Asleep At The Wheel - Ride With Bob

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:02
Size: 137.4 MB
Styles: Country, Western Swing
Year: 1999
Art: Front

[3:38] 1. Bob's Breakdown (Feat. Vince Gill)
[3:01] 2. New San Antonio Rose (Feat. Dwight Yoakam)
[3:31] 3. I Ain't Got Nobody (Feat. Don Walser)
[3:14] 4. Roly Poly (Feat. Dixie Chicks)
[3:25] 5. Heart To Heart Talk (Feat. Lee Ann Womack)
[3:22] 6. Cherokee Maiden (Feat. Ray Benson)
[2:40] 7. Maiden's Prayer (Feat. Squirrel Nut Zippers)
[3:13] 8. You're From Texas (Feat. Ray Benson)
[2:41] 9. Right Or Wrong (Feat. Reba McEntire)
[4:26] 10. Faded Love (Feat. Lyle Lovett)
[4:33] 11. St. Louis Blues (Feat. Merle Haggard)
[2:46] 12. End Of The Line (Feat. Jason Roberts)
[3:08] 13. Take Me Back To Tulsa (Feat.Clay Walker)
[5:51] 14. Milk Cow Blues (Feat. Ray Benson)
[2:57] 15. Stay All Night (Feat. Ray Benson)
[2:49] 16. Bob Wills Is Still The King (Feat.Clint Black)
[4:38] 17. Going Away Party (Feat. The Manhattan Transfer)

Asleep at the Wheel devoted its entire career to Western swing, which is commonly known as the music Bob Wills created. They became the standard bearers for the genre, making sure that it was still an integral part of the country music mainstream. Since their entire career feels like a living monument to Wills, it almost seems unnecessary for them to record tributes to the "King of Western Swing" -- that is, until you hear the records. Ride With Bob, their sequel to the award-winning Tribute to the Music of Bob Wills, has more guest appearances than its predecessor, but it's every bit as enjoyable. The fact of the matter is, Asleep at the Wheel played this music better than anybody else at the close of the century, and these are some of the greatest songs in popular music -- "New San Antonio Rose," "Roly Poly," "Cherokee Maiden," "Right or Wrong," "Faded Love," "Take Me Back to Tulsa," and "Stay All Night" always sound fresh, and the band draws out excellent performances from Dwight Yoakam, the Dixie Chicks, Ray Benson, Reba McEntire, Lyle Lovett and Shawn Colvin, Clay Walker, and Mark Chesnutt, respectively, on these songs. It's a testament to both the group and the songs that nobody here -- not the Squirrel Nut Zippers or Manhattan Transfer -- sounds out of place. This is warm, generous, rich music that's endlessly listenable, much like Wills himself. And the Clint Black-sung cover of Waylon Jennings' tribute "Bob Wills Is Still the King" is a nice touch. ~Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Ride With Bob

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Merle Haggard - Unforgettable

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 40:41
Size: 93.2 MB
Styles: Country
Year: 2004
Art: Front

[3:07] 1. As Time Goes By
[3:30] 2. Gypsy
[3:02] 3. Unforgettable
[3:59] 4. Stardust
[3:18] 5. I Can't Get Started
[2:45] 6. Still Missing You
[3:21] 7. Pennies From Heaven
[3:58] 8. Cry Me A River
[3:05] 9. I'll Get By (As Long As I Have You)
[2:37] 10. You're Nobody 'til Somebody Loves You
[3:30] 11. What Love Can Do
[4:23] 12. Goin' Away Party

Merle Haggard is, as the great Duke Ellington used to say, "beyond category." Like the best, he is a genre-defying artist. There is a strong influence of both jazz and blues in Haggard's work, though it's usually labeled as country and western. For example, he phrases like a jazz singer and he features horns in his exceptional band, The Strangers—and, unlike almost all other country singers, he actually gives the band a chorus. Perhaps most importantly, he and the band swing. Like full-fledged jazz singers, Haggard phrases with the assurance of a singer who knows where the pulse is all the time.

Only now, however, as he approaches 68, has he decided to record a full set of standards from the Great American Songbook. Whereas jazz singers often search these old songs for a phrase or a melody they can elaborate and transform, Haggard lets the song do all the work; all he has to do is use his expressive voice to bring out the bruised tenderness present in most old songs, including "Stardust." In addition, he includes "As Time Goes By," and "I Can't Get Started," which are often selected by jazz-oriented singers. Haggard also swings gently through "Pennies From Heaven" (graced by Clint Strong's superb country-jazz guitar) and he brings new life to "Cry Me A River," exhibiting a world-weariness light years from Julie London's sultry original version. Haggard is not, of course, the first country artist to make this leap into standards. Willie Nelson, another C&W artist (and jazz fan), noted for his jazz phrasing, came out with his classic Stardust LP back in 1978; more recently, in 1998, country artist Lorrie Morgan, with her husky jazz timbre, released a CD titled Secret Love.

Unforgettable contains no surprises. Haggard is not stretching any envelopes, but this recording is filled with low-key piano-driven arrangements suited for a late-night smoky bar. Haggard's smooth and effortless voice, uncomplicated phrasing, and warm timbre give the lyrics a clear-headed beauty that is the hallmark of a performer with few pretensions. There are more technically gifted singers than Haggard, of course, but he does something that a lot of those technical singers cannot do, which is convey a helluva lot of truth and emotion. The key to anything touched by Haggard is honesty—whether he's explaining his sinful past in one of his own drinking and cheating songs, or breathing life into an old standard like "I'll Get By." ~Roger Crane

Joe Manuel: electric and acoustic guitar; Freddy Powers: drums, acoustic guitar; Kevin Price: cello; Joe Reed: bass; Clint Strong: electric guitar; Catherine Styron: piano; Redd Volkaert, acoustic guitar; Tony Savage: conductor, string arrangements; Terry Domingue, drums; Rose Katai, violin; Soo Kyong Kim, viola; Don Markum: saxophone, trumpet; Bruce McBeth, violin; B.B. Morse, bass; Bobby Wood, piano; Biff Adam, drums; Gary Church: trombone; Merle Haggard: electric guitar and vocals; other personnel.

Unforgettable

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