peggy Sue combined to write six of the ten songs featured on "Dynamite!" - an incredibly strong showing for the 60s. Likely borrowing steel guitar from Hal Rugg and with unique guitar effects sprinkled through the eleven song collection, "Dynamite!" is packed with kickers: with tunes from Loretta's wheelhouse in "Love Whatcha Got At Home" and "I'm Gettin' Tired Of Babyin' You" to the poignant "Sweet Baby Girl" and plaintive cover of Charley Pride's "All I Have To Offer You Is Me", Peggy Sue Wells didn't have the career her sisters did. But this album proves she certainly could have.