ClayManiacs

 On this thread i'm gonna be reviewing CDs and DVDs and video's that interest me. Anyone can make commentary or place your own reviews on whatever you want here. But mostly, the reason i created the thread was because of my desire to talk about some things non-Clay related that interests me.  

UNREAL[/b]
Year: 1970
Artist: Ray Stevens
Label: Barnaby 30092

AC Review

There is an interesting story surrounding the release of this 1970 album. The 11 songs on this album were recorded in late 1969 and early 1970 and was set to be Ray's debut on the Barnaby label. However, as is the case with the music business, things aren't always set in stone. "Unreal" was put on hold because Ray wrote and released "Everything is Beautiful" and that single flew to #1 pop. Barnaby then rushed out an album to support the single. After the success of that single and album, Barnaby THEN released Ray's original debut album "Unreal".

This "Unreal" album contained 11 songs that were mostly protest-era and love/peace songs, which were what was being bought and played on Top-40 radio at the time. All of the songs are top-notch and there are a few that stray from the album's over-all theme. "Dream, Girl" is my favorite of the album. The song is about a teenager who gives in to temptation and is stuck with a baby after the boyfriend ran off. Ray sings "Dream, girl...living in your magazine world...you were only 17 girl, much too young to know the score...".

The other favorite is "Talking", which is about the Vietnam War but it can easily be applied to any war. ... "And while we're Talking they're fighting...in a jungle far away from home...they're fighting...in a war nobody call his own...".

The songs that stray from the protest/war theme of the album are also great. "Islands" is a song about a marriage that's breaking up. "Imitation of Life" tells about a couple who pretend to be he happy couple in public but they're really living an imitation of life. "Night People" is a strange song about the life of the lonely people who live at night. "Night People...stumbling after rainbows in the night...searching hard to find that happy ending...searching for escape with our might..."

The hit singles from this album were the #45 pop hit "America, Communicate With Me" and the Brian Wilson-soaked #81 pop hit "Sunset Strip". "Loving You On Paper" is a wonderful song about a guy in the war who loves his wife by way of writing love letters. "Can We Get To That" and "Come Around" are two more protest-style songs which border on gospel.

This album has been re-released on CD format, it's paired with "Everything Is Beautiful". It's a 22 song collection combining his two 1970 Barnaby albums together on one CD.

Hi Jerry. I really enjoyed the review of Ray's CD. Thanks for putting several of the songs on the tape you sent me. Ray is a wonderful entertainer. I look forward to reading more of your reviews. You are such a wealth of information.

THE MOONLIGHT SPECIAL[/u]
Writer: Ray Stevens
Year of Release: 1974
Format: 45 RPM Single
Label/Number: Barnaby 604
Peak: #73-pop

Released in July 1974, "The Moonlight Special" was the follow-up to Ray's previous hit called "The Streak". The B-side to "Moonlight Special" was a song entitled "Just So Proud to Be Here", which one has to assume the title was inspired by Minnie Pearl's greeting: "Howdee!! I'm just so proud to be here!".

"The Moonlight Special" was a broad parody on the TV show The Midnight Special. On this novelty song, Ray's vocal talents are put to good use: Not only does Ray sing the song in his regular voice...he also along the way does impressions of Gladys Knight and the Pips; Jerry Lee Lewis; and a weird psychedelic act.

The acts on the song are known as 'Mildred Queen and the Dips'; 'Agnes Stoopa and his Chickens'; and 'Jerry Joe Henley Jimmy'. That's not all...throughout "The Moonlight Special", the host, SheepDog, keeps the pace rolling. SheepDog is an impersonation of Wolfman Jack by the way!!

The hippie lingo at the start of SheepDog's shouts are genius: "Crazy, too cool, out of sight, right on, and far out! Join my rock here for the next half hour of the most exciting happening around here on the Moonlight Special..."

Poor Mildred Queen and the Dips! She sings her verses and the Dips repeat everything she says. This causes Mildred to ad-lib a line and the Dips repeat it. It goes back and fourth until Mildred snaps and screams her lungs off to which the Dips do the same but only in a more mellow delivery :lol

Agnes Stoopa was apparently Ray's send-up of acid rockers who wants to paint the living room carpet; flash an old lady; and chop down a cherry tree but say he didn't do it. :lol

Jerry Joe Henley Jimmy was Ray's spoof of Jerry Lee Lewis. Ray's piano thumping is excellant and Jerry's leg kick on the piano keys is exaggerated by Ray because in the song Jerry Joe Henley Jimmy plays an entire piece of music supposedly with his feet.  

This single, and it's B-side "Just So Proud To Be Here", are from the 1974 album 'BOOGITY-BOOGITY'. "The Moonlight Special" is hilarious!!
========================

:wave Hello Janet! Thanks for the comments about the thread.

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BE YOUR OWN BEST FRIEND[/u]
Artist: Ray Stevens
Year: 1978
Label: Warner Brothers 3195

This album contained only 9 songs...the typical albums contained 10 or 11 songs at the most.

Only the title track was released as a single. "Be Your Own Best Friend" is more or less a philosophical number. It hit #36-country. This album also marked the on-going appearance of Ray with his trademark beard. Clean shaven for the most part, every album from 1978 onward would feature Ray with a beard. It's a little, obscure piece of trivia i thought i'd throw out there.

The highlights of the album for me are the songs "L'amour"; "Comeback"; "You're Magic"; and "The Feeling's Not Right Again".

This is quintessential easy-listening music...now called Adult-Contemporary or "AC" for short. I doubt this music would've found room on Top-40 radio or even country radio at the time...with the exception of the #36 title track. At the time, Manilow's style of pop music was being pushed from Top-40 and onto the easy-listening format that was popping up in greater abundance...

In fact, the song "The Feeling's Not Right Again", was pulled from this album and in 1979 it became the title track of an album built around a single about Manilow that Ray had a big hit with on AC radio.

On the love ballad "Two Wrong's Don't Make a Right", Ray informs us that "two wrong's don't cancel each other out; no second ones don't count; to make the first one see the light; and two wrong's could only hurt me more than i've already been hurt before; and nothing's gained by revenge and spite...Two Wrong's Don't Make a Right..."

I especially love Ray's delivery on "You're Magic". It's almost breathy...the vocal delivery is bouncy and light-weight... "oh, You're Magic! What can i call you but magic? You're Magic...that's all baby, You're Magic! You thrill me, thrill me, thrill me so much...don't ever lose your touch...".

As earlier stated, 'BE YOUR OWN BEST FRIEND' is easy-listening music and so, if AC isn't your favorite style of music, this isn't the album for you!

Title: Jack Benny, Volume 2
Year of Release: 1994
Principal Performers: Jack Benny; Don Wilson; Dennis Day; Eddie "Rochester" Anderson; Mel Blanc.
Format: VHS; black and white

MCA home video released a 6-volume set of VHS videos on Jack Benny, who had passed away 20 years earlier in 1974. Jack Benny fans, including myself, have always complained about the lack of his material in stores in abundance. That was then, 1994, and since then the DVD age has taken over and on-line stores are everywhere and there's now plenty of DVD's of Jack Benny floating around on Amazon and eBay...but in 1994, this 6-volume set was a gold-mine for Jack Benny fans.

On this particular video, it contains two episodes {actually, all 6 home videos contain 2 episodes so in reality we're getting 12 episodes for the price of 6.} Anyway, on this video, the first episode stars Peter Lorre. Lorre is introduced and he does some banter with Jack. He tells Jack that he's tired of people being afraid of him and that he's really a nice guy. Jack doesn't believe the nice guy routine and Lorre says: "It's true! I'm not a mean person..." and Jack continues to not believe him and then he says to Lorre: "Alright! I didn't know you were so sensitive..." and Lorre snaps back: "Yes! I'm a very touchy peron!" to which Jack starts laughing: "Touchy?? You??" :lol Later, Lorre plays an ex-con who needs a new face in taht episode's skit. He goes to a plastic surgeon. Joanie Sommers, a singer, who had sung a ballad earlier, plays the receptionist at the doctor's office. Mel Blanc plays the plastic surgeon in a Yiddish accent.

Lorre and Jack have a funny exchange of words in the skit. Lorre, who let Jack go ahead of him at the doctor's office, is growing impatient because he needs to get a new face really quick! He goes into the plastic surgeons office with his gun and demands that Blanc give him a new face. Lorre throws Jack in a closet and fires three times through the door. Lorre demands a new face and Blanc gets an idea. He gives Lorre the face of Jack Benny :lol After he's through, Lorre looks in the mirror and says: "You gave me that man's face??" Blanc says: "I'm sorry! I guess Jack Benny was the last person i saw and..." "That was Jack Benny!! The famous comedian! I have Jack Benny's face!!??". Fake Jack smiles and says: "I have access to Jack's money!!! And i've always wanted to be a comedian!!". He shoots Blanc who falls backward in his chair.

What was happening was Jack was walking around with Frankenstein shoulder pads and lip-synching to Peter Lorre's recording...the hilarious pay-off happened when the "fake" Jack  appeared at the TV studio to do his show....

He walked out stiff shouldered and proceeded to tell jokes with Lorre's voice :lol Don Wilson, the announcer, ran out there and demanded to know what was going on: "Jack! What's happening??? Your voice!! What's happened to your voice??" to which Jack pulls out his gun and shoots Don where he stands :lol "You die lousy!" snapped Jack. He then got in a fit because the camera man was giving him close-ups. "Back i say! Back! I want no close-ups! No close-ups!" He then shot the camera man :lol You have to remember Jack is doing all of this with the voice of Peter Lorre. He looks up at another camera man and sneers: "I don't like your attitude either!" and he shoots THAT camera man as well.

Luckily, some stage-hands come out and drag Jack off the stage while he's pleading: "No! This is my show! What are you doing?? No!!!!" :lol :roflmao Naturally, this episode is the stand-out of the two :yes This episode from 1962 was produced and directed by Fred DeCordova {who later went on to become Johnny Carson's executive producer on The Tonight Show}

==========================

On the second episode of this video, The Smother's Brothers are the guest-stars. They come out and attempt to sing Jack's theme song "Love in Bloom".

:music "Could it be the trees that fill the breeze with rare and magic perfume? Oh no it's not the trees, it's Love in Bloom" :music

Anyway, after several comical mistakes, Jack walks out and the show is under-way. This was 1965, a few years before they were to become smash comedians thanks, or no thanks depending on your view-point, to the darkest years of the Vietnam era and their Anti-Establishment humor.

The Smothers Brothers sing a tongue-twisting song called "My Old Man's Occupation" and they perform magic tricks which genuinely amazes Jack. Their nutty humor catches Jack off-guard and he bursts out laughing several times at Tom's "idiotic" persona.

This episode's skit had to do with Jack in London during the war and how two soldier's {Tom and Dick Smothers} are on hand trying to diffuse a bomb. They recognize Jack Benny and start auditioning for him with guns and grenades being flown at them from all directions. :lol

Later, the bomb explodes. Jack and the Smothers Brothers are covered in dirt and ashes...Jack looks into the camera and shouts: "If i've told my writer's once, i've told them a hundred times...when they write a sketch, don't use a real bomb!" :lol

All in all, i loved the video. It's commercial free and has a running time of 50 minutes. Norman Abbott produced and directed this episode.

Jerry, I am loving these reviews. Everytime I read one I can't wait for the next one. Keep up the good work.

Title: The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons; Second Edition
Author: Jeff Lenberg
Year of Release: 1999; 576 pages

This book, the second edition of it's kind, is a must-have for cartoon lovers. Yes, cartoons are NOT just for kids. Yes, SOME cartoons are made especially for children but for the most part, everything prior to the 1970s, was designed with adults in mind.

This book by Jeff Lenberg studies and examines all kinds of cartoons from nearly every studio...the three major studio's are covered: Warner Brothers; Hanna-Barbera; and Disney. There's break-down in character history. Theatrical cartoons are impressive in this book and they're chronologically presented. Ever wanted to know when Bugs Bunny debuted in cartoons? It's in here...that's not all! There are also short "biographies" of a ton of cartoon characters, giving synopsis and background information.

One of the things that i appreciate is the credit given to the over-looked voice actors. Each cartoon series contains the voice cast {if available}. Plus, this book discusses the insane reasons why several made-for-TV episodes of "Popeye" had Bluto re-named Brutus.

At the start of the book we get a detailed history on the invention of the animated cartoon. All the cartoon series and the theatrical shorts are in alphabetical order. There is even a section that discusses cartoon movies like the many from the Disney studio over the years plus the ones from Warner Brothers and Hanna-Barbera.

I love the book's cover. I didn't post the picture here but down in the lower right we see some of my favorite characters: Blabber Mouse; Baba Louie; Quick-Draw McGraw; Doggie Daddy and Augie Doggie; and Super Snooper. With the exception of Doggie Daddy, all of the characters i mentioned were voiced by Daws Butler {i just HAD to sneek his name in here somewhere!!}

A cartoon lover will love this book!! Being a fan of a few voice actors plus my love of classic cartoons, i found the book informative and i am always reading it's many sections. It's a wonderful reference book!!

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jerrytoons/manilow_ccts_cd1.jpg)

Title: The Complete Collection and Then Some...
Performer: Barry Manilow
Year of Release: 1992
Label/Number: Arista 07822-18714-2
===========================

This 4-CD boxed set contains an amazing collection of songs from Barry Manilow. Each CD contains nearly 20 songs...the highlight of which are many of the alternate ersions of his hit songs that never made it to the final albums. "Tryin' to Get The Feeling" is included in it's full length...i didn't know there was a verse that was edited out of the version we all know...but on this box set we hear the missing verse. On CD #2 we hear Barry composing "Copacabana" for a few seconds before the actual recording starts to play. Also on CD #2 many live recordings from 1977 and 1990 as well as a 1983 live performance of "Even Now" from Japan.

The first song on CD #1 is "Sweet Life" from 1972!! Manilow ended up calling his 1987 biography "Sweet Life" as well. This recording from 1972 was taken from Bette Midler's Carnegie Hall concert. The next song is "I Am Your Child", recorded live at the Continental Baths in New York {the place where Manilow and Midler performed the most during the early '70s}.

On CD #3 we hear "Ain't It a Shame", a song he recorded in 1981 but wasn't included on his 'IF I SHOULD LOVE AGAIN' album. Also on CD #3 we hear new songs like "I Can't Teach My Heart New Tricks", and a recording live from Los Angeles called "Just Remember".

Manilow's "Let Freedom Ring" is also on here...it was recorded in 1991 for his 'SHOWSTOPPERS' CD but it didn't make the final cut. Currently, Manilow performs this song in concert as a patriotic ode to the military. He sung it on his appearance on "American Idol" last season. That song is on CD #4...also we hear his duet with Melissa Manchester called "My Girl" which blends into another song called "No One in This World". That recording is from 1976. RCA, the label he recorded for in 1985, released a French-version of 'MANILOW' and a duet from that album, "Don't Talk to Me of Love", with Mirielle Mattieu, is contained on CD #4 too.

This is the Ultimate Barry Manilow Collection up to 1992!! The video that comes with this box set is wonderful...it highlights Barry at various stages of his career and we see him mature and grow into the performer he became...the last performance on the video, "Keep Each Other Warm" from 1989, is my favorite of the video...and the booklet...well...what can i say about that booklet??? It contains pictures and TONS of talk about the many songs contained on the box set. Manilow himself talks of his inner battles with fame and celebrity and most of his songwriter's are also on hand with personal quotes and reflections.

THIS IS A WONDERFUL BOX SET!!!

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Title: Boogity-Boogity
Performer: Ray Stevens
Year of Release: 1974
Label/Catalog Number: Barnaby 6003
======================

1974 was the year for the streaking fad. This college-driven fad was soon adopted by the mainstream and before long streakers were heard about on the local and national news on a routine basis.

As Ray has told the story many times, he was on an airplane and while bored he picked up a magazine and read about a college student who took off all his clothes and the reporter called it "streaking". Ray wrote the song in half an hour but didn't think nothing of it UNTIL he got home and watched the news and sure enough, streakers were "everywhere". As Ray said: "i ran into my studio, got some musicians real quick and cut the song and rushed it out that day!".

The song, "The StreaK", became the biggest selling single of Ray's career. The single sold nearly 5,000,000 copies, according to reports from record stores {this was BEFORE the invention of SoundScan}.

The single flew up to #1 pop and #3 country. In fact, it flew up the Hot 100 in no time at all...it hit the Top-40 portion of the Hot 100 on April 27th 1974 and it was sitting at #1 on May 18th 1974...that means it was on the Top-40 just 3 weeks and in it's 4th week, it was #1...it stayed #1 for 3 weeks.

It knocked Grand Funk's "Loco-Motion" out of #1 on May 18th...3 weeks later, "The Streak" was knocked out of #1 on June 8th by Paul McCartney and Wings and their song "Band on the Run".

"The Streak" would go on and sell into the late '70s. In England it hit #1 and became the UK's #1 Novelty Single of the Decade. It made the line "Don't look, Ethel" a catch-phrase. The single also did well on the country chart, hitting #3, as earlier mentioned.

The 'BOOGITY-BOOGITY' phrase is from "The Streak".

:music "Here he comes...boogity-boogity...there he goes...boogity-boogity...and he ain't wearin' no clothes...oh yes they call him The Streak..." :music

Ironically, the album was a bigger hit on the Country chart than the Billboard Top-200 Pop chart. In Pop, the album peaked at #159 out of 200. While in Country, the album hit #10.

The album contained just nine songs. Three of them were previously recorded. So, as you can tell, this album was a "rush-release" to support "The Streak" single. The three previously recorded songs are: 1966's "Bagpipes-That's My Bag"; 1966's "Freddie Feelgood" with the laugh track edited into the song because it was later put on the 1969 'GITARZAN' album; the third previously released song is 1970's "Bridget the Midget". This album marked the debut of that song on an LP. Prior to this, it had only been available on a 45 RPM single. "Bridget..." hit #50 pop and #2 in England back in 1970. The song is about a midget go-go dancer.

The only other song to be released as a single from 'BOOGITY-BOOGITY', "The Moonlight Special", i have already discussed a few reviews ago...check that review to see my thoughts. A song on here in which i feel would've been a good follow-up to "The Streak" is "Smith and Jones", a hilarious ballad about two men...one from the FBI and the other from the CIA who are on the trail of a streaker and mayhem ensues soon afterward :lol :lol But Barnaby and Ray decided to go with the Midnight Special spoof instead of milking the streaking craze for all it's worth :lol

Aside from all of those songs, i also love "Heart Transplant". it's just a silly song that has no meaning other than to satirize an elderly man who gets a heart transplant at age 82 but it makes him feel like he's in his 20's.

'BOOGITY-BOOGITY' has since been released on CD...it's paired with Ray's 1973 Barnaby album entitled 'NASHVILLE' on the Collectable's label.

AC,
Congratulations on a great thread.  I have skimmed some of the reviews, but will go back later and read more in depth.

The worst CD I have ever had was an inexpensive  Christmas album that came out by NBC and available only at Target.  Clay's "Mary Did You Know" was the only decent thing on it,  and Kelly did have a rather nice song, but the rest of it was awful.  I had bought several for gifts and returned them to Target except for the one I had opened and listened to!  

When I have a chance, I will see if I can find the album cover and list who the other "singers"   were!

Prissy[/size]

Prissy, I heard several other people make that same comment about that CD, so I am glad I didn't buy it.

:wave Hello Prissy! I told Janet that i'd start this thread and even if it didn't get much posts, i'd still keep it going. I do notice that the number keeps rising so at least people are reading the thread even if they don't post...i didn't even bother buying that Christmas CD you were talking about because i knew i wouldn't like it.

Now to my latest review...later i'll be posting some reviews of some books i've read that i have enjoyed.

Title: Everything Is Beautiful
Artist: Ray Stevens
Year of Release: 1970
Label/Number: Barnaby 35005

This is the album as i was mentioning in my 'UNREAL' review that was released to the public as a result of the immediate success of the single, "Everything is Beautiful", and pushed back the release of 'UNREAL'.

During 1969-1971 Ray Stevens was a regular on the TV series "The Andy Williams Show". Andy's brother, Don, was Ray's manager. This isn't the country singer Don Williams for those who may know who he is. This is a different Don Williams.

Anyway, Ray was picked to host the summer replacement show for Andy Williams in 1970. At the time, variety shows didn't rerun...so they picked a different host while the headlining star took the summer months off. Ray, as legend has it, spent three days in his basement until he emerged with the song "Everything is Beautiful".

He felt the song needed something extra and so he gathered up his two daughters and put a tape recorder inside the school house choir room and asked the teacher if the choir would sing the opening paragraph: "Jesus loves the little children; all the little children of the world; red and yellow, black and white; they are precious in his sight; Jesus loves the little children of the world..." and then Ray launches into the song...throughout the song, the B.C. and M. Choir of Nashville can be heard singing in the back-ground.

The chorus of the song plus the melody was used all summer long on Ray's TV show...great exposure at a time when people actually watched TV shows in the double-digit millions. It was no doubt the TV show helped Ray's single shoot up to #1 in both the Pop and AC formats...PLUS, it crossed over to the Country Top-40, making this Ray's first "Top-40" country hit, peaking at #39.

The single was #1 pop 2 weeks; #1-AC 3 weeks; and was charted country for 6 weeks...it was also a hit in England and it sold 3,000,000 copies and it won a Grammy Award for Ray: Best Pop Male Vocal Performance. The Guess Who's "American Woman" was in it's third week at #1 when Ray took over on May 30th 1970 for 2 weeks...the Beatles "Long and Winding Road" then took over #1 afterward.

The flip-side of the single was this album's second track, "A Brighter Day", a gospel-flavored ballad. The rest of the album, because it was a rush-release to promote "Everything is Beautiful" on the radio, were all covers of previous pop hits and therefore only the title track and the flip-side were written by Ray.

"Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" is contained on here...it was pitched to Ray in 1969 but he turned it down at the time...only to sit back and watch B.J. Thomas have a huge hit with it.

The Youngblood's "Get Together" is given the Stevens treatment...i can even picture how Ray would have performed this song on his TV show. He even records two Beatles-related songs for this album: George Harrison's "Something"; and the Lennon-McCartney song "She Came In Through the Bathroom Window".

I have never understood that song. I've listened to it many times and i've never understood what the song it trying to say. Perhaps it was a novelty song in the minds of the Beatles with such lyrics as: "She Came In Through the Bathroom Window...protected by a silver spoon...now she sucks her thumb and wanders by the banks of her own lagoon...". The song DOES have a plot...it's about a female dancer who works all day in clubs and in the song, Ray plays the part of a man she knows who once worked for the police...but it's a quirky song....the title alone tells you that.

Aside from that song, this is 1970's love and peace music and many pop fans who were opposed to this kind of music pretty much still look down on it 35 years later. I however love the album and i love how Ray interprets this material...his shouting delivery of Joe South's "Walk a Mile in My Shoes" carries conviction...but we also hear the tender side of his voice on John Denver's "Leaving on a Jet Plane"....AND Ray even tackles the love theme from Romeo and Juliet on this album, entitled "A Time for Us".

This album has been re-issued on CD as i mentioned in another review. It's paired with his other 1970 album, 'UNREAL'.

Album Title[/u]: FALLIN' FOR YOU FOR YEARS
Performer[/u]: Conway Twitty
Year of Release[/u]: 1986
Label/Number[/u]: Warner Brothers 4-25408

Conway Twitty was a huge country star and a legend in his own time. By the time this album was released in 1986, Conway had been in the business over 30 years thanks to a decade in rock/pop music in the '50s. In 1985 Conway achieved something no other artist in any format had ever done...he notched his 50th #1 single. This album was released at a time in country music when the sound was changing and the image was being marketed and re-tooled to fit people under 45.

Conway's previous album, 'CHASIN RAINBOWS', was not that big of a hit with country radio OR the country audience in general because both singles from that album peaked outside the Country Top-10...good songs but weren't 'commercial' apparently.

FALLIN' FOR YOU FOR YEARS was arranged in the 'new country' style and the songs were so energetic and "fresh sounding" that you couldn't tell a then-52 year old man was singing this stuff! The title track alone is breath-taking in it's vocal power...

The first single from this album was the bouncy radio-friendly sing-a-long "Desperado Love". I love this song's lyrics and how it uses the desperado image, always looked upon as rebellious and of the criminal element, and paints it in a love-song setting. Right from the opening lines: "Should i just ride in and steal you away? Don't know what else to do...I've got a Desperado Love for you..." to the catchy hook-line "So hold on i'm gonna shoot for the heart like desperado's do...i've got a Desperado Love for you...".

"Desperado Love" hit #1 in the fall of 1986, September 6th to be exact, and it was his fifty-first #1 hit and it arrived 5 days AFTER Conway had turned 53 on September 1st.

In late 1986 Warner Brothers released the title track, "Fallin' For You For Years", as a single. This song is TOP NOTCH...it's also a vocal shouter with an amazing vocal performance, of course!! The piano is main instrument on this song...it's up-tempo and fiery. I WISH i would've seen him sing this on TV and watch how he'd physically perform the song!! Seeing him sing songs like this was just as compelling as the songs themselves. The song hit #1 in early 1987, his fifty-second #1 hit single. It was also his last hit single for Warner Brothers {he had been with them since 1982}.

The rest of the album contains wonderful Conway Twitty songs that deal with all kinds of love: sad love; happy love; young love...even love from days gone by...

Aside from the two hits, my other favorite songs from this 1986 album are "A Thing of the Past" which tells of a man who lost a lover. It's nostalgic, too...i love the line "We're just like I Love Lucy; drive-in movies; cars that run on regular gas...; it's sad to find you and i are nothing but A Thing of the Past"; also, "Jennifer Johnson and Me" is a bouncy song about teenage love. The man in the song discovers an old picture of a girlfriend in his sportscoat pocket.

"Riverboat Gamblers" is an amazing song that uses clever card terminology in the lyrics. "...But when love's been dealing off the bottom you always want to cut the cards again..." and "Once you've lost your heart to cheaters your dreams of winning love begin to die; When you wake up with a stranger you know there's no diamonds in the sky...".

Oh, and a real beauty of a song is "Steady As She Goes". This song tells about a lost love and he reminds his heart to remain steady as the woman goes out of his life. The album closer, "Only the Shadows Know", has a title based upon the radio drama THE SHADOW {remember the line "Who knows what evil lurks in heart of men? The Shadow knows!! Heh heh heh"}.

Anyway, "Only the Shadows Know" is a song about two cheating lovers and only the shadow's know about it. "Then as the morning unfolds...two mystery lovers touch and go; knowing full well their secret goes un-told; Only The Shadow's Know..."  

This album can be bought on-line in most on-line flea markets. I have the cassette version. It's a wonderful album by The Best Friend a Song Ever Had.

Title: Daws Butler: Character's Actor
Author: Ben Ohmart and Joe Bevilacqua
Pages: 289
Publisher: Bear Manor Media

This brand spankin' new book...well, new THIS year...is all about the life and career of voice actor Charles Dawson "Daws" Butler. It was written by Ben Ohmart, who runs a web-page about his profession: OHMART (http://www.bearmanormedia.com)

Joe Bevilacqua, a student of Butler's, ALSO runs a web-page. His is considered the greatest on Daws Butler in the cyber-world.

I found this book very entertaining and well-written. Joe, being a student of Butler's, we get to see some of the personal letters Daws wrote to Joe throughout the years. We also see some pics of Daws at various stages in life.  

Chapter 5 is where the book starts to dig deep into Butler's long association with Hanna-Barbera. It begins on page 97. Since this the era in Butler's career that has become his lasting legacy, this chapter contains MORE in-depth discussion.

Butler became the voice of nearly every cartoon character cranked out by Hanna-Barbera during the years 1957-1965. He was usually co-starring on these cartoons with another talented voice actor named Don Messick...and at times Doug Young. At Hanna-Barbera, from 1957-1967, Butler gave voice to these characters. This is just a list of MAJOR characters...not walk-on, minor roles:

1. Reddy {half of the "Ruff and Reddy" cartoon series}
2. Huckleberry Hound
3. Yogi Bear
4. Snagglepuss
5. Quickdraw McGraw
6. Baba Louie
7. Super Snooper
8. Blabber Mouse
9. Dixie Mouse
10. Mr. Jinx
11. Fibber Fox
12. Augie Doggie
13. Hokey Wolf
14. Lippy the Lion
15. Wally Gator
16. Elroy Jetson {from THE JETSONS}
17. Cogswell Cog {from THE JETSONS}
18. Henry Orbit {from THE JETSONS}
19. Loopy DeLoop
20. Peter Potamus
21. Captain Skyhook {from SPACE KIDDETS}

Let's back up a few years. Butler's big splash in the children's programming genre came in the mid '40s with MGM, narrating and doing nameless characters on Tex Avery cartoons. In 1949 he and and a Warner Brothers voice actor, Stan Freberg, teamed up to co-create a TV series called 'TIME FOR BEANY'. It was a puppet show about a kid named Beany and his friend, Cecil, a sea-sick sea serpent.

Every aspect of Butler's career is touched upon in this book. The 'TIME FOR BEANY' years; the comedy album years with Stan Freberg; the Hanna-Barbera cartoon years; the Jay Ward affiliation...everything is covered in this book. I love the way the book is presented. It's presented in a way that allows the reader to experience every detail of Butler's life. You can read the sadness in Butler's own words in his letters to Joe about how much the industry had changed [cartoon industry] and how upset he was that Hanna-Barbera wasn't letting him try out for new characters...they kept asking him to reprise his older characters again and again.

Butler and Freberg's relationship ended in the early '60s. Freberg had by that time become a million selling satirist with a string of hit comedy songs and albums while at the same time balancing voice over work AND writing/producing comedy commercials for radio and TV. Butler, on the other hand, was STILL busy at Hanna-Barbera; Walter Lantz; and Jay Ward's company...and their distance and separation caused a rift between the two.

Daws Butler remained a busy voice-actor throughout the '60s, '70s, and '80s but his BIGGEST years were 1957-1967 for Hanna-Barbera.

This book also discusses Butler's UPA work...he did the voice of "Waldo" in many of the Mister Magoo cartoons...and for Jay Ward he did many voices on a segment of 'ROCKY AND BULLWINKLE' called "Fractured Fairy Tales".

You'll also learn in this book that Butler also gave voice to the Walter Lantz character, "Chilly Willy", a penguin which originally ran in theatres but was later broadcast to a whole new audience on TV in the '70s...

Ben Ohmart and Joe Bevilacqua really out-do themselves during the last pages of this book...a detailed listing of just about everything Daws Butler did in his 40 year career from radio to theatrical cartoons to children's albums to made-for-TV cartoons to commercials and awards, etc. This is a truly great book about Daws Butler. This book and the ultra-rare video, 'DAWS BUTLER: VOICE MAGICIAN', are just two things any fan of Butler's should NOT be without!!

Charles Dawson "Daws" Butler was born on November 16, 1916. He passed away on May 18, 1988 at the age of 71. 'DAWS BUTLER: VOICE MAGICIAN' was nominated for an Emmy Award.

It was produced and broadcast on public TV in 1987 for the first time and it re-ran for the next several years on public TV. William Conrad narrated the documentary. Aside from Daws, the people who also appeared in the special was: Myrtis Butler {his wife}; Bill Hanna; Joe Barbera; Don Messick; Stan Freberg; June Foray; Walter Lantz; the widow of Bob Clampett {i forget her name}; and Butler's agent. Daws talks about Paul Frees and Bill Scott in this video, who both passed away in 1986.

Title: Welcome Foolish Mortals- The Life and Voices of Paul Frees
Author: Ben Ohmart
Pages: 284
Publisher: Bear Manor Media

This book, which was released in 2004, tells the story of Paul Frees. A voice actor AND a face actor {that's business jargon for an actor who appears on camera}, Frees is perhaps the most versatile voice actors that cartoons, movies, and radio has known. His acting credits, which are detailed by the author in the back of the book {same set up as the Daws Butler book from this year} is amazing to analyze and look at.  

However, the behind the scenes Paul Frees was hardly ever seen. He was eccentric, based on some of the stories in this book...some use the term "recluse". He prefered to stay at home and watch TV...in his pajama's. He didn't beg for work or anything...ironically, the work came to HIM. He started his career on radio in the mid '40s. This book pinpoints 1945 as Paul's first radio job. Frees appeared in many radio programs...hundreds and hundreds of radio programs. The programs that he gave voice to the most were crime drama's and horror-suspense based shows such as "Escape!"; "Suspense!"; "Box 13"; "The Whistler"; and "The Player". He also did several "Sherlock Holmes" episodes.

Paul's face acting was typically for low-budget movies, coming from RKO. However, he appeared in many films and TV shows through the years playing nameless bad-guys and the like...but it was his VOICE that most people wanted.

His voice appeared on a classic Spike Jones single called "My Old Flame" in which Frees does Peter Lorre's voice reciting the demented poem. He'd later do that voice again many years later on a cartoon for Hanna-Barbera called 'SECRET SQUIRREL' in which Frees voiced "Morocco Mole" in that Lorre delivery.

However, his first role in a cartoon according to this book arrived in 1950, a Disney theatrical starring Pluto. He remained a fixture at ALL the cartoon companies through the years {except Warner Brothers}. Frees' voice work for Disney included several minor characters and walk-ons but it was "Ludwig Von Drake" that became his major role for Disney.

When Disneyland and other Disney theme parks started opening up, Paul's voice was heard in several of the attractions...specifically as the "Ghost Host" of the HAUNTED MANSION exhibit in which Frees uttered the name of this book... "Welcome foolish mortals..." as the people entered the mansion. HIs voice was also heard on the attraction "Pirates of the Carribean".

For MGM his biggest role was "Barney Bear" but he was often heard on many other MGM cartoons as a narrator or walk-on...in many of the MGM TOM AND JERRY cartoons, Paul was often heard as the "radio announcer" everytime Tom flipped on the radio and there was typically 'breaking news' about something. Around the same time he started voicing cartoons at UPA under the 'HAM AND HATTIE' series.

The book gives the reader a glimpse into Paul's professional and personal lives. There's plenty of pictures...in one section of the book, Paul is quoted with his thoughts on voice actor, Mel Blanc...surprisingly, Paul thought very highly of Mel calling him "the Dean of character voices" on page 131.

He hooked up with Walter Lantz at Universal in 1959...the same year he joined the voice cast of 'ROCKY AND BULLWINKLE', a cartoon series from Jay Ward. For Lantz, Paul was "Wally Walrus" and "Charlie Beary" {the latter was the focal point in a long-running series entitled 'THE BEARY FAMILY'}. On Bullwinkle, Paul was heard as "Boris Badenov"; "Captain Peachfuzz"; and "Inspector Fenwick" among other characters...Paul had next landed roles on the cartoons by Famous Studio's who had released a cartoon version of 'SNUFFY SMITH'. Paul was Barney Google and Snuffy Smith.

Just when you thought Paul couldn't get any MORE busy, he lands a role as "The Commissioner" on the 'INSPECTOR' cartoon series from David DePatie-Friz Freleng a spin-off of their animated 'PINK PANTHER' series.  

I love the way the author chronicles his information about Paul's career. This book is a must-have, much like the other books on voice-actors from Ben Ohmart.

What many people will learn about Paul is that for DECADES he worked for the Federal government...in other words, he was a government secret agent. As i stated earlier, Frees preferred to stay at home watching TV or doing things with his family instead of attending Hollywood or New York parties. Ohmart incorporates several quotes from Paul's children into this book...along with previous interviews of Paul from various magazine and radio shows to give the book an intimate feel.

Paul's work in commercials is also discussed. Paul was heard in many of the Jay Ward CAP'n CRUNCH commercials, playing the villain. Daws Butler was CAP'n {mistakenly called "Captain Crunch" by everyone}. However, two characters stand-out when it comes to Paul's commercial voice work. TUCAN SAM from the Fruit Loops commercials and THE DOUGHBOY from the Pillsbury commercials. TUCAN was based loosely on Ronald Colman while DOUGHBOY was based on whatever was on Paul's mind at the time. He voiced these characters for years.

On TV Paul's voice was heard on the weekly TV series "The Millionaire" from 1955-1960 and was the narrator of the 1958-1963 series "Naked City". From 1961-1969 his voice appeared on "Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color" giving voice to "Ludwig von Drake" in a series of cartoons.

Paul Frees was born on June 22, 1920. His birth name according to this book was Soloman Hersh Frees.

Throughout all of his success in radio; movies; TV; and cartoons he tried balancing a personal life. As is the case, it's not easy if your job demands are too high and he had a few marriages that didn't last.  

In addition to all of the things i've posted here about Paul, i still hadn't mentioned that he was also a painter...some of the portraits are shown throughout the book.

Paul's private life was simply that: private. He had very few close friends outside of family. In his later years he slown down, which is natural, but nobody in the animation world was prepared for the news on November 2, 1986 that Paul had died. According to reports he had a heart attack...later studies indicated that Paul took an over-dose of pain pills at the age of 66. It's been speculated that the over-dose was intentional. If so, Paul's death was as a result of suicide because of the lonely, confused life he lived at the time of his death.  

Boris Badenov will forever be Paul's biggest character because it had the biggest impact on pop-culture, but so didn't Tucan Sam and the Pillsbury Doughboy.

Paul Frees: 1920-1986

Title: The Jetsons meet The Flintstones
Format: Animated movie
Running time: 90 minutes
Voices Main-Cast: George O'Hanlon as George Jetson; Penny Singleton as Jane Jetson; Daws Butler as Elroy Jetson, Cogswell Cog, and Henry Orbit; Janet Waldo as Judy Jetson; Don Messick as Astro, RUDI, and Mac; Henry Corden as Fred Flintstone; Jean VanderPyl as Wilma Flinstone and Rosie; Mel Blanc as Barney Rubble, Dino, and Mr. Spacely; Julie Dees as Betty Rubble; and John Stephenson as Mr. Slate.
Year of Release: 1987

This historic animated movie combined the stone-age Flintstones with the space-age Jetsons via a time-machine that Elroy Jetson invented.

The movie, in my opinion, was a result of shrewd marketing and capitalizing on the revival of "The Jetsons" {new episodes had started airing in syndication in 1984 and 1985 and were mixed in with the classic episodes from the early '60s}.

Both sets of families were shown dealing with everyday problems and they wished they could escape reality for a few days. Elroy invents a time machine...the Jetsons ponder what it would be like to go back the past...later, the family is sent back to the past by mistake.

Exploring Bedrock, George and the family crash in a forrest where Fred and Barney are treating Wilma and Betty to a cheap vacation {earlier, Mr. Slate had fired Fred for the millionth time and therefore had no money to pay for a real vacation}.

Astro and Dino meet face to face as they peak over a line of bushes. Next, Fred and George meet face to face...each person is scared of the other. Jane and Wilma unknowingly talk their respective husbands into talking...Fred says "Yabba-Dabba friend" and George says "Ooba-Dooba Friend". With that the two hidden families emerge from the bushes and start getting to know each other.

All throughout the movie, Elroy is always attempting to fix the time machine...later, in a crazy mix-up, once the time machine is fixed, the wrong family is sent to the future. The Flintstones find themselves in outer space and Mr. Spacely decides to cash-in on The Flintstones prehistoric car.

Back in Bedrock, George's space-age gadgets make him a fortune at Slate's gravel company. However, they long for their former life as do the Flintstones. As a sub-plot, Mr. Spacely is trying to figure out who the leak is that's telling his rival, Cogswell, all of Spacely's latest business schemes. It turns out to be RUDI, the quivering computer in George's office {RUDI is a large computer screen with a face drawn on it} ...Cogswell had tapped into Spacely's computer system and had his own computer girl flirt with RUDI and "talk" him into giving her information that she'd pass on to Cogswell.

Along the way, Fred and Barney's friendship is torn apart when Barney accepts a job with Cogswell, Spacely's rival. The two compete against each other. Judy, back in Bedrock, falls in love with a rock singer named Iggy. Mr Slate's rival throughout the movie is Turk Tarpit.

Soon afterward, Rosie the Robot finds herself in Bedrock looking for the Jetsons...earlier she had went back to England and was running from a knight! :lol

The Jetsons make it back home after the Rosie tracks them down. The stone-age life isn't what it's cracked up to be...and then the Flintstones take a trip back in time to Bedrock after the Jetsons arrive home.

The movie ends with The Jetsons and Mr. Spacely waving goodbye and the last thing you hear is Fred shouting "Yabba-Dabba Doo!!!" as they're zapped back in time. The credits are then next and that's the end of the movie.

"THE JETSONS MEET THE FLINTSTONES" was the last joint-effort by all of those voice legends: Daws Butler passed away in 1988; Mel Blanc passed away in 1989; Don Messick lived longer than those two, passing away in 1997...but that movie marked the last time all three of them worked on the same project. Henry Corden recently passed away.

I have this movie on video. This is a great family movie but if you love to just LISTEN to cartoons, too, like i do, then this is a perfect way to hear those particular voice legends in the same project.

Theme Songs from the two shows:

:music Meet George Jetson...
His boy Elroy...
Daughter Judy...
Jane, his wife :music
=================

:music Flintstones! Meet the Flintstones!
They're the modern stone age family
From the town of Bedrock
They're a page right out of history
Let's ride with the family down the street
Through the courtesy of Fred's two feet
When you're with the Flintstones
You'll have a yabba-dabba doo time
Just for you time
You'll have a gay old time :music
=================

'THE JETSONS' movie was released in 1990 and grossed $20,000,000 average. Mel Blanc had passed away in 1989...but his dialogue was recorded prior to his death...THAT'S how long the movie had been in the works.

The Flintstones, on the other hand, continue to get exposure because their series is STILL being ran somewhere all over the world. The Fruity and Coca Pebbles cereal for the most part keep those characters on the public psyche long after the TV shows have ended. But, the Flintstones have had live-action movies based on them...awfully tough to have a live-action movie based on the Jetsons...well, in today's computer-graphic era perhaps not...time will tell!

'THE JETSONS MEET THE FLINTSTONES' was a made-for-TV cartoon. It aired as part of Hanna-Barbera's 'SuperStars Ten' series in 1987.

Jerry, I am enjoying these reviews so much. You are a fantastic writer. I sure would love to see you do it professionally but I know how you feel just wanting to do it for your own enjoyment.

Title: The Pit and the Pendulum
Principal Performer: Vincent Price
Year of Release: 1961
Company/Distribution: AIP
Running time: 80 minutes
Director: Roger Corman

This horror movie was the second in a series directed by Roger Corman that were based on or inspired by Edgar Allan Poe.

Vincent Price starred in this film as the son of Spain's most brutal torturer during the Inquisition era. John Kerr, Barbara Steele, Luana Anders, and Anthony Carbone co-star.

The film is basically about Price's character haunted by the memories of his evil father and that swinging pendulum down in the basement. The atmosphere of the house and memories of his father slowly turn him insane and by movie's end he has become his father...and plans on torturing the people in his life.

A brilliant performance from Price. One of the catch-phrases that was on the movie trailer in theatre's was the line from Price: "I'm gonna torture you Isabella!" as he's forcing a kiss on her.

The pendulum scene at the end, plus Price's insane character, is the highlight of the film! One actually feels sorry for the son, who slips into this madness as the film progresses. The compelling scene as the the pendulum continues to drop down inch by inch as it's swinging and the sweat on the victim's face is a wonderful camera shot. The "swooshing" sound effects and the floor shot of the pendulum is eerie!!

This is the second in a series of horror films based on Poe and directed by Roger Corman. The first was "House of Usher" in 1960. The Corman-directed Poe films to follow this one were: "Tales of Terror"; "The Raven"; "Masque of the Red Death"; and "Tomb of Ligeia".

The pendulum story had been inserted in a previous film starring Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff. Lugosi played a lover of Poe stories. The movie was entitled "The Raven"...which as you saw in the previous paragraph, Price starred in a different movie of the same name.

'PIT AND THE PENDULUM' was remade in 1991, filmed in Spain.

The 1961 movie has since been released on DVD. I have it on video.
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Hello Janet! :wave Thanks for stopping by! I know you lurk here all the time! Yeah, you know me by now! I write as a hobby.

Jerry - You have some wonderful reviews here! I love the ones on Ray Stevens. I first saw him in Branson with my parents and sister in the late 80's. I got an autograph and met him. He's really a great and hilarious guy. Jim Stafford is very funny too. Great to see live as well in Branson.

Ditto!  You're talented, Jerry.

I'm curious.  Have you ever seen the movie made in the 80's, a little spoof of Pirates of Penzance, called The Pirate Movie?  It's an absolutely ridiculous, totally pointless, wonderfully enjoyable movie.  I'd love to hear your thoughts if you've seen it.

:wave Hello Meesa and LadyC.


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Sorry, but i hadn't seen the movie. But i looked it up in my movie book and it was made in Australia in 1982. The critic isn't too kind with the movie :lol but based on the critical pan, it's probably one of my kind of movies anyway since my taste in movies is NOT of the mainstream for the most part. The only person in the cast-list who i recognize is Kristy McNichol who played on "Empty Nest" for awhile and played on Aaron Spelling's TV show, "Family", in the late '70s.

However, speaking of Pirates of Penzance from Gilbert and Sullivan, i'm gonna review a comedy song below this paragraph that spoofs that project.

Title: The Pirate Song
Artist: Ray Stevens
Songwriters: C.W. Kalb, Jr. and Carlene Kalb
Year Recorded: 1985

This song was never released as a single by Ray Stevens but down through the years it has become a fan favorite and after listening to it, one can tell why it's a fan favorite.

A lot of Ray's album songs that were never officially singles have since become as popular as the hit songs because they're so funny. In this case we're talking about "The Pirate Song" from 1985. It is from the 1985 album 'I HAVE RETURNED' in which we see Ray on the cover dressed as General MacArthur. That album has since gone GOLD.

From the intro of the song, we hear a group of "pirates" which of course is Ray over-dubbing his own voice several times in his multi-track studio to create a "group" effect. They open the spoof with the line:

"16 men on a dead man's chest! Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum"

After that, Ray's gruff-voiced impersonation of a pirate fills the air: "yer sailin' with Long John Blackbeard Peg-leg Patch-eye Hook...the blood thirstiest pirate cap'n ever to sail the seven seas..." :lol

After Ray goes on and on in his pirate talk telling his crew what all they're gonna be doing to other ships they come in contact with {most of it jibberish that isn't supposed to be understood} we then hear another pirate come into the equation. Voiced by Ray, as well, this pirate is a little on the feminine side.

He interrupts the macho pirate cap'n by saying: "I don't like it! I don't like it and i don't wanna do it! It's tacky! Tacky, tacky, tacky. And don't look at me that way!" Gruff pirate screams: "You don't like it??? Well, what do you want??" to which feminine pirate sings: "I Want to Sing and Dance! I Want to Sing and Dance! I want to be a pirate in the Pirates of Penzance. With me silver buckle slippers and me tight, shiny pants...I Want to Sing and Dance..." :lol :lol You HAVE to hear this voice Ray is using when he's singing in the feminine pirate's voice if you hadn't heard it already. :lol :lol

As the second half of the song progresses, gruff pirate is getting annoyed by the minute because a member of his crew will have nothing to do with behaving like a real pirate. Feminine pirate says that he's an artist. Gruff shrugs off the assertion by saying: "Well, Mister Artist...what do you want?" to which feminine pirate sings his stanza again :lol

Gruff screams: "NOW LISTEN HERE!!! THIS AIN'T NO FLOATIN' GILBERT AND SULLIVAN SHOW FOR SOME LITTLE TINKERBELL...THIS HERE'S A PIRATE SHIP..."

The last half finds Gruff changing his attitude because the music has worn on him and he ALSO wants to sing and dance "okay, we'll ALL sing and dance" Gruff shouts...the crew groans and Gruff says they'll walk the plank if they don't sing and dance :lol

All of Ray's voices are played at the same time for the grand finale of everyone singing "I Want to Sing and Dance...." etc. :lol Later, the two pirates bicker about food as the song fades. Feminine wants fancy food and gourmet cuisine while Gruff is happy eating what they can find :lol

The song was re-recorded by Ray in 1991 and in 2000 it was at long last made into a music video. The video can be found on the DVD's "Funniest Video Characters" or "Complete Comedy Video Collection". I won't say Ray's attire in the music video as the feminine pirate. You'll have to see it for yourself. :lol
=======================


========================

Meesa: I'm jealous of you! :lol :yes Ray's currently back in Branson at his former theatre for a select number of shows. He recorded a wonderful serious album called "Thank You" in 2004 on his own label, CLYDE RECORDS, that the public at large is unaware of. He made a music video of "Thank You" as well. It's on my DVD as a bonus addition. Another song, "Hello Mama", a follow-up to "Osama Yo' Mama", is ALSO on that DVD "Complete Comedy Video Collection" as a bonus addition.

Don't get me started on Ray Stevens...i can go on and on and on and on... :yes

I saw he was back in Branson last year. That's great! I'd love to go see him again or see Yakoff Smirnoff. I've never seen him.

==========================
In the early '90s Smirnoff played Ray's theatre many times. I believe Ray produced a comedy CD of Smirnoff called "What a Country" or it may have been called something else...

I would like to have been in the audience when Ray sang "I Saw Elvis in a UFO" and that space ship lands and the pink aliens run all around the audience and the stage.

Album Title: This is Ray Stevens
Performer: Ray Stevens
Year of Release: 1967
Label/Number: Mercury 60828

Mercury Records had been releasing singles on Ray Stevens since 1961's #35-pop hit "Jeremiah Peabody's Polyunsaturated Quick Dissolving Fast Acting Pleasant Tasting Green and Purple Pills", since shortened to simply "Jeremiah Peabody" by his fans :lol Mercury released a long-playing album {LP for short} in 1962. However, they never released another LP until 'THIS IS RAY STEVENS' in 1967...AFTER he had left them for the Monument label. Actually, Ray left Mercury in 1963 but they continued to release singles on Ray until 1965.

The bulk of those early '60s singles plus some other recordings that weren't put on 45 RPM singles made up the 'THIS IS RAY STEVENS' album.

There are 12 songs on this album. I have this vinyl album plus i have the CD re-release from last year which combined it with his first album in 1962 '1837 SECONDS OF HUMOR'.

There are novelty and love ballads on this album. Since all of the songs are from the early '60s, his voice had not yet deepened to that Joe South meets Clyde McPhatter with a dash of the Coasters thrown into the mix that became a trademark in the late '60s and early '70s. These recordings give focus to the motor-mouth, fast-paced vocal delivery that was more in common with Brother Dave Gardner and Andy Griffith than an actual crooner...but on several songs we get to hear Ray's serious voice, which amazingly, sounds like any number of pop crooners at the time.

Let's talk about the serious songs first. "Just One of Life's Little Tragedies" tells the story of a romance that's falling apart and the title is the advice Ray gives himself.

"Loved and Lost" is a bouncy song but it's still a love song and it's super short as well...barely over a minute long. It's arranged in a classic R&B arrangement. R&B was Ray's favorite choice of music along with country...this is why on a LOT of recordings, Ray actually sounds like any number of R&B singers of that era.

"Little Stone Statue" is a ballad about how Ray can't take the fact that a woman he loves doesn't feel the same way in return and he feels like a stone statue watching the woman have fun with other guy's except him...and it has a wonderful ending to the song.

The nostalgic "Teen Years" is a song about being a teenager. Ray takes each of the "teen" years and sings little bits of experiences people have had.

"It's Been So Long" is one of my all-time favorite Ray Stevens songs from this era in his nearly 50 year career. I love his vocal performance and the arrangement.

Now we come to the last serious song on the album, "Funny Man". This is a brilliant song about how a guy is known for being a clown and a comedian and he has to put up an act while in public but in private he's in misery that a woman didn't go out with him when he asked her to. "Talk loud Funny Man, draw a crowd Funny Man; You're in rare form today...but they wouldn't laugh if they only knew that i'll go home alone to cry when the party's through...". The single hit #81-pop in 1963.

As for the comedy songs...here we go...

The album contained two Top-40 singles, "Harry the Hairy Ape", being one of them and "Speed Ball" being the other. "Harry the Hairy Ape" was about an ape who scares people after jumping out from behind the bushes at a park. However, the hook of the song are the chest beats and ape hollars plus Ray's fast-paced narration. A joke about rock music is also on this single...a near-sighted DJ doesn't get scared when Harry leaps out from the bushes. Instead, the DJ thinks Harry is a rock 'n' roll singer :lol and promises to play the song! The single hit #17-pop and #14-R&B in 1963.

"Speed Ball" told the story of a guy who rides a motorcycle. It was based, in my opinion, on the Brother Dave Gardner story about a motorcycle riding show-off. Anyway, in Ray's song, the hook is the puttering of the engine and the appearance of a female voice. Ray did lots of female voices but this one appeared in all of his early songs if the story called for it. Her name was Sugar-Beet. She and Speed took a wild ride on the motocycle and smashed into a truck as he was showing off. He suffered some broken bones but she suffered the worst: it smeared her lip-stick all over the highway. The single hit #59-pop but made the R&B Top-40 reaching #29 in early 1964.

Ray satirizes country music on the hilarious song "The Weekend" which is delivered in a Buck Owens-type delivery but with a more deeper vocal register. "The Deodorant Song" is about...deodorant!! It's a song about Ray's advice to people if they feel that for some reason their friends hardly approach them anymore...one piece of advice he gives: "Do ya lose your charm...when ya raise your arm??" and "When ya exercise...do you draw flies??" :lol

"The Great Sebastian" is a song about Ray at the circus and he's watching the guy on the high-wire. Ray plays the barker, of course. There's a funny joke at the end of the song that i won't reveal.

Lastly, we hear what is perhaps the greatest song on this album in terms of vocal mimicry and satire. "Soap Opera" is a song/skit about soap opera's and the stories that come from them. In this case it's about a woman who has just so many personal problems and one crisis after the other. The two characters are Ma Lindsey and her son, Bruce. There's also a radio announcer. All voiced by Ray. The high-light of the song is the last piece where Ma goes on and on about it being cold; and they have no medicine; no money; James Lewis drove his car off a cliff; there's no food in the ice box...and there's no ice in the ice box.... :lol :lol The chorus "It was oh so sad!! It made me feel so bad! That i ran down to the store and i bought another box of soap!!"

Merv Griffin did the liner notes of this album.

'THIS IS RAY STEVENS' was released in 1967 but contained early '60s recordings and it is hilarious.

It probably was called "What a Country", because Yakov uses that line in his TV commercials to promote his theater in Branson.
Ray Stevens did do "I Saw Elvis in a UFO" when we went and saw him. He sang lots of his hits and it was well worth the money!

==========================
On the home video i'm about to review, Ray came out on stage on a motorcylcle :lol His brother, John Ragsdale, who our own JJ said she went to school with, served as the theatre's emcee. John is the bald guy who did the warm-up shows and everything with Ray's band, the French Fried Far Out Legion.

On the TNN special from 1995 called "The Life and Times of Ray Stevens" George Lindsay made the comment that at a Ray concert, the people who sit in the back of the audience are getting just as much of a show than the ones who sit up front.

Title: Ray Stevens Live!
Format: Home Video
Performer: Ray Stevens
Year of Release: 1993
Label: Clyde Records

I remember when this home video was being advertised all over TV in 1993. It was being marketed over TV and in magazine print ads much in the same way as his previous home video in 1992, 'COMEDY VIDEO CLASSICS', had been.

Ray had built a theatre in Branson, Missouri and it opened up for business in 1991. He performed there, 6 days a week, 2 shows a day and taking only the winter months off. This home video captures some of the mayhem that took place at the theatre. He is introduced by his brother, John Ragsdale...who shouts to everyone: "guys, guys, look out! Look out...here he comes...Ray Stevens....". And Ray drives out on stage on a motorcycle...launching into his 1980 hit "Shriner's Convention". He only performs two parts of the song. He deletes the middle part of the song in this performance.

The stage show is sprinkled with jokes and stories from Ray in between the songs. "Can He Love You Half as Much as I" from 1986 is up next. He launches into this song after telling of a romance that went bad one time. He exits the stage and a video screen pops down showing him as a reporter...from there we see him as a reporter out in the woods talking to another person {Ray again, in a triple-role}. This is actually the start of "I Saw Elvis in a UFO", a song form 1989 that spoofs the tabloid Elvis sighting stories.

"I Saw Elvis in a UFO" has a melody based on Bob Seeger's "Old Time Rock and Roll"...this is why Ray performs the UFO song in that throaty delivery. Ray's decked out in a white jump suit, with a space ship hovering over-head and pink aliens dancing and running around the stage and audience. Lastly, we see a puff of smoke and "Ray" being pulled up into the UFO and taken away...

John comes out wearing antena's on his head and tells us "Ray has left the building". :lol

This is the most theatrical performance from Ray on the home video.

Next, we hear the first verse of "Ahab the Arab" before Ray runs out on stage with what he calls a strap-on Camel strapped on his body from the waiste down :lol He delivers jokes with "Clyde" before he exits the stage again...we're next shown a clip of Ray in a spoof of James Bond...where he shoots and shoots and continues to shoot his target...he finally shoots the target and the blood drips down the screen {if you've seen James Bond you know how the opening scenes were like}

After the clip, we see Ray clad in a white tuxedo and he launches into "Information Man", a parody of Johnny Rivers' "Secret Agent Man". He then is interrupted by a pesky operator...Ray grabs out his gun and shoots into the phone and we hear the operator gagging :lol

Later, "Gitarzan" is performed. He has a monkey come out on stage and a big woman playing Jane. Since this is the live version of that song, he needed to have a real "Jane" since on the recording from 1969 he over-dubbed his falsetto voice into the song.

On "Sex Symbols" we see Ray singing with his dummie, Julio...Ray always pronounces the "J" in the name, prompting Julio to correct Ray: "Julio! Julio!" :lol It's of course a satire of Willie Nelson and Julio's unlikely duet in 1984 called "To All the Girls I've Loved Before".

A trend in country music of singers wearing hats is the inspiration behind the 1991 song "You Gotta Have a Hat"...Ray sings the song wearing a big, orange foam hat.

Things turn serious when Ray sings a piece of "Amazing Grace" before telling the story of how he came to record "Misty". The song was being performed in his studio as an experiment...in a bluegrass arrangement no less...then, Ray had the idea of recording the song like that and putting it out as a single. It was a hit in 1975 and won Ray a Grammy for 'Best Arrangement'. On this performance Ray sings it in the bluegrass style and then mid-way through he slows it down and does the pop ballad version the way Johnny Mathis did before returning to the up-tempo version to close the song out.

"The Streak" is next! This is performed more elaborate with the CAT hat featured, which became closely associated with Ray during this era.

He closes things out with "Everything is Beautiful".

Ray had his theatre up and running from 1991 to 1993 and every season was sold-out. His show was the most popular during his stay there. In fact, his performances at other artist's theatres prior to his own being built, always sold-out. THAT is what caused Ray to have his own theatre built.

Clyde released a sequel, 'MORE RAY STEVENS LIVE!', in 1993 which was only available to fan-club members.

'RAY STEVENS LIVE!' hit #1 on the Home Video chart in 1993 and reached PLATINUM status.

Title: House of the Long Shadows
Principal Performers: Vincent Price; Christopher Lee; Peter Cushing; Desi Arnaz Jr.; John Carradine.
Year of Release: 1983/UK {filmed in 1982; released in America in 1984}
Length: 102 minutes
Director: Pete Walker

This movie was based mostly on the story "Seven Keys to Baldpate". It dealt with a horror story writer, played by Arnaz, who makes a bet that he can write a horror novel during one weekend in a haunted house. The character is a cynic and a yuppie, so he's not too likable.

The plot of the film has to do with a family reunion among the Grisbanes. Apparently, during the weekend Arnaz picked to stay there, is the same weekend many decades ago that the Grisbane's covered up a horrible family secret.

Vincent Price is the stand-out and he was really the main attraction for the movie. It was HIS name that "sold" the movie to the public...plus the historic team-up of the other classic horror icons: Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, and John Carradine also drew some media hype.

One by one each of the Grisbane's make their way to the house for the weekend. They introduce themselves to Arnaz's character. There are several old-school vs. new school insults and jokes pitched back and fourth. Each of the horror icon's perform in their own style. Peter Cushing, for example, plays an endearing grandfatherly type {shades of his Doctor Van Helsing in all the Hammer films of 'Dracula'}. Vincent plays a flamboyant, hammy-type, which is what he was known for. He makes his entrance by saying "I have returned" played against a beack-beat of thunder and lightening. Price is by far the "star" of the film after he made his appearance. He stole the movie from Arnaz you could say.

Christopher Lee played the cold, distant type and the camera zoomed in on his eyes, which was a trademark on his 'Dracula' movies. He is called a "bitch" by Vincent Price's character {Lionel Grisbane}.

By the way, Christopher played Corrigan; Cushing played Bastian; Shelia Jackson played Victoria; Carradine played Lord Grisbane.

Soon, strange noises and weird happenings start to go on in Grisbane manor. One by one, member's of the family turn up missing. There are so many twists and turns in this movie, a viewer isn't quite sure what's to come next.

It's a one-joke film as you will see when the movie ends but the joke is well worth it. Even Arnaz's character becomes likable toward the end and THAT deserves some praise right there!

'HOUSE OF THE LONG SHADOWS' was a memorable film based almost entirely on all of the horror icon's appearances in it. It wasn't a "blockbuster" movie by any means but it did well and it shown that the horror legends still had a fan-base. The video i have is kind of unique. The front cover opens up like a book...and the video is inside. The cover shows all four of them...well...take a look for yourself...

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jerrytoons/105768.jpg)

Clockwise from top left: Christopher Lee with the ax; Vincent Price with the rope; Peter Cushing with the knife; and John Carradine with the ball and chain.

Alert: Please don't do what i did and post pictures on this thread. With my slow dial-up Web-TV it takes forever for BIG pictures and animated graphics to load and sometimes the thread won't load at all...my Web-TV shuts itself off automatically. Once in a while i may post a pic if it's the right size. Thanks for understanding!

Title: Tom T. Hall: Ultimate Collection
Artist: Tom T. Hall
Year of Release: 2001
Label/Number: Hip-O 314-556-131-2

Tom T. Hall has always been one of my favorite country singers. He has a style that critics have often called "sung narration" in which his songs sound like they're being narrated but yet they're being sung at the same time.

He is first and foremost a songwriter. He has written hundreds and hundreds of songs for himself and others. His most famous composition is "Harper Valley, PTA" which was a country/pop smash hit for Jeannie C Riley and inspired several projects based on the song. For himself, his most famous song was "Old Dogs, Children, and Watermelon Wine" even though he has had many hit songs for himself that were just as memorable.

ULTIMATE COLLECTION contains 23 of his hit songs, including his demo recording of "Harper Valley, PTA", making the total number 24 songs. He wrote all of the songs with the exception of two: "Fox on the Run" and "PS I Love You". The bulk of the hits come from his days with Mercury Records and the CD ends with his latter-day RCA hits. By that time, however, Tom was a TV celebrity hosting a TV series so his single's chart performances weren't too important in sustaining his popularity with a top-rated TV show, "Pop! Goes the Country" , keeping his name and likeness in the public eye.

As far as the music goes...all of his important songs are here: "Ballad of Forty Dollars"; "A Week in a Country Jail"; "Salute to a Switchblade"; "The Year That Clayton Delaney Died"; "Old Dogs, Children, and Watermelon Wine"; "Shoeshine Man"; "Ravishing Ruby"; "I Love"; and "Country Is".

"Ballad of Forty Dollars" is about a man who's at a funeral. This is classic Tom T. Hall because it paints a picture of a situation with a twist at the end. "Ravishing Ruby" is perhaps Tom's contribution to the truck song craze in country music. "I Love" is a list song in which he lists everything he loves. "Country Is" is a song about how someone interprets what's country or not. "Salute to a Switchblade" is a funny story about Tom in Germany during the war. Other songs on this CD include "Homecoming" and one of my favorites, "Faster Horses" which is a tale about a cowboy and a writer {Tom} and how he asks the cowboy what's the most important things in life: Faster Horses, younger women, older whiskey, and more money...

Tom's novelty side is also represented here: "That Song is Driving Me Crazy" is about a song that sticks in a person's head in which there's nothing too important about it, only that the song is driving you crazy. The arrangement of the song was more jazzy than what the public was used to from Tom. Toward the end it becomes an Al Jolsen-type swing number. The other novelty, "I Like Beer", is pretty much self-explanatory. It's about a guy who likes beer...he doesn't like anything else to drink like wine or whiskey...he likes beer!

Those two weren't the only novelty songs of his career, though. He's recorded several through the years and most of his bigger hits all contained elements of humor as well but the two i just reviewed were officially thought of as novelty songs by the public/critics.

"The Old Side of Town", track #20, is another favorite of mine. It's about nostalgia and how things haven't changed in small-town America. It's one of his last chart hits. Of course, his performance of "PS I Love You" is great! That closes out the album. I love that lonesome arrangement of the song.

All in all, this is the best CD on Tom T. Hall. It eclipses the importance of his previous hits albums unless you also want to hear "Who's Gonna Feed Them Hogs"; "The Little Lady Preacher"; and "Turn It On, Turn It On, Turn It On" which are novelty songs found on other compilations. They're funny...but i suppose in the grand scheme of things they weren't "essential" or whatever.

Tom T. Hall went back to Mercury in 1983 after 6+ years at RCA. He remained on Mercury's roster even though his out-put had slowed down somewhat. But this ULTIMATE COLLECTION of Tom T. Hall is the best that there is on his songs!

Your reviews are remarkable. I knew of Tom T. Hall's work, but when you see it all in front of you, he's really had an amazing career.

=========================
:wave Hello Franny! I'm used to seeing you over in the Manilow thread :yes Tom's last CD so far was a bluegrass project that won an IBMA {International Bluegrass Music Award}. It was a CD called "Homegrown" and it had a funny single, "Bill Monroe for Breakfast".

Title: Red Skelton: Lost Episodes
Principal Performer: Red Skelton
Format: Home Video
Year of Release: 1990
Label: Goodtimes Video
Running Time: 73 minutes

This was one of the first home videos i bought of Red Skelton. At the time, it was 5 years old in 1995. I also have Volume Two but we'll stick with this home video for now.

The home video was a collection of skits from Red's HUGE TV series. How huge?? Well, it ran from 1951-1971. In the first skit, from 1955, we see Red as 'Ed Gnorton' in a spoof of the HONEYMOONERS. Guess who's playing Ralph?? None other than Peter Lorre!! In the skit, Lorre's Ralph is a hearse driver instead of a cab driver. Skelton ad-libs through most of the skit, laughing at Lorre's "acting".

In a 1959 skit, Red plays his most-famous character, Clem Kadiddlehopper, in a skit about Clem meeting Lil' Abner and Daisy Mae. Daisy Mae is trying to get Lil' Abner to notice her...Clem notices right away :lol

The skit was about a love potion that back-fires. Whoever drinks water containing the love potion, falls in love with the first thing they see. Clem accidentally drinks some water...and falls in love with a pig :lol Then a country girl spots Clem...and tries to convince him that he oughta be looking at girls instead of pigs. Clem is kssing the pig and saying how much he's gonna look forward to living high on the hog. He then looks out in the audience and ad-libs: "at times like this it's awfully tough sticking to the script..." :lol

The next skit is about Red's George Appleby character as a murder witness. Audrey Totter plays the latest Clara Appleby. The crook tracks Appleby down and holds a gun to him throughout the skit. At one point, the killer ties up Clara and in a split-decision, the killer throws on women's clothes :lol

Vincent Price appears in a 1960 skit playing an obnoxious boyfriend of a woman. Red's boxing character, Cauliflower McPugg, attempts to train Vincent's character in the ring but it back-fires. "Watch out for the glass jaw!" he barks at Vincent :lol

Billy Gilbert and Amanda Blake are featured in the next skit with Red playing the con-artist, San Fernando Red. This skit is basically about the mayor of a small town and his adultery and betting habits and how San Fernando is holding it over the mayor's head.

In the last skit, Frank Lovejoy {a radio actor, most famous for the series, "Night Beat"} plays a crook who gets caught up with Red's hobo character, Freddy the Freeloader. They force Freddy to drive their get-away car. There's a scene in here which Red teases the sound-effects men. Freddy's supposed to be eating the end of Lovejoy's gun and he's chewing and chomping...then, the sound-effects stop...because Freddy's stopped "chewing"...well...as a joke, Freddy starts "chewing" some more and there's no sound-effects. He laughs as do the audience. Later, deadpan Lovejoy cracks a smile and nearly laughs at Red's ad-libbing.

These kind of sound-effects jokes went on all the time.

All the skits on this home video are in black and white. The skits were compiled by Sandy Oliveri.

Title: Ronnie Milsap: 40 #1 Hits
Performer: Ronnie Milsap
Year of Release: 2000
Label/Number: Virgin Records 7243-8-48871-2-4

Ronnie Milsap, to me, is one of the most expressive country singers. Primarily because of his tendancy to perform R&B and soul-type music, his singles usually stood out from the rest of his generation and it afforded him the ability to hit #1 40 times in his career, in addition to a handful of Top-10 hits that never hit #1. He is a blind singer who plays the piano. The booklet contained in this 2-CD set is full of history on Milsap's career.

A few years ago i made a comparison between Milsap and Barry Manilow. I began calling Milsap the country music answer to Barry Manilow because Milsap recorded power-ballads much in the same vein as Manilow...full of heavy orchestration and emphasis on high energy vocals.

Milsap hit in the early '70s but it wasn't until the mid '70s that he became a star. The song that made him a star was "Pure Love" in 1974, which hit #1. He became a super-star with the 2 week #1 follow-up single, "Please Don't Tell Me How the Story Ends" and as the saying goes, the hits came on coming.

For the bulk of his career, he recorded for RCA Records. Milsap's fame got even bigger in 1977. Prior to this, he was a country super-star but when "It Was Almost Like a Song" {a Manilow-esque performance} was released in the summer of '77, it shot through the roof. It was #1 country for 3 weeks and crossed-over to the Pop Hot 100 where it reached #16, a HUGE accomplishment for a country single at that time.

From that moment on, Milsap was a consistent visitor to the country, pop, and Adult-Contemporary charts with his singles. Of course, this also had a negative effect in some circles in country music who didn't appreciate "their" singers being on pop radio. Country vs Pop has always been a hot topic so this wasn't anything new.

Milsap never DID hit #1 pop but he did have a streak of Hot 100 hits in the early '80s. He DID hit #1 on the AC chart, though, which is a chart that lists the popularity of singles in the AC format...pop music that's easy on the ears. His biggest chart showing on the Hot 100 was his 1981 2 week #1 country hit, "There's No Gettin' Over Me", which hit #5 pop, his only Top-10 pop hit. "Any Day Now" would hit #1 country; #14-pop; and #1 AC. It would stay #1 AC for 5 weeks! That, of course, became the biggest AC hit for Milsap.

Although titled "40 #1 Hits", there are 3 songs on here that did NOT hit #1. Two of them were recorded especially for this CD. So, there are actually 43 songs on here...40 of them hit #1. One of the highlights of this CD is having a majority of all of his hits together in one collection. Yes, his #1 duet with Kenny Rogers is on here: "Make No Mistake, She's Mine".

That single hit #1 in 1987 but ironically, it didn't even make the Hot 100...considering that both Milsap and Kenny Rogers were the only two country singers who charted consistently on the pop charts one would've thought the duet would've hit the Hot 100 very easily...very strange...and on the AC chart, it peaked outside the Top-40 by two spaces, reaching #42.

This is quintessential Ronnie Milsap and only a box set of everything he's recorded would dwarf the importance of this CD.

Scott Hendricks produced the two new songs on here: "Time, Love, and Money" and "Livin' on Love" {not to be confused with the Alan Jackson song of the same name}.

Milsap has won 6 Grammy and 8 CMA Awards and a whole host of other awards through the years. Gold and Platinum albums, too!

Title: George Strait: 50 #1 Hits
Performer: George Strait
Year of Release: 2004
Label/Number: MCA B0000459-02

George Strait is the artist with the second-most #1 hits in all of recorded music...Strait has 51, Conway Twitty has 55. However, six of Conway's #1 hits were with Loretta...so if you subtract 6 from 55, you get 49...while all of Strait's #1 hits were solo...so Strait DOES have more solo #1 hits than Conway...

But that's a minor argument in the grand scheme of things. George Strait has performed and risen through the ranks in country music and is sitting pretty on cloud 9, enjoying his 24th year as a country music hit-maker. Yes!!! I said 24 years! Strait came along in 1981 and at first was shrugged off as another "urban cowboy" singer cashing in on country music's popularity in the pop-mainstream.

However, Strait's albums were bona fide 100% Texas country and honky-tonk with some western-swing thrown into the mix...and 24 years later, he's STILL giving us what he does best.

What IS included here are 2 CDs full of George Strait #1 hits from both Billboard AND the Radio and Records charts. Strait's 50th #1 hit was "She'll Leave You With a Smile". A new song on here, "I Hate Everything", became his 51st #1 hit. All of his classic hits and latter-day smash hits are on here...if they hit #1. I won't pick favorites but some stand-out more than others. "True"; "Go On"; "The Best Day"; "The Chair"; "Nobody In His Right Mind Would've Left Her"; "It Ain't Cool To Be Crazy About You"; "I've Come to Expect It From You"; "You Know Me Better Than That"; "One Night at a Time"; "Right or Wrong"; "Let's Fall To Pieces Together"; "Ocean Front Property"; and on and on and on...

As you will hear when you listen to these CDs, Strait has grown but hasn't "changed" if that makes much sense. His material always reflected the current radio sound in country music, but yet his approach to what he looks for in a song and his vocal delivery remain the same with each project. His 1995 box set contains all of these songs, except "I Hate Everything", but this CD is somewhat of a collector's item to some. While i've got 50 #1 Hits there are some pressings out there that say 51 #1 Hits. Those editions were of course pressed after "I Hate Everything" hit #1.

There is so many great songs on here, as i earlier stated, it's hard to pick favorites. Even songs that fell short of #1, peaking in the Top-10, are JUST AS GREAT as the songs that went to #1. Maybe MCA oughta re-re-release this CD again and include "You'll Be There", which is on it's way to becoming his fifty-second #1 hit any week now and call this 52 #1 Hits instead. :lol

This is a wonderful look at Strait's #1 hits.

Title: Love Songs: George Jones
Performer: George Jones
Year of Release: 2003
Label/Number: EPIC/Legacy #87151

This CD is a collection of songs recorded by the one and only George Jones down through the years. What is great about this CD is that it highlights some very great album tracks that the mainstream haven't heard. It has 15 songs on here. Some songs were hits while others were, as i stated, great album tracks.

Called "Love Songs", the set concentrates on the love/romantic side of George's songs. Of course, it being a country CD, heartbreak ALSO goes hand-in-hand with love. The CD cover unfolds a little and we see the songwriter credits plus a mid '70s black and white publicity photo of George and on the back flap of the inside cover we see a color picture of George in concert from the mid '70s.

The songs were all recorded at various times during his legendary years {1971-1991} at Epic...later known as Sony. Of course, 15 songs out of a 20 year run isn't exactly a representation but of course, it being a collection of just "Love Songs", who's to bicker about 15 songs when they're being sung by GEORGE JONES???

The CD opens up with his 1972 #5 hit, "A Picture of Me Without You" that Lorrie Morgan had a hit with in 1991. One of my all-time favorite songs from George is #2, "You've Still Got a Place in My Heart". That song hit #4 in 1984 and i LOVE that vocal delivery and the way he gets into the word "in" during the singing of the song's title. That harmonica is a great hook, too.

"The Second Time Around", from 1984, is just a great song! It was an album track and so it's inclusion here marks it's first time on a CD. The same goes for "She Hung the Moon", from 1983. It has a twist, though: ...she hung the moon but she hung it upside down... {a half-moon turned upside down is a frown}.  

"You Oughta Be Here With Me" is another album track that wasn't a single. This song is from 1990 and was written by Roger Miller. "I'll Take You To My World" from 1972; "Love Lives Again" from 1973; "You'll Never Grow Old To Me" from 1973; and "Hopelessly Yours" from 1986 are the other album tracks on here. "Hopelessly Yours" became a hit for Lee Greenwood and Suzy Boguss in 1992.

A little trivia about the song on here, "I'll Take You To My World", and the concept of answer songs. Tammy Wynette, who had been married to George from 1969-1975, recorded "Take Me To Your World" and George recorded the "answer" song called "I'll Take You To My World", found on this CD.

An answer song is a song that's written as if to "answer" a previous song. Example: Kitty Wells song, "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels", is an answer song to Hank Thompson's "Wild Side of Life" because in Hank's song he sings: "I didn't know God made honky tonk angels; i should have known you'd never make a wife..." and the reply in song was "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels"...

Back to the CD: The other songs i didn't mention yet are hits and are wonderful!!! "Loving You Could Never Be Better" is his 1972 smash #2 single. This single was perhaps the most romantic up to that point in George's single-releasing career. He had several songs just as romantic that weren't singles. "What My Woman Can't Do" and "Once You've Had the Best" are both from 1973...while "We Can Make It" is from 1972. The songs hit #4, #3, and #6 respectively on the country charts.

George's songwriting isn't well-known. In his early years during the '50s and '60s he co-wrote a LOT of his songs. On this CD, George is credited as a songwriter on "What My Woman Can't Do". His frequent songwriting partner was Earl Montgomery. Johnny PayCheck wrote "Once You've Had the Best". "I Always Get Lucky With You", from 1983, hit #1. It was written by Merle Haggard and a few of his friends, including Freddy Powers.

The CD closes with what has been called the #1 Country Song of All-Time {by a Male artist}...his 1980 Grammy winning #1 hit "He Stopped Loving Her Today". That song is about a man who never gets over his love of a woman who left him years ago and it's only in his death that he stopped loving her today. It's a sad song and the funeral music during George's haunting narration piece midway through is the highlight of the song. It's three minutes and fifteen seconds of pure country heartbreak and that's one of the things that i love to hear in a country song!

Love Songs is a great CD and those album tracks are priceless.

Title: Wacky Races
Genre: Animated cartoon
Running Time: 30 minutes
Year of Production: 1968-1969; 13 episodes.

This Hanna-Barbera cartoon series was sort of like an animated spoof of It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World where a bunch of animated cartoon characters compete in a wacky race. The winner doesn't recieve nothing, just the title of "World's Wackiest Racer" :lol

Anyway, in my opinion, the hook of the show was watching the schemes of the villains, Dick Dastardly and Muttley, back-fire time and time again. They wanted to win the race and used all kinds of stunts to delay or cause confusion among the other competitors.

The rest of the racers included: Penelope Pitstop; the Ant Hill Mob; Rufus Ruff-Cut and Sawtooth; The Slag Brothers; Peter Perfect; Big and Little Gruesome; Professor Pat Pending; The Sarge; Ring-a-Ding; Luke and Blubber Bear; and the Red Max.

The narrator of the "action" was Dave Willock. The series was in production from 1968-1969, 13 episodes were produced. The series then re-ran from 1969-1970 before leaving CBS. It has since found life on Boomerang but prior to that, it aired on Cartoon Network. It created two spin-off series, one being "The Perils of Penelope Pitstop" and the other being "Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines".

I enjoyed this series and i love the voice work. The star of the show was Paul Winchell, he voiced Dick Dastardly. Don Messick was the voice of Muttley; Professor Pending; Little Gruesome; Ring-a-Ding; and Sawtooth. Daws Butler handled the bulk of the other voices on "Wacky Races" like Red Max; Rufus Ruffcut; Big Gruesome; The Slag Brothers; Peter Perfect; The Sarge; and Peter Perfect.

Mel Blanc was on hand and credited as the Ant Hill Mob...however, Blanc only voiced one of the 7 members of the Ant Hill Mob. Blanc gave voice to the one who was always laughing no matter what was going on. Paul Winchell was Clyde and Softy. Don Messick was the voice of the rest of the member's of that mob. Blanc was also heard as the mob's car, the Bulletproof Bomb, which was re-named Chug-a-Boom in "The Perils of Penelope Pitstop".

Rounding out the voice cast was John Stephenson, giving voice to the Luke and Blubber Bear characters.

The speaking time for many of these characters were barely over 1 minute. The scenes were fast-paced and had quick edits from one race car to the other. Dick Dastardly had the bulk of the speaking time since his schemes to win and cause mayhem were the focal point of the show. His line after every scheme back-fired was usually "drat and double drat!!" to which Muttley would snicker his pleasure at seeing Dastardly's scheme back-fire. Sometimes, though, Dastardly would smash Muttley on top of the head for his snickering to which Muttley would mumble under his breath a few choice words that were never quite clear but we got the message of what he was saying :lol

I thought the show was a riot but not everyone did. Some didn't like the show because of all the characters plus the pointless "prize" at being the World's Wackiest Racer. No matter, i enjoyed the show very much.

Title: Greatest Hits
Artist: LeAnn Rimes
Year of Release: 2003
Label/Number: CURB D2-78829

This CD contains nearly all of LeAnn's country, pop, and AC hits from 1996-2003. The hits missing from here is her AC hits, "Soon" and "But I Do Love You", from the 'I NEED YOU' CD; "Feels Like Home" from her 'YOU LIGHT UP MY LIFE' CD; and "Suddenly" from her 'TWISTED ANGEL' CD.

The rest of the material as i mentioned is a mix of country, pop, and AC. The songs are not in chronological order so the songs leap from 1996 to 1997 and jump ahead to 2002 and back to 1996, etc.

Her GOLD international hit single, "Can't Fight the Moonlight", is track #3 on here. However, this isn't the actual radio version nor the version on the single...it's a radio re-mix. Her GOLD duet with Elton John is here, "Written in the Stars", which was a #1 AC hit in 1999 and made the Pop Top-30. There were two versions of this song. One version contained Elton singing the introduction verse, and another which contained LeAnn opening the song.

The "new" hit on this CD was "We Can", which became an AC hit in 2003. Most of LeAnn's hits come from Diane Warren. The 1997 recording of LeAnn's 3,000,000 selling single "How Do I Live" is what sparked LeAnn to turn to Diane Warren more and more. That single was #1 AC for 11 weeks and #2 pop and was on the Hot 100 for 69 weeks, 42 of those weeks in the Top-10, making it one of the longest running charted pop songs in music history.

Track #14 is "Life Goes On", which came from a CD that contained a rocker LeAnn that the public wasn't ready for. Nevertheless, "Life Goes On" DID hit the Pop Top-20 and the music video was a hit.

On the country side of things we have: "Blue"; "One Way Ticket"; "The Light in Your Eyes"; "Commitment"; "On the Side of Angels"; "Unchained Melody"; "Big Deal"; "I Need You"; and "Nothin' New Under the Moon".

Also on this CD there's her duet with Ronan Keating called "Last Thing on My Mind" which hit the AC chart in 2004; plus we have "This Love" and the album tracks "Crazy" and "Oh Holy Night"...plus we have her GOLD single "You Light Up My Life" from 1997.

There is a bonus DVD contained in this collection with 4 performances of "Blue"; "How Do I Live"; "Can't Fight the Moonlight"; and "We Can".

This is the CD that people oughta buy if they want to hear LeAnn from start, 1996 to the then-present year, 2003, and listen to the diverse music styles she has tackled over the years.

Title: Inside Your Heaven/Vehicle
Artist: Bo Bice
Year of Release: 2005
Label/Number: RCA 82876 69495-2

This CD single is from the latest American Idol runner-up, Bo Bice. I was quite surprised by the CD because for starters, i hadn't paid hardly any attention to Idol this last season. I've never been a big watcher of the show anyway, even when Clay was on. To me, it was just Star Search for the new millennium but how i LOVE that Clay came through this show or else we'd perhaps not know of him!!

BUT, i have listened to this CD. I listened to both songs on here and i like both of them. I liked the echo effect of "Inside Your Heaven" and there were moments in the song where it felt as if he would growl a word or two...it didn't happen until near the end when he sang a short glory note.

The second song, "Vehicle", is more of a rocker-type song. It has this Jimi Hendrix meets Santana guitar playing throughout the song. At several points in the song, the guitar sounds as if it's growling like a wildcat. I liked the songs arrangement. It reminded me of a '70s groovy song. When i first heard the intro, i immediately thought of KC and the Sunshine Band's song "That's The Way I Like It" and their other song, "Shake, Shake, Shake". In "Vehicle", Bice does growl some words.

Desmond Child produced this CD and he has been notorious for over-producing. He produced LeAnn Rimes' CD 'TWISTED ANGEL' and was behind her "Can't Fight the Moonlight" international smash hit. But, success doesn't translate into respect.

From the sounds of this, Bice may become a savior for the rock-oriented pop fans who were given the red-light when the boy bands invaded the scene in the late '80s/early '90s, causing a rift in Top-40 radio. The rock fans got their own radio stations to listen to while the pop mainstream listened to whatever was played on Top-40 radio. He has a powerful voice and it looks like his target material is the "Vehicle" brand since that suits his voice better than the crooning pop i prefer to listen to. Carrie Underwood sings back-up on "Vehicle". I saw that in the liner notes of the CD. She "won" the Idol crown but we all know by now winning isn't everything when it comes to American Idol. Even a runner-up can do wonderful things!

:wave I like your review on Bo's single... His voice is so special and mind you, don't consider myself a rocker but, i've listened to it several times and it's so worth the few dollars that was spent on it.

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:wave Yes...the worse that could've happened was not liking the single and i'd only be out a few dollars. This is why the single market is a MUST!! Not everyone wants to fork over $14.00 or more for an entire CD of songs from an act that MAY only have one or two good songs. UNLESS a consumer is a fan of that artist and doesn't mind listening to an entire CD of songs, most would buy the single and that's why singles need to be in more abundance than they are. BUT, you know why singles aren't available hardly at all?? A lot of people are willing to purchase an entire CD for just a couple of songs and since full CDs cost MORE than a single, record companies of course are gonna limit the distribution of singles for profit from full length CD's. That's my little "lesson" for today! :lol

Title: Somewhere Down in Texas
Artist: George Strait
Year of Release: 2005
Label/Number: MCA B0004446-02

This is the latest CD from country singer George Strait. Strait has been making albums on MCA since 1981...on the verge of his 25th Anniversary in 2006, Strait is STILL recording the music and songs that has cemented his reputation. Rarely is there a Strait album that moves from the standard fiddle and steel guitar plus the Texas songs.

This CD contains 11 songs. Overall it was another great album from Strait BUT it is ballad heavy! Three songs on here are over 4 minutes long...most of them are over 3 minutes. So, it's a long album. There are not any bad songs on here but there are a couple i wouldn't have wanted him to record. My least favorite is "Oh, What a Perfect Day".

"She Let Herself Go" sounds like it could be a radio hit in the near future. It has a little twist to the song...you'll have to hear it to know what i'm talking about. "High Tone Woman" is the shortest song on here, clocking in at two minutes, 48 seconds. It has an Elvis-like echo effect to the vocals.

Several songs seem autobiographical...the obvious being "Texas"; "If the Whole Word Was a Honky Tonk";  and "Somewhere Down in Texas". Strait even tackles the Haggard song, "The Seashores of Old Mexico". By most accounts, this would seem to be a run-of-the-mill CD from Strait...nothing REALLY excellant but there are a few wonderful songs such as the previously mentioned "She Let Herself Go"; plus the duet with Lee Ann Womack on "Good News, Bad News"; "Ready For the End of the World"; and the current single, "You'll Be There".

"By the Light of the Burning Bridge" closes out the CD. It's one of those kind of songs with a play on words...much like the opening song "If the Whole World was a Honky Tonk" with lyrics such as "We'll tell our troubles to the bar over a cryin' steel guitar; If the Whole World was a Honky Tonk...".

All in all, this is a ballad heavy CD and so if you're wanting up-tempo, western-swing/fiddle sing-a-long toe-tappers, check out another collection from Strait because this one is mostly ballads.

Title:George Jones and Gene Pitney: The Complete '60s Duets
Year of Release: 2005
Label/Number: Varese Sarabande 302 066 642 2

This CD spotlights one of the most unique, yet successful, duo's in all of country music. George Jones, the King of Honky Tonk, teams up with Gene Pitney, the Teen Pop Idol.

George and Gene, as they were billed on records by MUSICOR in 1965, recorded only two LP's. That's a long-playing, VINYL, 33 and a third album. It's called "long-playing" because it was a full album instead of a 45 "single". The long-play album, or LP, spun 33 revolutions per minute {RPM} while the single spun 45 revolutions per minute. This is why a single on a turn-table spun faster than an LP and a 78...well, let's not get into much talk about the 78 LP's!!! Well, enough of this vinyl talk...let's get down to the review!!

There are 17 songs on this CD, which is exactly the number of songs George and Gene recorded as a duet. The liner notes are filled with personal recollections from Pitney himself. The CD's cover shows Gene and George...as they looked in 1965. Gene looked like a teenager and George had his famed military crew cut.

I have the 1965 vinyl album, "It's Country Time Again", and it's so great to hear these songs on CD format!!! Tracks 10-17 on here are from that album. The first 9 tracks are from their first duet album, simply called "George Jones and Gene Pitney".

4 of the 17 songs made the country charts in 1965-1966. A fifth single from the duo, the Ray Price hit "I've Got a New Heartache" backed with a mid-tempo version of "My Shoes Keep Walking Back To You" on the B-side, another Ray Price hit, didn't make the country charts...which seemed odd at the time.

George's famous voice, with it's vocal bends and a blend of tenor and baritone {usually in the same sentence of a song!!} combined with the high tenor of Gene Pitney drew skepticism from many. The duo, according to Pitney, never performed together in concert or in front of any audience...so, more or less, the George and Gene phenomenon was a studio creation.

Their biggest hit single was their version of Faron Young's "I've Got Five Dollars and It's Saturday Night". They took the song to the country Top-20. Their other three singles didn't chart higher than their first, though!

One of the things that the vocal partnership did was place each artist in foreign territory on a couple of songs. Pitney, famous for his tenor voice, Narvel Felts-like high notes and being a teen idol of his era, seemed an unlikely choice to sing such country classics as "Wreck On the Highway"; "Y'all Come"; "Your Old Standby"; and "One Has My Name and the Other Has My Heart" not to mention the intimidation of standing next to George Jones in the studio {Pitney was 24 in 1965 while George was 34 and by '65, Jones was a huge super-star and an influence to several artists even at that time}.

George Jones, on the other hand, was pure country and so it was interesting to hear how a hard-core country singer like Jones would sound singing pop songs "Mockingbird Hill" and "Someday You'll Want Me To Want You". However, on the LP, the song was spelled in a countrified manner: "Mockin' Bird Hill" :lol

So, the bottom line is, the two artists complimented each other vocally and in the end, George and Gene recorded songs that were proven greats and as a result this 17 song collection is a must-have because it captures all of their duets from 1965. The song "Big Job" is a sing-a-long song that looking back should never have been a single. The fact that it reached #50-Country is surprising.

Highlights of the collection are: "Louisiana Man"; "Sweeter Than the Flowers"; "I've Got Five Dollars"; "My Shoes Keep Walking Back to You"; "That's All It Took"; "Wreck on the Highway"; and "I've Got a New Heartache".

Song Selections[/b]
1. I've Got Five Dollars: #16-Country
2. Wreck on the Highway
3. Sweeter Than The Flowers
4. One Has My Name
5. I'm a Fool To Care
6. Don't Rob Another Man's Castle
7. My Shoes Keep Walking Back To You
8. I've Got a New Heartache
9. Big Job: #50-Country
10. That's All It Took: #47-Country
11. Mockin' Bird Hill
12. As Long As I Live
13. Y'all Come
14. Someday You'll Want Me To Want You
15. Louisiana Man: #25-Country
16. Your Old Standby
17. Why Baby Why

Track #12 "As Long As I Live" is not the same song as the George Jones hit...this is a different song with the same name

Title: The Best of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe
Format: DVD
Running Time: 215 minutes

He-Man originally ran on television for two years, 1983-1985. It was based on a series of action figures, which, at the time, wasn't uncommon for cartoons to be inspired from. Filmation produced the series and it carried a somewhat gloomy and dark mood, though the series did have it's "cheery" moments.

The He-Man saga is all about a Prince who lives in Eternia and the dangers that are constantly threatening his royal family and his friends. Prince Adam carries a magic sword and whenever there's trouble, he secludes himself and holds the sword in the air and recites the phrase that turns him into He-Man, the "most powerful man in the universe". His pet tiger, Cringer, is turned into Battle-Cat. The only difference between Adam and He-Man was skin tone. Adam was pale while He-Man was tan and Cringer, who is cowardly, sports a helmet and saddle with a more courageous attitude after being transformed into Battle-Cat.

He-Man battles Skeletor and his henchmen...although there is a woman among the villains, her name is Evil-Lyn. Most of the battles have to do with Skeletor trying to take over Castle Grayskull, the magic castle that holds the key to He-Man's power. The guardian of this Castle is a shape-shifting falcon known as The Sorceress, who can change from a falcon to a human. She has telepathic powers and often communicates telepathically with He-Man.

This DVD set contains 10 of the best episodes on 2 DVD's as voted on by fans of the show. The DVD also contains several extra features including a documentary about the series, which runs 70 minutes. There are also two collector's cards located in the DVD package, depicting how the characters looked in the later version of the series in the late '80s remake.

He-Man, ironically, had a soap opera feel to it as well. Teela, one of the women who helped guard the Palace, was typically on a search for her biological mother. Man-At-Arms, also known as Duncan, the head guard and inventor of weapons for the palace, is Teela's adopted father...he knows the secret of Teela's origin but swore to keep it secret.

Throughout this show's 2 year run, He-Man battled a wide aray of villains and 10 of the best episodes are on this DVD. This was marketed to young boys and i watched the show when i was little...it had been off the air and had never re-ran anywhere since the mid/late '80s and i was glad when i bought this DVD. I loved the show then and still have a fondness for the show. It spawned a spin-off series, "She-Ra", which told the story of Princess Adora, Adam's twin sister, and her quest to battle Hordak, that show's equivalent to Skeletor who also came complete with an army of mostly bungling henchmen. He-Man left the afternoon line-up in 1985 and was replaced by the popular cartoon, "Thundercats", which also had a soap opera-type feel to it as well with an on-going story.

This is a region 1 DVD so it can be played in any DVD player in the world.

Title: Roger Thorpe: The Scandal Years
Principal Performer: Michael Zazlow
Year of Release: 1992
Distributor: CBS-P&G

CBS and Proctor and Gamble released this home video in 1992. It was a look at one of the soap opera world's most fascinating villains. Michael Zazlow breathed life into the role of "Roger Thorpe" on the daytime drama GUIDING LIGHT from 1971-1980 and again from 1989-1997.

In this clip-fest, Zazlow and his famed co-star, Maureen Garrett {Holly} look back and make commentary on the storylines. It's chock full of clips...the video heats up mid-way through as the famous Roger-Holly-Ed triangle picks up steam.

Thorpe's character was a character study into a person who has low self-esteem and is paranoid on top of that. His unlucky streak with women, in addition to his inferiority complex, helped define the character of Roger Thorpe. This part of his personality was the fuel that caused GUIDING LIGHT, or "GL" as soap fans call it, to soar in the ratings during the mid-late '70s. Who can forget the wild and outrageous schemes of Roger as his relationships with several women came to an end? Who could forget the alcoholic Ed Bauer, unaware of Holly's adultery, but who had also agreed to raise Holly's daughter with Roger as his own...something that caused the rift between Roger and Ed to grow more deep.

And...who can forget Roger's schemes with Alan Spaulding...while Roger was a villain with a soft side for his daughter...Alan on the other hand shown no heart or compassion for his family...it was always MONEY, MONEY, MONEY for Alan Spaulding.

This video shows the Roger Thorpe saga play out...of course, the highlight of this video is watching the breath-taking and award winning Santo Domingo storyline play out where Mike and Ed Bauer are on the trail of fugitive Thorpe and an abducted Holly. The land-mark scene of Ed grabbing for Roger's hand as Roger's dangling off that cliff and Ed's grip slipping and Roger's blood curdling scream as he's falling to his presumed death is still a chilling scene.

Fast forward to 1989...Roger survived his 1980 cliff fall and is now going under an alias of "Adam Malik"...he makes his way back to town to reunite with his daughter but of course, Holly tries to stop his efforts. Their daughter, Christina, by this time had been aged into a young adult and went by the name of Blake. Roger made his appearance at Phillip and Blake's 1989 wedding...Alan was attempting to murder Blake...however, in a chaotic chain of events that took place in the church balcony, Roger was shot by Alan...but as Roger was fleeing away {he grabbed a vine and swung down into the ceremony}, Alan shot again and hit his son, Phillip, by accident.

The video ends right when Roger's true identity was revealed...they pulled off Adam Malik's mask and Roger's face was viewed by all in attendance and the town knew Roger Thorpe was back in town!!

All in all, the video was excellant!! I loved everything about it. It's a wonderful look at a "misunderstood" and complex man who did villainous things for the right reasons if that makes sense!!?!

This is a great video!!!!

I love that last review, Jerry! I was so tempted to order that video. I opted for Reva Shayne : The Scarlet Years instead. I am a big Guiding Light fan! CBS soaps are my favorites.  :bouncy

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:wave  Meesa!!! I didn't know you were a GL fan??? I've watched the show on and off for 20 or so years...back when i was a kid...my two sisters "controlled" the TV and so it was either go to my room and "play", whatever that means, which was boring, or watch what THEY watched and so that's how i became a fan of GL...however, i was saddened to read the news about GL in next week's TV Guide...the one with Clay on the cover! I didn't know the show was THIS close to being axed!! I feel so bad for GL because it tries to remain a character-driven soap with emphasis on "family" and all the struggles and triumphs the character's go through and yet the target audience, 18-49, MOSTLY want soaps that are anti-establishment and the core GL audience doesn't WANT wacky storylines and things like that...so, GL has been caught in the cross-fire for a number of years of trying to remain a traditional soap opera amongst the other shows that use gimmicks and stunts to lure viewers.

I have the Reva video, too!! I also have a 1983 episode of GL on tape!!!! It's the episode where Phillip learns that Justin Marler is his father and not Alan Spaulding. They shown it back in 2002 when GL celebrated it's 50th Television anniversary {1952-2002} the show was also 65 years old in 2002 if you factor in the 15 years it ran on radio, starting in 1937!!

I read that article too, Jerry. I was shocked! About the episodes you have on tape, I have several tapes from when Brent posed as Marion as killed Nadine and made Lucy believe she was HIV positive. I also have Alan-Michael and Lucy's wedding.

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I started watching GL again around the time Brent had Lucy trapped in the Bauer lighthouse...later, Alan-Michael shows up and they're both trapped up there with a bomb set to explode. I had stopped watching it when Maureen died but started watching again in 1996. I then stopped watching GL sometime in 1998 and then started watching again in 1999...stopped watching in 2003...so i've watched the show off and on for years and years. I saw the origin of Richard, Olivia, and Edmund in San Cristobel and the palace scenes where Josh and company were chained in a dungeon i think?? In one scene Col Dax had them in front of a firing squad :lol Then the time Reva was trapped in that water hole by Edmund...and on and on and on...

Title: The Best of Ray Stevens-20th Century Masters-The Millennium Collection
Artist: Ray Stevens
Label: Hip-O
Year of Release: 2004

This 12 song collection gathers just the right songs to make it "a best of" CD. His signature songs are here, leaning more on his early pop signature recordings than his latter-day signature country recordings. In fact only two singles on here charted country exclusively: track #11 "Shriner's Convention" hit #8 and the last track, "Would Jesus Wear a Rolex?", reached #41.

If you've read any of my previous reviews of Ray Stevens albums, you'll know that chart stats are mis-leading in painting Ray's story. He has just as many non-commercial chart hits {singles that peaked below #40} than he had commercial radio hits {singles that peak at #40 or higher AND get radio airplay}. These are referred as "chart hits" and "radio hits".

But he had plenty of hits in his career. He hit at a time when it appeared the top-40 audience bought everything...a top-40 chart in the '70s had soul, blues, country, mainstream pop, and easy-listening...Ray has recorded all of those styles of music but his greatest asset is his comedy-satirical recordings down through the years...well, now decades, since he's been exclusively marketed as a "novelty act" since the mid '80s.

Critics and consumers alike often complain that "greatest hits" CDs don't always contain actual hit songs, and there have plenty of "hits" CDs on Ray that contained more chart songs than radio songs. This however is a "Best of" collection and these recordings are certainly top-notch. All of the songs made the popularity charts...some compilations in the past threw on album tracks and passed them off as "hits".

The mini-booklet/liner notes contain good commentary from the writer, Gene Sculatti. The liner notes were written in December 2003. The front cover was the most recent picture of Ray in 2004...on the back of the CD we get the famous smiling picture of Ray without his beard sitting at a piano during his 1970 TV show. There's other pictures of Ray inside the mini-booklet...on the back-flap of the booklet there's a 1969 picture of Ray...   

You will notice that there is a massive 5 year gap between "Misty" and "Shriner's Convention". A period of 5 years isn't documented between 1975 and 1980. This is because, and this is my opinion, it's due because of Warner Brothers Records being hard to deal with when it comes to releasing Ray's music he recorded for them during 1976-1979. His WB songs have been so rare and hard to obtain down through the years that fans have had to rely on searching for the original vinyl albums {of which i have all of his major release vinyl albums from 1962-1983} or looking for the now-rare 1995 3-CD set that WB released, spotlighting a lot of his WB songs from the mid and late '70s. I have those 1995 projects from WB and the music in them is really good! Ray even tackles disco arrangements on one of the songs...

So, it's wasn't a big surprise that his WB material was a no-show on this CD since they're notorious for not giving labels permission to re-release Ray's songs to the marketplace.

However, since we're talking about this CD, the 12 songs contained here represent SOME of the best that Ray has to offer...

The songs:

1. Jeremiah Peabody; 1961
2. Ahab the Arab; 1962
3. Harry the Hairy Ape; 1963
4. Freddie Feelgood; 1966
5. Mr. Businessman; 1968
6. Gitarzan; 1969
7. Everything is Beautiful; 1970
8. Turn Your Radio On; 1971
9. The Streak; 1974
10. Misty; 1975
11. Shriner's Convention; 1980
12. Would Jesus Wear a Rolex?; 1987

Title: How Beautiful Heaven Must Be
Format: CD
Artist: George Jones
Year of Release: 2004
Label/Number: Direct Source GOT: #43212

This 12-song collection features some of the gospel songs that George Jones has recorded down through the years. It was released in 2004, sort of as a low-budget offering in the midst of his highly-acclaimed CD "The Gospel Collection" in 2003 on the Bandit/BNA label.

The songs date back to the '60s, mostly...with a few '70s songs, and two songs from the previously mentioned 2003 CD.

George Jones has had a career in country music like no other...his chart statistics alone are mind boggling. In a span of 50 years, 1955-2005, George Jones has put 170 singles on the country music charts...even more impressive is that of those 170 chart hits, over 140 made the Top-40...at last glance, i believe it was 145 Top-40 hits altogether.

This low-budget CD has many great inspirational songs and my personal favorites are "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms"; "Selfishness in Man"; "Cup of Lonliness"; "Lord, You've Been Mighty Good To Me"; "Wanderin' Soul"; "Never Grow Old"; and "Lily of the Valley". The remaining five are just as great!!

The two songs from his 2003 CD that are included on here are among my favorites i just mentioned: "Lily of the Valley" and "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms". I saw George in concert and he performed "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms" and it was as great as the recording! It's a sing-a-long song!! You can also tell, of course, that the recordings of those two songs are from this time period because the other recordings have '60s and '70s arrangements and his voice is younger. "Will the Circle Be Unbroken" and "Wanderin' Soul" are from the late '50s.

The only gospel songs not covered on here are the ones he recorded in 1979 that re-surfaced in 1990 on the EPIC album 'HALLELUJAH WEEKEND'. All in all, it's a low-budget CD but the sound quality is great.

Title: Conway and Loretta- The Definitive Collection
Label: MCA-B0003581-02
Year of Release: 2005

With a front cover matching their 1977 duet album 'DYNAMIC DUO' and a back cover matching their 1974 album 'COUNTRY PARTNERS', this 24 song collections tells the Conway-Loretta duet story better than any other collection out there now. Sure, the Millennium Collection only spotlights the hit songs but the magic of Conway and Loretta were the B-sides and album songs that were favorites at their concerts.

The Conway-Loretta team hit the charts in 1971 with the single "After the Fire Is Gone", which won a GRAMMY. Gold after gold album and chart-topper after chart-topper, Conway and Loretta WERE the #1 Male-Female duet of the entire 1970's...their chart and sales achievements place them higher than their contemporaries of that era: George Jones and Tammy Wynette; Porter Waggoner and Dolly Parton; Kenny Rogers and Dottie West; and Jim Ed Brown and Helen Cornelius.

The success of the duo lies mostly with marketing and strategy...not to mention the amazing songs they recorded together. Conway, Loretta, and their producer, Owen Bradley, wanted to release 1 duet single a year...this way the duet song wouldn't interfere with either artist's solo releases. DECCA/MCA of course wanted to milk the duet but Conway and company "won" the battle and with the duo not being over-exposed, each artist was able to have successful solo careers along side the duet material.

All of their hit songs are here. They had 14 hit songs, together. This collection contains 10 additional songs that over the years fans have stated were their favorites, too. So, a 24 song collection is what we have.

Two singles on here were actually "double-sided hits". This means that two singles had B-sides that charted along side the A-side. This is how Conway and Loretta could have 14 hit songs and yet only have 12 commercial singles released. Their 1978 #6 hit, "From Seven 'Til Ten", contained a B-side tag-along hit called "You're The Reason Our Kids Are Ugly". Their 1979 #9 hit "You Know Just What I'd Do" contained the B-side tag-along hit "The Sadness of It All".

The "Crawdad Hole", an old country song, was the inspiration for "Oh Honey-Oh Babe", the #23 track on here. Track #24, "Making Believe", is from 1988. It's hard to believe but that single never made the country charts at all! The duo covers Hank Williams on "Hey, Good Lookin" and John Denver on "Back Home Again"...they even cover Jim Stafford's "Spiders and Snakes" with a few changed lyrics to make the song sound like it was written for Conway and Loretta.

In addition to their chart and sales success, they also were routinely named "Vocal Duo" or "Vocal Duet" at all the country awards throughout the early to mid 1970's. The duo, of course, wasn't without creating a little controversy. Some of the fans believed in their "relationship" on records so strongly that "As Soon As I Hang Up The Phone" was at the time thought of as a break-up song between Conway and Loretta. The two sang love songs mostly and some fans felt the duo were involved romantically...leading sales of "As Soon As I Hang Up The Phone" to soar into the hundreds of thousands {remember, at the time, country singles or country artists, specifically, didn't sell into the millions unless they had pop airplay/exposure}.

The single, nick-named "The Telephone Song", has Loretta singing while Conway is heard on the other end of the phone, talking to her. I have no doubt this single "inspired" EPIC in 1975 to usher out "The Telephone Call" between George Jones, Tammy Wynette, and her daughter, Tina.

Their #1 streak ended with 6 songs hitting the top...the single that broke the string was their seventh release, 1977's #2 single "I Can't Love you Enough". That single was #2 for 3 weeks...something must have been against that single on radio for it to stall at #2 so long...it easily should have been a #1 hit.

Looking through past chart archives, the 3 week #1 hit from Ronnie Milsap, "It Was Almost Like a Song" starting on July 16th and the 2 week #1 from Charlie Rich "Rollin With the Flow" starting August 6th, were the two singles in late July-early August 1977 that i feel were responsible for keeping Conway and Loretta from taking over #1 since the Conway-Loretta duet hit the charts on June 4, 1977...making it a candidate for #1 in late July after it climbed the charts throughout June and early July.

The reason Milsap and Rich held #1 longer...perhaps the cross-over success on pop radio of Milsap and Rich? That could've doubled the sales of either artist's singles instantly with all of that added exposure for a country single.

Anyway, Conway and Loretta ended their highly successful duo career in 1981, a decade AFTER they first hit in 1971. Their last hit single was the 1981 #2 hit "I Still Believe in Waltzes". Afterward, Loretta became more famous as a TV personality with her many Hee-Haw appearances and the Crisco TV commercials with her catch-phrase "Crisco do you proud, ever'time!". She wasn't the only artist doing commercials! At one point Tom T Hall was doing commercials for Porter House steak. Jerry Clower did commercials for Dodge trucks. Minnie Pearl was seen in the Spic and Span commercials, etc.

Loretta's singles out-put slowed down a lot in the '80s. Sadly, in some circles, she became known as Crystal Gayle's sister...Gayle had become a country-pop superstar in the late '70s and early '80s as Loretta's chart placings were getting lower. Loretta's life-story, "Coal Miner's Daughter", was made into a movie that won an Oscar.

Conway, on the other hand, continued his streak of hit songs throughout the 1980's. By 1985 he had his 50th #1 hit!

This 24 song collection of some of the duo's best is the only collection anyone needs to get a sense of the magic or spark that the duo shared. Their nick-names were 'Dynamic Duo' and 'Diamond Duet'. Not surprisingly, the duo had recorded two albums with those names during the 1970's.

What this CD should do is wet the listener's appetite for MORE Conway-Loretta material!! They recorded a lot more songs during their 10 year partnership in song...these 24 are just a sampling...but a very definitive sampling i might add!!

Title: Scooby Goes Hollywood
Year of Release: 1979
Principal Voice Actors: Don Messick; Casey Kasem; Frank Welker; Heather North; and Pat Stevens {as Scooby, Shaggy, Fred, Daphne, and Velma respectively}
Running Time: 50 minutes

In this made-for-TV special, which aired on ABC Television on December 23, 1979, Shaggy gets the idea that he wants Scooby to have a prime-time special on TV. This creates a problem because things are going so good, as far as ratings are concerned, for Scooby's Saturday morning TV series.

No matter...Shaggy and Scooby "go Hollywood" and pitch their idea to a movie producer named C.J. {voiced by Gong Show regular Rip Taylor}. Throughout the special, we see Shaggy act as Scooby's manager...a running joke is Shaggy's place for storing film reels...up his shirt! Of course, the films are purposely no good and C.J. is less than thrilled.

Meanwhile, the "gang" {Fred, Daphne, and Velma} ponder their own career's now that Scooby and Shaggy have quit the Saturday morning cartoon series for a prime-time TV show. They meet up with C.J. later on in the special and hatch a plan.

Meanwhile, many TV shows and movies are spoofed with Scooby and Shaggy as the stars. A lot of jokes about Hollywood and fame are also thrown into the equation. There's a snobbish club called The Black Top Hat. There's a haven for movie producers called Beverly Moles Hotel. In the "Scooby Days" parody, Scooby plays a clumsey Fonzie parody...who meets up with 'The Groove', a genuine Fonzie clone. Scooby, imitating The Groove's jukebox hitting, hits the jukebox too...only when The Groove did it, music started playing but when Scooby hit the jukebox, it fell to pieces :lol

Fred and the girls sing "Scooby, We're Missin' You". It is a re-working of the famous theme song "Scooby Doo, Where Are You?" from the original 1969-1971 TV series.

Here are the shows/movies that were spoofed: "Happy Days" became "Scooby Days"; "Love Boat" became "Love Ship"; "Charlie's Angels" became "Scooby's Angels"...plus The Sound of Music became "The Sound of Scooby" while Super-Man was "Super-Scooby". Scooby and disco dancer named Cherie {voiced by Marilyn Shreffler} starred in the disco parody/magic act "Scooby and Cherie".

Later, C.J's patience is growing more and more thin...Scooby and Shaggy make the announcement that they want out of TV altogether and conquer the movie world :lol

It isn't until the very end of the special that Shaggy and Scooby realize how popular they are as Saturday morning TV stars...Shaggy had been thinking that they were wasting away on TV and weren't getting anywhere in show-business.

SCOOBY GOES HOLLYWOOD is a good look at the entertainment industry circa 1979 {the TV shows that were spoofed date the show of course} and as always, Don Messick and Casey Kasem keep the laughs coming with their vocal dynamics as Scooby and Shaggy.

It's a cute special and one for the whole family. 

Album Title: Me
Artist: Ray Stevens
Year of Release: 1983
Label/Number: Mercury 812-780-1

This album is a bit more somber in mood. 8 of the 10 tracks are all about love gone bad, memories of love, and other love loss issues. One can't help but think this album was a belated reaction to Ray's 1980 divorce from his wife of 19 years.

Back with Mercury for this one-shot album, Mercury was the label in which Ray became a super-star in the early '60s with his novelty songs. From start to finish, the love songs are somber and sad...some a little up-lifting in an off-beat way. Let's start off with the up-tempo songs: First we have "Yolanda". This song is about a woman south of the border in a bar. In the song, Ray wants to go out with her but is afraid to make a move. Appearing in this song is Ray's daughter, Suzie. She provides the verse for Yolanda about mid-way through the song. "Piece of Paradise Called Tennessee" could be called a state song for the tourism industry. It's about all things good that are in Tennessee.

"Kings and Queens", on the other hand, is perhaps the ONLY positive love song on here. In it, Ray sings about an ordinary, average relationship between a man and woman who live out in the country but feel like they're living the life of royalty. The album closes with a novelty song of sorts, "Game Show Love". This song combines game show titles and catch-phrases from game shows and tells the story of a woman who turns out to be a "player" and not serious with her affections as with the line that says: "love, is just a game to you...the survey says it's true...".

The other 6 are all somber love songs. The album kicks off with the blunt "Love Will Beat Your Brains Out" {Ray does a wonderful job on his 2003 re-recording...it can be found on his "Thank You" CD}. Next we hear loss love and memories: "Mary Lou Nights". 'I begin to feel that emptiness as i turn out my lights' Ray sings... 'I try and sleep and dream about her as i hold my pillow tight...oh how i miss those Mary Lou Nights'.

"Special Anniversary" is about a guy meeting a former lover, ironically on the day she left him for the other man. 'Do you know what day it is? Is that why you're here? The day you left me to be his...has it only been just a year?'. "Piedmont Park" is a ballad about a guy who sees a flame of his from his high school days. She tells him that no matter that she married someone else, she never LOVED another person the same way as she did Ray in piedmont park, but she had blew back in town only to find that Ray was still married after all those years.

"Me", the title track, is an optimistic love song but it has a somber melody. 'But you, you seem to natural and honest when you speak; it's easy bein' with you 'cause i feel like Me...'. It's basically a song about a man who had a string of relationships but he wasn't being himself until he met the right person.

Lastly, "My Dad", the chart hit from the album, is an ode to fathers. 'My Dad could beat up your dad but he wouldn't; Yes, My Dad could beat up your dad but he wouldn't even try...'. Dale Gonyea wrote the song and he also wrote Ray's 1979 hit "I Need Your Help, Barry Manilow"...both songs have similar instrumentation and arrangement.

I have the "ME" vinyl album in my Ray Stevens collection. I love the album and i knew i'd love it YEARS before i ever found it for sale on-line because no matter what the mood, tempo, or delivery...Ray Stevens will give you a unique, original, and often times clever performance each and every time.

Program: Yogi's Ark Lark
Year of Release: 1973
Network: ABC-TV
Principle Voice Actors: Daws Butler; Don Messick; Lennie Weinrib; and John Stephenson.

In this made-for-TV special, Yogi and many of the Hanna-Barbera classic characters from the '60s travel in an ark. Their mission is to search for the perfect place. What this means is, they're on a crusade of sorts, to find a place where there's no smog, litter, or pollution in general.

It's an environmental cartoon decades before "Captain Planet" came along and it served as the pilot for the TV series, "Yogi's Gang".

The plot of the program features Yogi and the gang sailing through the skies in the Ark, named after Cap'n Noah. It's a different version of the Noah's Ark story. Throughout the show, the cast break out in song...most notable is "We're on Our Way to the Perfect Place".

One of the stops in search of the perfect place is the Saharah Desert where they later stumble upon an oasis...but the peaceful haven is interrupted when construction of an urban skyline is built...causing smog and air pollution...and trash and debris. Later, they end up in outer space...but even THAT is not the perfect place for very long. As the program came to a close, Boo-Boo, who had been trying to tell Yogi where the perfect place is all along, finally gets to announce it. Well, technically, Boo-Boo whispers in Cap'n Noah's ear and Noah makes the announcement of the perfect place.

One of the oddities of this program were the many appearances from characters that never even spoke one word of dialogue. Hanna-Barbera's early TV success, "Ruff and Reddy", were on board but neither character spoke. The same holds true for "Secret Squirrel". Mel Blanc, for whatever reason, was not in the voice cast and so John Stephenson gave voice to Mel's character, "Hardy Har Har", the gloomy side-kick of "Lippy the Lion". Allan Melvin returned to voice "Magilla Gorilla".

Daws Butler gave voice to the major players: Yogi Bear; Huckleberry Hound; Snagglepuss; Quickdraw McGraw; Baba Louie; Augie Doggie; Peter Potamus; Lippy the Lion; Lambsy; and Wally Gator. Butler also did the voice of Top Cat, a role that was voiced by Arnold Stang originally. Stang had did his vocal impersonation of Phil Silvers' Sgt Bilko character, the "con-artist" type, and so Butler, who also did a voice similar to that for Hokey Wolf, simply applied the Hokey voice for Top Cat. Stang was still among the living, though, because he returned to the role Top Cat in the 1985 series "Yogi's Treasure Hunt". Lambsy only had a line of dialogue, as did Lippy the Lion and Peter Potamus {incidentally, both Lippy and Peter were based on the voice of Joe E. Brown}

Don Messick was on hand as Boo-Boo; Atom Ant; So-So; and two minor speaking roles in the form of Moby Dick and Touchè Turtle.

Lennie Weinrib was Cap'n Noah.

John Stephenson, in addition to being Hardy Har Har, was also Doggie Daddy and Benny, the friend of Top Cat.

The program was a success and as mentioned earlier, it served as the pilot for the ABC TV series, "Yogi's Gang", in which Mel Blanc was on hand for the role of "Secret Squirrel".

Hi Jerry. I am anxiously awaiting your review of the JBT DVD after you watch it this weekend. I just got caught up on the others that I was behind on.  You are really going to enjoy the JBT I am sure.

Title: The Jukebox Tour DVD
Performer: Clay Aiken
Distributor: Jayne/HER Records, DVDs, and Tapes :lol

If nobody had ever heard of the term "Aikenize", i created that word {others elsewhere may take credit who don't read Claymaniacs much}. Anyway, in my mind, to Aikenize something means that singer Clay Aiken is involved somehow. Of course! Aikenize is simply a word used to describe the arrangement and or vocal performance of a song that is sung by Clay Aiken.

This Jukebox Tour DVD is filled with Aikenized versions of many, many pop and rock songs down through the years. Starting with the 1950s and running through latter-day stuff i'm not too much interested in.

The leather jacket and the jukebox are the visual hooks that Clay used for this tour. From the intro, Clay strolls out on stage and walks arm and arm with his two back-up singers and hits the jukebox...shades of Fonzie from HAPPY DAYS come to mind. He doesn't sing entire songs...there's no way he can...the concert would be too long and too vocally straining and so what Clay does is sing medley's. Bits and pieces of songs...throwing in an occasional full performance.

As stated, the leather jacket and jukebox are the big hooks for the '50s era. He starts off with "Twistin' the Night Away" and runs through "At the Hop"; "Johnny B Goode"; "Rockin' Robbin" which i feel was inspired by the 1930's song "Mockingbird Hill" with the tra-la la and tweetly-deet bird calls; from there he moves into '50s R&B "Great Pretender"; "Only You"; "Mr. Sandman"; and then goes into vocal rock with "That'll Be the Day" and then makes his way up on TOP of the piano for the song, "Great Balls of Fire" and he stays on top of the piano for "Rock and Roll Is Here To Stay". An interesting side-note, Ferlin Huskey did a parody of this song and called it "Country Music is Here To Stay" under the pseudonym Simon Crum.

The last song of that era that's on this DVD is "Unchained Melody", which is performed in it's entirety. But the '50s aren't quite over yet...Clay then goes into the Elvis medley. During this, he performs Aikenized versions of Elvis songs: "Love Me Tender" in which Clay is very Manilow-esque sitting at that piano! Then we see him perform "Hound Dog"; "Blue Suede Shoes"; "Don't Be Cruel"; a hip shaking "Heartbreak Hotel"; "Jailhouse Rock"; "Can't Help Falling in Love"; and "Suspicious Minds".

It's very interesting that Clay didn't perform Bill Haley's "Rock Around the Clock", a single that's credited with being the first 'rock and roll' song. Comparing the decades, the '50s had the most songs during the tour.

Clay off-screen gives some narration about the 1960s. I love this era the most. I don't know why...it must be the music!?! Anyway, he moves into a suit...he uses a ward-robe rack to change clothes...what i mean is, he ducks behind the ward-robe, that's placed on stage, to switch clothes that represent each era.

The '60s for the most part had happy music like the '50s did until you get to mid-late '60s when the protest era music came out and the mood changed. Interestingly, Clay by-passes that part of the decade and focuses mostly on R&B from Gladys Knight and other R&B singers plus he throws in some Petula Clark "Downtown"; the Monkees "Daydream Believer"; the Archies "Sugar Sugar"; The Beatles "Can't Buy Me Love"; and he starts laughing as he sings "Happy Together".

Things turn into an R&B mood when he sings "My Girl" and the Gladys Knight-Aretha Franklin segment with "Midnight Train to Georgia"; "Freedom" {i think that's the title??} ; and "Rescue Me". I fully expected one of his back-up singers to have some go-go dancing tattoo's and start belting out '60s lingo but it didn't happen. Perhaps Angela could've said "you bet your sweet bippy" and as Dick Martin would say on LAUGH-IN, look THAT up in your Funk and Wagnall's! :lol His back-up singers get to sing songs, too. Jacob sings "I Heard It Through the Grape-Vine". Another song they Aikenize is "I'll Be There". Clay also wears his fedora during some of the '60s segment.

I will confess that i didn't know much of the 1970's songs that Clay performed. I have heard of them through the years...but i didn't really KNOW them by name or even know who sung them. The only songs i DID recognize from this era was Frankie Valli's "Oh What a Night", Simon and Garfunkle's "Bridge Over Troubled Water"; and of course Barry Manilow's "Mandy". On that song he even winked as he was closing the song and he was grinning throughout much of the performance. So, i don't know if he was caught up in the fact that there he was, singing a Manilow song after all of those Manilow comparisons or if he knew Manilow himself was going to see his performance somehow. Something was going on during that performance but i can't quite tell what it was. There is also a segment in the '70s where they sit on bean bag chairs.

As most anyone who's ever read my reviews or has read anything i've posted knows, i'm a nostalgia nut and as a result, my interest starts to wane as the decades progress. I enjoyed the '70s even though i didn't know many of the songs by name...but the 1980's wasn't all that interesting as far as music goes. I feel this is why there wasn't too many medley choices for this decade. This decade opens up with a song called "When Doves Cry", also known as WDC. Clay and his group start out the song dressed in these choir robe things. On the DVD you can hear someone yell "take it off!". I had never heard of this song until i started being a Clay fan in 2004. He DOES take off the robe, as do the others, and they're dressed in '80s attire underneath. The vocal performance was great...the physical performance left me feeling a little nauseated but that's just me. Some like Clay doing that stuff, i'd prefer he not do that and i'll hope some will allow me the opportunity to have that opinion. Other songs performed were "All Night Long" and "Never Gonna Give You Up".

Around this time i believe he moved into the '90s because i saw him performing the Ricky Martin song "Living La Vida Loca". I laughed during most of it because it reminded me of those Czech Brothers on Saturday Night Live during the '70s: Steve Martin and Dan Aykroyd. The "two wild and crazy guys" with the wide lapels and the gyrating bodies :lol Another highlight is "I Can't Make You Love Me".

Well, all in all, i loved the DVD and it IS a tour i wished i could have seen personally since i study the past. I was amazed at the sound quality and the visuals...only a couple of times did the camera seem to go all over the place while he was singing.

Fantastic review Jerry, I agree with you on everything but WDC. Of course I love to watch him perform that song but don't really ecpect you to like it like it the way we women do. I am going to send you an e-mail about Mandy. At least what I think was going on. Anyway thanks for a great review!

Title: Kooky Kountry
Label/Number: K-Tel 1211-2
Performer: Various Artists

This 20 song collection of novelty songs is one of those one kind of albums that a person can live with or live without. The label, K-Tel, is famous for it's compilation projects. They're also notorious for their use of re-recorded songs. There are 20 songs on two CD's and only 3 of the 20 are the original recordings. A disclaimer on both the front AND back of the CD tell a consumer this: All Selections are new stereo recordings performed by the original artist. Selections marked with an (*) are the original recordings.

I went ahead and bought the CD anyway because of my weakness for novelty-comedy songs, whatever term a person wants to use is fine with me...a listener might even want to come up with a new name to describe the songs on here...just as long as the term isn't offensive to the fans of comedy songs is all i ask :lol

The reason i said that little joke is because, lets face it, novelty songs have narrow appeal and they're looked down on in the mainstream. The reason? Well, some people take their music WAY too seriously...others have no sense of humor and there are some who are just uncomfortable listening to a comedy song because to them they're embarrassing or corny. Anyway, there are some that are proud to admit they listen to novelty songs. And for those people, that is the demographic who the CD is aimed at.

As i previously stated, only 3 of the 20 songs on here are the original recordings but many of these re-recordings are so similar to the original, it isn't that bad. The only song a person MAY be dissapointed in is the version of "Take This Job and Shove It" by Johnny PayCheck. The performance wasn't his best, vocally. I don't know if it was the fault of the producer or what but it just lays there.

Ray Stevens makes an appearance on here with one of the 3 original recordings on this collection. His contribution in song is his 1957 single, "Sgt. Preston of the Yukon". Ray is doing an imitation of one of the Coasters, this is why he has that gravelly voice on some of his verses.

There is a wildly funny version of "Muleskinner Blues" by some group called The Fendermen. It blends Bill Monroe with the theme song of HEE-HAW. In case nobody knew, the HEE-HAW theme was based on Muleskinner Blues. That song was the second of the three original recordings on here. Larry Verne has the last original recording, "Mr. Custer".

The other songs are re-recordings. There's a version of "Hot Rod Lincoln" on here by a man named Larry Groce. Enos, from DUKES OF HAZZARD, has a song on here: "You Can't Rollerskate in a Buffalo Herd". Sonny Shroyer is his name. The song was written and recorded first by Roger Miller. In the case of Sonny Shroyer and a few others, these are the ONLY recordings of these songs and so the concept of re-recording doesn't come into play.

The rare song "Queen of the House, by Jody Miller, is on here. That follows "King of the Road", by Johnny Russell...interestingly, Roger Miller, who wrote and recorded that song first, is on here with "Dang Me". I had never considered "King of the Road" a novelty song. It's more or less a train song. It's not a funny song to me. Claude King is on here with "Wolverton Mountain" and Billy Edd Wheeler does his re-recording of "Ode to the Little Brown Shack Out Back". Ben Colder {Sheb Wooley} is here with "Almost Persuaded #2" and Little Jimmy Dickens opens up CD #1 with "May The Bird of Paradise Fly Up Your Nose". Roy Drusky closes CD #1 with "Peel Me a Nanner", which for those who don't know how to read rural slang, means "Peel Me a Banana". Charlie Walker's "Don't Squeeze My Sharmon" is based on the TV commercial catch-phrase "Pleeeease, don't squeeze the Charmin..." delivered by Mister Whipple {Dick Wilson} in dozens of commercials about Charmin toilet paper.

I give this CD 3 out of 5 stars. Some points were taken away from me because of the re-recordings and the lack of liner notes but it also gained a star {meaning that the CD got 2 stars from me as a whole} So, because it showcased some rare songs that are typically not found on other novelty song collections i gave it 3 stars.

The Track List

CD #1:

1. May The Bird of Paradise Fly Up Your Nose- Little Jimmy Dickens {originally #1-Country and #15-pop; 1965}

2. Tennessee Birdwalk- Jack Blanchard and Misty Morgan {originally #1-country and #23-pop; 1970}

3. King of the Road- Johnny Russell

4. Queen of the House- Jody Miller {originally #5-Country and #12-pop in 1965}

5. Muleskinner Blues- The Fendermen

6. Mr. Custer- Larry Verne {hit #1-pop; 1960}

7. Welfare Cadillac- Guy Drake

8. Almost Persuaded #2- Ben Colder {originally #6-country and #58-pop; 1966}

9. No Help Wanted- The Carlisles {originally #1-Country in 1953}

10. Peel Me a Nanner- Roy Drusky

CD #2:

1. Dang Me- Roger Miller {originally #1-Country and #7-pop; 1964}

2. Wolverton Mountain- Claude King {originally #1-Country and #6-pop; 1962}

3. Hot Rod Lincoln- Larry Groce

4. Take This Job and Shove It- Johnny PayCheck {originally #1-Country in 1978}

5. Ode to the Little Brown Shack Out Back- Billy Edd Wheeler {originally #3-Country and #50-pop in 1965}

6. Sgt. Preston of the Yukon- Ray Stevens

7. You Can't Rollerskate in a Buffalo Herd- Sonny Shroyer

8. The Credit Card Song- Dick Feller {originally #10-Country in 1974}

9. Don't Squeeze My Sharmon- Charlie Walker {originally #8-Country in 1967}

10. If You Can't Bite, Don't Growl- Tommy Collins {originally #7-Country in 1966}

Title: GMA DVD
Performer: Clay Aiken
Pseudo-Label: Meesa-Meesa CDs and DVDs

This latest fan DVD of Clay Aiken consists of his most recent appearance on the ABC-TV show "Good Morning America". This appearance consisted of the excited and jittery emotions of both Clay and the fans in anticipation of the Jukebox Tour getting underway. The DVD is filled with all the pre-tour excitement one might expect from a Claymaniac crowd. Even the weatherman gets into the Clay-dementia as do the female hosts of the Bryant Park Summer Concert series.

The interview segment was crisp, meaning that the audio was great. However, as the action slipped into the music, for whatever reason, the audio level didn't match the clearness of the first portion of the DVD. Clay's voice sounded distant as he was singing "Suspicious Minds"; "Twisting the Night Away"; and what we all want to be a single, "Coming Back For More". The sound wasn't bad or terrible, but it wasn't as crisp, or loud, as some parts of the DVD. This might be due to fact that maybe the concert performance was taped in person and it lacked the tweaking that a TV production can do to the sound?

There is a sound checking portion of this DVD, too. We see Clay singing "Suspicious Minds" and "Coming Back For More"...PLUS we see Clay "off-camera" as they say. Candid Clay...talking to band members and back-up singers. There IS a segment showing Clay and Jacob getting their picture taken...it looks as if Clay is giving people the "quiet" gesture as if it's a secret. There's also some footage of the two talking to each other [silent of course] and from the looks of Clay's facial expressions, Jacob MUST have said something naughty at the end as Clay was getting up from the where he and Jacob were sitting :lol

Thanks for sending me this DVD, Meesa! :wave

You're welcome Jerry!

Title: Hits I Missed...And One I Didn't
Performer: George Jones
Producer: Keith Stegall
Year of Release: 2005
Label and Number: Bandit 79792-2

As you can tell from the name of this CD, George performs songs that he passed on but were hits for others...plus it includes a song he nearly passed on but ended up recording and it revitalized his recording career.

There are 12 songs on here...mostly ballads. There is not a bad song on here...well, it's George Jones---what do ya expect??? It's interesting because some of the songs on here are so well-known by others, it's odd hearing the Jones "voice" put on them. The highlight for me is "The Blues Man", a duet with Dolly Parton. That song is track #3. Inside the CD cover, George tells little bits about each song and why he originally decided not to record them the first time around...however, he DID record "Pass Me By" on his 1974 GRAND TOUR album. "Pass Me By" is track #8 on here.

How about "Here In The Real World"!! Yes, the song that made Alan Jackson a house-hold name in country music back in 1990 was pitched to George FIRST...before Alan decided to record the song himself. Another revelation: "Skip a Rope", track #9. It's hard to believe that George was sent this song...which became a huge hit for Henson Cargill...Vern Gosdine's "If You're Gonna Do Me Wrong" is on here, track #5. All in all, this is a wonderful CD of songs that were never hits for George but were hits for others. The hook of the CD is that George had the opportunity of recording them first but never did...Mark Chesnutt's "Too Cold At Home" is BRILLIANT as is the version of the Randy Travis hit "On the Other Hand". So many 'new country' songs were sent to George first!!!

"Busted", a hit for John Conlee in country music and Ray Charles in R&B-Pop, is did here as a cajun song...Merle Haggard's "Today I Started Loving You Again" and Willie Nelson's "Funny How Time Slips Away" {a hit for Billy Walker} round out the remaining tracks of hits that George missed...the last song was a risky choice given the fact that George recorded this song 25 years earlier in 1980 and it has been called, routinely, the #1 Country Song of All-Time in many, many fan voted polls...and the vocal performance of that 1980 recording is a moment in time.

George himself, inside the CD cover-booklet, even reflected that the song is timeless and that he didn't wanna fool around with it...BUT with all of that set aside, George went on to re-record "He Stopped Loving Her Today". The song is wonderful...it doesn't have the trademark harmonica...but it retained the high soprano voice in the background as George delivers the narration. It is a wonderful job on a hard song to sing.

You can tell George's voice has changed...in some places it's deeper and in other places it's throaty...but it's still uncontrollable and unpredictable. The vocal blends are still there and the Lefty Frizell-type word stretching is also there. As of right now the CD was ranked #235 on Amazon.

Title: Hee-Haw: 10th Anniversary Celebration
Performers: The Whole Hee-Haw gang and a few guest artists
Distributor: Time-Life Video/DVD
Running Time: 96 minutes
Year of Release: 2005

This DVD is a celebration of a TV show that i grew up watching on many Saturday and Sunday afternoons. The Hee-Haw 10th Anniversary was originally broadcast on TV as a 2-hour show in 1978, when the show was celebrating it's 10th year in production. The DVD is of course commercial free and so the running time is less than 2 hours.

Throughout the bulk of the special, clips from past shows are highlighted. New material is also performed by the cast...including songs by the super-stars of country music at that time.

Hee-Haw's popularity is polarized. The elite and the snooty, frown on the show; critics hated it...and even some in the music business hated the show for causing country music to be branded "hillbilly" once again. However, viewers LOVED the show from the start. It ran on CBS-TV from the summer of 1969 until 1971...CBS, ignoring the ratings, decided to cancel the show but the re-runs that CBS had been airing from the spring and summer of 1971 were getting higher ratings. However, despite it's network cancellation, it was revived that fall in syndication and aired in a lot of markets on CBS affiliates...and the viewing public had no clue of the behind the scenes goings-on...to them, Hee-Haw had never left the air since it aired in the regular time-slot as before.

In syndication, Hee-Haw ran from 1971 until the summer of 1992. In total, 23 years: 1969-1992.

This DVD captures the show from 1978 when it was in it's 10th year. Several songs and jokes are aimed at the critics who predicted the show wouldn't last...there's even a song that the two hosts, Roy Clark and Buck Owens, perform called "Hee-Haw is Good Enough For Me" and joining the hosts is the animated Hee-Haw donkey.

The main cast are all featured throughout the DVD. Archie Campbell's "That's Good-That's Bad" skit from the first show is highlighted as is Junior Samples' legendary blooper as he tries to say the word "trigonometry". Not all the takes are shown...but plenty of them are. Junior was notorious for messing up his lines and his bloopers are MORE funny because you get the feeling he's unaware of all the mayhem going on around him. On Junior's sketches down through the years, you can actually hear off-stage laughter from stage-hands and directors as he's messing up his lines :lol

Dick Clark even admitted YEARS later that Hee-Haw's gimmick of airing bloopers from the cast is what inspired his and Ed McMahon's long-running NBC program, "Bloopers and Practical Jokes".

Don Harron is on hand playing his KORN news anchorman, Charlie Farqueson.

Gordie Tapp and Archie Campbell showcase the various versions of the song "You Was Gone!".

As far as the music...Kenny Rogers performs his new hit "The Gambler"; Charley Pride sings his new hit "Burgers and Fries"; Tammy Wynette is spotlighted...well, her various wardrobe and hair-styles throughout 1969-1977 are spotlighted...plus she sings her new hit "Womanhood"; Barbara Mandrell is on hand to sing "Sleeping Single in a Double Bed"; Mel Tillis performs and TALKS...with his stuttering...i've always liked Mel; Barbara shows off her banjo skills on the song "Rattler" performed along with Roy Clark; Grandpa Jones; Roni Stoneman; and Jimmy Henley; Grandpa and Ramona play the Bells; Larry Gatlin sings "Did Enough Dyin' Today"; Chet Atkins plays a guitar instrumental as animated farm animals dance and run along the screen; Tom T. Hall sings is new hit "What Have You Got to Lose"; Ronnie Milsap performs his hit "Let's Take the Long Way Around the World" and lastly Conway Twitty performs his hit "Your Love Had Taken Me That High".

Sandwiched between all of that NEW music are, as i stated, clips from the show's last 10 years. Grandpa Jones pays tribute to Stringbean. Buck Owens sings a medley of hits during a tribute to Don Rich, his former band-member and back-up singer in the Buckaroo's. Buck closes the medley with HIS new song, "Nights are Forever Without You", which had hit #27 on the country chart and was his first Top-40 country hit since 1975. It was also his first Top-40 for Warner Brothers, the label he went to in 1975 after having left Capitol, the label in which Buck had his LONG streak of hits.

This DVD is a must-have for Hee-Haws fans such as myself!! Everything, from the theme song to the corny jokes to the music to the beloved skits, it's all here!!

S-a-a-a-L-o-o-o-t!!

AC,

I am impressed with the thoroughness of your reviews.  You should do this professionally!! :clap

Prissy

PS:  I remember "Dang Me," "King of the Road," and some of the Kooky Kountry hits!! :lol

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Hello Prissy!! Thanks for saying that! B.C. which stands for "Before Clay"...well, B.C. i used to write reviews for Amazon. I wrote three new ones back in September. I think they helped me improve on my reviewer ranking because i'm now ranked at #1,940 when i used to be stuck in the #2,000's for so long. Out of the 218 reviews i have written on Amazon, i have 644 helpful votes. I use my real name on my reviews, too!

Anyway, i used to get fed up with negative critics because almost always their reviews were snooty if they didn't like something. Instead of saying what they didn't like...they'd insult the actor or singer and insult the consumers and do it in such a way as if to say: "I'm better than you and you won't catch ME spending my money on this stuff and anyone who would are stupid...".

I don't call critics who do that being very professional. So, when i started writing those reviews i made sure that 95% of the things i reviewed would be something i enjoyed talking about in the first place :lol and secondly, if i had anything negative to say, it would be strictly based on things beyond an artist's control. I rarely complain about album covers or how many songs are or are not on album...my only complaints through the years are if there's a special CD being released i expect some "extra's" like liner notes to be included or something.

Title: Looney Tunes-Golden Collection: Volume Three
Distributor: Warner Brothers
Principal Performers: Bugs Bunny; Elmer Fudd; Daffy Duck; Porky Pig; Tweety and Sylvester
Voices: Mel Blanc; Arthur Q. Bryant; Stan Freberg; Daws Butler; June Foray
Running time: 442 minutes; Color and B&W
Year of Release: 2005

IT'S COLASSAL!!! IT'S STUPENDOUS!! IT'S AMAZING!!! IT'S MAGNIFICENT!!! IT'S OUTRAGEOUS!!! IT'S...IT'S...VOLUME THREEE OF THE "GOLDEN COLLECTION".

Purposely introducing this review with such flair is in the tradition of Warner Brothers cartoons...especially the ones from the mid '40s through the early '60s.

This latest volume contains 4 DVDs with 15 cartoons on each...that adds up to 60 cartoons but that's not ALL folks {sorry about that}. We also get two very rare and highly sought after documentaries: "What's Up Doc: A Salute to Bugs Bunny" is shown in two parts. Part 1 is on DVD #2 and Part 2 is on DVD #3. This special is from 1990 and it contains a LOT of information about the 'career' of Bugs Bunny but what is the most treasured are the clips of the animators and directors who appear giving anecdotes and telling about what it was like working in cartoons, etc. etc. We hear from the "core" players: the directors- Friz Freleng; Bob Clampett; Chuck Jones; and Tex Avery; plus voice actor Mel Blanc. Several Bugs Bunny cartoons are featured on this 1990 special.

On DVD #1 we have as an extra: "Chuck Amuck", the 1989 documentary of Chuck Jones. This one is very rare, too! In it, we see Chuck talk about his career at Warner Brothers and he talks about his up-bringing. We also see him draw several of the cartoon characters. Mel Blanc makes an appearance as does Michael Maltese, a writer who wrote a TON of cartoons for Warner Brothers...he ALSO appeared on camera, in live-action form, in one of the early Porky Pig cartoons. He was playing a security guard at the Warner Brothers lot in "You Ought To Be In Pictures" in which Leon Schlessenger {the Looney Tunes producer} also appears as himself.  

Each DVD contains a theme of sorts. On DVD #1 Bugs Bunny is the featured star on the 15 cartoons...the highlights are "A Tree Grows in Manhatten" which traces the story of Bugs Bunny's life up to that point; "Easter Yeggs" in which Bugs takes over delivering easter eggs but ends up regretting it...the famous Duck Season-Rabbit Season joke is showcased in the cartoon "Duck! Rabbit, Duck!". "Wackiki Wabbit" is about Bugs on the run from two starving island dwellers...

On DVD #2, we see the cartoons that parodied Hollywood. "The Coo Coo Nut Grove" for example is a spoof of the night-club "The Coconut Grove". The Stork Club, a real night-club, is ALWAYS used as a favorite sight-gag in Warner Brothers cartoons when we see someone run into the Stork Club and see a bunch of storks sitting at tables.

Mel Blanc's peer, Daws Butler, became the "Voice of Hanna-Barbera" during the late '50s and early '60s and was never used on a Warner Brothers cartoon in the '30s and '40s since they already had Mel Blanc and a few others like Stan Freberg and Arthur Q. Bryan. Daws never DID establish himself as a Warner Brothers voice actor but he DID play bit parts for them in the 1950s and his most prized accomplishment for Warner Brothers is the cartoon that's #13 on DVD #2 entitled "The Honeymousers". In it, Daws gives voice to the Ralph and Norton characters...June Foray gives voice to Alice. It is noted in the animation world as the one of the most famous Warner Brothers cartoon shorts in which Mel Blanc didn't have a role in.

"Swooner Crooner" parodies Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby's careers. Frank or "Frankie" as he's called by the throng of adoring fans, is spoofed as a thin chicken...Bing appears as a pipe smoking duck...the women hens are all wearing socks and white shoes {bobby soxers}. Porky Pig is once again regulated as a co-star because both Frankie and Bing up-stage Porky's farmer character...the plot of the cartoon was Porky as a chicken farmer...and the sounds of crooner Frankie and Bing caused the hens to lay eggs by the thousands!!! :lol

This being a Clay Aiken site, one can't help but think of the Claymaniacs and Clayfans who "thud" and "swoon" at the site of Clay after we see these hens in this cartoon faint and fall over themselves with hearts in their eyes cooing "ahhh, Frankie!!" :lol

The extremely rare and much sought after rarity closes out DVD #2: "The Mouse That Jack Built". This cartoon features the voices of Jack Benny; Don Wilson; Mary Livingstone; Eddie Anderson; and Mel Blanc performing cartoon versions of their roles on Jack Benny's radio show. However, all of them are mice...well, except for Mel Blanc's character...he does the sputtering voice of Jack's jalopy, Maxwell. There is even a surprise guest at the end of this cartoon!

Porky Pig, the studio's original star, is the featured player on DVD #3. Porky also holds the distinction of being the most-used character in the cartoons. Once Bugs Bunny came along...and Daffy Duck...Porky was regulated to co-star status and would never again "star" in the cartoons he was in. He would more or less become a side-kick and straight-man to Daffy Duck. Porky's voice was originally done by Joe Doughtery...but he was replaced sometime in 1937 by Mel Blanc. Mel's voice as Porky was more comically delivered than Joe's was...Mel made the stuttering of Porky into a comedy schtick rather than as a speech impediment, which is how the original Porky sounded by Joe Doughtery. "Robin Hood Daffy" and "Claws for Alarm" are perhaps the best remembered cartoons on DVD #3 of Porky...

On DVD #4, it features a mixed bag of cartoons...it opens up with an early Daffy cartoon called "Daffy Duck and the Dinosaur" in which Daffy's pursued by a dinosaur BUT the actual star of the show in my opinion is Casper Caveman...a caricature of Jack Benny...Casper even has the Jack Benny "walk" with those swaying arms and over-confident strolling. he voice is even based on Jack's...and as if to not let anyone forget it's a parody on Jack Benny, the last words uttered by Casper Caveman as he looks into the camera is "goodnight, folks!" which was the closing phrase for Jack Benny throughout his radio career...

"Super Rabbit" of course is a parody of Superman...Bugs eats carrots that contain a secret ingredient that can make him fly...Jimmy Durante is spoofed in an early Tweety cartoon called "Gruesome Twosome". "Draftee Daffy" is about a man from the draft board delivering a draft notice to Daffy...or TRYING to deliver the letter!! This DVD also contains the Oscar winning cartoon "Birds Anonymous" as well as a Speedy Gonzales cartoon: "Gonzales Tamales". The last cartoon on DVD #4 is a Road Runner and Coyote chase-fest throughout the deserts of Western America.

Friz Freleng in one of the documentaries specifically pointed out that "We didn't make cartoons for children; we made them for adults". These Warner Brothers cartoons originally appeared in theatres...full of adults...and they would air before the main feature began. This is perhaps why on the back of the DVD cover it says: "Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume Three is Intended for the Adult Collector and May not be suitable for Children". Whoopi Goldberg appears at the start of every DVD giving the same 3 minute speech about the history of Warner Brothers cartoons and how offensive some of the characters may come across and how many of the jokes centered around racial or ethnic sterotypes but then she states that the cartoons are a product of their time and shouldn't be censored or edited.

This DVD is yet ANOTHER collection that cartoon lovers or animation historians should NOT be without!!!

That's NOT all, folks!

Title: The Songs: 1975-1990
Performer: Barry Manilow
Year of Release: 1990
Label: Arista

This 2-CD set contains 34 Manilow songs that were recorded throughout 1975-1990 although "Mandy" was recorded in 1974 and "Could It Be Magic" dates back to the early '70s.

Most of the songs on here were hits...a few of them were not...but were popular among Barry's fans. The 2-CD set contains a mini-booklet featuring Barry giving his thoughts of the songs plus it highlights what album each song was pulled from.

At the time of this CD's release, Manilow had sold over 20 million albums and singles. He had a huge following in the UK and for much of the early '90s he remained on extensive tours over in the UK. His biggest hit in England, ironically, isn't included on this collection. However, another hit in England, "Stay", IS included here.

Manilow, by 1985, had become a major star on Adult-Contemporary radio. This format played music and artists that were appealing to adults but the acts were considered pop/contemporary. In other words, artists that didn't appeal to the mainstream Top-40 crowd anymore. Manilow had become the #1 AC Artist in many polls. A lot of Manilow's 1980's hit songs were AC-driven. He had a few reach the Pop Top-40 but none cracked the Top-10 with consistency.

On CD #1, you will hear his biggest AC #1 hit. It was a 1984 hit entitled "Read 'Em and Weep". The song was #1-AC for 6 weeks. It was NOT his biggest selling hit. His 1978 "Copacabana" fills that category. Copa continues to sell...it spawned a movie and several plays. Copa is on CD #2, track 4.

"Keep Each Other Warm" became a big Top-10 AC hit for Manilow in 1989. The single also become his LAST Top-10 AC hit...although he would continue to chart with singles and CDs throughout the '90s and into the current millennium.

One of the highlights is 1979's "When I Wanted You". This is what i call Manilow's forgotten hit song. It was a big #1 AC hit and reached the Pop Top-20!! Yet it's hardly ever talked about or included on many Manilow compilation CDs. I love the song...from the day i first heard it on a Pop-Standards radio station in the mid 1990's...some 15 or so years AFTER the song was a hit. Another forgotten gem is "Bermuda Triangle", a Top-20 hit in England in 1980.

The CD closes with "London", a song from 1980 that wasn't a hit but his fans in England, naturally, love the song.

Barry Manilow: The Songs: 1975-1990.

THANKS FOR THE REVIEW OF BARRY MANILOW.  HE HAS BEEN A MAJOR RECORDING ARTISTS NOW FOR DECADES.  IT IS GOOD TO ONCE AGAIN TO SEE HIM RECORDING AND PLAYING LIVE CONCERTS. I ENJOYED SEEING HIM LAST YEAR WITH CLAY ON CLAY'S CHRSTMAS SPECIAL. I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE HIS NEW CD THAT IS OUT, MAY ORDER IT. 
geraldine

Title: Country Legends; Volume Eight and Volume Nine
Performers: Various
Format: DVD
Label: Time-Life
Year of Release: 2005

Time-Life has issued a series of DVD's which chronicle classic country music. I have Volume 8 and Volume 9. First we'll talk about Volume 8.

On this DVD we are entertained with country music circa 1979. In fact, the DVD is an actual TV special "Nashville Salutes America". Jerry Reed served as host and throughout this DVD you'll see the biggest names in country music at that time period.

At the time, Jerry Reed was a super-star in country music...after starring in several movies and doing many TV shows that typically have a pop audience. He opened the show with "East Bound and Down" and "It's Got to Come Out"...Lynn Anderson was featured next. Jerry Clower, one of my favorites, told some comedy stories. Contemporary-Country in the form of The Bellamy Brothers {decked out in hippie attire} appear to perform their two hits at the time: "If I Said You Have a Beautiful Body, Would You Hold It Against Me" and "Lovin' On". In fact, Jerry Clower and Jerry Reed introduce the Bellamy Brothers and Clower grabs Reed in a romantic embrace and starts to SING to him a piece of the Bellamy's song!!

Jim Ed Brown and his singing partner, Helen Cornelius, sing their hit called "Fools" and then perform Tom T Hall's "I Washed My Face in the Morning Dew".

A few of the highlights is watching the boozy-acting Jerry Reed make small talk between the songs...the Statler Brothers sing "The Movies" and "Thank You World". Roni Stoneman, from HEE-HAW, appears singing "Dirty Old Egg Sucking Dog"...a song which is just so silly that even SHE breaks down toward the end and starts laughing.

Getting somewhat serious, Bill Anderson walks out on stage...this is just one of the many highlights of the DVD. Bill performs "I Can't Wait Any Longer"...if you have NEVER heard this song before you're in for a treat. The title would suggest it's another typical country love song but it's not. It's Bill Anderson cooing love pleas with a disco rhythm. Whatever you might think about it, it DID show that he was reaching for a wider audience and it DID help him gain some popularity outside of country music for awhile. Late last year on WSM radio, Bill made the remark that some of his 'disco' songs were REALLY the work of his alter-ego, "Whisco" {Bill is known as "Whispering Bill" because of his soft voice}.

He then returns to more regular 'Bill Anderson' material with his singing partner, Mary Lou Turner. They both sing "Where Are You Going, Billy Boy" and "Sometimes".

The centerpiece of the whole DVD, for me at least, is Ray Stevens. He appears singing a shortened version of his 1966 hit "Freddy Feelgood" before launching into his current hit in 1979: "I Need Your Help, Barry Manilow". This is the ONLY documentation i have of Ray singing this hit song. As far as i know, this 1979 TV special and the TV show, "Pop! Goes the Country", might be the ONLY TV programs in which Ray performed this song.

Volume 8 of this series ran 80 minutes.

Moving along to Volume 9...

This DVD is actually two TV awards shows with some of the performance highlights included. First we have the 1980 Music City News Awards Show. Ray Stevens starts off the show singing "Shriner's Convention" and then he and Foster Brooks do a comedy routine about how the votes are tabulated for the awards. Lynn Anderson sings "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues" and then Jerry Clower does a comedy segment. Marty Robbins performs "All Around Cowboy", one of his last Top-40 hits. Larry Gatlin sings "We're Number One" while the Statler Brothers perform a message song: "Nobody Wants To Be Country". This song is about the Country vs Pop argument that has been alive and well for decades. It has it's peaks and valleys but the argument is always lying under the surface.

T.G Sheppard performs "Last Cheaters Waltz" and Barbara Mandrell performs "Crackers", a #3 hit for her in 1980, despite the song title. After she sang the song, the camera panned over to the Statler Brothers {they served as co-hosts with Ray Stevens and Lynn Anderson} and the Statlers were eating crackers. Good, corny country humor is sorely missed in today's country climate. This section of the DVD ends with Conway Twitty singing his latest #1 hit, "I'd Just Love to Lay You Down".

The second program on this Volume 9 DVD is the 1983 Music City News Top Hits of the Year. Ray Stevens and Tammy Wynette hosted this show...and they open the show with a duet together, "We Got the Music in Music City". The Oak Ridge Boys sing "Bobbie Sue". Conway Twitty is on hand to sing one of his latest #1 hits, "Slow Hand". David Frizzell performs "I'm Gonna Hire a Wino to Decorate Our Home" and then Ray Stevens performs "Country Boy, Country Club Girl". Alabama performs "Mountain Music" and the DVD ends with Tammy Wynette giving her take on "Always on My Mind", the Willie Nelson classic.

All in all, Volume 8 and Volume 9 of 'Country Legends' are wonderful!!! I'm a nostalgia nut and so just SEEING these performances from the past excited me...throw in a couple of my favorite singers into this equation and you have one thrilled and pleased classic country music lovin' fan!!

:clap :clap

Jerry, Wonderful reviews of the Barry CD and the Country Music DVD's. I always loved T G ("The Good") Sheppard ( did you ever hear him say that was  his name?)and to me Foster Brooks was one of the funniest comedians I have ever seen. The CD's and DVD's sound fantastic.

THANKS JANET AND CHARLENE :wave I LOVE THAT MANILOW CD and THOSE COUNTRY MUSIC DVD's!!! I HAVE A VOICE-ACTOR BOOK COMING IN THE MAIL SHORTLY FROM AMAZON! CAN'T WAIT :bouncy

THIS IS MY 45th "REVIEW" AND SO I THOUGHT I'D JUST GO BACK 45 YEARS, TO 1960, AND ANALYZE COUNTRY MUSIC'S #1 HITS THAT YEAR. 1960 WILL BE FOREVER KNOWN TO COUNTRY MUSIC HISTORIANS AS THE YEAR THAT THE FEWEST SONGS HIT #1. A GRAND TOTAL OF 4 SONGS HIT #1 IN 1960 ON THE BILLBOARD COUNTRY CHARTS.

AS 1959 ENDED, MARTY ROBBINS WAS AT #1 WITH "EL PASO". HE WAS #1 FOR 7 WEEKS WITH THAT SONG, RUNNING FROM 12-21-59 TO 2-8-60. MARTY WAS FINALLY KNOCKED DOWN FROM #1 WITH THE first #1 SONG OF 1960, "HE'LL HAVE TO GO", BY JIM REEVES. JIM REMAINED AT #1 FOR QUITE A LONG TIME...14 WEEKS...FROM 2-8-60 TO 5-16-60 WHEN REEVES WAS REPLACED AT #1 WITH HANK LOCKIN'S "PLEASE HELP ME I'M FALLING". THESE TWO SONGS WERE both #1 FOR 14 WEEKS...HOWEVER, HANK'S SONG WAS THE #1 SONG FOR THE WHOLE YEAR because IT WAS CHARTED LONGER IN THE TOP-30. LOCKLIN WAS CHARTED 36 WEEKS WHILE REEVES WAS CHARTED 32 WEEKS {COUNTRY DIDN'T HAVE A "TOP-40" CHART UNTIL THE 1-11-64 BILLBOARD CHART WHICH CONTAINED 50 SINGLES INSTEAD OF 30}.

IN THE FALL OF 1960, A new #1 SONG EMERGED REPLACING HANK LOCKLIN AT THE TOP. COWBOY COPAS WAS AT #1 WITH "ALABAM" AND REMAINED #1 FOR 12 WEEKS. THE 4th AND LAST SINGLE TO HIT #1 IN 1960 WAS FERLIN HUSKEY'S "WINGS OF A DOVE". THIS SINGLE HIT #1 ON 11-14-60 AND WAS #1 10 WEEKS BUT DURING THE 10-WEEK #1 TALLY, IT HAD DROPPED FROM #1 AND WAS REPLACED BY THE PREVIOUS #1, "ALABAM". "WINGS OF A DOVE" RETURNED THE FAVOR AND BOUNCED BACK TO #1 AGAIN.

THROUGHOUT THAT ENTIRE DECADE OF THE '60s, THE MUSIC CHANGED TASTES AND MOST OF THE ARTISTS WHO WERE TOP AT THE START OF THE DECADE WERE STILL AT THE TOP AT THE END OF THE DECADE.

HERE ARE THE TOP-25 HITS OF THE 1960's:

1. Walk On By; 1961- Leroy Van Dyke {19 weeks at #1}

2. Love's Gonna Live Here; 1963- Buck Owens {16 weeks at #1}

3. Please Help Me I'm Falling; 1960- Hank Locklin {14 weeks at #1; 36 weeks charted}

4. He'll Have to Go; 1960- Jim Reeves {14 weeks at #1; 34 weeks charted}

5. Alabam; 1960- Cowboy Copas {12 weeks at #1}

6. Don't Let Me Cross Over; 1962- Carl and Pearl Butler {11 weeks at #1}

7. Wings of a Dove; 1960- Ferlin Huskey {10 weeks at #1; charted 36 weeks}

8. Don't Worry; 1961- Marty Robbins {10 weeks at #1; charted 19 weeks}

9. Wolverton Mountain; 1962- Claude King {9 weeks at #1; charted 26 weeks}

10. Hello Walls; 1961- Faron Young {9 weeks at #1; charted 23 weeks}

11. Almost Persuaded; 1966- David Houston {9 weeks at #1; charted 25 weeks; the reason this song ranks #11 and not #10 for the decade is because Faron's song was in the Top-10 18 of those 23 weeks while David's song was in the Top-10 for 13 weeks during his 25 week chart run}

12. Once a Day; 1964- Connie Smith {8 weeks at #1; charted 28 weeks}

13. Devil Woman; 1962- Marty Robbins {8 weeks at #1; charted 21 weeks}

14. Tender Years; 1961- George Jones {7 weeks at #1; charted 32 weeks}

15. My Heart Skips a Beat; 1964- Buck Owens {7 weeks at #1; charted 26 weeks}

16. Mama Sang a Song; 1962- Bill Anderson {7 weeks at #1; charted 27 weeks; Buck's song was in the Top-10 for 22 of his 26 weeks while Bill's song was in the Top-10 for 21 of his 27 weeks as for the reason why Buck's 26 week charted song out-ranks Bill's 27 week charted song}

17. Still; 1963- Bill Anderson {7 weeks at #1; charted 27 weeks; Bill's other song out-ranked this one because "Mama Sang a Song" was charted in the Top-10 a week longer, 21 weeks, while this song was Top-10 charted for 20 weeks}   

18. Ring of Fire; 1963- Johnny Cash {7 weeks at #1; charted 26 weeks; ranked in Top-10 for 19 weeks}

19. I Guess I'm Crazy; 1964- Jim Reeves {7 weeks at #1; charted 26 weeks; ranked in Top-10 for 18 weeks}

20. There Goes My Everything; 1966- Jack Greene {7 weeks at #1; charted 23 weeks; ranked in Top-10 for 15 weeks}

21. Waitin' In Your Welfare Line; 1966- Buck Owens {7 weeks at #1; charted 19 weeks; ranked in Top-10 for 13 weeks}

22. She Thinks I Still Care; 1962- George Jones {6 weeks at #1; charted 23 weeks; 19 of those weeks in Top-10}

23. I Don't Care Just As Long as You Love Me; 1964- Buck Owens {6 weeks at #1; charted 27 weeks; 18 of those weeks in Top-10}

24. Understand Your Man; 1964- Johnny Cash {6 weeks at #1; charted 22 weeks; 17 of those weeks in Top-10}

25. Dang Me; 1964- Roger Miller {6 weeks at #1; charted 25 weeks; 15 of those weeks in Top-10}

Title: The Perils of Penelope Pitstop: The Complete Series
Year of Release: 2005
Format: DVD

In this 3-DVD set, we are entertained by the cartoon series "The Perils of Penelope Pitstop". The program featured a character from "Wacky Races", southern speaking Penelope Pitstop, as well as the 7 gangster Ant Hill Mob {with new members}. Their car, Chug-a-Boom, was called the Bullet Proof Bomb on "Wacky Races". They were always in one situation after another dreamed up by the villain of the series, The Hooded Claw. Aiding the Claw were his twin henchmen, The Bully Brothers, who rarely spoke anything except "Right, Claw!" in unison.

The concept of the series was about an heiress, Penelope, who was assigned a legal guardian, Sylvester Sneekly, to advise and help Penelope with her fortune. However, Sneekly wanted Penelope's money for himself and he paraded around as The Hooded Claw and tried one stunt after the other to kill Penelope so he could take the money for himself. Sneekly would get Penelope's money if anything happened to her.

The dialogue is irresistible. It comes complete with alliteration...much in the same way the announcer on "Wacky Races" called the race. In one episode, Pitstop is being tortured in the Prune Pickers Picnic Park...another time she's nearly flattened to death by a Powerful Pile Driver...at one point it looked for certain that Penelope would surely get smashed by that evil masher's smasher...the dialogue as you could see was made up of alliteration and tongue-twisting phrases.

Delivering these phrases was Gary Owens. He is the guy who did the narration of the show. Janet Waldo was the voice of Penelope Pitstop. Her biggest role was voicing Judy Jetson. The Hooded Claw {Sylvester Sneekly} was voiced by Paul Lynde. Paul Winchell was the voice of the Ant Hill Mob leader, Clyde, as well as the sentimental, Softy. Mel Blanc was the voice of Yak-Yak, the member of the mob who laughed at the sign of danger; Blanc was also the voice of the car, Chug-a-Boom, plus Blanc voiced the Bully Brothers {Right, Claw!}. Rounding out the cast was Don Messick. Messick was the voice of everyone else in the Mob: Zippy, Dum Dum, Snoozy, and Pockets. The 7 gangsters were based on the 7 dwarfs. Zippy could run real fast and he talked fast too; Dum Dum was the 'dopey' one of the group; Snoozy was the 'sleepy' one; Pockets could pull anything out of his pockets; Yak-Yak was like a clown...always laughing no matter the danger they faced; Softy was always crying; and Clyde was the no-nonsense leader who spoke like Moe Howard from the Three Stooges {Winchell, in fact, later went on to voice a cartoon version of Moe Howard on the series "Robonic Stooges"}.

The series only consisted of 17 episodes. These were shown in countless re-runs through the years. These 17 episodes are spread out on 3 DVD's. There are 6 episodes on the first two DVD's and 5 shows on the laast DVD. While 17 episodes could've been put on ONE single DVD i feel the reason it was manufactured like this was to fit in with the other 3-DVD sets of classic Hanna-Barbera cartoons which contain MORE than 17 episodes in total.

Voice Cast:
1. Gary Owens: Narrator

2. Janet Waldo: Penelope Pitstop

3. Paul Lynde: Hooded Claw/Sylvester Sneekly

4. Paul Winchell: Clyde, Softy

5. Mel Blanc: Yak-Yak, The Bully Brothers, Chug-a-Boom

6. Don Messick: Zippy, Dum Dum, Pockets, Snoozy

JERRY, I really enjoyed that list of 25 hits of the 60's. That was back when country music was country music-----not what most of it is now. Also I remember seeing a few Penelope Pitstop cartoons. It is amazing to find out who the voices were in a lot of the old cartoons. I never paid any attention to voice actors tiil you got me interested in them. I knew who Mel Blanc was and that was about it.  

Title: Barry Manilow Biography
Format: Television Program
Network: Biography Channel
Running Time: 50 minutes

About 10 minutes ago i walked away from my television set perfectly satisfied with the Barry Manilow Biography that i watched.

I had known Barry's story since i have his autobiography, "Sweet Life", but it was nice to see a visual documentation of his life-story finally.

The highlight of the program for me was seeing many of Barry's famed songwriting partners. Bruce Sussman, Marty Panzer, and Adrienne Anderson all made appearances. Clive Davis was a big part of the program as well. Also making appearances were Bette Midler and Melissa Manchester.

I felt that the Biography was well-done and shown Manilow's life in all aspects. It gave much needed exposure to the fact that Manilow didn't grow up on rock and roll music. A lot of times, this fact isn't discussed much. I liked the explanation Clive made about the critics who simply hated Manilow's music because it was "light" and "romantic" and wasn't "heavy" and "full of angst". In hindsight, hating music for those reasons is kind of petty and immature.

I have always liked his songs and, Clive, toward the end of the biography, hit the nail on the head. He said that when the audience listens to Barry sing, it doesn't enter their mind if he wrote the song or not...just that he's the one doing the singing is what's most important. 

At various times at the start of the program, they'd show clips of the waiting room at the theatre Manilow is playing at in Las Vegas and seeing all of the people waiting for Barry and HOW they were showing their fandom and support is basically just like the Clay fans.

It was interesting to see some still pictures of Tony Orlando as well. Tony recorded "Could It Be Magic" as a commercial single, first. A lot of the information on the biography tonight can be found in the priceless booklet that comes with Manilow's 1992 box set that i have. Again, it was the visual presentation of Manilow's story that i was interested in since i knew everything that was being discussed. An eye opener of a scene is the vintage clips of Barry and Bette Midler at the gay club in New York.

I hope the biography is available for sale one day. I'd love to have the DVD so i can watch it whenever i want!!!

JERRY,  I JUST READ YOUR REVIEW ON BARRY MANILOW'S BIOGRAPHY.  I AM A BIG FAN OF HIS TOO.  SOME OF YOUR SHARED INFORMATION I DID NOT KNOW ABOUT HIM.   DID'T HE WRITE AND SING THE THEME SONG FOR "AMERICAN BANDSTAND"?  I AM SO GLAD TO SEE HE HAS A NEW CD OUT NOW.  HE IS AN INCREDIABLE ENTERTAINER!  I REALLY EJOYED YOUR REVIEW.  SURE HOPE YOU CAN OBTAIN A TAPE OF THE BIOGRAPHY.

HELLO CHARLENE!!! I'M GLAD YOU LIKED MY REVIEW AND I HOPE A&E OFFERS THIS SHOW ON DVD...I'D CERTAINLY BUY A COPY!!! THIS CD YOU MADE REFERENCE TO THAT HITS THE STORES ON TUESDAY IS HIS FIRST STUDIO PROJECT SINCE "A CHRISTMAS GIFT OF LOVE" BACK IN 2002.

YES, HE WROTE THE LYRICS TO THE AMERICAN BANDSTAND THEME SONG...THE MUSIC HAD ALREADY BEEN WRITTEN BACK IN THE 1950's WHEN THE SHOW DEBUTED. THE SONG WAS CALLED "BANDSTAND BOOGIE" AND IT IS ON HIS 1975 ALBUM THAT I HAVE ON CD CALLED 'TRYIN TO GET THE FEELING AGAIN'. I DON'T KNOW IF he ACTUALLY sang THE THEME SONG FOR THE SHOW BUT HE did CO-WRITE THE LYRICS AND SANG IT ON HIS 1975 ALBUM...BUT I DON'T KNOW IF IT WAS HIS VOICE THAT WAS HEARD EVERY WEEKEND ON THAT SHOW OR NOT. IF IT WAS, ARISTA SHOULD HAVE RELEASED A COMMERCIAL VERSION OF "BANDSTAND BOOGIE" AND HAD A HIT WITH IT.

AC,

These songs are all such terrific songs.  The only CD's I have bought in recent years are Clay CD's, but I may have to break down and buy a Barry Manilow CD.  Are they a special price this week?

Prissy

Title: "Tom and Jerry: Spotlight Collection, Volume Two"
Format: DVD
Running time: 320 minutes

I have to say that i didn't buy Spotlight Collection, Volume One. Why?? Because i wasn't too sure about it from all the reviews i had read on Amazon. However, when i spotted Spotlight Collection, Volume Two at Wal*Mart, i grabbed it up.

I have been a fan of Tom and Jerry for YEARS and YEARS. I have enjoyed watching their many exploits on TV in all of their visual appearances. The classic cartoons feature a more shaggier looking Tom, and smaller as well...resembling an actual house-cat than in later years. Jerry, on the other hand, basically looks the same but his tail is a bit longer in the earlier cartoons and in some cartoons Jerry's tail lays on the floor...which is a character trait the more familiar looking Jerry of later years didn't have. As DVD #1 progresses, we see the refinement in Tom's look...he goes from a furry house cat to a adult-like person who happens to be a cat...only when he chases Jerry in later cartoons is he on all-fours. Typically in these cartoons, Tom walks like a human.

All of the major players are here: Tom and Jerry of course...we also have a variety of female cats that Tom fell in love with and we also have Tom's main rival, Butch, the black alley-cat. Also not to be forgotten is the owner of Tom, the black woman only shown from the waste down who had the name of "Mammy Two Shoes". Spike, the bull-dog, is also here as is the little duck, who would go on to be "Yakky Doodle" in made-for-TV cartoons from Hanna-Barbera. Spike rarely spoke...and in SOME cartoons he was also called "Butch", which was also the name of the alley-cat enemy of Tom. Butch Bulldog had a deep, bellowing voice...while Spike Bulldog sounded like Jimmy Durante. That is how you can tell the two identical bull-dogs apart. Butch was also more gruff and mean in his attacks of Tom.

This is a 2-DVD set. On DVD #1 we are treated to 20 classic cartoons. In the cartoon "Dog Trouble", we are introduced to the bulldog character. In early adventures, the dog was much more quick on his toes and was played like a rabid, mad dog with sharp teeth. In later adventures, the dog was more comical and typically had his son, Tyke, to watch out after. Spike and Tyke were the inspiration for "Auggie Doggy and Doggie Daddy" years later.

"Puttin' on the Dog" is another madcap romp with Tom, Jerry, and the Dog. This time, Tom sneaks into a dog pound wearing a dog mask. One of the funniest scenes in the cartoon was when the mask falls off Tom's head...the bulldog looks at the mask laying on the ground...then looks over at Tom who ducked his head below his shoulders...making the bulldog think that was a real dog's head laying on the ground. Bulldog looks at the "head" and then over at Tom and then looks back at the "head" and then the bulldog lets out with a high-pitched whail of a scream: "AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" :roflmao :lmao

In "Fine Feathered Friend", Jerry hides out in a barn under a chicken. Periodically in an effort to catch Jerry, Tom pokes the chicken with a fork. The tables are turned and the chicken ends up poking Tom with a fork and riding him off into the sunset. In "The Lonesome Mouse", Tom and Jerry actually speak in legitimate sentences instead of hollars and screams!!! This is a rare cartoon and considered a classic simply because of the two characters speaking dialogue. In "The Cat and the Mermouse" the action shifts to the ocean where Tom not only chases Jerry but ends up being chased by a sword fish as well as almost being devoured by an octopuss. The first cartoon, "Puss Gets the Boot", was the first cartoon to feature the duo...and in the cartoon, Tom was called Jasper. Mammy Two-Shoes makes her appearance...she is voiced by radio actress Lillian Randolph. She was famous for playing "Birdie" in the GREAT GILDERSLEEVE radio show.

On DVD #2 we are teated to the later classics of Tom and Jerry. "Little Quacker" and "Just Ducky" feature that little duck. One of my all-time favorites, "The Missing Mouse", is on here. This was is about a white mouse who escapes a laboratory. It's said he's consumed enough explosives to blow up an entire town. I think Bill Thompson is the voice on the radio giving out the news bulletin in this cartoon. Anyway, Jerry hears this and after having white dye spilled on him, he decides to pretend to be the dangerous mouse. Later, the real mouse shows up...and for those who've seen this one you know what's to come :lol

On "Cruise Cat", Tom is to keep any mouse from getting on board a cruise ship. Paul Frees is the voice of the captain. As in many of their adventures, irony often happens and Tom ends up in trouble either by facing a firing squad or being thrown into a cell or facing other punishment when his schemes to catch Jerry back-fire.

"Texas Tom" is the most famous cartoon on DVD #2. In it, Tom acts like a cowboy to impres a female cat. Tommy Duncan, one of the Bob Wills Texas Playboys, is heard singing "If You're in Texas, Look Me Up" as Tom lip-synchs. Jerry, though, likes to play with the turn-table speed and we see Tom sing high like a chipmunk and as low as a baritone.

This DVD also comes with extra's but they're not loaded with them. One annoying aspect about this DVD is Whoopi Goldberg's appearance at the start of each DVD. She is here telling us that it's OK to watch these cartoons but warns us about the violence and some of the racial themes in the cartoons... highlighting the Mammy character specifically. On the back of the DVD cover it says: "Intended for the Adult Collector and May not be suitable for Children". If that wasn't bad enough...they have Goldberg blasting that mantra. She also appears on other cartoon collections, too. I just don't get what her appearance on these DVD's means to the fans or the collector's anyway. She's not telling us anything we don't already know :lol :lol

The bottom line is this collection is wonderful and so damn hilarious!!! 38 classic Tom and Jerry cartoons!!! ENJOY!!!

Title: Music and Passion
Performer: Barry Manilow
Format: DVD
Running Time: 158 minutes

Music and Passion...the name of it immediately brings to the minds of Manilow fans, "Copacabana", or "At the Copa", or just simply "Copa". Manilow has made that 1978 hit song into an empire of it's own. Stage shows and musicals and a 1985 TV movie were all based on "Copa", which told the story of Tony, Lola, and Rico. At the Copa, as the song goes, music and passion was the fashion there...

This "Music and Passion" show is NOT based on anything Copa-related...although the name can surely be cross-promoted with Copa merchandise. Manilow signed a contract with the Las Vegas Hilton to play there exclusively. As a line from one of the songs goes, ..."and i'm here to stay...", it shows the audience and the people at home watching this DVD that Manilow will be a mainstay in Vegas for quite awhile.

On this DVD we are treated to a black and white "opening" backstage. A mini-tour of the backstage area and the Hilton is spotlighted. From there we launch into the music!! Mixing abbreviated versions of his legendary hits {called medley's} with full-length versions, too, sprinkle in some contemporary material from this century {music from his 2001 CD "Here at the Mayflower" and his current CD from this year, "Greatest Songs of the '50s"}. One of the highlights among several is the monitor at the top of the stage that plays the first half of Barry singing "Mandy" on the Mac Davis show in 1975...then the curtain rises to 2006 Manilow taking over with the song...then ending "Mandy" by launching into the last verses of "Could It Be Magic".

"See the Show Again" is marvelous!!!! It was an album track on his 1976 "This One's For You" album. He even hits those growl notes as i call it when he sings the title line. Afterward he starts to talk of American Bandstand. This launches us into the Fifties Medley where he sings his 1975 "Bandstand Boogie", which was written using the actual melody of the TV show's theme. In other words, Manilow and company wrote the words to the music that already existed. An added gimmick-attraction to the show are the use of extra's to help tell a story...like on "Bandstand Boogie", several women dressed as teenagers are prancing around on the stage.

Manilow sings "Venus" after he is introduced on stage as Frankie Avalonoe. He then performs "Love is a Many Splendored Thing" and his current hit single, "Unchained Melody" {which hit #22-R&R AC and #20-Billboard AC} :clap

The Mayflower Medley starts up next...this consists of his 1988 AC hit, "Brooklyn Blues", and that sets up the story for the medley of songs about the apartment building in Brooklyn where Manilow lived...called the Mayflower. "Do You Know Who's Livin' Next Door" blends into "Come Monday" and then "They Dance!". Manilow wrote music AND words to the latter two songs. That Latin "They Dance!" song launches into a dance medley...consisting of "Boogie Wonderland" which was a hit for Earth, Wind, and Fire and their singing partners, The Emotions...then Manilow performs "Hot Stuff" and "Signed, Sealed, Delivered" before closing the Mayflower Medley at the point of where he left off with "Brooklyn Blues".

Classic Manilow is showcased again, previously seen earlier on the DVD with "Mandy", "It's a Miracle"; "Could It Be Magic", "Daybreak"  and "Can't Smile Without You". This time around it's his show-stopping "Weekend in New England", his hit from early 1977. "If I Can Dream" is a patriotic/brotherhood kind of song. Thaat is followed up by his haunting rendition of his 1982 hit "Somewhere Down the Road".

If people bought Manilow's new CD at Wal*Mart, for the first several weeks they could've gotten a free EP to go along with it...an EP is an extended play "single" with more than 2 songs but shorter than an LP, which stood for long-play album back in the vinyl days. This free EP contained 5 songs...2 new and the other 3 classics from the 1970's. The EP was called...what else...Music and Passion! In it, the two new songs are dance songs...one of those dance songs serves as the "theme" for Manilow's whole Vegas experience...and it follows "Somewhere Down the Road" on the DVD. "Here's to Las Vegas" is the song i'm speaking of. It pays tribute to Vegas and name-drops the likes of Sinatra, Elvis, and Jerry Lewis.

He quickly launches into his most-requested song, "I Write the Songs". To this day, that melody of the song serves as Manilow's introduction music on many talk-shows and TV programs. Afterward we have "Copacabana". You didn't think Manilow would forget THAT song???? After the Copa and the dance routines, he sings a very short piece of "It's a Miracle" before he comes out for his encore...he sings "One Voice" a song of his from 1979...the performance on this DVD of that song is totally acapella...no music at all!!!

All in all, it was a wonderful DVD. There is a second DVD included here...Bonus Material. One program will take you back-tage at the Hilton. The other DVD goes behind the scenes to show how the PBS special was made.

 AC; GREAT REVIEW! I HAD ASSUMED IT CAME IN VHS.  DVD IS EVEN BETTER.  SOUNDS LIKE HE PUT HIS ALL INTO THE LAS VEGAS SHOW.  I DIDN'T KNOW "UNCHAINED MELODY" WAS RELEASED AS A SINGLE.  WELL, I AM GOING TO ORDER THE DVD FOR SURE.

JERRY, WHAT A GREAT REVIEW. I SURE WOULD LOVE TO HAVE THAT DVD. MAYBE ONE OF THESE DAYS I WILL BUY IT.  HE IS A WONDERFUL ENTERTAINER AND I GUESS  YOU KNOW HE SIGNED A NEW CONTRACT. HE WILL BE IN VEGAS TILL 2008 I THINK IT IS.

THANKS FOR THE COMMENTS ABOUT THE MANILOW REVIEW!! I SAW SOME OF THE DVD's AT WAL*MART BUT I THINK THOSE DON'T CONTAIN SOME OF THE STUFF THAT WERE AVAILABLE ON THE DVD's THAT I PRE-ORDERED.

Title: THE ESSENTIAL GEORGE JONES
Year of Release: 2006
Label: Epic/Legacy

This collection contains 40 songs from George Jones on 2 CD's. The material ranges from his very first recording in 1954, "No Money In This Deal", and stops at "Choices" from 1999. However, much like in the past, there can never be an essential collection since a few songs are always left off. A few that needed to be on here but aren't are: "Golden Ring" and "Near You", both were #1 singles with Tammy Wynette. Also missing is "Who's Gonna Fill Their Shoes" from 1985, which by many standards, is considered a classic from his lengthy catalog of songs.

I love the music...i just disagree with the "essential" title since a few, as mentioned, were not included here. I am surprised, though, by the inclusion of album songs...it would make a negative critic wonder WHY include album songs when there is such a large body of HIT songs to choose from. Then again, this being an "essential" collection and not a "hits" collection, i can understand the inclusion because the songs are GREAT!! You will notice that the CD fast-forwards through the years of 1965-1971. So, we don't get to hear "Love Bug" or "Walk Through This World With Me" or "When The Grass Grows Over Me"...or no "A Good Year for the Roses".

The CD spotlights NONE of his songs for MCA, 1991-1998. It concentrates on basically everything else, though. On CD #2, when it gets to song 15, his 1981 #1 single "Still Doin' Time", this is where the song choices became spotty and randomly selected. His duet hits during 1982-1984 aren't on here. After 1981's "Still Doin' Time" we hear his 1984 #3 hit "You've Still Got a Place in My Heart". This is a welcome addition because in 90% of other collections, 1984 is represented by "She's My Rock" and they forget "You've Still Got a Place in My Heart". After the 1984 hit we are treated to his #1 from a year before, 1983's "I Always Get Lucky With You".

The last three songs, 18, 19, and 20, are obvious inclusions: "The Right Left Hand", which hit #8 in early 1987; his #5 1989 hit "I'm a One Woman Man"; and jumping a decade later, his #30 hit "Choices" from 1999. There are no real complaints other than the usual gripe about George having too many great songs that there could never be a definitive collection made...here are the songs included on this CD. After the year is the song's peak position on the charts:

1. No Money in This Deal; 1954
2. I'm Ragged But I'm Right; 1955
3. Why Baby Why; 1955- #4
4. Just One More; 1956- #3
5. Color of the Blues; 1958- #7
6. White Lightnin; 1959- #1
7. Out of Control; 1960- #25
8. You're Still on My Mind; 1962- #28
9. The Window Up Above; 1960- #2
10. Tender Years; 1961- #1
11. She Thinks I Still Care; 1962- #1
12. A Girl I Used To Know; 1962- #3
13. The Race is On; 1964- #3
14. We Must've Been Out of Our Minds; 1963-w/Melba Montgomery- #3
15. Take Me; 1972-w/Tammy Wynette- #9
16. We Can Make It; 1972- #6
17. Loving You Could Never Be Better; 1972- #2
18. What My Woman Can't Do; 1973- #6
19. A Picture of Me Without You; 1972- #5
20. Nothing Ever Hurt Me; 1973- #7

CD 2:

1. The Grand Tour; 1974- #1
2. Once You've Had The Best; 1974- #3
3. We Loved It Away; 1974-w/Tammy Wynette- #8
4. The Door; 1975- #1
5. These Days I Barely Get By; 1975- #10
6. Memories of Us; 1975- #21
7. I Just Don't Give a Damn; 1975- #92
8. A Drunk Can't Be a Man; 1976
9. Stand on My Own Two Knees; 1976
10. The Battle; 1976- #16
11. Someday My Day Will Come; 1979- #22
12. He Stopped Loving Her Today; 1980- #1
13. If Drinkin' Don't Kill Me; 1981- #8
14. I've Aged Twenty Years in Five; 1980
15. Still Doin' Time; 1981- #1
16. You've Still Got a Place in My Heart; 1984- #3
17. I Always Get Lucky With You; 1983- #1
18. The Right Left Hand; 1987- #8
19. I'm a One Woman Man; 1989- #5
20. Choices; 1999- #30 

George Jones during the 1980's! This is the way George appeared during the 1980's, the decade that i was introduced to his career and music...

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jerrytoons/george20jones.jpg)

This is George Jones circa late 2005 during a publicity shoot for his current CD "The Hits I Missed...And One I Didn't"

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News update: Manilow's DVD hit #3 on the DVD sales chart!!!
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Title: Everything is Beautiful-A Brighter Day
Artist: Ray Stevens
Writer: Ray Stevens
Format: 45 rpm single
Year of Release: 1970
Chart peak: #39-Country; #1-pop; #1-AC

This single was a milestone in the career of Ray Stevens. He had serious hit singles prior to this...but THIS one is what most pop audiences remember him for. Ray has had success in pop. country, gospel, and AC...in addition to serious music, Ray of course is most widely known as a comedian and a singer of novelty songs.

This single, though, was his biggest non-comedy hit. It sold over three million copies world-wide and won Ray a GRAMMY for 'Best Male Pop Vocal Perfomance'. The song, as the story goes, was an accident. Having been picked to host a summer TV series for Andy Williams, who had a variety show on TV that was out of production in the summers, the network picked Ray! Needing a theme song, Ray wrote "Everything is Beautiful" in 3 days. The exposure on the show lead to his label, Barnaby, who had signed him to a contract that same year, 1970, to rush-release a single! In fact, only hard-core Ray fans such as i know this, but Barnaby and Ray had already recorded an album to be slated for release and be promoted as his debut for Barnaby. That album 'UNREAL' surfaced later in 1970.

Anyway, after the explosion of interest in Ray's new song, the 45 single was released, backed with the gospel flavored "A Brighter Day", also written by Ray. The single flew up the Billboard Hot 100...reaching #1. It was his first #1 pop hit...his first #1 ever...AND it was a serious song!! The album also did well...the 'EVERYTHING IS BEAUTIFUL' album hit the Top-40 on the Billboard Top-200. 

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/claycrazy/Stevens20Ray.jpg)

Nowadays, Ray is still recording songs and releasing comedy music videos on DVD. His latest single, "The New Battle of New Orleans", is only available as a download as of now! Hopefully it will surface in a more traditional way later this year!!!

These two songs can be found on a few gospel-oriented Ray Stevens CD's. "Great Gospel Songs" from CURB in 1996 is the first place to look!! Also, the 2-Album on one CD set from last year called "Everything Is Beautiful" / "Unreal".

Album: Even Now
Artist: Conway Twitty
Label: MCA
Year of Release: 1991

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/AC-Toons/c54233on171.jpg)

This album from Conway Twitty came along in 1991. It is not widely known about because MCA and all of country music for that matter was amidst the 'new country' take-over that was firmly in place by early 1993. This album is noted for containing Conway's final radio hit, the bouncy "She's Got a Man on Her Mind", which reached #22 in Billboard and #16 in Radio and Records in the summer of 1991.

There was also another single from this album...one that MCA released late in 1991...the haunting "Who Did They Think He Was", which was made into a wonderful music video in early 1992. That single, however, didn't reach the Top-40 portion of the music charts. In Billboard, after a 9 week run, it peaked at #56...it did a little better in Radio and Records...reaching #45...still not inside the "Top-40". I feel the single would've gained more airplay had there been a concentrated effort on MCA's part to promote the single...but again, even without airplay, Conway was still selling concert tickets and his catalog of music was still selling. I feel country radio was also afraid of "Who Did They Think He Was" because of the message it was sending. It is still a powerful performance and i am also glad i have that rare music video of the song in my collection.

The other 8 songs are great...one that should have been released as a single is track #9, "It's Such a Heartache". It had all the ingredients, i think, for a hit country song at that time...one that would've gotten more airplay than "Who Did They Think He Was" got. I also love "Everytime I Think It's Over", which is a ballad that contains a great hook line 'so everytime i think it's over, i think it over again'. It's a great song. "Even Now", the title track, has a haunting melody and a wonderful performance! In the sad song department, "Life's Too Short No Matter How Long It Lasts", track #6...it's the story of life and death and how things go in cycles. Up-tempo, bouncy material is abundant on every other song...not only with "She's Got a Man on her Mind" but also "Someday You'll Love Me"; "You Put It There"; "Let the Pretty Lady Dance"; and "It's Such a Heartache". The ballad "She's in Love" reminds us that she's in love...but as Conway points out, she's not in love with HIM...but she's in love with someone else.

All in all, another great Conway album. Although it lacked the commercial power of it's predecessor, 1990's CRAZY IN LOVE, "EVEN NOW" is still a wonderful listen...1991 marked 36 years of recording for Conway {his first sessions in 1955 for SUN Records were unreleased until years later} and when you look at it in that context, EVEN NOW is beyond great...it's remarkable.

Album: Double Trouble
Artists: George Jones and Johnny PayCheck
Year of Release: 1980, 1996
Label: EPIC
Reissue Label: Razor and Tie

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/AC-Toons/double-trouble.jpg)

I have finally gotten around to reviewing THIS party album as i call it. I call it a party album because it is mostly up-tempo classic rock and novelty songs re-made by George and Johnny. This album was inspired by the popularity of their recurring duet success going back to 1978's "Maybelline", a previous hit for Chuck Berry.

PayCheck meanwhile had been in the music business since the 1950's...he had been recording since the 1960's. He gained fame in the early 1970's with a streak of hits on EPIC with Billy Sherrill. For whatever reason, he never gained mainstream popularity {with a pop audience} until the 1977 single "Take This Job and Shove It" was released...hitting #1 for 2 weeks in January 1978. This set in motion PayCheck's legacy...from that point forward, all the blue collar workers would always list the 'shove it' song as their personal favorite because it said what many people would LIKE to say to their employers. In a fantasy world, it's one of the top fantasies...the idea of telling off your employer and walking off your job without care or concern of the consequences.

George Jones, on the other hand, had been a mainstream star since the mid 1950's. Twenty some years into his career he and Johnny PayCheck teamed up again {PayCheck had previously been a band-member of George's band, The Jones Boys}. "Maybelline" was their first hit single. It hit the Top-10 in early 1979...none of the follow-up singles would match that success BUT they did manage to reach the Top-40 three more times during 1979-1981.

This album is a fun album...just look at the album cover!! The opening song, a hit in 1980, sets the tone: "When You're Ugly Like Us You Just Naturally Got to Be Cool". They cover "Along Came Jones" and their "Proud Mary" is from 1979's MY VERY SPECIAL GUESTS album George did. A previous hit for Jim Ed Brown, "You Can Have Her", was a wonderful gospel-flavored single...Chuck Berry is covered again in this collection: "Tutti Frutti"...this song features George delivering the R&B nonsensical phrase "whop bop a loo bop a whop bam boom" :lol

After all the mayhem and insanity contained within many of the songs here, it closes with the serious "You Better Move On".

This album arrived in 1980, the "comeback" year for George Jones with the I AM WHAT I AM album and the single "He Stopped Loving Her Today".

The hit songs on this album:

Maybelline: #7; 1979
You Can Have Her: #14; 1979
When You're Ugly Like Us: #31; 1980
You Better Move On: #18; 1981

Subject: Benny Hill
Occupation: British comedian
Born: 1924
Died: 1992

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/AC-Toons/benny-hill.jpg)

This is an early publicity pic for Benny in the early 1950's.

The following picture was taken during the early '70s. Benny is in character as Chinese immigrant, Chow Mein.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/AC-Toons/BennyHillChow.jpg)

Benny Hill, for me, was a great late-night accident. A long time ago, somewhere in the late '80s, i was watching TV during summer break from school. I stumbled upon a program that perked my interests...a silent sketch was running...in super-speed, too. I remember laughing at what i saw. Then, in the next scene, Benny was standing all by himself talking to the audience...reciting a limmerick, typically one filled with double-entendre and burlesque imagery. At the time i thought his British delivery was for laughs...but little did i know Benny Hill WAS British!! :lol :lol

His TV show, the one everyone knows about, ran here in the United States from 1979-1989. In England it had began in 1969. His career, though, started on local BBC networks...those programs are available on DVD...billed as "The Lost Years" with various selections under that banner. The move to Thames Television in 1969 is the era in Benny's career that started his world-wide success. His TV series was seen by over 20 million viewers in England...his show was ranked in the Top-20 most watched programs of the entire 1970's and 1980's. Nervous tension and the desire to please a vocal minority {feminists, politcal correct advocates} caused his program to get canceled in 1989 after a 20 year run.

This image is Benny and his most-famous cast of HILL's ANGELS...for those who didn't know, that was the group name of the scantily-clad women who were featured in many of his skits. Regulars on his earliest episodes was a singing group known as The Ladybirds. A&E Video has issued several DVD collections of Benny's Thames TV episodes...i'd highly recommend any or ALL of their Benny Hill projects in your collection. There was also a collection on VHS several years ago from HBO...those were based on his mid '80s episodes...these A&E DVD's spotlight full-length programs {the shows that ran in America were all edited programs of various comedy sketchs taken from Benny's TV shows for Thames}.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/AC-Toons/bennyhill.jpg)

In the link below, you can read more technical information about Benny...the comedy he is known for...and the pressure he faced in his later years with the mounting political correctness and straight-laced network executives, critcs, media, etc.

http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/H/htmlH/hillbenny/hillbenny.htm

JERRY.
GREAT REVIEW OF BENNY HILL!  MY FAMILY AND I USE TO WATCH HIS SHOW EACH TIME IT WAS ON!  HIS SKITS WERE HILARIOUS!  I HAVE OFTEN HOPED FOR RERUNS OF HIS SHOW.
HE AND HIS FAN CLUB OF WOMEN, IS WHAT I LAUGHED SO HARD AT.  THANKS FOR REMEBERING HIM IN YOUR REVIEWS.

Album: Greatest Hits
Artist: Ray Stevens
Year of Release: 1983
Label: RCA

Ray Stevens recorded for the RCA label during 1980, 1981, and 1982. There were three albums released on him in addition to this GREATEST HITS offering in 1983. The collection of songs, however, does not represent much of a glimpse into his RCA material. There are 10 songs on here...only two songs originate from 1980 and the remaining titles showcase his classic songs of the late '60s through the mid '70s while on the MONUMENT and BARNABY labels.

This doesn't mean the material isn't great...it's all top-notch...but given that RCA released it, you'd think the material would be RCA-heavy but it's not. Still, it's a wonderful collection of chart hits and Top-40 hits, both country and pop...a 'chart hit' for those who don't know, is a single that peaks below #40 on the charts but sold strong enough to "chart" nationally and those are factored in with the Top-40 singles {a single that hits #40 or higher}.

This is the back of the album...i felt it needed to be shown since the front of the cover gets all the publicity...

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/AC-Toons/Untitled46.jpg)

There are 10 songs, spotlighting various moods and styles...it will always hold a special place in my music buying experience as it was the FIRST cassette i ever found on Ray that included the 1974 single, "The Moonlight Special"...his spoof of the TV program "The Midnight Special". Prior to me finding this cassette at K-Mart in the early '90s, i had never knew Ray even sang a song called "The Moonlight Special"...i was in my early teens and just learning about Ray's musical career and so with the listen of that song, i of course craved more and more vintage Ray Stevens :bouncy :bouncy

All in all, it's a great addition to anyone's collection but since the dawn of the CD-age, practically everything Ray has ever recorded has been made available on CD...as i mentioned at the start of this review, this doesn't showcase his RCA material very well. If you're inclined to hear the RCA years {1980-1982} i suggest you track down the album "COLLECTOR'S SERIES" on the RCA label. That album contains just 8 songs but they're all RCA.

The tracks on this album:

1. Shriner's Convention; 1980 RCA
2. Ahab the Arab; 1969 Monument {remake of his 1962 hit}
3. The Streak; 1974 Barnaby
4. Everything is Beautiful; 1970 Barnaby
5. Mr Businessman; 1968 Monument
6. The Moonlight Special; 1974 Barnaby
7. Misty; 1975 Barnaby
8. Gitarzan; 1969 Monument
9. Freddie Feelgood; 1969 Monument {first recorded in 1966 minus laugh track}
10. The Dooright Family; 1980 RCA

I have the cassette version...on the album, the first song on side 1 and side 2 are flip-flopped. On the vinyl version, "The Dooright Family" kicks off the album on side 1 where as on the cassette version that i have, "Shriner's Convention" kicks off the album on side 1.

Album: Who's Gonna Fill Their Shoes
Artist: George Jones
Year of Release: 1985
Label: EPIC

George Jones had been on what have called a commercial come-back, starting with a 1980 single called "He Stopped Loving Her Today". By 1980, George had been having hit songs for 25 years...going back to 1955's #4 hit "Why Baby Why". This album came along during George's 30th anniversary. At the height of his popularity, EPIC issued this nostalgia-in-song ode to singers and legends of the past. "Who's Gonna Fill Their Shoes?" would become George's biggest single from that point forward...it for awhile was almost as in-demand in concerts as "He Stopped Loving Her Today".

"Who's Gonna Fill Their Shoes" as a single reached #3...it was made into a music video, too. That music video would win a CMA award in the summer of 1986 as "Best Music Video". The rest of the album is wonderful George Jones material...one of the highlights of the album are the duets that weren't even released as singles. George has two duet songs on here...perhaps left-over's from his previous all-female duet album 'LADIES CHOICE' in late 1984!?! One is with Lynn Anderson, "If You Could Touch Her At All". The other is with Lacy J Dalton, "That's Good-That's Bad". That should have been released as a single...it's a good song...and i think it would've had some success since George and Lacy had a big hit earlier in 1985 with "Size Seven Round and Made of Gold" from 'LADIES CHOICE'.

A great love ballad, "Just When..." follows "Who's Gonna Fill Their Shoes" on the album. I love the way he sings this song...the high notes and the low notes...and how he comes to a whisper during the final singing of the song's chorus...it's one of those classic country songs with that classic delivery...with a good hook-line: "Just When i thought i'd found everything, my everything was gone...".

The second hit song from this album arrived late in 1985, "The One I Loved Back Then". This was a SMASH hit...but it never reached #1! It also reached #3 but it was one of George's most-played singles of the latter half of the 1980's. It's about a corvette but it also uses the corvette as a metaphor for a woman...she was hotter than a two dollar pistol...long and lean, every young man's dream...go part of the song's famed chorus. In mid 1986, EPIC released a third and final single from the album...the often-mentioned Top-10 hit "Somebody Wants Me Out of the Way". This is yet another great George Jones drinking/cheating song...it reached #9 in mid 1986 but nobody remembers it!!

This is a wonderful George Jones album...i am constantly annoyed at a lot of critics out there who don't like George's EPIC songs. This is great stuff...sure, it sounds a whole lot more "slick" or "up-town" than the gritty early recordings but come on...it's GEORGE JONES and no matter how the music around him sounded, his vocals remain delightful!

I'M NOT INCLUDING A TRACK LISTING SINCE YOU CAN CLEARLY SEE THE SONG TITLES ON THE CASSETTE COVER :lol :lol

THE ONE WITH RAY STEVENS EARLIER MAY HAVE BEEN HARDER TO READ AND SO I WROTE OUT THE ALBUM TRACKS :yes

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Album: 21 Number One Hits
Artist: Kenny Rogers
Year of Release: 2006
Label: Capitol

This CD contains 21 Kenny Rogers Billboard #1 hits...19 of these singles hit #1 Country while 2 others hit #1 on the Adult-Contemporary charts only. Two #1 country singles were left off this collection: his duet with Dolly in 1985, "Real Love", and his mid 1986 #1 "Tomb of the Unknown Love". As indicated, all of these songs on the CD reached #1 on the charts...a welcome treat is the inclusion of his last #1 to date, "Buy Me a Rose". You can't argue with nothing but #1 hits...but if we're only going to focus on COUNTRY #1 hits, then the two #1 country hits that were left off NEED to be on here...however, if we're only looking at #1 hits in general, the AC chart-toppers NEED to be here, too! Here's an idea...why not just re-release a NEW compilation and call it 24 #1 hits...which would include ALL of his #1 hits in Country and Adult-Contemporary...a seldom remembered song by Kenny called "What About Me?" hit #1 AC in early 1985...all in all, he's had 24 #1 hits. There is a bonus track on here...his 1980 duet hit with Kim Carnes called "Don't Fall in Love With a Dreamer"...that single was a Top-5 country and pop hit...there are 22 songs on this CD altogether.

This collection, though, is still first rate AND it includes notes on each song by Kenny himself...AND these are all the original recordings, too!! The tracks are NOT in chronological order!!!

1. The Gambler
2. Through the Years {#1 AC}
3. Lady
4. Lucille
5. Coward of the County
6. I Don't Need You
7. We've Got Tonight-w/Sheena Easton
8. Crazy
9. Islands in the Stream-w/Dolly Parton
10. She Believes In Me
11. Everytime Two Fools Collide-w/Dottie West
12. You Decorated My Life
13. Make No Mistake, She's Mine-w/ Ronnie Milsap
14. Share Your Love With Me {#1-AC}
15. All I Ever Need Is You-w/Dottie West
16. Buy Me a Rose
17. Daytime Friends
18. Love or Something Like It
19. Love Will Turn You Around
20. Morning Desire
21. What Are We Doin' In Love-w/Dottie West
22. Don't Fall In Love With a Dreamer-w/Kim Carnes {#3-country; #4-pop}

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JERRY

SINCE I HAVE A BAD CASE OF TUNNEL VISION, I USUALLY JUST CHECK OUT 2 SITES (YOU KNOW WHAT THEY ARE), SO SURFING AROUND, WHICH I ALMOST NEVER DO, I DISCOVERED THIS SITE.
ENJOYED THE POSTS AND I THINK RAY STEVENS HAS ALWAYS BEEN UNDER-APPRECIATED. I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN A BIG FAN OF HIS, SO THANKS FOR THE GREAT REVIEW.
OF COURSE YOU KNOW I LOVE GEORGE JONES, THE ONE AND ONLY.

LUV
JAN

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JAN!!! I ALSO HAVE TUNNEL VISION AT TIMES...I OFTEN JUST POST ON THE OCD AND 'CHARTING THE WATERS' IN THE NEWS SECTION OF THE SITE BUT I REGULARLY STOP BY HERE OR "EXPRESS YOURSELF" IF I WANNA WRITE A REVIEW OR A SKIT OR WHATEVER. THANKS FOR STOPPING BY! I OF COURSE AGREE WITH YOU 100% ABOUT RAY STEVENS. HE HAS SO MUCH NATURAL TALENT...HE SINGS, WRITE SONGS, PLAYS VARIOUS PIANO-RELATED INSTRUMENTS...HE CAN BE FUNNY, SERIOUS, COUNTRY, GOSPEL, POP, ADULT-CONTEMPORARY, JAZZY, OR R&B...HE EVEN IS A GOOD ACTOR IF YOU'VE EVER SEEN ANY OF HIS COMEDY MUSIC VIDEOS. IF NOT, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND "COMEDY VIDEO CLASSICS"; "GET SERIOUS" {a musical}; AND "FUNNIEST VIDEO CHARACTERS". HIS MUSIC VIDEO TO "OSAMA YO MAMA" IS HILARIOUS...SO ISN'T THE SEQUEL "HELLO MAMA". :roflmao :roflmao THOSE MUSIC VIDEOS CAN BE FOUND ON THE DVD "COMPLETE COMEDY VIDEO COLLECTION".

OH WOW JERRY. YOU DID A REVIEW ON KENNY ROGERS  :clap I SAW HIM IN PERSON AT A LOCAL HIGH SCHOOL.  HE WAS DOING A BENEFIT CONCERT HERE.
GREAT REVIEW!
HAVE LOVED HIM FOR YEARS--
THANKS AGAIN!

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MEL BLANC: THE VOICE-ACTING PIONEER

Mel Blanc was born on May 30, 1908. He lived a very well-rounded life and his biggest claim to fame is hidden behind animated images of Bugs Bunny, Tweety and Sylvester, Porky Pig, Pepe LePew, Daffy Duck, Foghorn Leghorn, Speedy Gonzales, Yosemite Sam, and the list goes on...you see, Mel Blanc was the voice of all of those cartoon characters. Those are just a few that appear on the above image, a memorial honoring Mel after he passed away in 1989.

Mel is the quintessential voice-actor...he devised methods of physical acting to aid his vocals, a practice further carried on and taught to up-coming voice-over hopefuls by Daws Butler, one of the greatest voice-actors in animation history. Mel came first...and i can safely say from watching vintage clips of him performing, he was acting with his whole body perhaps without even realizing it. When he did the voice for Yosemite Sam, he'd literally contort his body and let fly with thunderous screams and hollars. The role often left him hoarse, according to his autobiography, "That's Not All, Folks!", which hit in 1988.

Some of his voices were also helped by gimmicks in the studio. Some of his voices were sped up or slowed down...but the basic 'voice' was still coming out of Mel's mouth. The cartoon voice of Porky Pig is sped up a little but you can hear the natural un-sped delivery of Porky on the radio program, "G.I. Journal", complete with stuttering and stammering...he played a role named SAD SACK and used that Porky Pig voice.

Mel's legacy in radio is tied in with Jack Benny, though Mel appeared on many other radio programs, too. It was with Jack, though, that Mel's best known radio characters were created. On the show, Jack was heard as Professor LeBlanc; Sy the Mexican; Polly the Parrot; Carmichael the Polar bear; the sputtering engine of Jack's car, a Maxwell; and as the train track public address announcer... "Train leaving on Track 5..for Anaheim, Azuza, and Cuc-a-monga!". In addition, Mel was heard in a variety of nameless roles too numerous to mention. Mel was a supporting player on Jack's radio and TV shows. The TV exposure and all the talk-show appearances and game show appearances helped make Mel the most recognizable voice-actor in history. Mel was on the Burns and Allen radio show as the Happy Postman...on Judy Canova's radio show as Pedro...he was Sad Sack on the G.I. Journal...he was August Moon on the Point Sublime radio show...he even had his OWN radio show, "The Mel Blanc Fix-It Shop", but it only ran one season.

Like the other voice-actors in cartoons, Mel made a series of comedy albums and singles for Capitol Records. His single, "Woody Woodpecker", contained Mel's original take on Walter Lantz's character...Mel was the original voice of Woody back in the 1940s and did the role on a radio program for years. Blanc's songs are purposely corny...many feature his cartoon roles.

During all of this radio and album work, he was becoming a legend of Warner Brothers cartoons. It was with Warner Brothers where he created and voiced countless cartoon characters. He had an exclusive contract with Warner Brothers. They didn't want to give him screen credit...or any "voice guy" any credit...but a deal was worked out and soon "Voice Characterizations by Mel Blanc" was shown on the opening credits of nearly every Warner Brothers theatrical cartoon from the early '40s through the end of the theatrical run in the early '60s. This meant that only Mel's name was shown...his co-stars names were not. Daws Butler voiced several nameless characters in these theatrical cartoons...Stan Freberg, Arthur Q Bryan, and June Foray are the three co-stars who worked along side of Mel the most during the Warner Brothers hey-day. When Warner Brothers ended theatrical cartoons, Mel went over to Hanna-Barbera...where he voiced many nameless roles in cartoon programs...he even did commercial voices with the RAID pests being his most notable.

Warner Brothers in the mid '60s, like Hanna-Barbera did in the late '50s, started to make made-for-TV cartoons...Mel was of course on hand to reprise his legendary characters and his co-stars were given screen credit this time.

At Hanna-Barbera, Mel's biggest role was Barney Rubble, the neighbor of Fred Flintstone. Mel remained the voice of Barney in all of the Flintstones programs that aired throughout the '60s, '70s, and '80s. Frank Welker has since taken over the role.

AC,

All of these are great reviews.  I really like Kenny Rogers, and of course, I enjoyed the review of Mel Blanc.  I do remember him on the Jack Benny show! :lol

Hugs,
Prissy

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THANKS FOR STOPPING BY, PRISSY!!! :wave I PLAN ON DOING SIMILAR TRIBUTES TO DAWS BUTLER AND DON MESSICK SHORTLY. THEY ALSO HAVE SIMILAR TRIBUTE PICS LIKE THE ONE YOU SEE FOR MEL. ONE DAWS' MEMORIAL, IT SHOWS SOME OF HIS CHARACTERS BOWING THEIR HEADS...FOR DON MESSICK, IT SHOWS SCOOBY-DOO BOWING HIS HEAD NEXT TO SHAGGY {Casey Kasem, of course, did the voice of Shaggy...and still does to this day}.

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Title: The Best of Mel Blanc- Man of a Thousand Voices
Artist: Mel Blanc
Year of Release: 2005
Label: Collector's Choice Music

This 25 song CD is comprised of various album songs and actual singles released by Capitol Records on Mel Blanc, the Warner Brothers voice actor. I say Warner Brothers voice actor because it was with that company that Blanc achieved his fame in voice-acting.

Mel displays a good majority of his cartoon voices in a lot of these recordings...he even performs songs in his natural voice, which to those that didn't know, sounded a little like Sylvester the cat without a lisp. The bulk of these songs are from children's albums, a common product in those days. Even holiday songs are featured here...so it's a good selection of material to listen to. Tweety makes an appearance on the song "I Tan't Wait Til Quithmuth Day" and "I Tawt I Taw a Putty Tat", co-starring Sylvester.

I have listened to the CD 3 or 4 times since it arrived to me from eBay, where i bought it. There are 25 songs and the stand-out tracks as of now are "Morris"; "Grandfather's Will"; "Yosemite Sam"; "E.I.O Song"; "Barney Google"; "Woody Woodpecker"; "Yah Das Ist Ein Christmas Tree"; and two songs in which are performed in his hen-pecked husband character voice "I Tell My Troubles to Joe" and "The Mrs Wouldn't Approve".

I laugh out loud everytime i heard "Yosemite Sam". Listening to him deliver the song...not to mention keeping perfect voice throughout and the southern drawal on many of the words are perfect...a running joke in this song is the way he continues to raise his voice as the he repeats the chorus. :clap

Mel does his imitation of Al Jolsen on the single included in this CD: "Toot, Toot, Tootise".

On "Woody Woodpecker", we're treated to Mel's version of the character. The single went GOLD when it was released {PLATINUM by today's standards}. I have no idea if any versions of Woody featuring Mel Blanc as the voice are available for public purchase or not. I do know he did a radio program starring the character...a children's program of course. The voice for the bulk of Woody's TV run, though, is credited to Grace Stafford, the wife of Walter Lantz {the guy who created Woody Woodpecker}.

The back of the CD cover shows Mel in studio performing.

All in all, a great over-view of Mel Blanc's recordings!

 JERRY  :wave  :wave I FINALLY FOUND YOUR REVIEW THREAD.  I HAD STARTED TO READ THE "MEL BLANC" ONE WHEN THE SITE WENT DOWN.  VERY INTERESTING  :clap I HAD NO IDEA HE DID SO MANY VOICES!  MY DAD USE TO IMITATE HIM.  THAT'S WHERE MY INTEREST CAME FROM.  MY DAD LOVED ALL OF THESE COMEDIANS YOU WRITE ABOUT. I GREW UP WATCHING AND LISTENING TO THEM WITH HIM.  :lol
HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF CHARLIE WEAVER?  JUST WONDERING.  HE WAS AWESOME.  HE CAME HERE TO A LOCAL VENUE WHEN I WAS YOUNG.  DO YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION ON HIM?
THANKS AGAIN FOR DOING THESE REVIEWS!  LAUGHTER IS ALWAYS THE BEST MEDICINE IN ANY SITUATION, RIGHT?
:hugg

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DON MESSICK: A VOCAL WIZARD

In my second look at voice actors, i am remembering Don Messick. In the picture above, Shaggy and Scooby-Doo have their heads bowed. Messick didn't voice Shaggy...but the sentiment is felt...Messick did give voice to Scooby-Doo for over 25 years in a wide variety of formats. Scooby is Messick's most enduring character...even today Scooby and the gang are all over the TV in re-runs and in new adventures on video/DVD. However, Messick passed away in 1997 of a stroke...which was Alzheimer's related.

Messick was born in 1926 and his journey into voice acting was thanks mostly to Daws Butler, the voice actor i'll be tributing in the next couple of days.

Messick found himself working at MGM on various cartoons...he was more or less a narrator or he would come up with strange sounds...like Frank Welker, the essence of Don Messick was his ability to create weird sounds, called vocal effects, and then translate these weird sounds into characters. His talents are not to be forgotten...he played a part in each and every outer space cartoon that Hanna-Barbera released in the late '60s and early '70s. At times, he was only on-call for weird sounds and space aliens...but again, his gift at vocal tricks isn't the whole story.

Don Messick's legend, you could say, began to take shape with the made-for-TV cartoons of Hanna-Barbera in the late 1950s. When Hanna-Barbera left MGM, they started their own company and released RUFF AND REDDY. Don and Daws were on hand for this and both of them did all the main character voices. Don was Ruff the cat and Professor Gizmo as well as the cartoon's off-screen narrator. Messick's narration would be a staple on all of the early H-B cartoon programs.

Messick was the voice of several characters for Hanna-Barbera...all of them playing second banana to the characters that Daws Butler voiced. Messick was Boo-Boo Bear and Ranger Smith while Daws was Yogi Bear. Messick was Pixie Mouse while Daws played Dixie Mouse and the beatnik cat Mister Jinx. On the Snagglepuss cartoons, Daws was Snagglepuss while Messick was Major Minor, etc etc. In addition to all the second banana and walk-on parts Messick, as mentioned, narrated all of these programs too.

Messick later grabbed a starring role...the western bunny Richochet Rabbit. On this series, Messick was paired with Mel Blanc and John Stephenson. Blanc was Deputy Droop-a-Long while Stephenson played their boss. All three would tackle other walk-on parts as needed. By this time, Daws was growing distant with Hanna-Barbera. Allan Melvin, the face actor from many TV shows, was offered the role of MAGILLA GORILLA and it was in this era that other voice actors started to make their way to Hanna-Barbera.

In the meantime, Messick was soon to land the role that many voice actors strive for: a signature character...one that has instant recognition with the public...this role??? Scooby-Doo!

The Scooby role came along in 1969. At the height of the hippie craze, H-B decided to cash-in. They were still flirting with the space cartoons...but the Scooby formula was like a spoof of sorts of THE MOD SQUAD...about teenaged-hippie like crime solvers. Messick was Scooby...a cowardly dog who didn't speak in great English but it was dog speak. Messick is no stranger to animal roles, either. Earlier in the decade he gave voice to Astro, the dog on THE JETSONS. During the Scooby run, 1969-1971, Messick was also the voice of another dog...the snickering MUTTLEY, the side-kick of villain Dick Dastardly {Dastardly was voiced by Paul Winchell}.

Frank Welker, who i spoke of in previous paragraphs, was on this new SCOOBY-DOO program...he was the voice of Fred, the leader of the "gang". Welker you could say was a protege of sorts of Messick. They both were famous for creating sounds...and special effects with their voices. Radio legend Casey Kasem gave voice to Shaggy. Nicole Jaffe gave voice to Velma and Stephania Christopherson was the original British-like voice of Daphne. Later, Heather North became the long-running voice of Daphne. The Scooby run ended in 1971 but the characters never went away...the characters continued to pop up on Saturday morning TV for the next 20 years. Messick was on hand for each and every episode as were Casey Kasem and Frank Welker. The role of Velma was held for awhile by Pat Stevens...but it was brief. Later in the decade, Scooby gained a nephew, Scrappy-Doo. At first, Lennie Weinrib was the voice but by 1980, Messick had taken over the role...so Messick was giving voice to both starring roles in the "Scooby and Scrappy-Doo" cartoons. Daws Butler reunited with Messick in voice for the 1977 ensemble LAFF-A-LYMPICS, which featured three teams of "athletes" competing for a Gold medallion. The Yogi Yahooey team featured many classic H-B characters...and those were mostly Daws Butler. The Scooby-Doobie team consisted of a myriad of contemporary H-B characters. The villains, the Really Rottens, featured a slew of bad-guys and just two bad-girls {Daisy Mayhem and Mrs Creeply}. Messick narrated this program...the "hosts" were Snagglepuss {Daws} and Mildew Wolf {John Stephenson}.

In 1981 Messick gained another new character that became long-running...the wise Papa Smurf from THE SMURFS cartoon. This reunited him with Paul Winchell. Back in 1969-1971, as mentioned earlier, Messick played Muttley and other roles opposite Dick Dastardly, a role voiced by Winchell. In this new SMURFS program, Winchell was on hand as the evil Gargamel. Messick, in addition to Papa Smurf, was also the snickering cat Azrael, the pet of Gargamel. So in a way you could say that it was like Dick Dastardly and Muttley with a new appearance :lol :lol

Messick voiced Papa Smurf from 1981-1990 and then continued to voice the character when needed. Scooby was back with all new programs but this time it was a smaller version. A PUP NAMED SCOOBY-DOO teamed Messick and Casey Kasem up again as Scooby and Shaggy in 1989. The other voices were re-cast...i am assuming since Scooby and Shaggy had such distinct voices as grown-up's that H-B decided to just let the voices remain the same for the kid version!?! This series ran until 1991. Messick landed a role for Warner Brothers around the same time...the neurotic Hamton Pig on TINY TOONS in 1990. This would be Messick's last big starring role. He voiced this character right on up through 1996.

Later in 1996, though, as the story goes...Messick became sick in a recording studio and not long afterward he retired. He died in 1997, nearly a year later.

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Title: Ultimate Manilow: UK Version
Artist: Barry Manilow
Year of Release: 2004
Label: Arista

Ultimate Manilow served as a re-introduction to the legend of Manilow in song in 2002. First released in the United States, the CD's high debut in the Top-5 on the charts set in motion the wave of success that Manilow is currently enjoying. His CDs had always sold well and were hitting GOLD with regularity but ULTIMATE MANILOW the U.S. Version hit PLATINUM quickly.

Cashing in, Arista distributed the CD across the world but shrewdly had each release contain it's own CD cover art and track-list. The U.S. version contains 20 songs that go mostly in chronological order. This version i'm reviewing is the UK version, which contains a slightly different CD cover and songs. The big hits are here, still, but the lesser known hits on AC and UK charts are what's changed up from CD to CD. On this particular release, we're treated to his UK hit from 1980, "Bermuda Triangle", which was missing from the U.S. release.

I'm listening to Tryin To get The Feelin Again right now!! Yikes...here comes the climax of the song... :shappy

Okay...back on task again...

This UK version contains 20 songs...one is billed as a bonus track: song #20, "Who Needs To Dream" from the 1986 soundtrack album to COPACABANA. The rarely included single, "You're Lookin' Hot Tonight", is an added pleasure. It was a hit in the UK and on the AC charts but nowhere else. In fact, on AC radio it was a Top-30 hit in 1983. The songs run the gamut from the beginning to 1998...yes...even as late as 1998...the song in question from 1998 is his version of "Strangers In The Night" from his MANILOW SINGS SINATRA album in 1998.

Don't ya just like the way he crawls his voice into "Somewhere In The Night" and "Weekend in New England"!!!

We discussed the UK and the U.S. versions of ULTIMATE MANILOW. On the International version, though, "Moonlight Serenade"; "Read 'Em and Weep"; "Some Kind of Friend"; and "Blue" are the songs included in that release that are not on the UK or U.S. versions of this CD.

ULTIMATE MANILOW as mentioned set in motion the success he is currently having with his music on the charts. His recurring appearances on American Idol do not hurt either. The bottom line is...his music is still commercial but not intentionally commercial like say "Copacabana", which was a deliberate attempt in my theory to grab onto the Disco crowd. I love the song, though...intentionally commercial or not.

I have the U.S. version and i'm listening right now to the UK version of ULTIMATE MANILOW. I may even purchase the International version just to complete the "collection" of ULTIMATE MANILOW releases!! :smile

 HELLO AC; THANKS FOR DOING THE REVIEW ON BARRY MANILOW.  IT WAS GOOD TO SEE HIS CD & DVD GO TO
#1.  HE HAD WORKED SO HARD IN THE MUSIC BUSINESS AND REALLY IS A LEGEND.  AND I AM STILL LISTENING TO THE 2 CD YOU SENT OF HIM.  HE EVEN TRANSCENDED INTO THE UK.  THAT IS INCREDIABLE.
IT'S BEEN GOOD TO SEE HIM ON SO MANY TV PRORAMS LATELY TOO! THANKS AGAIN.
CHARLENE

JERRY,  I just got caught up here. I hadn't been here in quite a while. but since the pages are loading faster for me I have time to move around again. Wonderful reviews. Everything you write is so interesting.

Title: I Have Returned
Artist: Ray Stevens
Release Year: 1985
Label: MCA

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This album from Ray Stevens came along in 1985 when he was amidst his early years at being marketed as strictly a country comedian after decades of pop and country hit singles dating back to the early '60s.

The success of this album was so great that it would eventually reach #1 on the Country album chart in early 1986. This, his second album for MCA after having signed with them in 1984, picks up where 1984's HE THINKS HE'S RAY STEVENS left off. That, by the way, was his 1984 MCA debut album.

I HAVE RETURNED as you can see is a spoof of Douglas MacArthur. The picture you see here is not the official album cover...it's only a partial view to get a closer shot of Ray!

The album is chock full of zany comedy songs...some border on goofy, and others just aren't able to be described...and i know Ray would take that has a compliment :wink One of my favorites is "The Pirate Song", which i reviewed earlier in this thread. It's about two pirates, one gruff and mean and the other, gay. All the gay pirate wants to do is "sing and dance, etc etc". "Armchair Quarterback" is pretty much self-explanatory and it's funny. The music arrangement is nostalgic in that it uses drums and whistles and cheers to give the song a college football atmosphere. The album opens up with the long-awaited return of Ray's Henhouse Five Plus Too chicken vocal group. "Thus Cacked Henrietta" is the song in question. It's basically an instrumental with chicken clucks and and a cow and other animals vocally imitated by Ray.

The hit singles were "The Haircut Song", which on the album contains the full version. The single version i also have cuts out the middle verse where Ray visits the punk rock barber shop with the gay barber. The other hit single was "The Blue Cyclone". This song, in it's entirety, is well over 7 minutes long...way long for country radio...so, MCA edited it down to a little over 4 minutes, which is still long but but not as long as the album version which was broken up into parts 1 and parts 2.

"Kiss a Pig" and "Punk Country Love" are the two comedy songs on here that border on the goofy side. "Vacation Bible School" gives the listener a nostalgic look at southern heritage at church camps when Ray, as a kid, slips in some moonshine into a pitcher on a podium used by a preacher. :lol

The album closes with his remake of his 1963 Christmas hit, "Santa Claus Is Watching You". This version is more famous because it had a music video to promote it AND it was released as a commercial single and the vinyl color was red, as opposed to the standard black color of LP's and 45 RPM singles. It did not make the country charts for whatever reason. Maybe at the time Billboard didn't allow holiday singles to chart on the main chart??

I HAVE RETURNED is an excellent introduction to Ray's latter-day comedy hits. If you want the classic comedy of his from the '60s and '70s, seek out RCA's 1983 release GREATEST HITS which randomly selects 10 songs from Ray throughout 1968-1980. Don't let that 12 year span fool you though. The years 1971-1973 and 1976-1979 are not highlighted.

Song list
1. Thus Cacked Henrietta
2. Hugo the Human Cannonball
3. Vacation Bible School
4. Armchair Quarterback
5. The Blue Cyclone
6. Kiss a Pig
7. The Haircut Song
8. The Pirate Song
9. Punk Country Love
10. Santa Claus Is Watching You

JERRY
YOU HAVE TALKED ME INTO TRYING TO FIND THIS ALBUM
RAY STEVENS IS ONE OF A KIND.

THANKS FOR BRINGING THAT INFO. TO US!!

JAN

HELLO JERRY.  AFTER I SAW THE COVER PICTURE; I REMEMBERD HE HAD THAT ONE OUT BACK THEN.  WHAT I DID NOT KNOW WAS THAT IT REACHED #1 ON THE COUNTRY CHARTS. :clap DID HE WRITE THESE SONGS?  YOU ALWAYS DO SUCH GREAT REVIEWS!  I LOVE RAY STEVENS AND ENJOY READING ABOUT HIS SPECIAL TALENT. THANKS!

Song title: Alley-Oop
Songwriter: Dallas Frazier
Year of Release: 1960

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Alley-Oop, as a song, hit the pop charts in 1960. Three versions of the song all hit the Hot 100 that year. Two versions actually made the Top-40 status while a third version came close to hitting the Top-50 half of the Hot 100.

The song is about the comic character, a caveman of sorts. A group named the Hollywood Argyles are who made the song famous, reaching #1 in 1960 with it. The second most famous rendition was the #15 hit by Dante and the Evergreens. The third version hit #59 pop, by a group billed as the Dyna-Sores :lol

He is the toughest man that there is alive is pretty accurate when summing up caveman Alley-Oop. Written by Dallas Frazier, the song has been recorded by several other acts through the years. Frazier is notable as being a novelty songwriter but he's also written several serious songs too in the country format.

I am partial to the 1969 recording by Ray Stevens. Ray's version can be found on the 1969 album GITARZAN and other CDs with compilation material. The Alley-Oop recording by Ray featured a gallery of vocal sound effects enhanced by Ray's vocal talents and production skills, things that were lacking on the 1960 #1 pop version.
---------------------------------------------------------
HELLO JAN AND CHARLENE :wave

I DON'T HAVE THE VINYL VERSION OF "I HAVE RETURNED" SO I DON'T KNOW THE SONGWRITER's CREDITS ON A WHOLE LOT OF THOSE SONGS. THE CASSETTE VERSION I HAVE DOESN'T GIVE SONGWRITER CREDITS. HOWEVER, I DO KNOW THAT RAY WROTE "SANTA CLAUS IS WATCHING YOU", "THUS CACKED HENRIETTA"; AND CO-WROTE "THE HAIRCUT SONG". I'D HAVE TO CHECK AND SEE WHO WROTE THE OTHER SONGS. MAYBE SHERI WOULD KNOW?? SHE'S THE LADY I SOMETIMES WRITE TO AT RAY's OFFICE IN NASHVILLE.   

AC; MY GOSH I HAD FORGOTTEN ALL ABOUT THAT SONG.  I THOUGHT HE WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO RECORDED IT BECAUSE HE IS THE ONLY ONE I HEARD.  YES, GREAT SOUND EFFECTS IN IT.  A REALLY FUN SONG TO LISTNE TO AND TO SING ALONG WITH. THANKS FOR BRINGING THIS ON HERE.
CHARLENE

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Title: Number Ones- The Warner Brothers Years
Artist: Conway Twitty
Year of Release: 1988
Label: Warner Brothers

Conway Twitty still holds the record as being the artist with most #1 hits in any genre of music...55 of his singles hit #1 on the music charts: Billboard, Record World, Cashbox, and R&R. 41 of those 55 reached #1 in Billboard while 14 more topped other charts.

This collection of 10 songs gathers 10 of his #1 hits for Warner Brothers, recorded during 1982-1986. An 11th #1 for Warner Brothers, "Ain't She Somethin Else", which hit #1 in early 1985, is for whatever reason left off of this collection. I guess Warner Brothers wanted just 10 songs and no more.

This features a wonderful collection of music, highlighted by the lead-off song, "Don't Call Him a Cowboy", which became the 50th single to reach #1 for Conway. 

This material is what i was introduced to Conway Twitty with. It was these songs that were all over country radio when i was growing up and i have a fondness for them...especially "Slow Hand" since that was the very first Conway song i ever heard on the radio.

The production is crisp and it reflects the sound Conway was working with during this era of his career. Jimmy Bowen had hooked up with Conway as a co-producer on his albums in 1984 but then left for MCA where in 1987 Conway and Bowen would re-unite in the studio.

This album was released in 1988, so one has to ask why was Warner Brothers so late on releasing material?? Conway had left Warner Brothers in early 1987, as "Fallin' For You For Years" was climbing the charts to become his fifty-second #1 hit. Don't you think Warner Brothers should have issued a going away gift like this in early 1987 or at least mid 1987? Oh well, the point of when it was issued is irrelevent...the bottom line is it's the only collection, believe it or not, to showcase Conway's early-mid '80s smash hits.

Conway's picture, as you can see, doesn't even appear on the album cover!! How in the world can you justify that??? :lol Well, his pic does appear in the fold-out cover...but nobody will see it unless they buy the album. 

Track Listing
1. Don't Call Him a Cowboy; 1985
2. We Really Did But Now You Don't; 1982
3. I Don't Know a Thing About Love; 1984
4. Fallin' For You For Years; 1986
5. The Rose; 1982
6. Desperado Love; 1986
7. Lost in The Feeling; 1983
8. Somebody's Needin' Somebody; 1984
9. Slow Hand; 1982
10. The Clown; 1982

His other Warner Brothers hits not included in this are the following. I am listing them because they are wonderful, too.

1. Heartache Tonight; 1983  #5-Radio and Records
2. Three Times a Lady; 1983  #7-Billboard {early 1984}
3. Ain't She Somethin' Else; 1984  #1-Billboard {early 1985}
4. Between Her Blue Eyes and Jeans; 1985  #3-Billboard
5. The Legend and the Man; 1985  #18-Cashbox
6. You'll Never Know How Much I Needed You; 1985  #26-Billboard

HOW NICE JERRY!!!  CONWAY TWITTY.  I REMEMBER WHEN HE STARTED OUT A ROCK AND ROLL SINGER, THEN TURNED COUNRTY.  MY FAVORITE SONG OF HIS IS "MAKE BELIEVE". MICE JOB ON THE REVIEW OF HIM. SO MANY PEOPLE FORGET ABOUT THESE FAMOUS GREEAT SINGERS AND YOU BRING THEM BACK TO LIFE.  THANK YOU!
CHARLENE

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If we take a look at that picture for just a moment of two, we will see the Daws Butler story...although not nearly complete, it does paint an accurate portrait of a voice actor regarded as the best in the Voice Actor business.

We previously discussed Daws in one of my first reviews, when i reviewed the book by Ben Ohmart, "Daws Butler: Character's Actor". This is just a little mini-tribute of sorts to Daws, the voice of Hanna-Barbera cartoons in their golden age, 1957-1965. Two of the main co-stars with Daws during this period were Don Messick and Doug Young.

Daws Butler was born in 1916, in Toldeo, Ohio. He passed away in 1988 of a heart attack. He was working right up until the end of his life. A year later, 1989, Mel Blanc passed away. Prior to Butler's role in cartoon work, he was a mainstay on radio and comedy albums...most notably those in collaboration with Stan Freberg. Stan and Daws, along with Bob Clampett, were the brains behind the "Time for Beany" puppet show. This program ran from 1949-1955...every week day!

The Butler-Freberg pairing lasted pretty much throughout the 1950's and into the early 1960's. It was around this time that Freberg started to concentrate more on comedy commercials and advertising. Butler at the time also had a full plate...voicing a good 80% of the cartoons coming out of Hanna-Barbera, the other rolse filled by Don Messick or Doug Young...with a few women characters added every so often. These voices were typically provided by Jean Vanderpyl, who became known in the animation world as Wilma Flintstone.

Freberg is still active in radio and in cartoon projects. He is one of the last living links to an era that most of the young up and comers dismiss as "old-school" or "old fashioned". June Foray is another shining example...she is the Queen of Voice Actresses. Butler's legacy is rooted in the Hanna-Barbera characters he brought to life...all of the character you see in that portrait above were voiced by Daws Butler. You can even see Butler's face next to Huckleberry Hound.

1916-1988; 71 years old.

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Artist: Ray Stevens
Songtitle: Shriner's Convention
Songwriter: Ray Stevens
Year of release: 1980
Label: RCA

This single was the last to reach the Country Top-10 on the airplay chart for Ray Stevens. It's mind-blowing to think that 26 years ago was the last time one of his singles was in the airplay Top-10. However, his talents and his marketing skills combined with his fan-base of loyal supporters, have kept Ray a compelling artist despite the lack of airplay hits, something in which anyone else wanting to make it in the music business must have. His last single to reach the charts, to date, is "Osama Yo Mama", which hit the airplay chart at #48 but soared to #1 in sales.

Ray is a product of his era you could say...he transcended the times and sounds of music by sticking, for the most part, to the style of music in which he's most closely identified: comedy-novelty songs. He has been a persistently consistent recording artist throughout a good chunk of the last 50 years...his success in a field of music typically frowned upon as "not serious" and "silly" is one of the great ironies in country music. How Ray is able to find success in such a special-interest field is the key to his longevity. Ray has once been quoted, and i agree with it... "it's much easier to write a straight country or pop song and have a success with it...it's a little more harder to have success with not in the mainstream music, novelty music specifically...". What he means is, he's proud of his success with a limited-appeal music form.

SHRINER'S CONVENTION has an interesting history. It was written by Ray in 1979. It was used as his debut single on the RCA label in 1980, after wrapping up a somewhat successful 3 year run with Warner Brothers, 1976-1979, where his singles were hitting higher Country than Pop. SHRINER'S CONVENTION according to Ray was inspired by a sleepless night he spent in a hotel during a shriner's convention. We are safe to assume there wasn't any shriner's at that hotel with a motorcycle...especially one that was placed up on the high dive in the hotel swimming pool as a piece of the song refers to :lol

Absurdity is a form of comedy that not a lot of people like in this too serious world. The concept of two shriner's bickering back and fourth on a telephone like an old married couple...plus the conversation is one-sided, we only hear what Bubba is saying to Coy and we only hear through Bubba what Coy's reaction's are. Room 321 is catchphrase from the song...that's the motel door room Bubba always asked the operator to hook him up to so he could chastise Coy once again :lol

The song was recorded, originally, twice. There is the 1979 recording that can be found on several CDs plus there is the 1980 album version of the song that is also found on several CDs too. Ray's talking on the 1979 recording is more slower and more timed. The 1980 album version sounds a bit more rushed in the vocal delivery of the phone conversations. That little difference in vocal delivery is how a person is able to tell there's two versions of the song floating around. Die-hard fans like me know that already :yes There is also a 1995 recording of the song...Ray re-recorded it in 1995 for inclusion in his movie-musical home video GET SERIOUS.

Stan Freberg as he appeared in the mid 1950's:
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Stan Freberg as he appears today, 2006:
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Satirist, voice actor, speaker, writer, one-time puppeteer, advertising whiz, are all names that fit Stan Freberg. Known by his fans and peers as simply "Freberg", Stan is one of the last living voice actors of animation's golden age. Freberg has been in and around animation and TV plus radio since the 1940's. His career is long and varied and he's had success in every facet of his career.

Freberg was born on August 7, 1926 and by the time he was 20, he was being heard along side Mel Blanc on a dozen Warner Brothers cartoons. In fact, his career began on cartoons when he was in his late teens. Freberg was typically called to play the idiots or the dimwits and neanderthal's in a lot of the Warner Brothers cartoons. His dimwitted characters were "Pete Puma", a mountain lion, and "Junyer Bear", and oversized 'baby' bear often seen in Chuck Jones version's of fairy tales. The voice he used was patterned after the Lennie character in OF MICE AND MEN. The slow drawl and the "Duuuuhhhh, which way did he go, George?? Which was did he go??" catchphrase is one of Freberg's.

Freberg's earliest success was TIME FOR BEANY, a 15 minute once a day puppet show. This program ran from 1949-1955. During this program's run, Freberg expanded his career. He not only signed with Capitol Records but he also aligned himself with Madison Avenue. From the day forward, until around 1962/1963, Freberg's career consisted of cartoon voice work; writing and performing TIME FOR BEANY with Daws Butler {until 1955}; recording comedy singles with Daws Butler, June Foray, and Peter Leeds for Capitol, plus writing and often directing TV and radio commercials. His funny commercials won him 21 Clio Awards.

His most famous client is Chun King. Freberg has also did commercial work for Carnation; Jeno's; Sunsweet; Butternut; Contidina; and Encyclopedia Brittanica. His son. Donavan, actually appears on camera in those encyclopedia TV commercials from the late 1980's.

Freberg and Capitol Records parted way and the recording career of Freberg had all but died. He busied himself in cartoon and commercial work. His distinct voice was often used as narrator's as well. Freberg re-emerged on radio in 1991 on NPR with a string of Andy Rooney-style commentaries under the title of STAN FREBERG HERE... and in 1994 he became the host of the old-time radio tribute program, WHEN RADIO WAS, which is still in production and heard on hundred's of radio stations on the AM dial and NPR on the FM dial.

Stan Freberg turns 80 this August.

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Album: House On Old Lonesome Road
Artist: Conway Twitty
Year of Release: 1989
Label: MCA

This album from Conway Twitty hit in the summer of 1989. It actually performed well and reached #39 on the Country Album chart. Singles were still out-selling albums in 1989 and it was still a common theory in country music that only the dedicated of fans would buy an entire album's worth of songs for just 2 or 3 hit singles that were heard on the radio.

The album contains the standard 10 songs, every other song changing tempo, like for example, track #1 is up-tempo and that means track #2 is a ballad, track #3 is uptempo, so fourth, etc etc. This is one of the very few Conway albums in which i disagree with the single release decisions. The opening song, without a doubt, deserved to be a single. "She's Got a Single Thing In Mind" was a huge hit for Conway in the summer/early fall of 1989. It hit #2 in Billboard and #1 in Cashbox, becoming his 54th #1 as a result.

Following it's release, MCA issued the title track as a single. "House on Old Lonesome Road" can be taken a variety of ways given it's title. For those who have not heard it, the song is about an empty house, of sorts. A man with a failed relationship stays at this house...which has become lonely and he has become lonesome. The hook of the song is that this lonesome house sits on Old Lonesome Road, the actual name of the road according to the lyrics. The single stalled on the charts, peaking at #19 in Billboard...his lowest charting hit since early 1986's #26 "You'll Never Know How Much I Needed You Today".

Conway gets topical on here...the teenage pregnancy song entitled "Child With Child" is a highlight.

In early 1990, MCA released a third single from the album and this is where the disagreement comes in. Instead of releasing what sounded like a good hit single, "Private Part of My Heart", MCA releases "Who's Gonna Know?". I love "Who's Gonna Know?" but when compared to "Private Part of My Heart", lyrically they're about as similar as oil and ketchup. "Private Part of My Heart" contained the ingredients, in my opinion, that make a hit Conway song. Whatever the case, "Who's Gonna Know" did not do too well. It reached #19 in Cashbox...BUT, in Billboard, the chart that the media/radio pay attention to, the single never made Top-40 status at all...in Billboard "Who's Gonna Know" peaked at #51 in early 1990.

What was happening??? That was the first officially released single from Conway to not reach the Top-40 portion of the charts since waaaay back in 1967. MCA in 1982 and 1983 released singles on Conway while he was on Warner Brothers. Those two singles do not count in his "official" releases. Anyway, "Who's Gonna Know" was the third and final single off HOUSE ON OLD LONESOME ROAD. 1990 was Conway's Silver Anniversary as a country singer, 1965-1990, and so as the year went by he was back in the spotlight again but his days in the country Top-10 were growing scarce. He would never have another long streak of Top-10 hits again. In fact, he would have just two more Top-10's during the 1990's, one of them becoming his 55th #1 hit...and the other reaching #2 on the charts...but those were his final glory days on the charts. His other singles peaked below the Top-10.

HOUSE ON OLD LONESOME ROAD is a great addition to the Conway library of music.

AC...YOUR REVIEW IS GREAT AS USUAL.  ON OUR LOCAL RADIO STATION ON SUNDAY THEY PLAY ALL CLASSICS.  THEY PLAY A LOT OF "CONWAY TWITTY".  THEY SPEAK VERY FAVORABLY OF HIM!  HE REALLY WAS ONE OF THE GREATS DURING HIS COUNTRY YEARS.  THANKS FOR THE REVIEW. 

I HAVE A QUESTION..DO YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION ON RAY PRICE?  HE SANG "FOR THE GOOD TIMES".


 

HELLO CHARLENE!!! I KNOW QUITE A LOT ABOUT RAY PRICE! I'M NOT A HARD-CORE FAN OF HIS BUT I LOVE HIS SINGING. "FOR THE GOOD TIMES" WAS ONE OF HIS COUNTRY-POP HITS. IT WAS WRITTEN BY KRIS KRISTOFFERSON. I LOVE PRICE's VOICE AND A LOT OF SONGS HE CAN GET AWAY WITH SINGING THAT MAY FALL FLAT WITH ANOTHER ARTIST. HIS VOICE WAS PERFECT FOR "YOU'RE THE BEST THING THAT EVER HAPPENED TO ME" AND "SHE'S GOT TO BE A SAINT". MY FAVORITES GO BACK TO THE 1950's WHEN HE HAD OUT "CITY LIGHTS"; "CRAZY ARMS"; "WALK ME TO THE DOOR"; "SAME OLD ME"; "I'LL BE THERE"; "TOUCH MY HEART" etc etc. I HAVE HIS DUET CD WITH WILLIE NELSON OF ALL PEOPLE...IT'S VERY GOOD. IT'S CALLED "SAN ANTONIO ROSE" FROM 1980. CONWAY TWITTY WROTE RAY PRICE's "WALK ME TO THE DOOR". BILL ANDERSON WROTE "CITY LIGHTS". JOHNNY PAYCHECK WROTE "TOUCH MY HEART". RAY DID A BRILLIANT VERSION OF "DANNY BOY" AND "NIGHT LIFE". WILLIE NELSON WROTE "NIGHT LIFE" BY THE WAY. HIS BACKING BAND WAS CALLED THE CHEROKEE COWBOY's AND HE CREATED A 'SHUFFLE BEAT' SOUND IN HIS MUSIC, WHICH WAS NEW AT THE TIME FOR A COUNTRY RECORDING.

HELLO JERRY!!!!  THANK YOU FOR WRITING INFORMATION ON "RAY PRICE".  I ALWAYS FELT HE HAD A UNIGUE VOICE.  I WAS NOT SURE WHO WROTE SOME OF HIS SONGS.  I HAD ASSUMED HE WROTE THEM.  HE WAS IN GOOD COMPANY, CONWAY TWITTY, AND WHISPERING BILL ANDERSON.  I HAVE HEARD OTHER ARTISTS SING "FOR THE GOOD TIMES", HOWEVER HIS VOICE IS PERFECT FOR IT.  I DID SEE HIM RECENTLY ON THE GRAND OL OPRY.  HE IS JUST AS GOOD TODAY AS BACK WHEN.  THIS WAS VERY KIND OF YOU TO DO A REVIEW OF HIM.  I HAVE BEEN CHECKING INTO ONE OF HIS CDS. PLANNING ON GETTING IT SOON.  I WROTE DOWN THE NAME OF THE CD YOU MENTIONED!  I THINK I MAY HAVE AN ALBUM OF HIS.  JUST NEED TO FIND A NEEDLE FOR MY RECORD PLAYER.  YOU REALLY DO KNOW YOUR COUNTRY ARTISTS! :hugg

Hi Jerry, I just got caught up on your reviews again.  Am I wrong or did Willie sell the rights to Night Life to Ray for like $50.00 or something back when he was broke, I know I have heard that story somewhere. I really enjoy reading all  your reviews.

CONWAY TWITTY's NUMBER ONE HIT SINGLES

• 1. It's Only Make Believe; 1958 Pop
  2. Next In Line; 1968 Country { all songs #1 country from here on out, however, some singles reached #1 in other country charts instead of Billboard and the chart for which it reached #1 will be listed after the year}
  3. Darling, You Know I Wouldn't Lie; 1968 Record World
  4. I Love You More Today; 1969
  5. To See My Angel Cry; 1969
  6. She Started To Stop Loving You; 1969 Record World
  7. Hello Darlin; 1970
  8. Fifteen Years Ago; 1970
  9. After The Fire Is Gone; 1971-w/Loretta Lynn
  10. How Much More Can She Stand; 1971
  11. I Wonder What She'll Think; 1971 Record World
  12. Lead Me On; 1971-w/Loretta Lynn
  13. I Can't See Me Without You; 1972 Record World
  14. Lost Her Love on Our Last Date; 1972
  15. I Can't Stop Loving You; 1972
  16. She Needs Someone To Hold Her When She Cries; 1972
  17. Baby's Gone; 1973 Record World
  18. Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man; 1973-w/Loretta Lynn
  19. You've Never Been This Far Before; 1973
  20. There's a Honky Tonk Angel; 1974
  21. I See The Want To In Your Eyes; 1974
  22. As Soon As I Hang Up The Phone; 1974-w/Loretta Lynn
  23. I'm Not Through Loving You Yet; 1974 Record World
  24. Linda On My Mind; 1975
  25. Feelins'; 1975-w/Loretta Lynn
  26. Touch the Hand; 1975
  27. Don't Cry Joni; 1975-w/Joni Twitty- Record World
  28. I've Hurt Her More Than She Loves Me; 1976
  29. The Letter; 1976-/Loretta Lynn- Record World
  30. After All The Good Is Gone; 1976
  31. The Games That Daddies Play; 1976
  32. I Can't Believe She Gives It All To Me; 1977
  33. Play, Guitar Play; 1977
  34. I've Already Loved You In My Mind; 1977
  35. Don't Take It Away; 1979
  36. I May Never Get To Heaven; 1979
  37. Happy Birthday Darlin; 1979
  38. I'd Just Love To Lay You Down; 1980
  39. Rest Your Love On Me; 1981
  40. Tight Fittin' Jeans; 1981
  41. Red Neckin' Love Makin' Night; 1981
  42. The Clown; 1982
  43. Slow Hand; 1982
  44. We Really Did But Now You Don't; 1982 Radio and Records
  45. The Rose; 1983
  46. Lost In The Feeling; 1983 Radio and Records
  47. Somebody's Needin' Somebody; 1984
  48. I Don't Know a Thing About Love; 1984
  49. Ain't She Somethin' Else; 1985
  50. Don't Call Him a Cowboy; 1985
  51. Desperado Love; 1986
  52. Fallin' For You For Years; 1987 Radio and Records
  53. Julia; 1987 Radio and Records
  54. She's Got a Single Thing In Mind; 1989 Cashbox
  55. Crazy In Love; 1990 Cashbox

AC...IT'S AMAZING TO REALIZE JUST HOW MANY HITS CONWAY TWITTY HAD.  ON THE SONG "HELLO DARLIN", HIS VOICE WAS SO LOW.  SO HIS RANGE ON VOCALS PROVES HE COULD SING ANYTHING.  THANKS FOR THE REVIEW!

AC,

Just popping in to skim some of your reviews.  You are amazing!!  You should be getting paid for this oneline somewhere!!!  I especially enjoyed reading about the voice actors for animated characters!! :shappy

Hugs,
Prissy

HELLO PRISSY AND CHARLENE!!! THANKS FOR THE COMMENTARY.

THOSE WERE JUST THE SINGLES THAT WENT TO #1 FOR CONWAY, HERE IS THE SECOND HALF OF HIS HIT LIST...THESE ARE THE SINGLES THAT PEAKED INSIDE THE TOP-10 BUT DIDN'T REACH #1. COUNTRY REFERS TO THE TOP-40 BILLBOARD CHART. POP REFERS TO THE BILLBOARD HOT 100.

1. Danny Boy; 1959 #10 Pop
2. Lonely Blue Boy; 1960 #6- Pop
3. The Image of Me; 1968 #5; Billboard Country
4. I Can't Love You Enough; 1977-w/Loretta Lynn; #2- Country
5. Georgia Keeps Pulling On My Ring; 1977 #3- Country
6. Boogie Grass Band; 1978 #2- Country
7. From Seven Til Ten; 1978-w/Loretta Lynn; #6- Country
8. Your Love Had Taken Me That High; 1978 #3- Country
9. You Know Just What I'd Do; 1979-w/Loretta Lynn  #9- Country
10. It's True Love; 1980-w/Loretta Lynn  #5- Country
11. I've Never Seen The Likes of You; 1980  #5-Cashbox
12. A Bridge That Just Won't Burn; 1980  #2- Cashbox
13. Lovin' What Your Lovin' Does To Me; 1981-w/Loretta Lynn  #7- Country
14. I Still Believe In Waltzes; 1981-w/Loretta Lynn  #2- Country
15. Heartache Tonight; 1983  #5- Radio and Records
16. Three Times a Lady; 1984  #7- Country
17. Between Her Blue Eyes and Jeans; 1985  #3- Country
18. I Want To Know You Before We Make Love; 1987  #2- Country
19. That's My Job; 1988  #6- Country
20. Goodbye Time; 1988  #7- Country
21. Saturday Night Special; 1988  #6- Cashbox
22. I Wish I Was Still In Your Dreams; 1989  #4- Country
23. I Couldn't See You Leavin'; 1991  #2- Radio and Records

AC  :wave THANK FOR LISTING THE OTHER SONGS OF CONWAY TWITTY.  :clap HE DID A LOT OF RECORDINGS.  I KNOW HE DID A LOT OF COUNTRY BUT, WERE THERE MANY ROCK AND ROLL ONES?  THANK YOU AGAIN!

HELLO CHARLENE!! CONWAY WAS PROMOTED AS A ROCK-POP SINGER FROM 1957-1964. IN 1965 HE WENT COUNTRY. SOME OF HIS COUNTRY SINGLES CROSSED-OVER TO THE POP CHART AS YOU WILL SEE.

HERE ARE CONWAY's HIT SINGLES ON THE HOT 100 POP CHART:

1. I Need Your Lovin; 1957  #93 {this single is worth $40.00}
2. It's Only Make Believe; 1958  #1
3. The Story of My Love; 1959  #28
4. Hey Little Lucy, Don'cha Put No Lipstick On; 1959  #87
5. Mona Lisa; 1959  #29
6. Danny Boy; 1959 #10
7. Lonely Blue Boy; 1960  #6
8. What Am I Living For; 1960  #26
9. Is a Bluebird Blue; 1960  #35
10. She's Mine; 1960  #98  {b-side tag-along of #9}
11. Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On; 1960  #55
12. C'est Si Bon; 1961  #22
13. The Next Kiss; 1961  #72
14. Portrait of a Fool; 1962  #98
15. Hello Darlin; 1970  #60  {country cross-over; #1-Country}
16. Fifteen Years Ago; 1970  #81  {country cross-over; #1-Country}
17. After the Fire Is Gone; 1971-w/Loretta Lynn  #56  {country cross-over; #1-Country}
18. You've Never Been This Far Before; 1973  #22  {country cross-over; #1-Country}
19. Linda On My Mind; 1975  #61  {country cross-over; #1-Country}
20. Don't Cry Joni; 1976  #63  {country cross-over; #1-Record World Country}

I FOUND THIS WONDERFUL PROMO ADD FOR CONWAY TWITTY's 1983 ALBUM "LOST IN THE FEELING". THE WOMAN ON THE COVER WITH HIM IS NAOMI JUDD, ONE HALF OF THE SINGING DUO, THE JUDDS. THIS WAS BEFORE SHE AND HER DAUGHTER, WYNONNA, BECAME SINGERS.


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Title: Lost in the Feeling
Artist: Conway Twitty
Year of Release: 1983
Label: Warner Brothers

Lost in the Feeling AS YOU ALL CAN SEE, WAS CONWAY's FIFTH ALBUM FOR WARNER BROTHERS. THE FIRST FOUR ARE LINED UP AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE. GOING FROM LEFT TO RIGHT WE HAVE:

1982: Southern Comfort
1982: Conway Twitty Number One Classics, Vol. One
1982: Conway Twitty Number One Classics, Vol. Two
1982: Dream Maker

AS YOU CAN SEE, 1982 WAS A BIG YEAR FOR CONWAY...PLUS THAT WAS THE YEAR HIS FAMOUS PARK, TWITTY-CITY, OPENED UP IN HENDERSONVILLE, TN AND IT WAS ALSO THE YEAR HE TAPED HIS ONLY TV SPECIAL, THE MADE FOR TV "CONWAY TWITTY ON THE MISSISSIPPI". CONWAY PASSED AWAY IN 1993. TWITTY-CITY SHUT DOWN IN 1994 AFTER THE YEAR LONG TRIBUTE, "FINAL TOUCHES", RAN IT'S COURSE.

Lost in the Feeling FEATURED THE STANDARD 10 SONG COLLECTION. CONWAY HAD BEEN ON A MUSIC REVIVAL OF SORTS...HIS LAST MCA SINGLES IN 1981 WERE ALL ARRANGED IN AN UP-BEAT, ALMOST POPPISH SOUND...CONWAY ONCE DESCRIBED IT THAT HE TURNED THE MUSIC UP MORE, MEANING THE INSTRUMENTATION WOULD BE MORE LOUDER AND MORE CRISP AS OPPOSED TO THE LIGHT BACK-BEAT SOUNDS OF HIS 1970's RECORDINGS.

THIS ALBUM CONTAINED NO BILLBOARD #1 SINGLES...HOWEVER, ON THE OTHER MUSIC CHART, "LOST IN THE FEELING" DID REACH #1 IN THE RADIO AND RECORDS TOP-40, MAKING THIS SINGLE HIS 46th TO HIT #1. IN BILLBOARD, "LOST IN THE FEELING" PEAKED AT #2. THE SINGLE WAS ALSO THE ONLY ONE TO FEATURE SO MUCH STEEL GUITAR...JOHN HUGHEY PLAYS SEVERAL STEEL GUITAR SOLO's ON THIS SINGLE AND HE CARRIES THE SONG RIGHT UP TO THE END...THE SONG FADES AS WE STILL HEAR THE STEEL GUITAR. RICKY SKAGGS SANG BACK-UP.

THERE WERE TWO MORE SINGLES RELEASED FROM THIS ALBUM. THEY WERE BOTH COVER SONGS OF CONTEMPORARY POP HITS, SOMETHING HE HAD DID ON HIS PREVIOUS ALBUMS. ON Southern Comfort HE DID HIS VERSION OF "SLOW HAND" AND ON Dream Maker HE DID HIS VERSION OF "THE ROSE". ON THIS ALBUM, HE COVERS "HEARTACHE TONIGHT" AND "THREE TIMES A LADY". THE SINGLE "HEARTACHE TONIGHT" WAS A SHOUTER AND AN UP-TEMPO GEM...FEATURING THE OSMONDS SINGING BACKGROUND HARMONY. IT REACHED #6 IN BILLBOARD AND ONE HIGHER, #5, IN RADIO AND RECORDS. IT WAS A SMASH HIT, ALTHOUGH IT DIDN'T REACH #1.

"THREE TIMES A LADY" WAS THE MOST OLDEST POP SONG, BUT STILL CONTEMPORARY AT THE TIME. ORIGINALLY A HIT IN 1979 BY THE COMMODORES, CONWAY's VERSION CONTAINED AN ARRAY OF GROWLS AND WHISPERS TO CREATE A MOOD. HE EVEN WHISPERS "i love ya, baby" AS THE SONG ENDS. CONWAY's VERSION DIDN'T INCLUDE A VERSE, FOR WHATEVER REASON...MAYBE TIME CONSTRAINTS!?! THE COMMODORES VERSION, OF COURSE, CONTAINS THE MISSING VERSE. I HAVE NEVER SEEN CONWAY PERFORM THIS SONG ON ANY TV APPEARANCE...BUT I'M SURE THERE'S FOOTAGE SOMEWHERE. I COULD ONLY IMAGINE THE SHRIEKS FROM HIS FEMALE FANS WHEN HE'D START INTO THE GROWLING CHORUS OF "you're once...twice...three times a lady...and i love you". THE SONG HIT #7...PROVING THAT HE WAS ABLE TO MAKE THE TOP-10, EVEN WITH A SINGLE NOT EMBRACED THAT MUCH ON THE RADIO.

THE OTHER HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE ALBUM ARE HIS RECORDINGS OF "FIRST THINGS FIRST" ABOUT A BLIND DATE. "FROM A STRANGER'S POINT OF VIEW" WHICH SHOULD HAVE BEEN A SINGLE. "THE BEST IS YET TO COME" AND "YOU'VE GOT A GOOD LOVE COMING" ARE ALSO GREAT. LESS GREENWOOD HAD THE HIT WITH "YOU'VE GOT A GOOD LOVE COMING".

CONWAY FOLLOWED UP THIS ALBUM WITH By Heart IN 1984 AND HAD HIS 47th AND 48th #1 HITS IN THE PROCESS WITH THAT ALBUM's TWO SINGLES.

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Album: Chasin Rainbows
Artist: Conway Twitty
Year of Release: 1985
Label: Warner Brothers

By the time this album came along, Conway had enjoyed a remarkable streak of Top-10 and #1 hit singles dating back to 1968. This album was a follow-up to his earlier 1985 album, Don't Call Him a Cowboy. Conway was one of the few artists who released two complete and original albums per year. When you factor in the duet albums with Loretta, that was 3 full-length albums released per year plus hits compilations, both officially released or unofficial from independant labels.

Chasin' Rainbows featured 10 songs from Conway...as i have studied his career, it still puzzles me as to why this album did so poorly when compared to his other material before and after this album came along. The material is all good...so i still have a hard time understanding why either of the two singles couldn't achieve a Top-10 or even #1 placing.

The lead-off single, "The Legend and the Man", may have been too unfamiliar to his fans or the country audience in general who were used to Conway singing about the subject of love and all that goes with it. "The Legend and the Man" was about a singer who turns to drinking. A lot of people feel it's about Hank Williams but it could be applied to any singer who had problems with alcohol. It's interesting, though, that the songwriters who wrote that song were alo having their material recorded by George Jones...so, that song could apply to George, too, and i wonder what could've happened had George recorded the song.

Conway, though, did a great vocal performance and it reached the Top-20, peaking at #19 in Billboard and #18 in Cashbox in late 1985. This was not the first time a single of his peaked below the Top-10...back in 1978 "The Grandest Lady of Them All" hit #16 and sticks out like a sore thumb when glancing at Conway's 1970's hit singles, which all hit #1 or Top-5, then you come across a #16 ranked single.

However, in early 1986 Warner Brothers issued "You'll Never Know How Much I Needed You Today" as a single. I guess the title is what caused some problems...it being too long of a title!? Whatever the case, this single peaked at #26...that was lower than any of his major singles since 1967!!! The remaining 8 songs were all good quality. I would've released "She Did" as a single if i were making the decisions or perhaps the sing-a-long song "All I Can Be Is a Sweet Memory"...several years later a newcomer named Collin Raye would have a good sized hit with that song.

Chasin' Rainbows as i mentioned earlier, continues to be a mystery to me. The previous album Don't Call Him a Cowboy boasted the #1 hit title track plus the #3 single "Between Her Blue Eyes and Jeans" while the album that came after Chasin' Rainbows, 1986's Fallin' For You For Years, boasted the #1 title track plus the #1 "Desperado Love". Soooo, as you can see, the reason Chasin' Rainbows didn't do so well is confusing.

It's now a very rare and obscure album because there were no big hits from the album. I have it on cassette. I don't know if there is a CD version around or not.

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Name: Ray Stevens
Born: January 24, 1939
Birth Name: Harold Ragsdale

This is one of the more recent pics of music legend Ray Stevens. He was born Harold Ragsdale in a small town in Georgia known as Clarkdale. Music has been a part of Ray's life from his early years when he learned to play the piano. In his teens he even formed a band in high school, The Barons.

Ray is also one of the few artists to have had a taste of fame, albeit local fame, as a teenager. Recording for PREP and Capitol in the late '50s when he was 17 and 18, Ray has lived a life of music. His very first recording on a single was 1957's "Silver Bracelet". 1961, at the age of 21, Ray found himself on the Hot 100 Pop chart for the very first time. Prior to 1961, none of his singles had charted nationally. One of them came close...a 1960 recording, a comedy song called "Sgt. Preston of the Yukon". It was his first recording of a novelty-comedy song and it almost became a national Hot 100 hit until he had to pull it off the market because of a lawsuit threat from the owners of the Sgt. Preston character.

His previous label was NRC. He was with Prep/Capitol and then Capitol during 1957-1959, then NRC in 1959-1960. Hhis 1961 move to Mercury Records was the move he needed. This was the label in which Ray became a music recording star. He was also becoming known as a producer, session musician, and arranger. The bulk of his recordings up to that point he had written himself and so he also had songwriter to add to his list of talents.

His first Mercury single arrived in 1961 and it was his first national hit song, "Jeremiah Peabody's Polyunsaturated Quick Dissolving Fast Acting Pleasant Tasting Green and Purple Pills", known simply as "Jeremiah Peabody" now. The single reached #35 on the Hot 100, a big triumph for a novelty single PLUS one with such a LONG name for a song. He did not reach the Hot 100 with the next single, "Scratch My Back", but it was still a funny song all the same.

1962 marks the year Ray first entered the Pop Top-10. He did it with a single entitled "Ahab the Arab", which became what is known today as a smash hit. It quickly flew up to #5 pop but also crossed over and reached #9 on the R&B chart. He would not have another hit single of that magnitude until the end of the decade. However, he continued to place his singles on the Hot 100. "Furthermore" reached #91 pop. "Harry the Hairy Ape", for example, reached #17 pop and #14 R&B. "Speed Ball", the name of a motorcyclist in an ode to Brother Dave Gardner, reacehd #59-pop and #29-R&B. "Funny Man" hit #81 pop. "Santa Claus Is Watching You" reached #45 pop.

His singles were proving a theory that would be a mainstay in his career: no airplay doesn't mean there's not an audience or a demand, or vice versa...heavy airplay doesn't always translate into sales.

In late 1963 he left Mercury for Monument Records. He didn't record...he kept himself busy producing recording sessions for other Monument acts. He returned to recording in 1966, still with Monument. "Freddy Feelgood" reached #91 pop in 1966, marking his return to the Hot 100, albeit in the lower reaches. In 1968 things started changing for Ray.

The mood in pop music was more socially aware and dealt with current events. His first single of 1968, "Unwind", showcased a more serious Ray Stevens. The single also reached #52 pop, making it the biggest serious hit single of Ray's career up to that point. Prior, only his novelty singles were making bigger impacts. Ray released the album EVEN STEVENS in 1968 which boasted a single that re-defined Ray for a period of years. "Mr. Businessman" had been written and recorded by Ray as late as 1966 but he re-recorded it in 1968 and Monument released it as a commercial single again. For whatever reason, maybe the mood at the time, "Mr. Businessman" was catching on and before long, the single was climbing the Hot 100. It went as high as #28 pop.

Ray joined the cast of the Andy Williams show in 1969. This same year, he returned to the Top-10 of the pop charts with "Gitarzan", a novelty song about Tarzan and company forming a music group. The single reached #8 pop and sold over a million copies...as did "Ahab the Arab" 6 years earlier. "Along Came Jones", a former Coasters hit, reached #27 pop for Ray in 1969. Ray then turned very serious and socially reflective in late 1969 with the release of the HAVE A LITTLE TALK WITH MYSELF album. The first single from this album was "Sunday Morning Coming Down". It reached #81 pop in 1969 but crossed over to #55 country, making that his first country hit single.

The title track, "Have a Little Talk With Myself", reached the country chart as well, peaking at #62 in early 1970. The album contained some of his versions of contemporary pop hits, specifically from the Beatles and Bob Dylan.

In the summer of 1970, Ray hosted a TV program. When variety shows were airing on TV, the headliner would take the summer months off. Instead of showing re-runs, Ray was picked to host the summer replacement show for Andy Williams. The choice caused Ray to write his most famous composition because he needed a theme song. "Everything is Beautiful" emerged and it was partially sung at the top of every episode. The full version was released as single on Ray's label, Barnaby, having switched from Monument after HAVE A LITTLE TALK WITH MYSELF.

"Everything Is Beautiful" reached the Pop and Country charts...as well as the oversea's charts...it was an international hit single. It reached #1 pop, #39 country, #1 Easy Listening, and it sold over three million copies. The song also won Ray a GRAMMY for Best Pop Male Vocal Performance.

Barnaby released an EVERYTHING IS BEAUTIFUL album to go hand in hand with the single. It contained more versions of contemporary pop songs interpreted in Ray's style, with some original material added in such as "A Brighter Day". Later in 1970, Barnaby released Ray's first album for them UNREAL. Well, what had happened was...Ray had recorded this album sometime in late 1969/early 1970 and it was designed to be his debut for Barnaby in the album market. Well, when "Everything Is Beautiful" took off the way it did, Barnaby decided to release a single of that song and an album to support it...so what had happened was, Ray's second Barnaby album was actually his first :lol

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UNREAL featured two hit singles, the social comment "America, Communicate With Me" which reached #45 pop but climbed to #12 on the Adult-Contemporary chart and later in 1970, the Brian Wilson-esque "Sunset Strip", which hit #81 pop but smashed into the Adult-Contemporary Top-20, reaching #17 on that chart. UNREAL also contained a brilliant social comment song that wasn't released as an A-side single, "Talking". I think it could've been a hit, too, if marketed right at that time.

Ray returned to novelty in late 1970 with the release of "Bridget the Midget". This single featured Ray's take on the sped-up vocal technique created by the Chipmunks' Ross Bagdasarian. The single reached #50 pop but climbed to #2 in England in early 1971.

Ray departed from the Andy Williams show in 1971 and later that year recorded some gospel songs. The first release shown up early in 1971, the #82 pop hit "A Mama and a Papa". The single reached #4 on the Adult Contemporary chart. He followed this with "All My Trials", which hit #70 pop but went into the Top-10 on the Adult Contemporary chart, reaching #6. In late 1971, "Turn Your Radio On" was released. The single reached #63 pop but climbed to #24 Adult-Contemporary and #17 country.

Ray's Hot 100 chart placings were growing less and less frequent as the decade went on. As you can see, most of his pop singles were doing better on the Adult-Contemporary and Country formats, which weren't geared toward children and teenagers/young adults. His next appearance on the singles charts arrived in mid 1973, a single entitled "Nashville", which reached #44 AC {short for Adult-Contemporary} and reached #37 Country. This single did not make the Hot 100 pop chart.

In early 1974 Ray once again found himself at the center of a major comedy single...the subject this time around was streaking. "The Streak" is for all intents and purposes, the biggest hit single of Ray's career. In addition to it's five million in sales, the single reached #1 pop and #1 in England and #3 Country...also reaching #12 on the AC chart. His follow-up was his spoof of the TV program, The Midnight Special. "The Moonlight Special" was a great novelty song, spoofing something current and popular. It reached #73 pop and it was one of Ray's most vocally expressive singles...he impersonates various well-known celebrities in the song. Everyone from Gladys Knight to the Wolfman Jack announcer, known as Sheep-Dog on this recording :lol Those singles were off an album called BOOGITY-BOOGITY.

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Serious again, "Everybody Needs a Rainbow" hit #37 country in late 1974 and #18 AC. The next hit single arrived in 1975 in the form of a bluegrass version of "Misty", which hit #3 Country, #8 AC, and #14 pop and marked the last single of Ray's to reach Top-20 status on three separate music charts at the same time. "Misty" won a GRAMMY for Best Arrangement of the Year. His MISTY album contained his versions of several pop standards. "Indian Love Call" was released as a single. It hit #68 pop and #38 country...this was followed in early 1976 with "Young Love", which reached #93 pop and #44 AC. This was Ray's final single for Barnaby records. He left the label after an amazing 1970-1976 run.

He found himself on Warner Brothers records later in 1976 and his first single, "You Are So Beautiful", reached #16 country. Ray was being marketed as a country artist primarily now. His next single, "Honky Tonk Waltz", reached #27 country in late 1976. However, a new novelty single was released in late 1976 and it found it's way onto the charts in January 1977. This was Ray's first novelty single since 1974...this 1977 hit was called "In The Mood". Yes...the same song that Glenn Miller had a hit with in 1940. This time, in the hands of Ray Stevens, the song was clucked like a chicken...and there was a choir of other farm animals. The single was released under the false name of HEN HOUSE FIVE PLUS TOO.

"In The Mood" reached the charts in January 1977...it hit #40 pop, #39 country, and #38 AC. That may be the first time a single peaked on three different charts in numerical order no less :lol

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The next few singles from Ray never reached the Top-40, "Get Crazy With Me" hit #81 on the country chart and "Dixie Hummingbird" reached #44 on the country chart that same year. He got some exposure as a songwriter in 1977 when his song, "Can't Stop Dancing", became a Top-20 pop hit for the Captain and Tennille.

In 1978, "Be Your Own Best Friend" was the only single to reach the charts for Ray. It hit #36 country and #50 AC. He closed out the decade with a novelty single...this one was a parody on one of his peers in the music business.

"I Need Your Help, Barry Manilow" hit the charts in the spring of 1979. It was inspired, musically, by Barry's single "I Write the Songs". The arrangements are very similar. Ray's single was his last major novelty single on the pop charts. It reached #49 pop and #85 country but what some music critics have pointed out is the single reached #11 on the AC chart, the format in which Barry had his biggest success with. Ray left Warner Brothers shortly afterward and signed with RCA in late 1979.

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Ray was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1980 and his first single for RCA, "Shriner's Convention", hit #7 country. He didn't immediately follow-up that single. A follow-up arrived in late 1980, "Night Games", which hit #20 country. In 1981 only one single hit the charts, "One More Last Chance", reaching #33 country.

In 1982 a few more singles reached the charts...the #63 "Where the Sun Don't Shine" and the #35 "Written Down in My Heart". Ray left RCA in 1983 and headed back to Mercury, the label in which he became a star on in 1961. He recorded one album and just one single hit the charts, "My Dad", reached #64 country in early 1984.

After that one album and single on Mercury, Ray went to MCA. It was on this label that he was promoted as a country comedian for the first time. From 1984-1989, Ray was enjoying amazing success in country music as a comedian on MCA. All of his comedy albums were hitting the charts and his singles were charting with regularity. "Mississippi Squirrel Revival" reached #20 country for Ray in early 1985...followed by "It's Me Again, Margaret" which hit #74 country. His debut MCA album HE THINKS HE's RAY STEVENS sold half a million copies, his first ever GOLD album.

Following that up was I HAVE RETURNED and a pair of comedy singles. "The Haircut Song" hit #45 country and "The Blue Cyclone" hit #50 country in early 1986. Both were big sellers in country music. I HAVE RETURNED hit GOLD status as well plus it reached #1 on the Album chart in early 1986.

Part 2 shall appear next!

And now Part 2 of the Ray Stevens story...

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In one of the more unique aspects in any form of music, Ray Stevens has been able to make his lower charting singles and even album tracks become just as popular as the bigger hits. "It's Me Again, Margaret", for example. It is about an obscene phone caller and it reached #74 country in early mid 1985...but chart rankings mean little to Ray and his fans. To the fans, all of his songs are great and novelty singles, no matter who the artist, novelty singles don't get embraced by the mainstream public anymore and radio definately frowns on comedy songs. His singles were hitting higher on the sales chart, though. "Mississippi Squirrel Revival" hit #12 in sales. "The Blue Cyclone" hit #26 in sales in 1986...

As touched upon in the ending of part 1, MCA was the label that re-invented Ray as a country comedian. Music City News, a former fan magazine, used to hold annual award shows. These award shows were aired around the time of Fan Fair, a gathering of country singers and their fans in the fairgrounds in Nashville. Ray appeared and at times performed on this program annually. He also took home the COMEDIAN OF THE YEARS trophy during 1986 and he would win the award every year until 1995, losing out to Jeff Foxworthy.

After the amazing success of HE THINKS HE's RAY STEVENS and I HAVE RETURNED, Ray followed that with SURELY YOU JOUST in 1986. It is also important to note that Ray's album covers at this time were all containing hilarious spoofs of historial figures. On the 1984 album Ray was dressed as Napoleon on the cover; on I HAVE RETURNED he was dressed as General MacArthur; and on SURELY YOU JOUST he was dressed as King Arthur.

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Around the same time, the above COLLECTOR's SERIES album was released by RCA. It was only an 8 song sampling of some of Ray's RCA songs. One of the great tragedies of this album is that it did not contain his 1980 Top-20 hit, "Night Games". I have no reason why it didn't. Two singles charted for Ray in 1986, "The People's Court" and "Southern Air". The latter being a trio recording...Ray was joined by Jerry Clower and Minnie Pearl. "The People's Court" hit #70 country while "Southern Air" would hit #63 country but reach #27 in sales.

1987 was another good year for Ray...he had 4 best selling albums: GREATEST HITS, CRACKIN UP, GREATEST HITS VOLUME TWO, and GET THE BEST OF RAY STEVENS...

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GET THE BEST OF RAY STEVENS as you see above was a TV album. It was one of his earliest attempts at direct mail order. It was basically GREATEST HITS and GREATEST HITS VOLUME TWO combined on one album. 1987 also boasted a single from Ray that had reached higher for him than any released since early 1985...the satiric "Would Jesus Wear a Rolex" climbed the charts to #41 country in 1987...just missing Top-40 status on Billboard. GREATEST HITS hit the Platinum mark, over a million copies sold and the sequel, VOLUME TWO, reached Gold. Indicating the strong audience still out there for Ray even as late as 1987...long after he had his last big radio hits.

The good times at MCA continued throughout 1988 and 1989, however only one single made the charts...the nostaligic "The Day I Tried To Teach Charlene MacKenzie How To Drive", which hit #88 in 1988. In left MCA in 1989 after 5 glorious years...one of his last memorable songs for MCA at the time was the fan favorite "I Saw Elvis in a UFO", which appeared on his 1989 BESIDE MYSELF album...which contained 5 serious songs and 5 comedy songs.

Ray joined CURB records in 1990 and made two music videos, both songs from which the music videos were spawned from appeared on his debut CURB album LEND ME YOUR EARS. The 1990's were also good to Ray but in a whole new direction, though. He became known for his comedy music videos and his concerts in Branson, Missouri. He opened his own theatre in Branson in 1991. He then issued his second CURB album, #1 WITH A BULLET. That album contained a song that put Ray back on the country singles chart again...the satiric "Workin' For the Japanese" reached #62 country in the summer of 1991. Riding the popularity of his theatre and his new-found fame down there in Branson, he released a second single from #1 WITH A BULLET in early 1992, the macho-laden "Power Tools", perhaps inspired by the hit TV show at the time with Tim Allen, Home Improvement. "Power Tools" wasn't as successful as the previous single, reaching #72 country in March 1992.

1992 was the year that Ray became a mega-star in the home video world. He released a home video called COMEDY VIDEO CLASSICS over TV and other direct mail outlets. The response was amazing...the home video hit #1 on the various Home Video charts and eventually hit the million sales mark, unheard of for a home video. The home video contained 8 music videos, 7 comedy and the last one a music video for his 1970 classic "Everything is Beautiful".

In 1993 that home video was named Top Music Video of the Year by Billboard. It continued to sell even after CURB distributed it to retail stores later that year. In the meantime, a new home video surfaced...the concert RAY STEVENS LIVE, filmed at his theatre in Branson. That music video didn't necessarily duplicate COMEDY VIDEO CLASSICS, but it did reach #1 on the video charts and sell a million copies but with lesser fan-fair. A sequel was issued to fans only and for the ones who visted his theatre's gift shop. MORE RAY STEVENS LIVE was more or less a spotlight on Ray and his performers at his theatre. He released an audio project in 1993, entitled CLASSIC RAY STEVENS. In spite of the title, all 10 songs were original recordings. The album's highlight was the opening song, "If 10% Is Good Enough For Jesus It Oughta Be Enough For Uncle Sam".

The good times came to an end in Branson in 1994. After the winter season wrapped up in late 1993, Ray made the announcement that he was selling his theatre. In it's peak, it boasted over a million in attendance...this of course was a combination of paid attendance during the 1991, 1992, and 1993 seasons that the theatre was up and running. He also left CURB records in 1994, after a 4 year stay.

After the home video explosion began to settle down and his days at Branson on a nightly basis over with, Ray began to settle down as well. In 1995 he emerged with the home video experiment, GET SERIOUS. This was a movie, with music videos spliced into it. It had a 110 minute running time. It was also a best seller reaching the half a million in sales mark in 1996. It was 1996 that also saw Ray be inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. Also, in late 1996, Ray signed a new recording contract with MCA, the label he recorded for during 1984-1989. His MCA material was constantly being re-released on numerous CD's and still showing signs of healthy sales throughout the 1990's. His classic material is still being re-released on many, many compilation projects.

Ray issued two new albums for MCA in 1997. The first was HUM IT, which featured an appearance by JD Sumner on the song "Mama Sang Bass". Two music videos were released to support HUM IT, "Virgil and the Moonshot", a spoof of Apollo-13. The other, "Too Drunk To Fish", a good ol' redneck country anthem :lol Later, he released his first and ONLY holiday album, CHRISTMAS THROUGH A DIFFERENT WINDOW. That album helped set in motion his famed Opryland appearances at the Roy Acuff theatre. Ray left MCA in 1998...i am still unaware as to the reason why. I know Ray had slown down his out-put but he was still packing the houses at his shows in Opryland.

In 2000 Ray released a new home video, FUNNIEST VIDEO CHARACTERS. It was a best seller as his previous ones had been. He went back to CURB records in 2001...this was primarily as a result of 9/11. The terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 created a tidal wave of anger, anguish, confusion, patriotism, and all other sorts of emotions. Country singers, more than anyother, began releasing material to relate to the tragedy. Ray, being known by now as a country comedian, released his take on things in early 2002 in the form of the single, "Osama Yo Mama".

This single spawned a highly successful album of the same name in 2002, released on CURB.

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"Osama Yo Mama" was the most successful in a long string of comedy songs about Osama and terrorism in general. A lot of the other comedy songs were aired on the national radio show hosted by Doctor Demento. "Osama Yo Mama" also boasted a music video and since that time, it has became Ray's biggest hit, making him the only novelty artist to have success in five consecutive decades: '60s, '70s, '80s, '90s, and 2000's. As a single, "Osama Yo Mama" reached #48 country and #2 in sales.

Ray returned to Branson for more appearances at the place he once called home, his former theatre! Since 2002, Ray has layed low and hasn't been in the spotlight much. He released an all-serious album, THANK YOU, in 2004, on his own label, Clyde Records. Clyde was the label in which he had released all of his home videos on, by the way!

The title track, "Thank You", was patriotic and got a lot of attention on Fox News Channel. He has quietly released several concept DVDs since then featuring cartoon music videos. His most recent project is a parody of the Johnny Horton hit, "The Battle of New Orleans". This parody is entitled "The New Battle of New Orleans". It was basically a regional hit in and around the south, based on the Hurricane Katrina and all of it's aftermath.

This concludes the Ray Stevens story.

:wave

 :wave  :clap JERRY! VERY GOOD REVIEW ON RAY STEVENS.  HE WAS A BUSY MAN WITH HIS CAREER. SO MANY THINGS HE RECORDED!  WHAT I ALWAYS LIKE ABOUT HIM WAS THAT HE WAS HUMOROUS/SERIOUS.  ALL AROUND ENTERTAINER!
THANK FOR SHARING YOUR REVIEW.

HELLO CHARLENE!! I'M GLAD YOU LIKED THE OVER-VIEW OF RAY's CAREER. THE TV GUIDE WITH HIM IN IT FROM 1970 ARRIVED TODAY, OF ALL DAYS, THAT I BOUGHT FROM eBay. IT'S DATED JULY 4-10, 1970 LITERALLY 36 AGO THIS WEEK WAS WHEN IT WAS OUT IN STORES.

 HELLO JERRY; I HAPPEN TO COME BACK TO CHECK ON A NAME OF A CD HERE, AND READ YOUR POST.  WOW...THAT IS SO IRONIC ABOUT THE TV GUIDE!  IS THERE A NICE PHOTO OF HIM IN IT?  WHAT DOES THE ARTICLE SAY?
BE BACK SOON.

The picture of Ray in the TV Guide article is similar to the picture of his single cover for "Everything Is Beautiful" in 1970. The article was a big three pages long...pages 18-20. At the time, Ray was hosting his TV program when Andy Williams was on summer vacation. Anyway, the article was about Ray being like an "unknown" to a large segment of the country...he had success with comedy songs in the 1960s but he hadn't became a "household" name yet until his weekly appearances on Andy's TV show in 1969. The article also has quotes from people associated with Andy's show saying why they picked Ray out of the others in the cast to headline the summer version of the show. The cover of the TV Guide shows the cast of THE COURTSHIP OF EDDIE's FATHER with Bill Bixby.

Title: "A Thing of the Past"
Artist: Conway Twitty
Year of Release: 1986

This song was never released as a single by Conway but like so many album songs that were never singles, this one was great. It carries a lonesome feeling throughout the performance...the opening intro with the piano helps set the mood as do the lyrics.
---------------------------------------------

A one way ticket
Window seat
Heartache at thirty thousand feet
Future fades into memories
I'll get by somehow
Three point landing at LAX
Pockets filled with traveller's cheques
Passenger filled with regret
It's all too clear to me now

We're just like I Love Lucy
And drive-in movies
And car's that run on regular gas
War love letters and high school sweaters
Beatle boots and bell-bottom bants
Autumn leaves fallin' from the trees
And all the things that weren't meant to last
It's sad to find that you and i
Are nothin' but A Thing of the Past

No one's waitin' to meet my plane
Two thousand miles and i feel the same
Only the hotel clerk knows my name
But that's just fine with me
Out the window the crowded street
Are lined with people with someone to meet
While i sit here keepin' company
With what used to be

We're just like I Love Lucy
And drive-in movies
And car's that run on regular gas
War love letters and high school sweaters
Beatle boots and bell-bottom bants
Autumn leaves fallin' from the trees
And all the things that weren't meant to last
It's sad to find that you and i
Are nothin' but A Thing of the Past

It's sad to find that you and i
Are nothin' but A Thing of the Past
-----------------------------------------------------

The song is located on Conway's 1986 album FALLIN' FOR YOU FOR YEARS, which i reviewed on here i think :lol

The album's very rare as is mostly every album Conway recorded before 1987. It is on the Warner Brothers label.

 
AC HELLO, THAT WAS AN INTERESTING SONG.  IT'S TOO BAD IT WASN'T RELEASED AS A SINGLE.  I THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE COULD HAVE REALLY REALATED TO IT.
THANKS FOR MENTIONING IT!  HE HAD SO MANY GOOD SONGS. 

HELLO CHARLENE!!! IT WOULD HAVE BEEN A GOOD SIZED HIT SONG HAD CONWAY DECIDED TO RELEASE IT. "RIVERBOAT GAMBLERS" IS ANOTHER SONG FROM HIS 1986 ALBUM I FEEL COULD'VE BEEN A HIT, TOO!!! :yes

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/emoticons/S3708_01.jpg)

I don't have the actual single of this but i do have it on CD. I like the song despite it being a sing-a-long. It's one of the very few "rock" arranged song by Barry Manilow. It can be found on ULTIMATE MANILOW, the versions that were sold over-seas. It is not on the American release of ULTIMATE MANILOW.


YOU'RE LOOKIN' HOT TONIGHT
1983 by Barry Manilow

I don't believe my eyes ,what have I seen
Looking like you walked out of a magazine
Oh, everyone's stopped and starin' at the door
Go on you know you got it, let'em beg for more

Hey you you're lookin' hot tonight
Do you wanna dance
You know you're lookin' hot tonight
Give me half a chance
You know you got everybody waiting to see
Who will be the lucky guy
Hey you you're lookin' hot tonight
Won't you give me a try
Won't you give me a try

Look at you looking like you just begun
Aren't you just the envy of everyone
Oh, holding our breaths until you give a sign
Go on, you know you got it
Let 'em wait in line

Hey you you're lookin' hot tonight
Do you wanna dance
You know you're lookin' hot tonight
Give me half a chance
You know you got everybody waiting to see
Who will be the lucky guy
Hey you you're looking hot tonight
Won't you give me a try
Won't you give me a try

You're looking hot tonight
You're looking hot tonight
I can see you smiling at me
I know where you wanna be
Cause...

Hey you You're lookin' hot tonight
Do you wanna dance
You know You're lookin' hot tonight
Give me half a chance
You know you got everybody waiting to see
who will be the lucky guy
Hey you you're looking hot tonight
Won't you give me a try
Won't you give me a try

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jerrytoons/taz2178.jpg)

This is one of Conway Twitty's first country albums. In this era in country music, it wasn't uncommon to build an entire 11-12 song album around just one hit single. This concept also caused many of the songs to be cover versions of other artist's songs to fill out the whole album.

In addition to the #1 title song, "Darling, You Know I Wouldn't Lie", we have Conway's versions of several other country songs: "The Window Up Above" and "When The Grass Grows Over Me" were both hits for George Jones...the latter being a hit for George in 1968, the year this Conway album was released. The classic "Kawliga" is on here...an original by Hank Williams...in early 1969 the song would become a hit for Charley Pride. We are also treated to Conway's version of Merle Haggard's "Mama's Hungry Eyes" as well as Tom T Hall's "Ballad of Forty Dollars".

There are a few original, or not well known, songs on here as you can see from reading the album cover: "Bad Girl"; "Table in the Corner"; "The Sound of an Angel's Wings"; and "Papa Sing Me a Song". I have this album in my vinyl collection. I bought it at a record store that does not sell much vinyl anymore. The woman on the cover was Conway's wife at the time, Mickey.

DARLING, YOU KNOW I WOULDN'T LIE
1968 by Conway Twitty

Here i am late again for the last time
And like i promised i just told her goodbye
Please believe me for this time it's really over
And Darling, You Know I Wouldn't Lie

Didn't i come and tell you about her
How temptation lured she and i
But now i know it was fascination
And Darling, You Know I Wouldn't Lie

I had to let her down easy
As slow as i could
Afterall, she's got feeling's too
But it took a little longer than i thought it would
But this time, she knows we're really through

She wanted to hold me forever
But this lipstick proved her final try
And these tears on my shoulder are proof that she failed
And Darling, You Know I Wouldn't Lie

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/Clay/2094749952.jpg)

I found this neat image on-line a few days ago. It is promo for The Ray Stevens Theatre when it was open for business down in Branson, Missouri. It highlights a few of Ray's characters from his songs "The Streak"; "It's Me Again, Margaret"; and "Shriner's Convention".

The only documentation of Ray performing at his theatre are showcased in two home videos: "Ray Stevens Live!" and "More Ray Stevens Live!" both available in 1993 on his own label, CLYDE. There was also a holiday special filmed in Branson sometime in 1992, and one of the performances filmed was Ray singing "Santa Claus is Watching You". In this performance, Yakoff Smirnoff was on hand to deliver the catch-phrase "He's everywhere! He's everywhere!".

Ray Stevens is currently in the midst of his 50th year in the music business, 1956-2006.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jerrytoons/335936229.jpg)

Title: I Can't Wait Any Longer
Artist: Bill Anderson
Year: 1978

It was a period of Bill Anderson's career in which he was all over the place...he by that time had become one of the few country singers to achieve mainstream respect through his songwriting skills and his TV apperances on many non-country oriented TV shows. Bill was also one of country music TV's earliest stars, hosting his own program from 1965-1974 in syndication. Porter Waggoner also hosted a TV show of his own...plus, in 1969, Hee-Haw came along...country music programming was it's all-time peak on television. This was decades before the invention of speciality channels...so a mainstream audience, of sorts, were making up the viewing audience along side the core country audience.

Bill Anderson, i guess as a fluke, decided to release a disco song. He released a few disco songs, including "Double S" and this one, "I Can't Wait Any Longer". He sings the song's chorus but the verses are spoken...Bill and his fans plus the critics and the music industry have nick-named these recordings as "Whisco", derived from Bill's 'whispering' style of singing. Bill was also recording former pop songs at the time, his biggest as a single was "Still the One", which reached #11 for Bill in 1977.

"I Can't Wait Any Longer" is a great song...but at the time it was probably considered a novelty because it was not the typical performance from Bill...full of disco sounds and Bee Gee's like arrangements...but it is a good recording and one of his last major hit singles. I am not sure who the female model is on the single's cover. As you can see, the cover was chopped in half to give it a pictorial look.

Bill went on to conquer TNN, hosting the game show "FANDANGO" during the network's first 6 years on the air, 1983-1989, in addition to being one of the recurring hosts of "OPRY BACKSTAGE". Bill is one of the Opry regulars and is still helping write country songs to this day.

JERRY

BECAUSE OF YOU, I HAVE ADDED MANY CD,S TO MY RECORD COLLECTION. THE INFORMATION ON RAY STEVENS, WHO I HAVE ALWAYS LOVED AND NEVER BOUGHT ONE OF HIS ALBUMS , WILL MAKE ME GO OUT THIS WEEK AND BUY A CD OF HIS.
IT WAS SUCH A WONDERFUL REVIEW.

WHAT 2 ALBUMS WOULD YOU SUGGEST THAT I BUY.

I AM GETTING GOOD AT 2 FINGER TYPING!!!!!!!

LUV, TO A FANTASTIC PERSON, HOPEFULLY ONE DAY WE WILL MEET, SIT DOWN AND HAVE A REAL "COUNTRY WESTERN" SESSION.

JAN

OH I'D LOVE FOR THAT TO HAPPEN, JAN!! YOU COULD EVEN DRAW MY PORTRAIT...BUT I DON'T KNOW HOW YOU ARE AT ART. SOME TAKE WEEKS AND MONTHS TO WORK ON A PICTURE...I'VE NEVER KNOWN HOW QUICK YOU ARE OR IF YOU LIKE TO PLAN THINGS OUT AND DO A PAINTING BIT BY BIT.

I LIKE ALL OF RAY's SONGS!! THEY DON'T CARRY MUCH OF HIS CD's ANYMORE...THEY'VE GONE OUT OF PRINT. IF YOU COME ACROSS A COLLECTION CALLED "HIS ALL TIME GREATEST COMIC HITS", BUY THAT. YOU CAN ALSO LOOK FOR "GREATEST HITS, VOLUME TWO" ON MCA FROM 1987. I SUGGEST THAT ONE BECAUSE IT HAS HIS 1979 MANILOW SONG, "I NEED YOUR HELP, BARRY MANILOW" ON IT.

JERRY
I AM SURPRISED THAT RAY sTEVENS  DOES NOT HAVE ANY CD, S. OR DID I MISUNDERSTAND YOU?????
ANYWAY, I AM GOING TO HUNT HIM DOWN.
MY SON , WHO JUST MOVED IN WITH ME, (IN THE STUDIO) HAS A FABULOUS COLLECTION OF OLD LP,S AND I AM GOING TO GO THROUGH THEM ONE OF THESE DAYS TO FIND OUT JUST WHAT HE HAS. MAYBE HE HAS A RARE COUNTRY WESTERN TUCKED IN THERE.

HE HAS A GOOD PLAYER FOR THE LP,S TOO.

I AM A SLOW ARTIST. TAKES ME AWHILE TO DRAW OR PAINT A PORTRAIT, THAT IS BECAUSE I AM A REALIST. NOT A SKETCHER OR CARTOONIST. I LOVE DETAIL. NOW IN THE ETCHINGS, THEY ARE NOT THAT DETAILED. BUT DUE TO THIS STUPID WRIST PROBLEM (TENDONITIS) I WILL NOT BE DOING MUCH PRINTMAKING ANYMORE.
AS LONG AS I CAN WIELD MY PENCIL AND BRUSH, ALL IS WELL WITH THE WORLD.

TALK TO YOU LATER.

LUV
JAN

HELLO THERE, JAN!!! THANKS FOR STOPPING BY AGAIN!! RAY HAS TONS AND TONS OF COMPILATION CD's OUT ON THE MARKET AND ALL OVER AMAZON AND eBay. YOU KNOW WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT RIGHT??? A COMPILATION ALBUM CONTAINS NOTHING BUT PREVIOUSLY RECORDED MATERIAL...LIKE "GREATEST HITS" AND "BEST OF" COLLECTIONS...THERE'S A LOT OF THOSE OUT THERE ON RAY BUT VERY FEW ORIGINAL, STUDIO ALBUMS. YOU'D BE LUCKY IF YOU SAW ANY OF HIS CD's FROM THE MID '90s OUT IN THE STORES!! HE CURRENTLY HAS OUT A PROMO CD, "THE NEW BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS" THAT WAS ONLY ISSUED AS A CD-SINGLE TO RADIO STATIONS IN NASHVILLE AND DOWN IN LOUISIANA...THAT SONG WAS ABOUT HURRICANE KATRINA. AS OF NOW, THAT IS HIS LATEST RECORDING.

THANKS JERRY

I AM GOING TO FIND THE SINGLE ABOUT "NEW ORLEANS"
GREAT THAT HE DEVOTED A SINGLE TO THIS TRAGEDY.

MAYBE YOU SHOULD APPLY FOR A JOB AT "COUNTRY WEEKLY"?????

JAN

Manilow Plans 60s Album After '50s Hit

The Associated Press

By NEKESA MUMBI MOODY

August 03, 2006

Barry Manilow had so much success with the music from the 1950s, he's taking on another decade. In an interview with The Associated Press, Manilow said he plans to release 'The Greatest Songs of the Sixties' on Oct. 31, a follow-up to 'The Greatest Songs of the Fifties,' which debuted at No. 1 when it was released earlier this year and sold more than one million copies.

Manilow thinks his upcoming album might be even more popular than the first.

'I think these songs from the '60s are more well known to a lot of people than the songs of the 50s,' he told the AP on Thursday. 'I really have a sense that these songs are even going to be more accepted to a bigger audience because everybody knows these songs.'

Manilow, whose own hits include 'Mandy,' 'Weekend in New England' and 'Copacabana,' said he recorded more than 100 songs for the 'Sixties' album from various acts, including Elvis Presley, the Beatles, and Motown acts. But he found that some songs just didn't fit his style.

'For instance, the Motown catalog. Although I love the Motown catalog more than any of them, I could not handle any of them, because they are R&B songs, and they are relying on the singer to do that R&B performance, and that's not what I do. No matter how I tried, I just sounded bad,' he laughed. 'Doing any of these Four Tops, Temptations, any of them ... they weren't right.'

But he found he had the right tenor for Burt Bacharach songs, and Elvis Presley's 'I Can't Help Falling In Love With You,' which will likely be on the album. He even recorded two Beatles tunes, 'Yesterday' and 'And I Love Her.'

Noting that he got his start in the industry as a musical arranger, Manilow said: 'When I get an opportunity to take a classic beautifully written song and arrange them for singers or myself, it's great fun for me.

'I'm able to find different facets of each song that maybe the public hasn't heard.'

Still, like the 'Fifties' album, there won't be too big a departure from what the public is familiar with.

'I can't go too far away from the original, because people are expecting to hear the songs that they love,' he said. 'That's the challenge.'

If this album is as successful as the first, Manilow said he might go into the '70s _ the decade when Manilow first gained his fame.

'I gotta figure out a way to do it, and not just doing my stuff!' he said

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/B000HA4AAE.jpg)

AS WITH ALL THE OTHER MANILOW FANS, I WILL BE AWAITING THIS CD AT THE END OF OCTOBER. I FOUND TWO PRESS RELEASES...THIS ONE AND ANOTHER ONE I POSTED ELSEWHERE ON THE SITE. FOR THOSE WHO AREN'T TOO FAMILIAR WITH MANILOW's CAREER, HE SINGS CROONING POP SONGS FOR THE MOST PART. IRONICALLY, EVERYTIME HE DID PERFORM A ROCKING SONG, THEY WERE TYPICALLY LOOKED UPON AS A 'NOVELTY' OR A FLUKE AND NOT TAKEN SERIOUSLY. THIS IS WHY HE STATES THAT HE WANTS TO RECORD THE STYLE HE's COMFORTABLE WITH...THE BIG BALLAD APPROACH.

THERE IS A POTENTIAL SONG LIST FOR THIS CD FLOATING AROUND ON-LINE. I HAD HEARD SEVERAL OF THE SONGS HE'S COVERING BUT I HADN'T HEARD THAT MANY. I BELIEVE HE ALSO DID THIS ON PURPOSE...KNOWING MONSTER HITS FROM ANY ERA WILL ALWAYS BE COMPARED TO THE ORIGINAL...SO I BELIEVE HE TOOK HITS THAT WERE BIG BUT NOT "MONSTER HITS" IF YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN TO AVOID COMPARISON TO THE ORIGINAL.

A GLANCE AT THE POTENTIAL SET LIST SHOWS "STRANGERS IN THE NIGHT", A SONG HE RECORDED BEFORE ON THE CD Manilow Sings Sinatra AND IT'S INCLUDED ON THE ULTIMATE MANILOW CD, THE IMPORT VERSION FROM THE PHILLIPINES.

I CAN'T WAIT FOR IT TO GET HERE!!

1. “Cherish”/Windy” {medley duet with the Association}
2. “Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You”
3. “Can’t Help Falling In Love”
4. “There’s A Kind Of Hush (All Over The World)”
5. “And I Love Her”
6. “Blue Velvet”
7. “Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head”
8. “This Guy’s In Love With You”
9. “Everybody Loves Somebody Sometime”
10. “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling”
11. “When I Fall In Love”
12. “Strangers In the Night”
13. “What The World Needs Now Is Love”

JERRY, THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEW ON BARRY'S CD.  SOUNDS LIKE A REALLY GOOD ONE.
I WAS WATCHING ET LAST NIGHT AND THEY MENTIONED HE WILL BE HAVING HIP SURGERY SOON!  HE HAS TO CANCEL 20 OF HIS CONCERT DATES, BUT WILL BE BACK PERFORMIG SOMETIME IN OCTOBER.  I WISH HIM THE BEST OF LUCK AS I KNOW YOU WILL DO ALSO.

Jerry, I hadn't been here in quite a while but I just got caught up again. What great reviews of Ray, Conway and Barry. I sure wish I had the money to try to  hunt down some of those albums. They are great. Keep up the good work. At least I can come over here and read about them.

HELLO TAMMY, JAN, CHARLENE, AND JANET!!!

THANK YOU ALL FOR STOPPING BY MY REVIEW THREAD!!!

Title: Crackin Up
Artist: Ray Stevens
Year of Release: 1987
Label: MCA

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/Clay/rjs2873.jpg)

This album from Ray Stevens to me represents a return to the nutty songs he once wrote/recorded in the early '60s when he was still in the Coasters/Brother Dave Gardner mode of frenetic singing and tongue-twisting cadence. The songs are not as high-octane as they would have been in the early '60s but the subject matter on many of the songs on this album can be compared to early Ray Stevens.

The lead-off song was at the time his biggest chart hit since early 1985. To date, "Would Jesus Wear a Rolex" reaching #41 in mid 1987 represents the last time a single from Ray would place that high on the Country Singles chart. The song was co-written by Chet Atkins and it dealt with the profession of televangelists. You've all seen them on TV every Sunday morning...well, since the invention of satellite TV and speciality channels, TV preachers can be heard 24-7 on religious networks.

MCA released a second single, "Sex Symbols". This was a spoof of Willie Nelson's duet with Julio. It wasn't a spoof of the actual duet it was more or less a parody of Willie and Julio's team-up a few years earlier on "To All The Girls I've Loved Before". I had often wondered why a spoof of that unlikely duet partnership came along in 1987 from Ray...had it arrived back in 1984/1985 it would've been a chart hit and perhaps received some airplay, too, because 1984/1985 was the era when Willie and Julio's song was all over country AND pop radio.

The rest of the album is a mix of nutty comedy songs to out-right bizarre comedy songs. In the latter category we have "Three Legged Man". This is a story of a guy who is in love with a married woman and he comes up with a plan to steal her away from her husband. I won't spoil the song for ya but it is a bizarre turn of events Ray sings about. "Cool Down Willard" is a satire of the former TODAY show weatherman, Willard Scott, and how in the song Ray's whole house is Willard obsessed :lol

There are two western-themed songs on here. "The Flies of Texas Are Upon You" is a nutty love song about a man who falls in love with a woman who he thinks has a rich, socially prominent father. "The Ballad of Cactus Pete and Lefty" should have been made into a cartoon series!!! It's simply a story about a man who lives out in the desert with his sidewinder snake, Lefty. "Doctor Doctor" is a satire on the medical profession while another nutty song is "The Day That Clancy Drowned", about a guy who works in a brewery but dies in a rather peculiar fashion.

Paying homage of sorts to the comedians in country music that came before him, Ray covers the Lonzo and Oscar hit "I'm My Own Grandpaw". Ray's version is better vocally and musically. In the original, Lonzo and Oscar sing the song straight-through without a stop for music solo's. Ray incorporates a music solo, a guitar...not a long solo, but it helps the song a lot. The song is about a man who marries a woman and how the father of the man falls in love with his daughter-in-law's daughter, etc etc one thing leads to another and the man turns out to be his own Grandpaw. It's a bizarre, twisted novelty song and one that amazingly got past the censors back in the 1948 when it was originally released by Lonzo and Oscar. Lastly, "Gourmet Restaurant" is the story of Ray visiting various french restaurants and having disasterous run-in's with the waiters and the his inability to eat french cuisine :lol

 HELLO JERRY.  I JUST FINISHED READING YOUR REVIEW ON RAY STEPHENS AND CONWAY TWITTY.  I FIND IT INTERESTING THAT BOTH OF THEM ARE MULTI-SINGERS.  SOMETIMES I THINK PEOPLE TAKE THEM FOR GRANTED.  THEY WERE SUCH HUGE STARS IN THEIR TIME.  I ALWAYS LOVE TO COME HERE AND REMINENCE WITH THE SONGS AND ARTISTS I GREW UP ON, SO THANK YOU FOR ALL OF YOUR REVIEWS.
:hugg

Hello Charlene!!! Thanks for stopping by a few days ago. I don't have much to review but i did buy me a SHE-RA dvd a few days ago. I will probably review that next...or the HUCKLEBERRY HOUND dvd that i bought from Amazon. I am thinking it will arrive this week!! I'll post a review of it on here of course!! You're right about those two being taken for granted. Conway had mroe #1 hits than anyone...George Strait is getting close to the 55 #1 hit total set by Conway...even so, Conway had so many #1 and Top-10 hits and was selling country music when very few artists were selling country-oriented material back then! He is in the Country Music Hall of Fame at last...inducted in 1999...6 years AFTER his death! He should have gone in back in the late '80s. Ray Stevens is another one who is taken for granted and under-appreciated. Jeff Foxworthy and a few other comedians have come along...and because they're stand-up comedians...they get to play all kinds of places where as Ray, being a novelty singer who can also sing serious songs...is confined for the most part. To me, Ray is the King of Country Comedy.

JOHNNY DUNCAN: 1938-2006

Johnny Duncan, 67, a country music singer who had a string of hits in the 1970s, including "She Can Put Her Shoes Under My Bed Anytime" and "It Couldn't Have Been Any Better," died Monday of a heart attack at a Fort Worth hospital.

JOHNNY (http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-passings18.2aug18,1,2441227.story?coll=la-headlines-pe-california)

You can read the rest in the above link.

Johnny Duncan was a favorite singer of mine. He wasn't one of my all-time favorites but i enjoyed his songs when they came on the classic country station i listen to. Johnny, as you read, is related to Jimmy and Dan Seals. However, Johnny was so much more country-oriented. His big hits were with COLUMBIA. Most of his songs were what hardcore country fans wanted to here: cheating, honky tonking, and loving...not all in that exact order, neither.

He is the artist responsible for Janie Frickie's success...well, her early success. She was his harmony singer on many songs and actually sang a few lines by herself in his songs, such as "Stranger" and "Thinkin' of a Rendezvous".

Johnny signed with Columbia Records in 1967 and to show you how much faith they had in him, he was never dropped from the label in spite of having no really major hit recordings. It's unreal in today's climate but Johnny didn't have a Top-10 hit with Columbia until 1973...6 years after signing with them. Then, he wouldn't have another Top-10 until "Stranger" in 1976, and that is what lit the fuse as the saying goes and it's the song that sent him into orbit for a few years.

One of my favorites he ever did was "She Can Put Her Shoes Under My Bed Anytime" and the frisky "Come a Little Bit Closer". He had a streak of Top-10 hits in the late '70s and he continued to have Top-20 hits into 1981 but from 1981 onward, nothing made Top-40 status.

He would have turned 68 on October 5th.

Johnny's Top-10 hit singles:

1. Sweet Country Woman; 1973 #6
2. Stranger; 1976 #4
3. Thinkin' of a Rendezvous; 1976  #1  {2 weeks}
4. It Couldn't Have Been Any Better; 1977  #1
5. A Song in the Night; 1977  #5
6. Come a Little Bit Closer; 1978  #4  {former pop hit for Jay and the Americans}
7. She Can Put Her Shoes Under My Bed Anytime; 1978  #1
8. Hello Mexico; 1978  #4
9. Slow Dancing; 1979  #6  {former pop hit for Johnny Rivers}
10. The Lady in the Blue Mercedes; 1979  #9

The Top-20 Hits:

1. There's Something About a Lady; 1971  #19
2. Fools; 1972  #19
3. Talkin' With My Lady; 1973  #18
4. Play Another Slow Song; 1980  #17
5. I'm Gonna Love You Tonight In My Dreams; 1980  #17
6. He's Out of My Life-w/Janie Frickie; 1980  #17
7. Acapulco; 1981  #18

One of the interesting facets of his chart numbers is that he had three consecutive Top-20 singles all peak at #17.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/Clay/f72712eq0c9.jpg)

Here's a cover shot of Johnny Duncan looking the part of a hell-raiser...

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/Clay/347010.jpg)

Title: Magilla Gorilla: Complete Series
Release: 2006
Format: DVD/Cartoon
Voice Actors: Allan Melvin, Howard Morris, Don Messick, Mel Blanc, and John Stephenson

The Magilla Gorilla Show, created by Hanna-Barbera, contained several additional segments in the series: "Richochet Rabbit" and "Punkin Puss and Mush Mouse". Magilla was all about a gorilla in a pet store that could rarely be sold to customers. Lots of the episodes focused around the trouble Magilla got into in and around the pet shop, ran by Mr Peebles. A regular character, Ogee, was a little girl who didn't have any money and ironically she was the ONLY person remotely interested in having Magilla as a pet. Magilla wore a purple hat, green suspenders, and over-sized pants complete with big shoes, resembling a clownish person rather than an a gorilla. However, on rare occasions, Magilla is bought by a vistor to the store. He creates trouble, almost always accidentally, and the buyers always return Magilla to the pet store unsatisfied. There was always a hint of affection...despite all the trouble Magilla was in, and in spite of Mr Peebles cries of wanting to rid himself of Magilla, Peebles was always glad to see Magilla back in the display window out in front of the store.

The two other segments were just as gimmicky. Punkin Puss and Mushmouse were a country version of Tom and Jerry but with far less violence. Also, Punkin Puss and Mush Mouse spoke, another difference from Tom and Jerry. The stories on this segment were run-of-the-mill and were based heavily on the public's fascination at the time with hillbilly culture. Often, stories on this segment revolved around the two chasing and fighting one another. There were several episodes, though, with a plot outside of the fussin' and fightin' rural stereotype of the Hatfields and the McCoys.

Richochet Rabbit's gimmick was being the fastest sheriff in all of the west. His deputy was at the extreme opposite...very slow. In fact, the deputy's name was Droop-a-Long. Richochet recieved his orders from his superior, known as the Chief. Stories in this segment revolved around the west and of course stereotypes of the west and outlaws and gunslingers were incorporated into the mix.

It was been noted that Magilla Gorilla's show marked the first time voice actor Daws Butler was not a major player in a Hanna-Barbera series. Starring Allan Melvin and Howard Morris as Magilla Gorilla and Mr Peebles, it marked a new era for Hanna-Barbera...they were looking for voice actors outside of Daws Butler who by the time this show premiered, January 1964, had been the voice of many of their cartoon characters dating back to 1957. Don Messick, though, who had been Daws' co-star, was on hand for this series giving voice to Richochet Rabbit and other nameless characters in walk-on parts. Mel Blanc was on hand as Deputy Droop-a-Long. Allan Melvin and Howard Morris also voiced Punkin Puss and Mush Mouse. John Stephenson was on hand as the Chief and for many of the villains on the Richochet Rabbit segment.

This DVD collection contains 4 DVD's. There are several extra's on this collection. One that is of high interest is "Mr Peebles Pet Shop". This is a mini-documentary of sorts about the series, broken up into several segments. A person has to click each character shown on the screen to get some information about the character and the show in general. On hand to tell us about the show in these short segments are Allan Melvin himself, plus Jerry Beck, a cartoon historian, and Jerry Eisenberg, one of the animators of the series. Jerry Beck is the son of voice actor, Jackson Beck, known for his many years as Bluto on the Popeye cartoons. Allan Melvin, ironically, did the voice of Bluto in many of the made for TV cartoons as well as giving voice to Wimpy. Allan is primarily a face actor...having made a career out of his roles on The Phil Silvers Show, The Brady Bunch, and All in the Family/Archie Bunker's Place.

Another extra, on DVD #4, is "Here Comes a Star". It is a look into the hype and introduction of Magilla Gorilla in 1964. The series was syndicated from January 1964 through January 1966 and it moved to a network broadcast in 1966 and ran in re-runs with several new episodes sprinkled in, throughout 1967-1968.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/Clay/MagillaGorilla.jpg)

Title: Huckleberry Hound, Volume One
Release: 2006
Format: DVD/cartoon
Voice Actors: Daws Butler, Don Messick

Huckleberry Hound in a lot of ways was Hanna-Barbera's breakthrough series. They had left MGM in 1956 and formed their own company and debuted The Ruff and Reddy Show. Their second series was this one, Huckleberry Hound.

The series contained three separate segments. Ironically, Huckleberry's cartoons were the third set of cartoons in each episode. The lead-off cartoon segments on these DVD's is that of Yogi Bear, who would star in his own cartoon series in 1961. Yogi and his friend, Boo-Boo, lived in Jellystone Park and Yogi was often plotting ways of stealing picnic baskets from tourists. The middle cartoon segment was Pixie and Dixie, two mice who are chased and tormented by Mr Jinx, an orange beatnik-talking cat.

The character voice of Huckleberry Hound was often-imitated. The dog spoke southern and was known to hum or sing "Oh My Darling, Clementine" at any given notice. Huckleberry's adventures focused on his many jobs and roles in his cartoons. The running joke was that no matter what he did in his cartoons, whether it be a cop, mail man, or a knight fighting a dragon or a giant, Huckleberry's demeanor remained the same throughout.

This collection contains 4 DVD's and a lot of extra's. There is a short segment on Daws Butler, the voice of Huckleberry Hound, Yogi Bear, Dixie Mouse, Mr Jinx, and a slew of other characters. Don Messick was the voice of Boo-Boo, Ranger Smith, and Pixie Mouse in addition to also voicing a slew of other characters. Making appearances on this tribute to Daws are Charles Adler, Corey Burton, Nancy Cartwright, Mark Evanier, and others. There are quite a few episodes as extra's as they originally appeared on television...featuring original commercial bumpers {segments that air before and after a commercial is over}. Huckleberry Hound was the first animated series to win an Emmy Award.

The series was a big hit with adults and children. The show ran for four years and these DVD collections lately are a welcome gift to anyone who loves classic cartoons. These aren't broadcast much anymore and so check them out on these DVDs. This is only Volume One...i assume there will be more to come because Hokey Wolf isn't featured on these DVDs. That character was added when Yogi's segments were removed in 1961. Hokey, by the way, was a con-artist wolf who had a fast-paced vocal delivery based on a Phil Silvers-type.

Album Title: Wine Colored Roses
Artist: George Jones
Year of Release: 1986
Label: EPIC

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By the time this album rolled around, George Jones had been recording for over 30 years. In an era when artists were jumping from label to label, George managed to remain on Epic Records throughout two decades, starting in 1971 and lasting until early 1991. This album contained 10 great songs and it also represented the last studio album by George Jones to feature two Top-10 hit singles, the #10 title track "Wine Colored Roses" and the #8 hit "The Right Left Hand". At the time, though, he was still among the heavy hitters getting radio airplay and so nobody could see the future and what it held for artists such as George Jones and his contemporaries.

WINE COLORED ROSES was more or less a low-key album without a really loud or out of the box smash hit single. It nonetheless also contained a Top-30 hit, "I Turn To You", which reached #26, a chart performance which harkened back to the late '70s when his airplay was not as high as it once was at the start of that decade. Known for drinking songs and love songs which border on cheating or at the least, heartbreak and lonliness, this album surprisingly contained little of those kind of songs. There were still love songs, but nothing of the near tragedy kind he is known for. "Wine Colored Roses" is a great song about a man who drinks and gets a letter from a distant friend asking if he had quit drinking. He can't tell her that he hasn't and so he sends her some wine colored roses instead. "Don't Leave Without Taking Your Silver" is a clever love song of sorts...well, it's about a break-up. I won't spoil the twist of the lyrics, based on the song title, but it's a good song.

The big hit on this album is a song many, including George, make reference to as a song about Nancy, his wife. "The Right Left Hand" is a love story about a man who finally finds true love and devotion from a woman, the song has a sing-a-long feel while in concert with the familiar refrain "...i put a golden band on the right left hand this time...and the right left hand put a golden band on mine...". That single reached #8 in early 1987, his next to last Top-10 hit single.

Patti Page is featured on this album...she does a duet with George on "You Never Looked That Good When You Were Mine" which, as the title suggests, is a song about two people who discover they should have been a couple but at the time of their initial meeting, they didn't hit it off. "Ol' Frank" tells the story of a gold-digger...the album closer is the chilling "These Old Eyes Have Seen It All" about a man George encounters in a bar who proceeds to tell George his personal life and how much he's seen in his life.

All in all, this under-rated 1986 album from George Jones contains no bad songs and it features his voice at his peak but you can easily listen to this album, plus any of his more recent albums, and discover the magic in his voice.

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Title: A Thousand Different Ways
Artist: Clay Aiken
Year of Release: 2006
Label: RCA

On today's installment of AC Reviews we have the artist in which without him around, there wouldn't be such a thing as CLAYMANIACS. Clay Aiken's new CD contains 14 songs...mostly power ballads of the 1980's that were on pop radio and if you catch a listen much to Adult-Contemporary radio, lots of these big ballads are still being played on that format.

It is not an easy task when it comes to choosing favorite songs or selecting which ones are better vocally when we have an artist that can make any song listenable. The artists whom i review on here are personal favorites of mine and in my ears can not record a bad song even if they tried. Their voices are that good!

As we have in this case, Clay Aiken's voice is amazing and when listening to this CD you will be blown away with the way he sings these songs. There are a few new songs on here...but the bulk of the CD are his versions of former pop hits. One of the things i had feared a little bit was if Clay would "go rock" on me. Now, this kind of behavior and obsession is normal for me...in country music, we take to artists personally as if they were members of the family and so with Clay, he is no exception for me neither. I was thrilled to listen to the songs and as i said, was blown away with his vocals on these songs. There are a couple of surprises on this CD, too, for those who may not have kept up with the pre-CD release talk that's been building. One of the surprises for me personally is his ballad delivery of Dolly Parton's up-tempo country smash "Here You Come Again".

There are several songs, "Here You Come Again", "Everything I Have", and "These Open Arms" which make me think of Kenny Rogers...no, it isn't that Clay sings with a gravelly throat effect or anything, but it's just in the precise phrasing and how crisp and clear his voice sounds on passages in those songs. There is a duet on here, "I Want To Know What Love Is", and the female reminds me of Sheena Easton...which, goes back to Kenny Rogers...the duet had the power ballad feel and i bet it will be a good song to perform in concert. "Everything I Have"...Clay sounds different in places. It's Clay but then as he's singing, he sounds not like Clay if that makes sense...it's like he was singing but his trademark sound in his voice wasn't there...i still liked the song, though.

There were chills for me during the performance of "Without You". I can see why that is the song the label is pushing as a single first. It is also the oldest song on the collection...having been a hit in 1972. The second oldest song on here is Elton John's 1976 hit, "Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word". This performance reminds me near the end of "Weekend in New England"...how Barry hit the higher voice when singing the word "again" before the song comes to it's end. I loved Clay's version of Elton's song! Clay did the impossible on "Because You Loved Me"...he made a Celine Dion song listenable :clap

The CD's opening track, "Right Here Waiting", sets the overall tone of the CD...love songs. I was happy that the piano was very prominent on many of the songs here...the piano, especially when it's played slow or mid-tempo, sets a romantic mood faster than anything. "A Thousand Days" is a wonderful song as well...i found that his voice was more out there...and less reflective and quiet than in the bulk of the songs that were on prior.

The CD closes with Mr Mister's hit "Broken Wings" and i can see why...there's what i call an echo woman on this song, narrating some sentences...and the song appropriately closes with her repeating the lines about "...a thousand different ways...", which ties in perfect and reminds everyone what the name of the CD is despite no song title called "A Thousand Different Ways".

I have nothing but good hopes for this CD. It will be a hit...that's a given...but the anxiety still lingers in the days and weeks and MONTHS following the release. Hopefully this CD will set in motion more CDs from Clay...it was a long wait since MOAM...MCWL was holiday songs that i only want to hear during the Christmas season. So, i am hoping his next CD won't be so long in the making and he will release CDs every year or every other year like so many others do. It should go PLATINUM in a matter of weeks...perhaps in a matter of days.

The songs:

Right Here Waiting
Lonely No More
Without You
Everytime You Go Away
Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word
When I See You Smile
A Thousand Days
Everything I Do
Because You Loved Me
I Want To Know What Love Is
These Open Arms
Here You Come Again
Everything I Have
Broken Wings

AC - I ALWAYS VALUE YOUR OPINION AND IT MEANS A LOT TO ME.  IT SURE GAVE ME GOOSE BUMPS AS I WAS READING IT.  I APPLAUD YOU :clap :clap :clap :clap :clap :clap  AND I SURE HOPE WHAT YOU SAY ABOUT THE CD WILL MAKE A LOT MORE FANS TAKE NOTICE OF WHAT A FANTASTIC CD CLAY HAS PUT TOGETHER.  THANK YOU. :hugg

THANKS TAMMY AND LORRAINE FOR STOPPING IN SEVERAL DAYS AGO :wave I'M GLAD YOU LIKED THE REVIEW OF THE CD!! I'VE BEEN IN ANTICIPATION OF CLAY's CD NUMBERS FOR THE OPENING WEEK AND I'M ALSO EXCITED ABOUT THE UPCOMING CD's FROM BARRY MANILOW "GREATEST SONGS OF THE SIXTIES"; GEORGE JONES AND MERLE HAGGARD's DUET ALBUM; AND THE NEW ONE FROM GEORGE STRAIT CALLED "IT JUST COMES NATURAL" FEATURING A SONG CALLED 'GIVE IT AWAY' WHICH HAS BECOME HIS FIFTY-THIRD #1 HIT...HIS 41st ON THE BILLBOARD COUNTRY CHART. :bouncy I APPLAUD GEORGE STRAIT's ACCOMPLISHMENTS!! HE's DELIVERED COUNTRY MUSIC SUCH A WONDERFUL BODY OF MUSIC DOWN THROUGH THE YEARS. GEORGE STRAIT WILL GO INTO THE COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME AT THE CMA AWARDS AND I ALSO THINK IT's A RIGHT CHOICE.

GEORGE STRAIT STARTED HIS CAREER IN THE MID 1970's BUT IT WAS NOT UNTIL 1981 THAT HE BECAME FAMILIAR AS A RESULT OF SIGNING WITH MCA RECORDS. HE WAS AND STILL IS A "HAT ACT", A NICK-NAME GIVEN TO COUNTRY SINGERS THAT WEAR COWBOY HATS. STRAIT HIMSELF IS A REAL COWBOY...WHO WORKS ON A RANCH AND RIDES CATTLE ON HIS FARM IN TEXAS WHEN HE IS NOT OUT ON TOUR OR APPEARING AT A MUSIC FUNCTION IN NASHVILLE.

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THROUGH THE YEARS STRAIT HAS FILLED HIS CD's WITH A WEALTH OF COUNTRY MUSIC...EVERYTHING FROM TRADITIONAL HONKY TONK COUNTRY MUSIC TO WESTERN-SWING TO COWBOY SONGS...HE HAS HAD MANY COWBOY SONGS IN HIS CD's AND HE's HAD SEVERAL HITS WITH COWBOY/RODEO SONGS...HERE ARE A FEW...

COWBOYS LIKE US
2003 #3 hit

I take off time to time
With those crazy friends of mine
Head out on steel horses
With wheels and we ride

We burn up that road to old Mexico
Blend in with the desert
Just we amigos
And we roll

Cowboys Like Us sure do have fun
Racin' the wind, chasin' the sun
Take the long way around back to square one
Today we're just outlaws out on the run
There'll be no regrets, no worries and such
For Cowboys Like Us

We talk about livin', babies, and women
All that we've lost and all we've been givin'
We sing about true love, lie about things we ain't done
Drink one more cold one, come mornin' get up
And we roll

Cowboys Like Us sure do have fun
Racin' the wind, chasin' the sun
Take the long way around back to square one
Today we're just outlaws out on the run
There'll be no regrets, no worries and such
For Cowboys Like Us

THAT WAS A RECENT SMASH HIT FOR GEORGE STRAIT...HERE IS ONE OF HIS COWBOY CLASSICS THAT HE STILL PERFORMS IN CONCERT...

THE COWBOY RIDES AWAY
1985 #5 hit

I knew the stakes were high right from the start
When she dealt the cards I bet my heart
Now I just found a game that I can't play and this is where The Cowboy Rides Away
And my heart is sinking like the setting sun setting on the things I wish I'd done
It's time to say goodbye to yesterday and this is where The Cowboy Rides Away

We've been in and out of love and in between
And now we've played the final showdown scene
As the credits roll the sad song starts to play this is where The Cowboy Rides Away
And my heart is sinking like the setting sun setting on the things I wish I'd done
Oh the last goodbye's the hardest one to say this is where The Cowboy Rides Away

Yes, the last goodbye's the hardest one to say this is where The Cowboy Rides Away

GEORGE STRAIT IS ALSO NO STRANGER TO THE LOVE SONG...I'VE OFTEN SAID THAT STRAIT'S MUSIC IS 40% COWBOY SONGS, 50% LOVE SONGS, AND 10% WESTERN-SWING...

HERE ARE JUST A FEW OF HIS LOVE SONGS FROM HIS 25 YEAR CAREER ON MCA RECORDS, 1981-2006...

DRINKIN' CHAMPAGNE
1990 #5 hit

I'm Drinkin' Champagne, feelin' no pain till early mornin'.
Dinin' and dancin' with every pretty girl I can find.
I'm having a fling with a pretty young thing till early mornin'.
Knowin' tomorrow I'll wake up with you on my mind.

Guilty conscience I guess, though I must confess
I never loved you much when you were mine.
So I'll keep Drinking Champagne feelin' no pain till early mornin'.
Dinin' and dancin' with every pretty girl I can find.
Havin' a fling with a pretty young thing till early mornin'.
Knowin' tomorrow I'll wake up with you on my mind.

Guilty conscience I guess, though I must confess
I never loved you much when you were mine.
So I'll keep Drinking Champagne feelin' no pain till early mornin'.
Dinin' and dancin' with every pretty girl I can find.
I’ll keep havin' a fling with a pretty young thing till early mornin'.
Knowin' tomorrow I'll wake up with you on my mind.

"DRINKING CHAMPAGNE" IS A WALTZ-LIKE SONG...IT HAS A GOOD MELODY AND ONE CAN EASILY OVER LOOK THAT IT's JUST A FIRST VERSE AND A REPETITIOUS ENDING AND THAT's IT... :lol

GONE AS A GIRL CAN GET
1992 #5 hit

Well I haven't seen her lately
And she never calls
She don't ask my friends about me
Gives no clues at all
That a fire might still be burnin'yet
I'd say she's about as Gone as a Girl Can Get

She don't even show up in my dreams at night
But my stubborn old memory keeps holdin' on tight
Sure makes it hard to forget
She's about as Gone as a Girl Can Get

She's out of here
She disappeared without a trace
More or less unimpressed
By the tears on my face
Destination unknown
She just dropped out of sight
Last seen headin' right on out of my life
Like a stranger I ain't never met
She's about as Gone as a Girl Can Get

Like a stranger I ain't never met
Well I'd say she's about as Gone as a Girl Can Get

OH OKAY...THOSE ARE JUST TWO OF HIS LOVE SONGS WITH A BREAK-UP OVERTONE...HERE'S SOME POSITIVE LOVE SONGS SINCE YOU TALKED ME INTO IT... :lol

GO ON
2001 #2 single

I'm so sorry, I keep interrupting, what were you gonna say?
You caught him cheatin', I don't blame you for walkin' away.
I know where you're comin' from, it sounds like where I've been
Oh, there I go interrupting your story once again

Go On, Go On, you were sayin' how a fool can only fool you so long
It's true, it's so true when they do you like that
What else you can do but Go On.

Our conversation won't change nothin', but it's sure nice to talk
With somebody who's been cut out of the same ol' cloth
You know how you said happiness can't be found lookin' back
If you don't mind, maybe we can talk a little more about that.

Go On, please Go On, you were sayin' this is better than sittin' at home
It's true, it's so true when they do you like that
What else can you do...

But Go On even when you see no reason to
Don't wait to live life 'cause it won't wait for you

Go On, please Go On, you were sayin' what don't kill us only makes us strong
It's true, that's so true when they do you like that
What else can you do...but Go On.

Just Go On.
Life goes on...and on

OKAY...SERIOUSLY...HERE'S A WONDERFUL LOVE SONG...

CARRYING YOUR LOVE WITH ME
1997 #1 hit

Baby all I got is this beat up leather bag
And everything I own don't fill up half
But don't you worry 'bout the way I pack
All I care about is gettin' back, real soon
A goodbye kiss is all I need from you

Cause I'm Carrying Your Love With Me
West Virginia down to Tennessee
I'll be movin' with the good Lord's speed
Carrying Your Love With Me
It's my strength for holding on
Every minute that I have to be gone
I'll have everything I'll ever need
I'm Carrying Your Love With Me

On a lonely highway stuck out in the rain
Darlin' all I have to do, is speak your name
The clouds roll back and the waters part
The sun starts shinin' in my heart for you
You're right there in everything I do...

Cause I'm Carrying Your Love With Me
West Virginia down to Tennessee
I'll be movin' with the good Lord's speed
Carrying Your Love With Me
It's my strength for holding on
Every minute that I have to be gone
I'll have everything I'll ever need
I'm Carrying Your Love With Me

It's my strength for holding on
Every minute that I have to be gone
I'll have everything I'll ever need
I'm Carrying Your Love With Me...Carrying Your Love With Me

I'm Carrying Your Love With Me
West Virginia down to Tennessee
I'll be movin' with the good Lord's speed
Carrying Your Love With Me

TRUE
1998 #1 hit

True in this modern world when two lovers get together
Chances of'em ever makin' it to forever
Couldn't be better than two in a million hearts
Girl this ain't just another run of the mill emotion
What I'm feelin' is the definition of devotion
My love for you is True

True like the sun comin' up each mornin'
Bright as the light in a baby's smile
Sure as a mountain river winding
Right as the rain fallin' from the sky
Girl my love for you, is True

True, not another minute on this earth can be borrowed
So there's no way to know when I'll live my last tomorrow
But everyday I get, I'll share with you
This feelin' just keeps gettin' stronger as the time goes by
It's written on my face, you can see it in my eyes
My love for you is True

True, like the sun comin' up each mornin'
Bright as the light in a baby's smile
Sure as a mountain river winding
Right as the rain fallin' from the sky
Girl my love for you, is True

True, like the sun comin' up each mornin'
Bright as the light in a baby's smile
Sure as a mountain river winding
Right as the rain fallin' from the sky
Girl my love for you, is True...is True...

GEORGE STRAIT HAD HIS 50th #1 HIT WITH THE FOLLOWING SONG...

SHE'LL LEAVE YOU WITH A SMILE
2001

At first she's gonna come on strong
Like she'll love you all night long
Like it's going out of style
Then She'll Leave You With a Smile

You're gonna give her all your heart
Then she'll tear your world apart.
You're gonna cry a little while
Then She'll Leave You With a Smile.

Well you can't help but wonder
Why you can't help but love her
But you can't help but love her
And all that hurtin' was more than worth it
It's written all over your face

One day you'll pass her on the street
With that guy you used to be
She'll say hello and walk on by
Then She'll Leave You With a Smile

Well you can't help but wonder
Why you can't help but love her
But you can't help but love her
And all that hurtin' was more than worth it
It's written all over your face

At first she's gonna come on strong
Like she'll love you all night long
Like it's going out of style
Then She'll Leave You With a Smile

Ah, she's gonna love you
She's Gonna Leave You With a Smile

LAST YEAR, STRAIT HAD ANOTHER BIG YEAR WITH THE HUGE TOP-10 HIT, "YOU'LL BE THERE". IT WAS A DEPARTURE FOR STRAIT SOMEWHAT...BUT IT'S A WONDERFUL SONG...

YOU'LL BE THERE
2005 #2 single

Well, hope is an anchor, and love is a ship
Time is the ocean, and life is a trip
You don’t know where you’re goin’ ‘til you know where you’re at
And if you can’t read the stars, well you better have a map

A compass and a conscience so you don’t get lost at sea
Or on some old lonely island where no one wants to be

From the beginning of creation I think our maker had a plan
For us to leave these shores and sail beyond the sand
And let the good light guide us through the waves and the wind
To the beaches in a world where we have never been

And we’ll climb up on the mountain, ya’ll, we’ll let our voices ring
And those who’ve never tried it, they’ll be the first to sing
Oh my, my

I’ll see you on the other side if I make it
And it might be a long hard ride, but I’m gonna take it
Sometimes it seems that I don’t have a prayer
I let the weather take me anywhere
But I know that I wanna go where the streets are gold
‘Cause You’ll Be There
Oh my, my

Well, you don’t bring nothin’ with you here, and you can’t take nothin’ back
I ain’t never seen a hearse with a luggage rack
So I’ve torn my knees up prayin’, scarred my back from fallin’ down
I’ve spent so much time flyin’ high ‘til I’m face first in the ground

So if you’re up there watching me, would you talk to God and say
Tell him I might need a hand to see you both someday
Oh my, my

So, I’ll see you on the other side if I make it
And it might be a long hard ride, but I wanna take it
Sometimes it seems that I don’t have a prayer
I let the weather take me anywhere
But I know that I wanna go where the streets are gold
‘Cause You’ll Be There
Oh my, my
‘Cause You’ll Be There
Oh my, my...

THE SINGLE WAS FROM 'SOMEWHERE DOWN IN TEXAS' WHICH ALSO CONTAINED HIS FIFTY-SECOND #1 "SHE LET HERSELF GO" AND THE TOP-20 HIT "THE SEASHORES OF OLD MEXICO", WHICH JUST MISSED THE TOP-10, PEAKING AT #11.

IN A CAREER THAT HAS SPANNED 25 YEARS AND 53 #1 HITS, NOT TO MENTION A DOZEN OR MORE TOP-10 SINGLES THAT CAME CLOSE TO REACHING #1, GEORGE STRAIT IS TRULY DESERVING OF HIS COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME PLACEMENT. HIS NEW SINGLE, "GIVE IT AWAY", HAS BECOME HIS 78th TOP-10 COUNTRY HIT...AND HIS FIFTY-THIRD SINGLE TO REACH #1...HERE'S THE CURRENT SONG BY ONE OF THE NEWEST MEMBER'S OF THE COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME...

GIVE IT AWAY
2006

She was stormin' through the house that day and I could tell she was leavin'
And I thought: "Aw, she'll be back"
Till she turned around and pointed at the wall an said:

"That picture from our honeymoon...that night in Frisco Bay:
Just Give it Away."
She said: "Give it Away."
"And that big four-poster king-size bed where so much love was made
Just Give it Away."
She said: "Just Give it Away."

"Just Give it Away there ain't nothin' in this house worth fightin' over.
"Oh, and we're both tired of fightin' anyway so just Give it Away."

So I tried to move on but I found that each woman I held
Just reminded me of that day.
Hmmm.

When that front door swung wide open
She flung her diamond ring and said: "Give it Away...just Give it Away."
And I said: "Now, honey, don't you even want your half of everything."
She said: "Give it Away."
Just Give it Away.

Just Give it Away.
There ain't nothin' in this house worth fightin' over
Oh, and we're both tired of fightin' anyway
So just Give it Away.

So I'm still right here where she left me along with all the other things,
She don't care about anymore.
Hmmm...

Like that picture from our honeymoon
That night in Frisco Bay:
She said: "Give it Away."
Well, I can't Give it Away.

And that big four-poster king-size bed
Where all our love was made
She said: "Give it Away."
Well, I can't Give it Away.

Now i've got a furnished house, a diamond ring, and a lonely broken heart
That's full of love...

And I can't even Give it Away.

HERE IS THE LATEST CD FROM GEORGE STRAIT...CALLED "IT JUST COMES NATURAL" AND FEATURING THE LEAD-OFF #1 SINGLE, "GIVE IT AWAY".

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AC---WOW!  WHAT AN AWESOME REVIEW ON CLAY'S ATDW.  I CAN'T HELP BUT AGREE WITH YOU ON EVERYTHING YOU WROTE.  THE NICEST THING HE DID WAS THAT HE STAYED TRUE TO HIMSELF, AND THE SURPRISES IN EACH SONG THAT HE SANG MADE THE CD SO SPECIAL.
YOU ARE RIGHT, BECUASE OF CLAY WE DO HAVE CLAYMANICAS.  WE ARE LUCKY FOR SUCH A GREAT ARTIST.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR INPUT AND OPINION WHICH IS GREATLY APPRECIATED AND VALUED.

 :clap :clap :clap

JERRY,  What a great review of Clay's CD and George's too. You certainly have a way with words. I am hoping that Clay's CD will become a long-lasting Standard because those songs are all so beautiful and he does such a marvelous job singing them.  To me they are all Clay Aiken songs now and no one else can ever claim them.  

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This is a wonderful CD for any Haggard fan or for one of the ones who are still out there that doesn't have Haggard in their collection somewhere.

This CD is less than a month old...it was released on September 12th of this year. It consists of 26 songs...all original recordings...the last 4 songs are of contemporary flavor...recordings from the year 2000, 2001, 2003, and 2005. The collection was released by Capitol Records and it is so wonderful and perhaps optimistic on my part to assume that other performances in the Capitol Records vaults by other acts will soon make their way onto CD. Merle Haggard and Buck Owens in my opinion were the two biggest acts Capitol Records ever had on their label...both being country artists with a pop appeal, although in Haggard's case, the pop appeal wasn't designed...it just happened naturally.

Merle's first and most recognized hit singles were recorded for Capitol...the booklet contained with this CD is a wonderful look back at Merle's life and times...complete with pictures and liner notes from former Capitol Records record producer, Ken Nelson. Capitol also put in album songs...non-hits...but this being called "Hag: The Best of Merle Haggard", i'd assume album songs would be included...and we have several on here...the last 4 songs i was making reference to were not hit singles neither were "Today I Started Loving You Again"; "I'm Bringing Home Good News": "Silver Wings"; "Living With the Shades Pulled Down"; and "Honky Tonk Night Time Man". So, out of 26 songs on this collection, 9 were non-hits while the others were.

If you look at the songwriting credits in the CD booklet, yes...you got that right...Merle Haggard wrote 95% of the songs included here. Haggard's nickname professionally is "Poet of the Common Man"...his peers and fans call him 'Hag'. The ONLY down-side is the inclusion of "Pancho and Lefty" and even though i love the song, it has always been to me a Willie Nelson song with a Merle Haggard guest appearance...i would have selected one of his duets with George Jones, instead, where the two singers equal vocal time...on "Pancho and Lefty" we get Haggard singing a few lines near the end...but still, i smile when i hear "Pancho and Lefty" play out for the millionth time!! I've heard and loved the song all my life...but since Pancho was a huge hit, that is why it's included...despite Willie being the star vocalist on the recording. There is a rare duet included on here...one with Johnny Cash, "I'm Leaving Now".

New country singer, Toby Keith, is heard on the last song of this collection...2005's "She Ain't Hooked On Me No More". The country media has lately placed Toby Keith as this generation's Merle Haggard...back in the mid/late '60s and early '70s Merle gained another nick-name 'The Mighty Merle' and a lot of that had to do with his social commentary songs with political or war over-tones...one of his best war songs that isn't included on this CD was "I Wonder If They Ever Think of Me". We're still delighted with the other classics of that era: "The Fightin' Side of Me" and "Okie From Muskogee", which created controversy...both songs did...but noise makes news and those two important songs helped shape the image and legacy of Merle Haggard in the hearts and minds of country audiences...and Toby Keith's stance for the military and his political statements in song are why critics are making the comparison between the two.

The bulk of the material ranges from randomly selected Haggard songs on Capitol Records from 1967-1976 before his move to MCA...after MCA, Haggard joined EPIC in 1981 for another long streak of hit songs running until 1989. Haggard joined CURB in 1990 and recorded CDs and songs for them on and off throughout the 1990's but the radio hits had ended by that time. He now records for his own record company.

Merle Haggard was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1994.

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Tom T Hall had one of the most successful recording careers out of all of the songwriter-singers. Note i emphasized songwriter over the singer...Tom T Hall is one of the few to have equal success writing songs and singing songs. A huge bulk of his earlier success was writing songs and them being performed by country singers...Jimmy C Newman as you can see released quite a few songs written by Tom. Tom T Hall was born in Olive Hill, KY in 1937. To the pop audience, Tom T is better known for the recording "I Love" and the many TV appearances on "Pop! Goes the Country", a show in which he ended up hosting from 1979-1982, taking over from Ralph Emery. He went to RCA Records after Mercury and continued having success...he left RCA

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Bill Mack and Tom T Hall...Mack is a songwriter but that craft is over-shadowed by his long career in radio as "The Midnight Cowboy" on an all-night truck driver's show. He is now "The Satellite Cowboy" on XM Satellite radio...having left WBAP radio several years ago.

    * "Mad" performed by Dave Dudley (#6, 1964)
    * "Artificial Rose" performed by Jimmy C. Newman (#8, 1965)
    * "Back In Circulation" performed by Jimmy C. Newman (#13, 1965)
    * "City of the Angels" performed by Jimmy C. Newman (#37, 1965)
    * "What We're Fighting For" performed by Dave Dudley (#4, 1966)
    * "Back Pocket Money" performed by Jimmy C. Newman (#10, 1966)
    * "California Uptight Band" performed by Flatt & Scruggs (#20, 1967)
    * "Dropping Out of Sight" performed by Jimmy C. Newman (#32, 1967)
    * "Louisiana Saturday Night" performed by Jimmy C. Newman (#24, 1967)
    * "Town That Broke My Heart" performed by Bobby Bare (#16, 1968)
    * "Anything Leaving Town Today" performed by Dave Dudley (#12, 1968)
    * "There Ain't No Easy Run" performed by Dave Dudley (#10, 1968)
    * "Harper Valley PTA" performed by Jeannie C. Riley (#1, 1968) (also reached #1 on the Pop Singles Chart and #4 on the Adult Contemporary Chart)
    * "Greenwich Village Folk Song Salesman" performed by Jim & Jesse (#49, 1968)
    * "(Margie's At) The Lincoln Park Inn" performed by Bobby Bare (#4, 1969)
    * "George (And the Northwoods)" performed by Dave Dudley (#10, 1969)
    * "One More Mile" performed by Dave Dudley (#12, 1969)
    * "Boo Dan" peroformed by Jimmy C. Newman (#31, 1969)
    * "That's How I Got To Memphis" performed by Bobby Bare (#3, 1970)
    * "Pool Shark" performed by Dave Dudley (#1, 1970)
    * "If I Ever Fall in Love (With a Honky Tonk Girl)" performed by Faron Young (#4, 1970)
    * "Second Handed Flowers" performed by George Jones (#5, 1972)
    * "You Always Come Back (To Hurting Me)" performed by Johnny Rodriguez (#1, 1973) (also #86 on the Pop Singles Chart)
    * "I Can Still Hear the Music in the Restroom" performed by Jerry Lee Lewis (#13, 1975)
    * "I'm Not Ready Yet" performed by George Jones (#2, 1980)
    * "Dropping Out Of Sight" performed by Bobby Bare (#35, 1981)
    * "Little Bitty" performed by Alan Jackson (#1, 1996)
    * "That's How I Got To Memphis" performed by Deryl Dodd (#36, 1996)

THE ABOVE SONGS WERE SINGLES WRITTEN/CO-WRITTEN BY TOM T HALL THAT WERE HITS FOR OTHER ARTISTS. THIS OF COURSE DOES NOT INCLUDE THE SONGS WRITTEN BY TOM THAT WERE NOT RELEASED AS SINGLES THAT OTHER ARTIST's RECORDED. HE IS CREDITED FOR DISCOVERING JOHNNY RODRIGUEZ AND GAVE HIM LOTS OF SONGS TO RECORD...ONE OF THEM BECOMING A SINGLE, "YOU ALWAYS COME BACK TO HURTING ME".

HERE IS A LIST OF TOM T HALL's HIT SINGLES ON THE COUNTRY CHARTS...

    * "I Washed My Face in the Morning Dew" (#30, 1967)
    * "Ain't Got The Time" (#68, 1968)
    * "The World The Way I Want It" (#66, 1968)
    * "Ballad of Forty Dollars" (#4, 1969)
    * "Homecoming" (#5, 1969)
    * "Strawberry Farms" (#40, 1969)
    * "Day Drinkin'" with Dave Dudley (#23, 1970)
    * "Salute to a Switchblade" (#8, 1970)
    * "Shoeshine Man" (#8, 1970)
    * "A Week in a Country Jail" (#1, 1970)
    * "Ode to Half a Pound of Ground Round" (#21, 1971)
    * "One Hundred Children" (#14, 1971)
    * "The Year That Clayton Delaney Died" (#1, 1971) (also reached #42 on the Pop Singles Chart)
    * "Me and Jesus" (#8, 1972) (also reached #92 on the Pop Chart)
    * "More About John Henry" (#26, 1972)
    * "The Monkey That Became President" (#11, 1972)
    * "Old Dogs, Children, And Watermelon Wine" (#1, 1973)
    * "Hello, We're Loney" with Patti Page (#14, 1973)
    * "Ravishing Ruby" (#3, 1973)
    * "Watergate Blues" (#16, 1973)
    * "Country Is" (#1, 1974)
    * "I Love" (#1, 1974) (also reached #2 on the Adult Contemporary Chart and #12 on the Pop Singles Chart)
    * "Sneaky Snake" (#69, 1974) (reached #55 on the Pop Singles Chart the following year)
    * "That Song Is Driving Me Crazy" (#2, 1974) (also reached #63 on the Pop Singles Chart)
    * "Deal" (#8, 1975)
    * "I Care" (#1, 1975)
    * "I Like Beer" (#4, 1975)
    * "Faster Horses (The Cowboy And The Poet)" (#1, 1976)
    * "Fox On The Run" (#9, 1976)
    * "Negatory Romance" (#24, 1976)
    * "It's All in the Game" (#12, 1977)
    * "May The Force Be With You Always" (#13, 1977)
    * "I Wish I Loved Somebody Else" (#13, 1977)
    * "Your Man Loves You, Honey" (#4, 1977)
    * "What Have You Got to Lose" (#9, 1978)
    * "Son of Clayton Delaney" (#14, 1979)
    * "There is a Miracle In You" (#20, 1979)
    * "You Show Me Your Heart (And I'll Show You Mine)" (#11, 1979)
    * "Back When Gas Was Thirty Cents a Gallon" (#36, 1980)
    * "Jesus On the Radio (Daddy On the Phone)" (#9, 1980)
    * "Soldier Of Fortune" (#51, 1980)
    * "The Old Side of Town" (#9, 1980)
    * "The All New Me" (#41, 1981)
    * "There Ain't No Country Music on This Jukebox" with Earl Scruggs (#77, 1982)
    * "Song of the South" with Earl Scruggs (#72, 1982)
    * "Everything From Jesus To Jack Daniels (#42, 1983)
    * "Famous in Missouri" (#81, 1984)
    * "P.S. I Love You" (#8, 1984)
    * "A Bar with No Beer" (#40, 1985)
    * "Down in the Florida Keys" (#42, 1985)
    * "Suzy's Beauty Shop" (#52, 1986)
    * "Love Letters in the Sand" (#79, 1986)
    * "Down At The Mall" (#65, 1986)
    * "Bill Monroe For Breakfast" (#1, 1999)

TOM T HALL "RETIRED" FROM THE BUSINESS IN THE MID 1990s. HE HAS RELEASED NO NEW MUSIC IN ALMOST A DECADE. HIS LAST NEW MUSIC BEING "HOME GROWN" A COLLECTION OF BLUEGRASS SONGS, INCLUDING THE #1 BLUEGRASS SINGLE "BILL MONROE FOR BREAKFAST". TOM's BIGGEST HITS WERE ON MERCURY RECORDS...HE SIGNED TO RCA IN THE LATE 1970s...A DUMB MOVE ON MERCURY's PART DROPPING TOM FROM THEIR LABEL BECAUSE HE WAS ON THE PATH TO EVEN WIDER RECOGNITION WITH THE "POP! GOES THE COUNTRY" TV PROGRAM. TOM RETURNED TO MERCURY IN 1983. HE WAS WITH RCA FROM 1977-1981. HE RECORDED A DUET ALBUM WITH EARL SCRUGGS IN 1982, WHICH WAS ON COLUMBIA RECORDS.

THE BIGGEST RECORDING FROM THE PEN OF TOM T HALL IS "HARPER VALLEY PTA", WHICH WON A GRAMMY AND A CMA AWARD.

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Performing at a 1999 Bluegrass show...
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AC, excellent review on CLAY's new CD!  All your reviews of the albums are excellent.  Why aren't you writing for a music magazine or newspaper.  Your writing skills are superb!  I would take you on Jeopardy if the category was music!!!!!

JERRY, JUST FINISHED READING YOUR REVIEWS.  THIS IS THE PLACE TO COME WHEN SOMEONE WANTS TO KNOW ABOUT AN ARTISTS! 

I HAVEN'T THOUGHT ABOUT TOM T HALL FOR AGES.  I MET HIM A FEW TIMES.  HE WAS A GOOD FRIEND OF A BAND THAT CAME HERE AT A LOCAL PLACE, AND I KNEW THEM, AND HE CAME TO HEAR THEM SING, SO I GOT TO SIT AND CHAT WITH HIM. 

AND WHAT WOULD WE DO WITHOUT YOUR CARTOON CHARACTERS?  YOU KNOW THEY SURE DO PUT A SMLE ON YOUR FACE!  YOU ALWAYS DO SUCH A GREAT JOB ON EVERY REVIEW  :clap  :clap
THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH.

Dick Tracy
Format: DVD
Media: Cartoon

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a comic book cover...i have a re-print of this comic book that was re-issued in 1990...
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I recently purchased a 4-DVD set of Dick Tracy cartoons. These cartoons represent, for the most part, the only time the characters in Chester Gould's comic strip were in animated form on a consistent basis. Spread out on 4-DVDs are 130 5 minute cartoon shorts that were first broadcast in 1961 and re-broadcast at various times down through the years. The character of Dick Tracy was created in 1931 by Chester Gould. The villains of the series represent the quintessential villains that typically had a name to match their physical or mental impairment or quality. Example...Prune Face had a wrinkled up face...BB Eyes had eyes as small and round as a BB. Mumbles had wobbly lips and couldn't talk plain but amazingly, his partners in crime could understand what he was saying...the Brow had excessive brows on his forehead.

And so, on the 75th Anniversary of the creation of Dick Tracy, we are given 4-DVDs of the cartoon series from UPA. Everett Sloan is the voice of Dick Tracy, who is basically working as a "boss" for a group of comical assistants who do the leg-work. There is the Cary Grant-sounding dog, Hemlock Holmes; the Mexican Go-Go Gomez; and the Charlie Chan-type Joe Jitsu who knew the art of jitzu karate. Get the joke? Paul Frees was on hand giving voice to a wide aray of characters. Assisting Hemlock Holmes was a group of cops called The Retouchables. A parody of sorts on the name "Untouchables", a detective series at the time. One of the gimmick's of the series was when one of the leg-men for Dick Tracy were in trouble...they could shout "HOLD EVERYTHING!" and everything stopped while either Hemlock or Joe called in their predicament to Tracy. Each short opened up the same way! An off-screen announcer bellowing THE DICK TRACY SHOW and following an animated police car...the opening scene almost always started off with Tracy just ending a conversation with his boss and then calling upon one of his leg-men to carry out the assignment. The gimmick of talking into his watch became a fad again with the 1961 cartoon series. Go Go Gomez and Joe Jitsu are stereotyped characters and this series is NOT politically correct...so if political correctness is what you are looking for, kindly go elsewhere, because you will not find it on this DVD or any other cartoon or live-action program before the mid 1980's.

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clockwise from top-left: Go Go Gomez; Joe Jitsu; Hemlock Holmes; and the Retouchables

The villains who turned up the most were Flat-Top; Itchy; Prune Face; Mumbles; and Stooge Villars. Here are a lot of villains associated with the series...

3-D Magee (used killer ants), 88 Keys, Angletop, B-B Eyes, Big Boy Caprice, Big Frost (killer of Brilliant), Black Pearl, The Blank (face destroyed by gunshot), Blowtop, Bony, Breathless Mahoney, Broadway Bates, The Brow, Chameleon (disguise expert), The Claw, Coffyhead, Cueball, Cutie Diamond, Deafy Sweetfellow, Doc Hump, Faceless Redrum, Flattop, Flattop Jr., Gargles, Gruesome, Half-and-Half, Headache, Heels Beals, Honeymoon, Itchy, Johnny Scorn, Larceny Lu, Lips Manlis, Littleface Finney, Matty Square, Maxine Viller, Measles, Miss Egghead, Mrs. Pruneface, Mrs. Volts, Mr. Bribery, Mr. Crime, The Mole, Mousey, Mumbles, Olga, Oodles, Peanutbutter, Pear-shape, Perfume, Pruneface, Puckerpuss, Putty Puss (able to change his features), Rughead, Scorpio, Shakey, Shoulders, Sphinx, Splitface, Splitscreen, Spud Spaldoni, Squareface, Stooge Viller, Tiger Lilly, El Tigress, Tonsils, Torcher, Yogee Yamma...and many more...Bob Kane it has been rumored got the idea of his character, Two-Face, after Half and Half, a Dick Tracy villain of a guy with one half normal face and the other half a monster...and the battle between the good and bad side of the brain.

The series was all about a man that fought the gangsters and killers of his time whose first or last name was Tracy...it was never revealed. The word "dick" is slang for a detective...many people assume his name is Dick Tracy but it isn't...

The series was a small hit on radio, lasting on and off from 1935-1939, until returning in 1943 for a 5 year run, 1948. Ned Weaver was the voice of the character on the radio. In the TV drama's, Ralph Byrd played the role from 1937-1941; once more in 1947 and again in 1950. Morgan Conway played the character in 1945-1946.

In the '40s there was some cross-over appearances with the BATMAN comic book...here is a picture depicting several of Tracy's villains...plus Batman...and Tracy himself...

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In most recent memory, 1990, Warren Beatty played the role of Dick Tracy and it was that 1990 movie that caused the 1961 cartoon series to be re-broadcast...and that is when i caught the cartoon version of Dick Tracy.

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Jerry; these were always great cartoons.  In fact I feel better than the ones that are on TV today.  Now who but you would remember that Warren Beatty played him in a movie.  Wouldn't it be nice if they were brought back as reruns?  I enjoyed reading about them and seeing the pictures.  Good and interesting review.  Thank you.

:wave Thanks for stopping by Charlene! I have the DICK TRACY movie on video :bigsmile MaDonna played Breathless Mahoney and Al Pacino was Big Boy Caprice. Dick Van Dyke appeared as the District Attorney while Dustin Hoffman portrayed Mumbles.

LeAnn Rimes Hit Singles:

1996    "Blue" #10-Country; #23-UK; #10-Australia
1996    "Hurt Me" #43-Country
1996    "One Way Ticket (Because I Can)" #1-Country
1997    "The Light In Your Eyes"  #5-Country
1997    "Unchained Melody"  #1-Radio and Records Country
1997    "How Do I Live"  #2-Pop #43-Country #1-AC #7-UK  #14-Ireland
{the above single launched LeAnn into her Country-Pop career and expanded her fan base internationally as a result; single sold over 3,000,000 copies}

1997    "You Light Up My Life"  #34-Pop  #48-Country
1997    "Put A Little Holiday In Your Heart"     #51-Country    
1998    "On The Side Of Angels"  #4-Country
1998    "Commitment"     #4-Country  #38-UK
1998    "Looking Through Your Eyes"    #18-Pop  #4-AC    #38-UK
{the above song was from the animated movie QUEST FOR CAMELOT}

1998    "Nothin' New Under The Moon"     #10-Country
1999    "These Arms Of Mine"    #41-Country
{around the time of these singles, LeAnn was riding high on the Pop-AC charts and some country radio stations were growing annoyed with her genre-busting singles}

1999    "Feels Like Home"  #17-Billboard AC  #8-Radio and Records AC
1999    "Crazy"  #36-UK
1999    "Written In The Stars" (with Elton John)  #29-Pop #1-Radio and Records AC #10-UK
2000    "Big Deal"     #23-Pop #6-Country
2000    "Can't Fight the Moonlight" #11-Pop #61-Country  #15-AC  #17-Billboard Dance chart  #1-UK #1-Ireland #1-Australia
2000    "I Need You"  #11-Pop    #8-Country  #1-Radio and Records AC  #13-AC  #19-Ireland
2001    "But I Do Love You"  #18-Country  #20-UK
2001    "God Bless America"  #51-Country
2002    "Soon"  #12-Radio and Records AC
2002    "Life Goes On"  #60-Country  #9-Billboard AC  #11-UK  #27-Ireland  #7-Australia
2003    "Suddenly"  #43-Country  #47-UK  #53-Australia
2003    "Tic Toc" (Remixes)  #10-Billboard Dance Chart
2003    "We Can"  #16-AC  #19-Billboard Dance Chart  #27-UK  #37-Ireland  #51-Australia
2004    "This Love"  #37-Country  #54-UK  #26-Ireland
2004    "Last Thing On My Mind" (with Ronan Keating)  #5-UK  #10-Ireland
2004    "O Holy Night"    #14-AC    
2004    "Nothin' 'Bout Love Makes Sense"  #52-Pop  #5-Country
2005    "Probably Wouldn't Be This Way"    #54-Pop  #3-Country    #8-AC
2005    "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree"  #48-Country  #3-AC
2005    "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas"   #60-Country
2005    "A Different Kind Of Christmas"  #50-Country
2006    "Something's Gotta Give" #51-Pop  #1-Radio and Records Country
2006    "Some People"  #36-Country
2006    "And It Feels Like"  #22-UK  #25-Ireland  #1-Taiwan
2006    "Everybody's Someone" (duet with Brian McFadden)  #48-UK  #27-Ireland

AC,

Thanks for the list of LeAnn Rimes' hits.  I know you saw my post about how she got her start and grew up in the Dallas area.  I remember when she won her first award (Grammy?) for "Blue."  I think she was 13 or 14.  She has really grown from a young teen to a sophisticated star.   I don't buy many CD's (of course, the exception is Clay), but I do have 3 or 4 LeAnn Rimes' CD's.

I see the picture of Bill Mack, too.  I know he was the "Midnight Cowboy" and very popular with the truckers who drove all night.   I believe he broadcast from a local radio station, too.  I'm not sure if he has retired or not.

AC, you are just an encyclopedia of knowledge about so many musical artists, cartoons, etc.  I need to come to this thread more often.

Prissy

AC; THANKS FOR THE LIST OF SONGS OF LEE ANN RIMES!  GOSH, I REMEMBER WHEN SHE FIRST SANG "BLUE" BY PASTY CLINE.  SHE WAS SO YOUNG THEN.  A GREAT ARTIST INDEED. 

:wave Thanks for the comments, Prissy and Charlene!! I remember when i first heard of Bill Mack...he was a radio co-host with Jerry Clower of COUNTRY CROSSROADS from 1973-1998. Clower passed away that year and Bill continued on taping the show for several more years.

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Title: You Oughta Be Here With Me
Artist: George Jones
Year of Release: 1990
Label: EPIC

In 1990, George Jones was at the cross-roads of his long career. Although he is still on the road and making music to this day, the radio hits and the mainstream popularity was coming to an end because of something called NEW COUNTRY. This album contained no hit singles and recieved very little promotion from EPIC Records, the home of George Jones since 1972. This album has become long out of print and for lots of fans, a collector's item because of it's a rare find, yes...even an album with a 1990 copyright.

The album contains 10 wonderful songs all delivered in that trademark George Jones style...lots and lots of pedal steel guitar and fiddle even though as a whole, the album isn't a honky tonk album...it's basically an album of love songs. Good love or heartbreak. The album opens up with a wonderful ballad "Hell Stays Open All Night Long". In the song, hell is the place George is being sent to by a woman who reminds him in mid-song "goodbye...and don't call me anymore...for the one who i love now is at my door...". The title track was written by Roger Miller.

Two songs on this collection became hits for other artists years after George recorded them. The first, "Somebody Always Paints the Wall", became a hit for a newcomer at the time, Tracy Lawrence. The second, "Ol' Red", became a recent hit for a singer named Blake Shelton. "Someone That You Used To Know" is about a man who reads a goodbye note. The bulk of the album is ballads...there are some up-tempo songs, though. "Six Foot Deep, Six Foot Down" is an up-tempo number in the tradition of the song he co-wrote with Ray Price in the 1950's called YOU DONE ME WRONG. Incidentally, that song would be recorded by George in 1991 on his MCA Records debut album AND ALONG CAME JONES. The songwriters of "Six Foot Deep..." are legends of country songwriting: Don Cook, Chick Rains, and Curly Putman. 

Another up-tempo song on here is "I Want To Grow Old With You"...it's more mid-tempo than up-tempo. Bobby Braddock wrote the song. One of the things that one finds interesting about this album is that all of the songwriters are all top-notch and are legends in their field. Producer Billy Sherrill, who used to have lots of songs that he co-wrote on George Jones albums in the past, is credited as co-songwriter on "I Sleep Just Like a Baby", which features some wonderful fiddle. Sherrill's partners on the song are Joe Chamberlain and Larry Jenkins. "If The World Don't End Tomorrow" was written by Billy Sherrill all my himself...Mark Sherill and Don Goodman wrote the "Ol' Red" album closer. That song has a bluesy feel to it...in contrast to the other performances on the album. Bobby Braddock is also listed as the songwriter of "A Cold Day In December", a song about a man who will take back the woman he once loved but it'll be a cold day in December...a hot day in mid July, etc etc. The bottom line is, he'll take the woman back in a heartbeat because he loves her so much.

This was not a major hit for George and chances are tons of people, including latter day fans who became hooked on George Jones in the mid '90s, aren't even aware this album exists. It is a rare album with 10 awesome songs on it! Check eBay and other places for YOU OUGHTA BE HERE WITH ME because no George Jones fan oughta be without it.

AC,

I saw your mention of Jerry Clower.  Skip has always liked that Jerry Clower humor.  In fact, I believe he saw him perform in person one time.  I remember on some of our travels, we went through the town where Jerry Clower was born.

I did not know about the Bill Mack/Jerry Clower connection.

Prissy

JERRY CLOWER

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Clower telling a story...more than likely telling his audience how long a fish was that was caught during a fishing trip or telling us how far ahead one of the coon dogs were before they realized the raccoon was hot on the dog's trail :lol

Howard Gerald "Jerry" Clower (born September 28, 1926 in Liberty, Mississippi, died August 24, 1998) was a popular country comedian best known for his stories of the rural South.

Clower began a stint in the Navy immediately after graduating high school, then studied agriculture at Mississippi State University, where he played college football and was a member of Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity. After finishing school, Clower worked as a county agent and later as a seed salesman. He became a fertilizer salesman for Mississippi Chemical in 1954. By this time, he had developed a reputation for telling funny stories to boost his sales.

It was while speaking to the Alabama Dairy Convention in Point Clear, Alabama in 1970 that an attendee enthusiastically told Clower he might have a future in comedy. Thinking there might be some potential in that area, Clower taped his next few speaking engagements. The "Coon Huntin' Story" that would launch his career was first taped in Corpus Christi, Texas at the state Farmer's Cooperative Convention. Eventually, Clower's tapes wound up in the hands of "Big Ed" Wilkes in Lubbock, Texas, who had Clower make a better quality recording and began promoting it.

At first, Clower was just taking orders at his speaking engagements. He sold 8,000 copies this way on the Lemon record label. In time, Wilkes sent a copy to Grant Turner at WSM radio in Nashville, Tennessee, and when Turner played it on the air, Clower said "that thing busted loose." MCA was soon knocking on Clower's door offering him a contract. Once MCA began distribution in 1971, Jerry Clower from Yazoo City, Mississippi Talkin’ retailed more than a million dollars over ten months and stayed in the Top 20 on the country charts for 30 weeks.

Clower was 45 when MCA came calling and he began his professional career as a comedian. He often said, "I backed into show business." Many of his comedic stories revolved around the non-fictional Ledbetter family, especially his "best friend" Marcel Ledbetter who currently lives in the area of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. These stories are true but embellished for story telling. Marcel and Jerry were best friends throughout Jerry's life. Those stories are considered to be informal chronicles of early 20th century rural Southern life and according to Clower, were usually based on actual events.

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Country Ham, the name of Clower's 1974 album...a trademark of Clower was to tell stories about hunting or his days in college at Mississippi State; his most frequent characters were the Ledbetter clan of southern Mississippi

Clower made 27 full length comedy albums in his 27 year career as a professional entertainer (not counting "best of" compilations). With one exception, all the recordings were released by MCA. The exception was Ain't God Good which Clower recorded with MCA's blessing at a worship service. Word Records promoted and distributed this title in 1977. Always a staunch Christian, this recording gave Clower an opportunity to present his personal testimony in a comfortable church setting. The title of the recording was taken from a book Clower had written two years earlier (see below).

In 1973, Clower became a member of the Grand Ole Opry, and remained with that organization until his death. He also co-hosted a radio show called Country Crossroads with Bill Mack for 25 years. This show was produced and distributed by the Southern Baptist Convention. In addition, Clower found time to co-host the syndicated TV program Nashville On the Road with Jim Ed Brown from 1977-1981. Clower's last album was Peaches and Possums, released posthumously in October 1998. He was the author of 4 books. The book Ain't God Good became the basis for an inspirational documentary film of the same title that won an award from the New York International Independent Film and Video Festival.

Clower died at age 71 after heart bypass surgery.

THE ABOVE INFORMATION IS FROM WIKIPEDIA, AN ON-LINE ENCYCLOPEDIA WRITTEN BY PEOPLE ALL OVER THE WORLD. I CONTRIBUTED TO SOME OF THE CLOWER INFORMATION :smile

I HAVE ALL OF CLOWER's COMEDY ALBUMS :bigsmile I DO NOT, HOWEVER, HAVE THE "AIN'T GOD GOOD" PROJECT.

From Yazoo City, Mississippi Talkin’, 1971 GOLD ALBUM
Mouth of Mississippi, 1972 GOLD ALBUM
Clower Power, 1973
Country Ham, 1974
Live in Picayune, 1975
The Ambassador of Goodwill, 1976.
On The Road, 1977
Live from the Stage of the Grand Ole Opry, 1978
Greatest Hits, 1979 GOLD ALBUM
Ledbetter Olympics! 1980
More Good ’Uns, 1981
Dogs I Have Known, 1982
Live at Cleburne Texas, 1983
Starke Raving!, 1984
An Officer and a Ledbetter, 1985.
The Best of Jerry Clower, 1985.
Runaway Truck, 1986.
Top Gum, 1987.
Classic Clower, 1988.
Let There Be Light, 1989.
Mouth of the Mighty Mississip’, 1990.
Racoonteur, 1991
Sidewinder, 1992.
Stories Told Funny, 1993.
Jerry Joins the Navy, 1994.
Fish’n, Frogs, Hawgs, ’n Dawgs, 1995.
Live from Dollywood, 1997.
Peaches and Possums, 1998.

JERRY--I ENJOYED YOUR REVIEW ON GEORGE JONES.  I LISTEN TO THE CLASSIC COUNTRY SONGS ON MY LOCAL RADIO STATION ON SUNDAY MORNINGS.  THEY PLAY QUITE A FEW OF HIS SONGS.  I ALWAYS LIKED HIS DUETS WITH TAMMY WYANETTE.  HE IS A GOOD ARTISTS. 

I REMEMBER JERRY CLOWER SO WELL.  HE WAS SO FUNNY AND A PLEASURE TO WATCH AND LISTEN TO.

BOTH REVIEWS ARE "VERY" INTERESTING.  THANK YOU FOR HELPING TO GO DOWN MEMORY LANE ONCE AGAIN.

Hello Charlene!! I saw Jerry Clower once in concert. It was in 1995. At the time he was in the midst of his award winning achievement as Pitchman of the Year. He had did a TV commercial for a helicopter fishing lurer. The lurer was so successful in sales and the company gave Jerry the credit for it's success and so he was given a special Pitchman of the Year award. His comedy album at the time was Fishin', Frogs, Hogs, and Dogs

I heard a sneak preview of just one song from the new George Jones/Merle Haggard duet CD. They do a duet on the old pop hit "Don't Get Around Much Anymore".

:wave THIS ISN'T A REVIEW BUT IT's AN INTERVIEW I FOUND FROM GEORGE JONES MADE RECENTLY. I LOVE HIS OPINION AND COMMENTARY :clap :clap


GEORGE JONES (http://www.georgejones.com)

Artist: Ray Stevens
Title: ONE MORE LAST CHANCE
Year of Release: 1981
Label: RCA

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Front cover of the 1981 album

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back cover of the 1981 album

This album from Ray Stevens came along during the URBAN COWBOY era. In a lot of ways, Ray and Johnny Lee wore matching clothes and hats. The album contains two hit singles, one of them released late in 1980 but became a surprise hit and presumably was added to this album as a result. "Night Games", the album closer, tells the story of a single's bar and the patron's who frequent the place. "Night Games...talkin' and a dancin'...Night Games...one night romancin...the names may change but the rules stay the same they're playing Night Games....lonely people playin' Night Games...til the break of day the players may change but the moves stay the same they're playin' Night Games...". The single was a surprise hit, meaning that RCA and perhaps Ray himself didn't know exactly the impact the song would have amidst the followers of the URBAN COWBOY craze. "Night Games" reached #20 country, one his highest charting serious songs.

The other hit single is the album title, "One More Last Chance", which kicks off with an electric guitar...and the electric guitar is the lead instrument, something unusual for a Ray Stevens song which was usually piano and drum heavy. The title track reached #33 country in 1981 and by that time URBAN COWBOY was being pushed out of the mainstream in favor of other material but in country music, the trend continued to thrive for a few more years. The remaining eight songs represent a whole range of material interpreted by Ray Stevens who by 1981 had been in the professional recording business for 24 years, recording his first commercial singles back in 1957. "Pretend" is arranged in a Mexican beat but for the most part, this album is ballad heavy. "Pretend" is sort of his homage to the old pop standards. On his previous album, he recorded "Hey There".

"Just About Love", "Certain Songs", and "Let's Do It Right This Time" are the kind of songs that only Ray could perform well...as is the case with "Take Your Love". The highlight, other than the two hit singles and "Let's Do It Right This Time", is "Melissa", which tells the story of a musician and teacher who love one another. The album is wonderful if you like the ballad side of Ray Stevens. The beat remains mid-tempo to ballad throughout the album...only a few up-beat songs sneak their way in "Pretend", "I Believe You Love Me", and to an extent, "One More Last Chance". The title song is so wonderful in it's lyrics, the vocal delivery, and the prominent steel guitar. I have the vinyl version of this and i have yet to find it in cassette anywhere. 

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Title: First and Farewell
Performer: Barry Manilow
Format: DVD
Year of Release: 2006

I purchased this 2 DVD set a few days ago but never watched it until this morning, wanting it to be exactly Novemeber when i watched...both of the performances on the two DVD's are from Novemeber, spaced 30 years apart from one another. November 1974 and Novemeber 2004. The DVD's marketing plan is to highlight Barry Manilow's first-ever performances in front of an audience, which is a rehearsal for a concert video taped in a place called Carroll's Studio in November 1974 in New York. Barry appears on this DVD at the beginning explaining what we're going to see and also explains that a video recorder back in 1974 wasn't hand-held and so anyone wanting to purchase this for film quality and technical wizardry will not be impressed because the recorder, according to Barry's short introduction taped this year, was sat near the back of the room and one spotlight was used to show each performer, etc etc.

I liked the early stage performance of Manilow despite the lack of any close-up's. His back-up singers were called The Harletts and they perform two songs, "Easy Evil" and "Armed and Extremely Dangerous". The emergence of the Manilow we all know was showcased on the VERY STRANGE MEDLEY as it's came to be known...where Manilow sings his commercial jingles. The 1974 performance is shot in black and white, too! There is the inclusion of "Could It Be Magic" and that song holds the distinction of being in just about every Manilow concert during those 30 years he was touring on the road before settling in Las Vegas in 2005. Of course, running a close second for all-time inclusion in a concert is "Mandy", the song that Barry says "really started it all...". The liner notes on the back highlight Barry's words as he left the studio in 1974 after this video tape recording, "wish us luck".

One DVD #2 we get a full length concert...now, of course, this is way more sophisticated and technically advanced than the rehearsal on video from 1974. We get treated to a numerous aray of songs nearly all of Barry's fans know, even the album songs get big hands...the song "Why Don't We Live Together" is from his TRYING TO GET THE FEELING album from 1975 and it's a great performance vocally. It's one of the songs he added to his concert tours in the later years. "They Dance!" is from HERE AT THE MAYFLOWER and it's turned into an all-out dance fest...one of the highlights is "Brooklyn Blues", his 1988 AC Top-10 hit...there is what Barry referred to in the intro, a "sax-fight" where two saxophone players try to out do each other with the long sax solo's in the song. It is a swing song, but did as a ballad and was originally on Barry's 1987 album, SWING STREET. There are two acts on this performance. Each Act runs about 40-45 minutes each. In Act two Barry opens thinsg with "Can't Smile Without You", where he calls up a woman from the audience to sing with him. "Weekend in New England" gets the biggest applause...throughout the second act, all the audience members wave the green glow-sticks.

"River" is a great song from his latest Christmas album, 2002's CHRISTMAS GIFT OF LOVE. On "Dancin' Fool", the short song from SWING STREET is turned into a physical performance...lots of dancing by Barry and his back-up singers. Barry wears sun-glasses during the second singing of the song's verse and chorus. On "Copacabana", Barry and the same crew do some dancing on there that may surprise some people and that's all i'll say. :smile

This concert was filmed in November 2004 at The Pond in Anaheim, California. Barry sang many medley performances simply because he's had so many hit songs and so many other songs his audiences like to hear that he often strings a few of them together. "I Write the Songs" is here, as is "Even Now", and a softer vocal performance of "Somewhere Down the Road", his AC #1 from 1982.

The last complete song that is performed is "Dancin' In The Aisles", which would later become one of the main songs of his MUSIC AND PASSION Las Vegas show in 2005.

ARTICLE (http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/tv/ny-ettvtwo4963407nov06,0,7442561.story?track=rss)

I don't have too much to add to that review! I bought this DVD from Wal*Mart. I watched POLICE SQUAD on Nick-at-Nite in 1992 i believe! At the time the network was celebrating the 6-episode TV series from 1982 and at the same time tying it in with the latest big screen NAKED GUN movie featuring Nielsen as Frank Drebin. The basic difference in this TV series and the movies that were based on this show are the missing cast-members Priscilla Presley and George Kennedy from the film's...other than that, the humor and basic formula are intact.

For those not aware, Leslie Nielsen starred in this very short-lived TV program in 1982 as Frank Drebin, an inept policeman not unlike the previous antics of Maxwell Smart of GET SMART and Inspector Cluseau from PINK PANTHER movies. Drebin's demeanor is dead-pan and very serious which makes the hilarity all the more grand because the dialogue is witty and so outrageous but delivered so seriously.

The DVD contains some extra's and the highlight is the interview with Nielsen. He talks about his transition from dramatic actor to comedic actor. The shift in direction started to take place in 1980 when he was cast in AIRPLANE in a similar Frank Drebin-type role. The creators/writers of AIRPLANE were behind POLICE SQUAD in 1982 and the string of NAKED GUN films and other spoofy-sight-gag heavy comedies of the era.

The DVD cover highlights a sight-gag...it shows Leslie popping up from a man-hole in the street...a hand is off to his left. Inside the dead man's hand is a jelly donut. We've all seen crime scenes where the police rope off the area with yellow "Do Not Cross" warnings, right? Well, the sight-gag on the DVD cover says: POLICE LINE DONUT CROSS.

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It's those goofy sight-gag's that fill up this show in addition to the razor-sharp pun's.

As was remarked about in the quote i copied here, this type of humor is very low-brow and good for belly laughs. Sophisticates will roll their eyes at the sheer goofiness but i love POLICE SQUAD and it's about time it became available on DVD.

AC  :wave THANK YOU FOR THE MOST INTERESTING AND UNIQUE REVIEWS!

Thanks for the comment, Charlene! Thanks for the e-mail, too! I posted to you on the OCD about it. One of the funniest recurring skits on POLICE SQUAD is the police scientist segment. Each episode shows Frank {Leslie Nielsen} visiting this scientist in the police lab whose gonna show Frank the latest gadget he's working on. The humor stems from the fact that the scientist has a demented mind and is always on the verge of killing someone but Frank's entrance into the lab always causes the scientist to hault his plan and send the would-be victim on their way reminding them to stop by later :lol :lol

It's something that has to be seen to get the humor about. In one segment he was about to electrocute someone on the electric chair but Frank walked in oblivious to the whole thing. Of course, the death didn't take place because the "victim" was told to stop by later :lol :lol

In other scene, the scientist was demonstrating guns. The plot of this episode i'm making reference to dealt with the scientist showing Frank how two people could be shot by the same person at the same time. The scientist strolls over to the mock-up shooting gallery and instead of taking aim at bullseye's, the scientist starts shooting to pieces video tape copies of Barbara Walter's interviews. :lol :lol

And at the end of the show they always pause like the tape was paused there, but it's just them really standing there.  :lol My dad and I saw that set this weekend. It would be a great birthday present for him. We both have that same kind of humor.

AC----YOUR WELCOME!  I REMEMBER LESLIE NELSON PLAYING SERIOUS PARTS YEARS AGO IN MOVIES.  I WAS GLAD TO SEE HIM TURNING TO COMEDY.  HE IS SO GOOD AT IT.  IS HE STIL MAKING MOVIES? 

I WANTED TO ASK YOU IF YOU HAD ANY INFORMATION ON "CHARLIE WEAVER".  HE WAS WITH THE GRAND OL OPRY.  I SAW HIM HERE IN PERSON AND JUST LOVE HIM. THANKS. I DON'T KNOW IF HE EVER RECORDED AN ALBUM OR NOT.

GOOD TO COME AND READ YOUR REVIEWS AS ALWAYS :hugg

Meesa: :lol :lol That was one of the funniest things! The characters standing still as the credits roll. One of the more memorable is when Frank and Ed are "still" and the crook in custody looks at the two as if they're morons and he escapes their custody. :lol :lol

Charlene: :wave I believe Leslie is semi-retired. One of his last films, MISTER MAGOO, wasn't the hit that was expected it would be. Part of the reason...or all of the reason...is because the public has MAGOO etched in their minds as a little bald near sighted guy...BUT at the core of this is the voice of Jim Backus. His voice in my opinion made that character memorable. The film simply had Leslie playing a near-sighted live action MAGOO...but he didn't look anything like him. I think had the movie's producers seeked out someone who could mimic the MAGOO voice we all know, it could have been a bigger hit. Remember Robin Williams as POPEYE? I believe it was a hit because it stuck to the cartoon's "look" and Robin attempted a Popeye-type voice...and Shelley Duvall was a good Olive Oyl.

Now, about Charlie Weaver. He is no longer living. He was played by an actor named Cliff Arquette. His son is an actor, too. David Arquette. There are some others too but i forget their names. Anyway, i had never heard of Charlie on the GRAND OLE OPRY. You heard or saw him guest appearing there. Charlie was a regular on the HOLLYWOOD SQUARES. He was in the top right square...Paul Lynde was in the center. He made a few comedy albums and i bet while promoting them, he stopped by the GRAND OLE OPRY. Cliff played that character from the 1940's on radio on through the 1970's and television.

This is a review/over-view from the BarryNet...the link follows...

BARRY MANILOW'S THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE SIXTIES DEBUTS AT #2
#1 ARTIST ALBUM RELEASE ON THE TOP 200

MANILOW’S BIGGEST SALES WEEK OF HIS CAREER!

THE FOLLOW-UP TO THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE FIFTIES,

HIS RIAA #1 PLATINUM DEBUT RELEASED IN JANUARY OF THIS YEAR

WHICH RE-ENTERS THE TOP 200

Highest QVC pre-release music sales event, plus online fan club and retail pre-orders, and mass media exposure combine with huge retail scans to earn 201,904 first week sales

Another chart-topping success caps an extraordinary year for Manilow

(November 8, 2006 – New York, NY) Lightning strikes twice in 2006 for Arista recording artist Barry Manilow, as massive online fan club and QVC shopping network advance orders, coupled with six figure sales at retail, plus an unprecedented television blitz and direct response advertising campaign, add up to the biggest sales week of Manilow’s highly successful career, with a #2 Nielsen SoundScan debut with 201,904 copies sold, a 30% sales increase over his Fifties album released just 9 months ago. THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE SIXTIES is his 13-song tribute that arrived in stores on October 31st and the follow-up to the RIAA platinum The Greatest Songs Of The Fifties, which skyrocketed back on the chart this week at #116 with a 205% increase and was the first album in Barry Manilow’s career to debut at #1 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart upon its release this year on January 31st. Manilow is the only artist of 2006 to have two albums debut in the top 2 chart positions in the same calendar year.

The pre-release of THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE SIXTIES was kicked off on Saturday, October 21st when Manilow performed live from Chicago for the QVC audience. More than 43,000 units ordered marked the highest single-hour music sales event in QVC's twenty-year history. At the same time, a special pre-order campaign at the www.manilow.com website ensured fans of receiving the new album in its first week of release. Online, the album blanketed the web with album premieres on AOL, MSN, Windows Media, MP3 & Artist Direct, and Clearchannel.com. Also, Manilow was everywhere on television with appearances on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” “CNN,” “A&E Biography,” “Good Morning America,” “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” “The Colbert Report,” “The View, “The Martha Stewart Show”, “Rachael Ray,” “The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson,” “The Megan Mullally Show” and multiple appearances on “Entertainment Tonight,” and “The Insider.” Stay tuned for his appearance later this month on the American Music Awards and Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

The two current Fifties and Sixties albums mark the winning reunion in the studio for co-producers Manilow and Clive Davis, Arista founder and BMG U.S. Chairman & CEO. THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE SIXTIES also caps one of the most remarkable years of Manilow’s long and storied career, which includes the success of 2006’s The Greatest Songs From The Fifties (his first #1 chart album in nearly three decades), the renewal extension of his exclusive perform­ing contract with the Las Vegas Hilton Theater (“Manilow: Music & Passion”) through 2008, and winning his second career Emmy Award (this past August), when “Manilow: Music & Passion” was awarded Outstanding Individual Performance In A Variety Or Music Program.

Each song on THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE SIXTIES is a classic in its own right – from his remake of the Righteous Brothers “You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling’” (1965) to the Beatles’ “And I Love Her”(1964), to Herb Alpert’s “This Guy's In Love With You” (1968), the Lettermen’s “When I Fall In Love” (1962) and Burt Bacharach’s “Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head” (1969). Like the ’60s itself, the album covers many genres, from its recollection of Herman’s Hermits’ “There’s A Kind Of Hush (All Over The World)”(1967), to Bobby Vinton’s “Blue Velvet” (1963), to Jackie DeShannon’s “What The World Needs Now Is Love” (1965). Manilow also pays tribute to some of America’s greatest singers, including Dean Martin on “Everybody Loves Somebody Sometime” (1964) and Frankie Valli’s “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” (1967). Two artists whose legacies were recalled on The Greatest Songs Of The Fifties are again paid homage on the new album, namely Elvis Presley with “Can't Help Falling In Love” (1962) and Frank Sinatra with “Strangers In The Night” (1966). One of the highlights of the album is a great duet with The Association of their two #1 hits “Cherish” (1966) and “Windy” (1967).

With worldwide record sales exceeding 75 million, his work as a singer, songwriter, arranger and producer over the course of more than 40 albums has earned Barry Manilow the highest honors. He sits on the Board of Governors of the National Academy of Jazz, and in June 2002, he was inducted into the National Academy of Popular Music’s Songwriters Hall of Fame, alongside Ashford & Simpson, Michael Jackson, Randy Newman, and Sting. In addition to his own foundation, the Manilow Fund for Health and Hope, other involvements include The Prince's Trust, United Way, the Starlight Foundation, numerous organizations fighting the battle against AIDS, and many others. He is the national spokesperson for the Foundation Fighting Blindness, Honorary Chairman of the Palm Springs Art Museum and a Founder of the Music Center of Los Angeles.

BARRY NET (http://www.barrynet.com/bmnet050_061108.shtml)

AC  :wave Thank you for the information on Charlie Weaver!  Yep, you are right; he was on Hollywood Squares.  I did see him tho on Grand OL Opry with Minnie Pearl.  They were great friends. I was wondering what is real name was, now I remember, and I do know who his actor son is. THANK YOU!

I am so glad to see Barry Manilow came in at #2 for his new cd.  The songs he chose are classics and he does them so well.  He will be forever the great singer/song writer that he is.

Great reviews as always    :clap  :clap Be back soon to check and see if you have posted more.  Keep up the good work.  :hugg

AC  :wave I came back to check and see if you posted any new reviews.  I didn't see any so, I ended up re-reading some of the ones you had already done. 

Be back again to check.  As always thank you.

Here are the pictures of Charley...the first is him inside his "square" and the other is a cast picture...

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/JerryFunnies/weaver.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/JerryFunnies/hsquare2.jpg)
Charley Weaver; Rose Marie; George Goble; John Davidson {behind Goble}; Kent McCord; the Hollywood Squares cake; Peter Marshall {the host}; Vincent Price; Paul Lynde; Sandy Duncan; and Ruta Lee

AC
THANK YOU FOR THE INFORMAION AND THE PHOTOS OF CHARLIE WEAVER.  I DO REMEMBER HIM BEING ON HOLLYWOOD SQUARES! 

IT MADE IT SO MUCH MORE SPECIAL TO WATCH HIM AFTER SEEING HIM IN PERSON.  I ALSO SPOTTED ANOTHER PERSON IN THE PHOTO,,JOHN DAVISON, WHOM I ALSO SAW IN PERSON.

IT IS NICE TO GO DOWN MEMORY LANE!
THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO THIS WITH YOUR REVIEWS. :hugg

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Artist: Ray Stevens
Title: Funny Man b/w Just One Of Life's Little Tragedies
Format: vinyl single
Year of Release: 1963
Label: Mercury

Taking a somewhat more serious approach on this single, Ray Stevens demonstrates his vocal prowess with this wonderful ballad of a man who plays the part of the clown or the funny man in public but in private lets his misery take over. One of the highlights is hearing the soaring tenor...almost Roy Orbison like...that is found throughout the entire "Funny Man" song. It was not a giant hit song by any means...hitting the #81 spot on the Hot 100...but it was one of his few serious singles to make the Hot 100 back at that time.

"Funny Man" was backed with another love ballad. This time around it was more of a straight-ahead love ballad arranged in the pop-crooning style of a Perry Como. "Just One of Life's Little Tragedies" tells the story of a man who endures a lot of headache and little tragedies in his life and it's a study of irony since by the end of the song, he tells himself that losing the woman to some other guy is just one of life's little tragedies...but soon realizes he's just been fooling himsef. There are no flashy hooks to the song, just a great vocal.

The two songs can be found on various releases by Mercury and Polygram Records. FUNNY MAN is more available, though, since it was the A-side single...but search around and you're bound to find "Just One Of Life's Little Tragedies". He re-recorded the song in 1973, by the way, so there may be some releases out there that contain the 1973 version on Barnaby records.

HELLO CHARLENE!! THANKS FOR STOPPING BY!! I'M GLAD YOU LIKE READING MY REVIEWS!! AS YOU KNOW, I PURPOSELY FILL MY REVIEWS WITH LOTS OF TRIVIA AND THINGS LIKE THAT TO ELEVATE IT BEYOND THE TYPICAL "REVIEW".

JERRY HELLO  :wave I DECIDED TO STOP BY AND CHECK TO SEE IF YOU DID ANOTHER REVIEW.  YOU KNOW,, WHEN I HEAR AND OLDIE ON THE RADIO, I THINK,  OH I REMEMBER THAT SONG.  THEN THEY ANNOUNCE IT WAS RAY STEPHENS.  I FORGET THAT HE DID DO A LOT OF BALLADS. I WISH I COULD HAVE SEEN HIM IN PERSON BUT DID WATCH HIM ON TV WITH MY DAD WHO THOUGHT HE WAS AWESOME.
THANK YOU!  I WILL BE BACK TO SEE WHAT YOU COME UP WITH NEXT.  ALWAYS INTERESTING!

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Artist: Jerry Clower
Title: Classic Clower Power
Year of Release: 2006
Label: MCA

This 2-CD collection contains 46 comedy stories by Jerry Clower, the #1 stand-up country comedian for three decades: '70s, '80s, and '90s. Clower was born September 28, 1926. 90% of his comedy stories revolve around the Ledbetter family. Marcel is the most spoken about in the stories. Jerry also recalls his years in the military, his college life plus the years he was involved with Mississippi State, and contemporary stories with current/topical events taking place. These stories occur in Clower's later years.

This CD runs the gamut of material from 1971-1997. Interestingly, his 1975 story of the "Coon Huntin' Monkey" isn't on here. That was one of his most requested stories...the ones here are just as funny, though. "Steel Marbles" features a hilarious re-telling of how to play the sport of marbles. "You're On My List" is a story about Clower and some peers out in Hollywood and an over-zealous guard. One of the most laugh out loud stories for me is "Bird Huntin' At Uncle Versies", also from 1975. That one tells the story of Clower quail hunting with a humorous twist at the end. The enthusiasm Clower puts into his stories is contagious. No matter what he happens to be talking about, he keeps the pace moving. 

Clower passed away in 1998 at the age of 71. His actual family have been a focal point of his comedy stories at times. His wife, Homerline, who he called "Mama"; his brother "Sonny"...Jerry's kids: Ray, Amy, Sue, and Katie.

AC,

Skip really enjoys Jerry Clower's humor.  Even tough his gift was seeing the Rockettes and the Radio City Music Hall show in Grand Prairie, I may see about getting this 2-CD collection for another gift.  Did you find it at a store or order online?

Prissy

Hello Prissy! I loved Clower as well and have all of his albums. It was a rare find for me about 10 years ago when i was at a flea market and bought his 1976 album "The Ambassador of Goodwill". That one in particular has never been re-released on cassette or CD format and so i only have that one on vinyl. I love that collection i reviewed because it's a CD and one doesn't have to mess with a cassette. I saw Clower in person in 1996 at a local county fair. He was a preacher/deacon in real life and his vocal delivery was very distinct :wink

His home base throughout much of his entire career was Yazoo City, Mississippi. The collection comes with a short bio written by Rich Kienzle from March 2006. Clower had a lot of success in spite of the fact he didn't have any comedy stories make the country charts and based primarily on his own storytelling talents, was able to become a success. Several of his comedy albums are GOLD, which was unheard of in those days for a spoken word album...actually, a COUNTRY/RURAL spoken word album i should be more specific. He had an impact on radio as well. He and Bill Mack hosted a radio show, COUNTRY CROSSROADS. A lot of Clower's participation on that series were call-in interviews or stories he told about singers and local religious figures. On camera, Clower was a co-host on NASHVILLE ON THE ROAD with Jim Ed Brown from 1975-1981.

When Clower passed away, TNN shown some vintage clips of him on those shows.

I bought that collection at Wal*Mart when looking for Clay's ALL IS WELL. However, it can be found on Amazon because that is where i found the image of the CD cover. There was only that copy of Clower's CD and i grabbed it up. His CDs can also be found at truck stops.

AC - CLOWER WAS A NATURAL COMEDIAN.  I STILL REMEMBER HE HAD THIS JOLLY LAUGH.  HOW DO YOU DO IT.  IT AMAZES ME HOW YOU FIND THE INFORMATION THESE FORGOTTTEN STARS.  I DIDN'T KNOW HE WAS 71 WHEN HE PASSED AWAY.  HE SEEMED AGELESS.  I REALLY ENJOYED READING ABOUT HIM AND THE CD.  YOU ALWAYS SAY LAUGHTER IS GOOD FOR EVERYONE.  AND YOU PROVIDE A NICE PLACE TO COME AND REMEMEBER THE LAUGHTER SOME OF THE REVIEWS THEY ARTISIS BROUGHT TO US.  GOOTA SAY, YEP, YOU ARE ARE FUNNY MAN WITH THE SKITS.  YOU SHOULD WRITE A BOOK OF YOUR SKITS SOMEDAY.

I AM ALWAYS GLAD WHEN I STOP BY,,TO READ THE REVIEWS.  GOOD JOB    :clap   :clap BE BACK SOON.
OH, I FORGOT TO ASK YOU ABOUT "ROY ACUFF",,,,HE WAS WITH THE GRAND OLE OPRY,,I KNOW THIS BECAUSE MY DAD SAW IN IN PERSON AND WENT BACKSTAGE AND SAT IN ON A JAM SESSION WITH HIM.  DO YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION ON HIM?  THANKS

:wave Hello Charlene! I like Roy's singing! He was the KING OF COUNTRY MUSIC. In country, we like to nick-name our artists. Roy was the KING, Kitty Wells is known as the QUEEN OF COUNTRY MUSIC. They weren't married :lol :lol A lot of pop/rock listeners would assume so since they both have royalty for a nick-name. Let me see...Jerry Clower, for example, was known as THE MOUTH OF THE MISSISSIPPI or THE MOUTH OF THE SOUTH. Porter Waggoner is known as THE THIN MAN FROM WEST PLAINS, MISSOURI. George Jones is known as THE POSSUM. Ray Stevens is THE CLOWN PRINCE OF COUNTRY MUSIC. Conway Twitty was THE BEST FRIEND A SONG EVER HAD. Webb Pierce was THE WONDERING BOY. Ray Price is THE CHEROKEE COWBOY. Merle Haggard is THE POET OF THE COMMON MAN. Tom T Hall is THE STORYTELLER...and on and on and on...i could go on with nick-names. Faron Young was THE SINGING SHERIFF. Tammy Wynette was THE FIRST LADY OF COUNTRY MUSIC. Again, pop/rock fans would think she was the first female country singer :lol :lol but in reality it means she was the first female country singer to have a million selling album if i'm not mistaken? Charlie Rich was THE SILVER FOX. Billy Walker was the TALL TEXAN. Stop me before i go on and on :lol :lol :lol

Anyway, Roy had the pleasure of having the first dressing room backstage at the Opry house at Opryland. I don't know where his dressing room was at the Ryman Auditorium. You are correct about those jam sessions. Back when Roy was living, TNN would sometimes go into Roy's dressing room and we'd see Roy, Boxcar Willie, Bashful Brother Oswald, and a few others sitting around playing their instruments. Roy was also a cast-member on HEE-HAW for a few years in the 1980's. He passed away in 1992. His biggest songs were "The Great Speckled Bird"; "Once More"; "Wabash Cannonball"; "Night Train to Memphis"; "I Didn't Hear Nobody Pray"; "Precious Jewel"; and "Wreck of the Old '97". He was Minnie Pearl's straight-man for decades on the Opry after her previous partner, Rod Brasfield, passed away. Rod was a comedian in the style of Whitey Ford and WC Fields in that they told corny jokes and the humor came from the vocal delivery more than the actual words. Rod, as i said, had passed away and he ironically played the straight-man to Minnie Pearl. After Rod passed away, Roy stepped in on many Friday and Saturday nights trading jokes with her.

Roy was also a businessman long before it was known that "country" people had brains :lol :lol

He was part owner of the Nashville Sounds baseball team. They're minor league and typically home to future major league ball players. Roy's fortune, though, came with publishing. He and Fred Rose teamed up and formed Acuff-Rose Music. His publishing company at one time owned 90% of the songs on country radio and the legacy continued on throughout the years.

In his later years he lived in a house at Opryland where he could easily commute from the Opryhouse to HEE-HAW to all of the TV shows that TNN broadcast in the 1980's. He played the fiddle but didn't play it as much in his later years. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1962.

The following is what i gathered from country web-sites:

Born: 9-15-03
Joined the Grand Ole Opry: 1937
Formed Acuff-Rose Music: 1942
Formed Hickory Records {independent record label}: 1953
Grammy's Lifetime Achievement Award: 1987
Died: 11-23-92
Age: 89

HELLO JERRY
 :wave THE REVIEW ON ROY WAS MOST INTERESTING,,THANK YOU.  YEP, HE WAS FAMOUS FOR HIS JAM SESSIONS.  I HAVE A PICTURE OF MY DAD AND AN OLD RECORDING OF IT.  I DIDN'T KNOW THAT HE HAD THE FIRST DRESSING ROOM THERE AND WAS CALLED THE "KING".  I WILL SHARE SOME OF THIS INFORMATION WITH MY MOM.  THANKS AGAIN. 

JERRY

I SHOULD COME HERE MORE OFTEN.
I DID NOT KNOW THAT DAVID ARQUETTE WAS CLIFFS SON!!!!!

SURPRISE, SURPRISE.

I WILL HAVE TO KEEP CHECK ON THIS THREAD MORE OFTEN.

YOU ARE A FOUNTAIN OF KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE "GOOD OLE' DAYS" AND THE ENTERTAINERS THERE OF.

LUV
JAN

PS
LOVE THAT PICTURE OF THE MANY COMEDIANS ON HOLLYWOOD SQUARES AND THERE IS MONSTER MAN, VINCENT PRICE, ONE OF MY VERY, VERY, FAVORITE VILLIANS. THEY JUST DO NOT MAKE VILLIANS LIKE THAT ANYMORE.
ONE OF THESE DAYS I AM GOING TO START COLLECTING ALL OF VINCENT PRICE MOVIES. I HAVE A FEW NOW. LOVE THAT MAN. IN FACT I SEEM TO PREFER VILLIANS. :bduh :naughty

JAN

HELLO JERRY  :wave STOPPED IN TO CHECK ON ANY NEW REVIEWS.  I DECIDED WHILE I WAS HERE TO DO A LITTLE RE-READING.  YOU REALLY DO AMAZE ME WITH HOW MUCH YOU KNOW ABOUT THE SINGER/SONG WRITERS AND COMEDIANS. 

THANK YOU FOR THE TIME YOU PUT IN TO DO THE REVIEWS.  BE BACK AGAIN SOON TO SEE WHAT INTERESTING REVIEW YOU COME UP WITH NEXT.

GERALDINE

DID YOU KNOW THAT THERE IS A "DOWN MEMORY LANE" THREAD IN THE MEMBERS CORNER?
YOU MENTIONED DOWN MEMORY LANE SO THOUGHT I WOULD GIVE YOU A HINT.
ONLY IT IS FOR MEMBERS PICTURES OF THEMSELVES OR RELATIVES ,ETC.
JERRY HAS CONTRIBUTED A LOT TO THE THREAD. YOU CAN SEE HIM UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL THERE!!!!

LUV
JAN

:wave Hello Charlene, Jan, and anyone lurking...thanks for the commentary about my other reviews here!!

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/a19e39a835893d69732115132c978375.jpg)

Title: Making Believe
Artists: Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn
Label: MCA
Year of Release: 1988

This duet album came along in 1988 during a "reunion" tour that had just ended between Conway and Loretta. The tour began in 1987 amidst the release of an album on Heartland Music, sold over TV called THE BEST OF CONWAY AND LORETTA. The GOLD selling success of that direct market album caused MCA to sort of capitalize on the on-going popularity of the Conway-Loretta duo.

Each artist had become synonymous with one another through out the 1970's. They were country music's most awarded duet racking up awards from the ACM, CMA, AMA, Billboard, and the fan-voted Music City News organization {out of business now}. From 1971-1981 the duo hit the charts a total of 12 times. 6 of their singles reached #1, another 6 reached the Top-10. Only one duet single a year was released during 1971 through 1980. In 1981, 2 singles made the charts. Conway left MCA in late 1981 but Loretta stayed with the label.

Conway continued to rack up Top-10 and #1 hits during the next 4 years on Warner Brothers {1982-1986}. In that time frame, he was unable to record with Loretta and they never toured or appeared together. He returned to MCA in 1987 and as the fans had been requesting for years, Conway and Loretta reunited on tour. MCA, as i reported earlier, saw the success of the direct market duet album and decided in 1988 to release this, MAKING BELIEVE.

This album contained 5 of the new duets that Conway and Loretta recorded but it also included 5 of their previously recorded duets from the 1970's. There was no concentrated effort on MCA's part to promote the album much. The 5 new songs they recorded were their versions of country classics...there was no new original songs. Out of the 10 songs included here, only the last two songs were actual hit recordings. "As Soon As I Hang Up The Phone" was a #1 hit for them in 1974. This song has Conway recording his spoken dialogue into a telephone. The last song, "It's True Love", was a #5 hit for the duo in 1980 from a 1979 album entitled DIAMOND DUET.

The album for the most part could have been marketed as a covers album since 8 of the 10 songs were their versions of former hits by other artists.

Track List:
1. Making Believe {a previous hit for Kitty Wells}
2. I Can't Help It If I'm Still in Love With You {a previous hit for Hank Williams}
3. Faded Love {originally by Bob Wills but everyone's recorded the song}
4. Half as Much {a previous hit for Hank Williams}
5. Please Help Me I'm Falling {a previous hit for Hank Locklin}
6. Hey Good Lookin'; 1977 {a previous hit for Hank Williams}
7. Release Me; 1973 {a previous hit by Kitty Wells}
8. Back Home Again; 1975 {a previous hit by John Denver}
9. As Soon As I Hang Up the Phone; 1974 #1
10. It's True Love; 1980 #5

AC  :wave Nice Review on Conway and Loretta.  How quickly one forgets that even tho they had their seperate careers, they also made a great singing duo.  Do you know if they ever performed on stage together.  And didn't Conway start out in the music business as a Rock singer, then turned country?  I have some of those songs on an album.  I liked them all.  Thank you for bringing them to your thread, its nice to remember good entainers.  Be back again for some more interesting reading.

Jan  :wave I would be glad to check out your thread you mentioned.  Seeing Jerry up close and personal, hmmmm should be interesting, [just kidding Jerry].  Sounds interesting and fun.  I'll stop in there.  Thank you for mentioning it.

Hello Charlene!! This is the 200th post on my thread!!

Oh yes, Conway and Loretta always did tour together. Typically what would happen is throughout the 1970's, Conway and Loretta toured separately throughout much of a year but would go on tour together in select venue's. There were also times where the two would tour as a duo for an entire summer season. Whenever they did concerts together, they took turns opening and closing for one another singing their solo songs and then they would both come back for an encore and perform their duets to finish out the concert. They also sat on the edge of the stage at the end of their shows during this time period and signed autographs for every person who wanted one and if someone had a camera, they had their picture taken with the people who came to the show. A lot has changed since then :yes

JERRY HELLO.  CONGRATULATIONS ON THE 200 POSTS.  THAT'S A LOT OF INFORMATION YOU HAVE SHARED.  :bouncy  :bouncy  :clap  :clap

THANK YOU FOR THE INFORMATION ON CONWAY AND LORETTA TOURING TOGETHER.  THAT WAS NICE THAT THEY SAT AND SIGNED AUTOGRAPHS WIHT THE FANS.  I REMEMBER NOW THAT LORETTA WAS HERE AT OUR LOCAL VENUE BUT, BY THE TIME I WENT TO GET TICKETS, THEY WERE SOLD OUT.  JUST THINK OF ALL THE HIT SONGS THEY HAVE MADE INDIVIDUALLY AND SEPERATELY.  WOW, A LOT.  ONE THING I DID FORGET TO ASK IS:  DID EITHER OF THEM WRITE ANY OF THE SONGS?

I'LL STOP BACK TO SEE IF YOU KNOW ABOUT THAT.  THANKS AGAIN FOR THE GREAT REVIEWS.

:wave I hadn't kept track of Loretta's career as far as stats are concerned but Conway had 96 singles reach the Top-40 music charts. 88 on the country charts, and 8 more on the pop charts in the late 1950's and early 1960's. This total includes the hits with Loretta. He and Loretta had 14 hit songs together during 1971-1981. Two of those 14 hits were tag-along singles, meaning that they were B-sides but had gained enough airplay on their own to rank at the same chart position as the A-side. "The Sadness of It All" was a tag-along hit in early 1980 and was charted at #9 along with it's A-side, "You Know Just What I'd Do". Typically flip-side tag-along hits aren't counted because of their quirkiness and unusual nature. The reason there was a low duet album and single out-put for that 10 year period is because they didn't want their duet singles to interfere with the airplay of their solo songs and so they only had time to release one single and one album each year during the 10 year time span.

The only hit singles the two had in which one of them was credited as the songwriter was "As Soon As I Hang Up The Phone" in 1974 and "The Letter" in 1976. Conway wrote those songs. The rest of the hit duets they recorded were written by a slew of other Nashville songwriters. This is only based on hit singles...i do know that there were several duets that they recorded but didn't release as singles in which Conway or Loretta were the songwriter.

Here are Conway and Loretta's hit songs and the names in brackets are the songwriters:

1971: After the Fire Is Gone; GRAMMY winner; #1 {L.E. White}
1972: Lead Me On; #1 {Leon Copeland}
1973: Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man; #1  {Becki Blufield and Jim Owens}
1974: As Soon As I Hang Up The Phone; #1  {Conway Twitty}
1975: Feelins'; #1  {Don Goodman, Will Jennings, and Troy Seals}
1976: The Letter;  #1  {Conway Twitty and Charles Haney}
1977: I Can't Love You Enough;  #2  {Troy Seals and Max D Barnes}
1978: From Seven Til Ten;  #6  {Troy Seals and Max D Barnes}
1978: You're The Reason Our Kids Are Ugly; flip-side tag-along of above single {L.E. White and Lolo Jean Dillon}
1979: You Know Just What I'd Do;  #9 {Jerry Foster and Bill Rice}
1980: The Sadness of It All; flip-side tag-along of above single  {Russell Wolfe III}
1980: It's True Love;  #5  {Randy Goodman}
1981: Lovin' What Your Lovin' Does To Me; #7  {Jane Crouch and Toni Dae}
1981: I Still Believe in Waltzes;  #2  {Michael Dennis Hughes, Johnny MacRae, and Bob Morrison}

Troy Seals is related to Jim Seals from the pop group SEALS and CROFTS; Troy is also related to the country singer, Dan Seals, and to Brady Seals, another country singer/songwriter. Troy is a legendary songwriter now but a lot of his early success came from Conway recording his songs. Conway was always recordings good/great songs from unknown songwriters in addition to the usual stable of songwriters from the various publishing companies in Nashville: BMI; ASCAP; TREE; and SESAC.

HELLO JERRY  :wave I ASSUMED THAT LORETTA WROTE ALL HER SONGS BECAUSE I KNEW SHE WROTE "COAL MINER'S DAUGHTER".  CONWAY HAD A GOOD SENSE OF A HIT SONG, BUT OFCORSE HE COULD SING ANYTHING.  I HAD BEEN WONDERING IF THEY WERE SONG WRITER'S ALSO FOR YEARS NOW.  IT PROVES THAT WHOMWEVER WRITES THE SONG IT IS THE ARTISTS AND THE VOICE THAT MAKES IT A SUCCESS. 

YOU KNOW I NEVER DID ASK YOU, SINCE YOU KNOW SO MUCH ABOUT THESE ARTISTS AND COMEDIANS, HAVE YOU EVER SEEN ANY OF THEM IN CONCERT?  THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN GREAT.

ONCE MORE, THANK YOU FOR THE INFORMATION. 

Charlene :wave

Loretta did write a lot of her earlier songs but she didn't write everything. Conway wrote a lot of his earlier songs as well and several were released as singles. Here are the songs off the top of my head that i know Conway wrote/co-wrote...most of them were #1 hit country songs in the early to mid 1970's.

It's Only Make Believe
I'll Try
If You Were Mine To Lose
To See An Angel Cry
Hello Darlin'
I Can't See Me Without You
Last Date {Conway wrote the lyrics of the version he recorded in 1972; Floyd Cramer wrote the original piano instrumental}
You've Never Been This Far Before
Baby's Gone
I'm Not Through Loving You Yet
As Soon As I Hang Up The Phone- duet with Loretta Lynn
Linda On My Mind
Touch The Hand
Don't Cry Joni-  duet with Joni Jenkins {Conway's daughter}
I Can't Believe She Gives It All To Me
The Games That Daddies Play
The Letter-  duet with Loretta Lynn
After All The Good Is Gone
I've Already Loved You In My Mind
Play, Guitar Play

In 1978/1979, Conway stopped concentrating on songwriting for the most part and filled out a lot of his albums with songs by new or unknown songwriters.

I don't have my vinyl albums here at this house so i can't list all of the songs he wrote that were not released to country radio but were on his albums.

Hello Jerry!  oh, they were both singer/songwriters.  Then they should have a greatest hits cd?  I am going to look around after the holidays and see what i can find.  Conway had such a deep voice when he sang "Hello Darlin".  Thanks again, it seems so hard to find older cds.  A lot of the artists I ask about is on a vinyl album.  Need a record player huh?

I have one other comment:  I can imange how many awards they both must have won.
Be back to check again?

 

HELLO CHARLENE!! I COPIED THIS LIST FROM ANOTHER WEB-SITE. THIS IS AS IN-DEPTH OF AN OVERVIEW OF CONWAY's AWARDS AND THE ONES HE WON WITH LORETTA I COULD COME ACROSS.

1958--Cashbox\Most Promising Top Male Vocalist\Pop

1970--NSAI\Certificate of Outstanding Achievement\Hello Darlin'

1970--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\#1 Country Song\Hello Darlin'

1970--Billboard\Country Award\Best Single\Hello Darlin'

1971--NARAS\Grammy\After the Fire Is Gone\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1971--ACM\Top Vocal Duet or Group\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1971--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\#1 Duet\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1972--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\#1 Duet\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1972--CMA\Vocal Duo of the Year\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1972--Billboard\Country Award\Best Overall Singles Artist MCA\Decca

1973--Billboard\Country Award\Best Overall Singles Artist

1973--Billboard\Country Award\Best Duo-Albums\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1973--Billboard\Country Award\Best Male Artist

1973--Billboard\Top Country Single\You've Never Been This Far Before

1973--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\#1 Duet\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1973--CMA\Vocal Duo of the Year\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1974--Billboard\Country Award\Best Duo-Albums\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1974--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\#1 Male Artist/Vocalist

1974--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\#1 Duet\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1974--American Music Awards\Favorite Country Duo\Conway Twitty & Loretta Lynn

1974--CMA\Vocal Duo of the Year\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn 

1975--ACM\Album of the Year\Feelin's- duet album with Loretta Lynn

1975--ACM\Male Vocalist of the Year

1975--ACM\Top Vocal Group\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1975--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\#1 Male Vocalist

1975--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\#1 Single\Linda On My Mind

1975--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\#1 Duet\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1975--CMA\Vocal Duo of the Year\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1975--Billboard\Country Award\Best Duo or Group-Albums\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1975--Billboard\Country Award\Best Male Artist

1975--Billboard\Country Award\Best Duo\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1975--Tree International\Golden Tree Award (writer)\Don't Cry Joni, Touch the Hand, Linda On My Mind

1976--Tree International\Golden Tree Award (writer)\I Can't Believe She Gives It All To Me

1976--ACM\Top Vocal Group\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1976--American Music Awards\Favorite Country Duo\Conway Twitty & Loretta Lynn

1976--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\#1 Male Vocalist

1976--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\#1 Duet\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1977--Tree International\Golden Tree Award (writer)\I've Already Loved You In My Mind

1977--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\#1 Male Vocalist

1977--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award#1 Duet\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1977--American Music Awards\Favorite Country Duo\Conway Twitty & Loretta Lynn

1977--American Music Awards\Favorite Male Vocalist

1977--Billboard\Country Award\Singles Artist of the Year

1977--Billboard\Country Award\Best Duo or Group-Albums\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1977--Billboard\Country Award\Singles Male Artist of the Year

1977--Tree International\Million Airs Club Award\It's Only Make Believe

1977--BMI\Special Citation of Achievement For Over 1,000,000 Performances\It's Only Make Believe, Last Date, Hello Darlin'. These three songs belong to the Million-Airs Club.

1977--American Music Awards\Favorite Country Band, Duo or Group\Conway and Loretta

1978--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\Male Artist of the Year

1978--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\#1 Duet\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1978--NSAI\Certificate in Honor of Creative Genius In Words and Music

1978--Tree International\Certificate of Achievement (writer)\It's Only Make Believe

1978--American Music Awards\Favorite Country Band, Duo or Group\Conway and Loretta

1978--American Music Awards\Favorite Male Artist

1980--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\Duet of the Year\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1981--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\Duet of the Year\Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn

1982--Billboard\Country Award\Top Male Artist

1982--Billboard\Country Award\Top Singles Artist

1983--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\TV Special of the Year\Conway Twitty on the Mississippi

1988--Music City News\Popularity Poll Award\Living Legend Award

1989--Radio and Records #1 Country Male Artist for their first 15 Years in Publication, 1974-1989

1989--Legend of the Jukebox\American Jukebox Operators

1999--Country Music Hall of Fame induction {Conway passed away in 1993, 6 years earlier...and a lot us fans feel that the Hall of Fame induction was long over-due}

A LOT OF THE BILLBOARD AWARDS WERE VERY SPECIFIC. FOR EXAMPLE, HE AND LORETTA WON AN AWARD FROM BILLBOARD FOR BEING THE TOP SELLING DUET-SINGLES; THEY ALSO WON FOR TOP SELLING DUET-ALBUMS; THEN THEY ALSO WON FOR TOP VOCAL DUET-COUNTRY, ALL IN THE SAME YEAR. SO, THERE WAS ALWAYS THE POSSIBILITY THAT THE TWO WOULD SWEEP ALL OF THE DUET AWARDS HANDED OUT BY BILLBOARD DURING 1971-1978. THEY HONOR SALES SUCCESS IN SINGLES AND ALBUMS PLUS THEY HONOR SONGS AND ALBUMS AND THE ARTISTS THEMSELVES...SO IT'S MORE OR LESS LIKE ANOTHER AWARDS SHOW ONLY DIFFERENCE IS THE #1 MUSIC CHART PUBLICATION, BILLBOARD, HAS IT's NAME ON THE AWARD.

THAT LIST ISN'T COUNTING ALL OF THE GOLD AND PLATINUM ALBUMS CONWAY HAD...NOR DOES IT REFLECT HIS RADIO STATION AWARDS! HE WON SEVERAL LISTENER APPRECIATION AWARDS AT ANNUAL RADIO STATION GALA's. IN CONWAY's CAREER HE SOLD OVER 25,000,000 ALBUMS WHICH FOR A COUNTRY SINGER, ESPECIALLY IN THAT ERA, WAS UNHEARD OF. MCA CELEBRATED THOSE 25,000,000 IN SALES IN 1990 DURING CONWAY's 25th ANNIVERSARY AS A COUNTRY SINGER, 1965-1990.

CONWAY AND LORETTA HAVE A LOT OF GREATEST HITS CD's OUT THERE...THEY ARE HARD TO FIND NOW. AMAZON AND OTHER PLACES HAVE THEM FOR SALE. LOOK UP "THE DEFINITIVE COLLECTION" BY CONWAY AND LORETTA. MCA RELEASED THAT CD IN 2005 AND IT CONTAINS ALL OF THEIR HIT SONGS AND SOME ALBUM SONGS THAT THE FANS LIKED.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/502f423030303030333438472e30312e5f5.jpg)

Title: Doctor Demento Presents the Greatest Christmas Novelty CD of All-Time
Artist: Various artists
Year of Release: 1989
Label: RHINO

1. The Chipmunk Song - Chipmunks    
2. All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth - Spike Jones & His City Slickers    
3. Jingle Bells - Singing Dogs
4. Twelve Gifts of Christmas - Allan Sherman
5. I Want A Hippopotamus For Christmas - Gayla Peevey
6. Nuttin' For Christmas - Stan Freberg    
7. A Christmas Carol - Tom Lehrer    
8. Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer - Elmo & Patsy    
9. I Yust Go Nuts At Christmas - Yogi Yorgesson    
10. Twelve Days of Christmas - Bob and Doug McKenzie    
11. Green Christmas - Stan Freberg    
12. I'm A Christmas Tree - Wild Man Fischer    
13. I Saw Daddy Kissing Santa Claus - Kip Addotta    
14. Santa Claus And His Old Lady - Cheech & Chong    
15. Christmas At Ground Zero - Weird Al Yankovic    
16. Christmas Dragnet - Stan Freberg & Daws Butler

On this holiday CD, Doctor Demento compiles the track listing with some of the most obscure and funny novelty songs surrounding the Christmas holiday. One of the treats of this CD is hearing a few productions by Stan Freberg. He does his version of "Nuttin' For Christmas" in a bratty boy voice. A new twist is the skit with a burglar, who breaks into the home. Daws Butler played the part of the burglar. Freberg and Butler return again for "Green Christmas". This is a skit with a commercialism theme. Scrooge in this case is the head of an advertising agency. Freberg plays this role. Daws Butler portrays Bob Cratchit. Marvin Miller and Peter Leeds are also on hand playing characters. Freberg and Butler close out the CD with their famous spoof of DRAGNET, "Christmas Dragnet", also known as YULENET. In it, Freberg is on the trail of a crook who doesn't believe in Santa Claus...or hardly anything else. Freberg plays the part of Joe. Butler portrays Joe's partner, Frank, as well as playing the crook AND the southern speaking elf, in a voice he'd use for Huckleberry Hound.

The rest of the novelty material is genuine novelty material...nothing really sophisticated or satirical except Allan Sherman's spoof called "Twelve Gifts of Christmas" in which he names off a list of Christmas items he got. It has a twist at the end. It's a live recording at a night club. Tom Lehrer is another that stands-out as more satirical than novelty...his song is basically about commercialization of the holiday's.

Two songs on here, and i use that term lightly, are in the wacky and just flat out weird category: "I Am a Christmas Tree" and a barking version of "Jingle Bells". I don't know which came first...the Barking Dogs or the Jingle Cats. One thing is for certain, the concept of animal music reached a new level with Ray Stevens when he showcased clucking chickens on his 1976 recording of "In The Mood". However, it not being a Christmas song, it isn't included here obviously but anytime i can insert Ray Stevens in my talks, i will :smile

The oldest songs on this collection are "I Yust Go Nuts at Christmas" which without a doubt will offend people since it's an ethnic humor performance. Harry Stewart is playing one of his characters, Yogi Yorgesson, from "Scand-a-noovia" while singing that song. A lot of the words are pronounced with the letter "y". "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas" by Gayla Peevey is another weird song but it is played several times during the holidays, even to this day! The other song, Spike Jones classic "All I Want For Christmas is My Two Front Teeth". Spike never actually sang on his recordings to my knowledge. He was more or less a jazzy Lawrence Welk, a band leader who led a band that played instruments made up of anything they could find. Band members often supplied the vocals on Spike Jones recordings even though his name got sole credit.

The only "contemporary" novelty songs on this collection...and they're not contemporary now...but the only ones that do not carry an "old time" feel to them are Weird Al's "Christmas at Ground Zero" and what is perhaps the last million selling Christmas comedy song, 1979's "Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer" which is still played on country and AC radio stations every season. I heard it this morning on Lite 99.9 in Dayton. For fans of SCTV, which aired in Canada and here in America...two of the stars from the show recorded several comedy songs as their characters Bob and Doug McKenzie. This collection contains Bob and Doug's blue-collar take on "12 Days of Christmas".

All in all, this CD is for special interest and i have the cassette version. I do not listen to it anymore but i listened to it long enough to seek it out. If only for the Freberg material and some of the other satirical jabs at the holiday season.

HELLO JERRY.  I FOUND THE CONWAY AND LORETTA CD AT AMAZON.COM AND WILL BE ORDERING IT SHORTLY.

WHAT A NICE IDEA TO POST A REVIEW OF THE CHRISTMAS SONGS!  I ALSO SAW YOUR CHRISTMAS CARTOONS OVER ON THE OCD,,VERY NICE.

:wave


BARRYNET (http://www.barrynet.com)

AC  :wave I CAME BACK TO SEE IF THERE WAS ANY NEW REVIEWS.  THE TREND OF 2006 WAS ABOUT THE 60'S.  I WAS GLAD TO SEE BARRY MANILOW'S CHOICE FOR HIS CD.  I REMEMBER ALL THOSE SONGS SO WELL.  AND HE DID A GREAT JOB.  I SEE NOW THAT COMMERCIALS ARE USING THE OLDERS SONGS NOW. 

AND WITH CLAY'S "ATDW" WE WERE TAKEN BACK TO AN ERA OF GREAT MUSIC.  YOU REALLY SO COME UP WITH INTERESTING THINGS IN HERE.  THANK YOU.

WILL YOU BE DOING A REVIEW ON FARON YOUNG?  HOPE SO.  BE BACK AGAIN.

:wave Oh i will most definately be doing a review of Faron's CD when it arrives!! Here is what the CD cover looks like...

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/faron_young.jpg)

It showcases only his Mercury hits...the songs he recorded from 1962-1972. They chose 12 of his songs from that period. It doesn't include his earlier Capitol recordings you might know like "Hello Walls" or "Live Fast, Love Hard, Die Young". I also plan on getting his box set from Amazon, too! It's a bit expensive but well worth it, to me.

HELLO JERRY  :wave FARON YOUNG LOOKS SO YOUNG ON THE PHOTO.  I'M GLAD YOUR GOING TO BE DOING A REVIEW ON HIM.  HE'S ANOTHER ONE OF THE GREAT FORGOTTEN ARTISTS.  I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO READING YOUR REVIEW. 
BE BACK SOON.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/faron_young.jpg)

Title: The Best of Faron Young- The Millennium Collection
Artist: Faron Young
Label: Mercury Records
Release: 2001

This CD arrived in the mail this morning from Amazon.com! I had ordered it about a week ago and it arrived today and i listened to it on some of my trips this morning to the bank and Wal*Mart after leaving the post office. The CD is everything i had hoped it would be. It contains 12 songs that Faron Young recorded for the Mercury label throughout the mid 1960's and into the early 1970's. There are 7 big hits on here, i call these the cream of the Mercury crop. These specific songs were a huge part of Faron's concerts and on this CD they are tracks #5 through #11. Some of his earlier Mercury recordings start off the collection.

Faron gained a huge chunk of his legacy at Capitol Records in the 1950s with a string of honky tonk and jukebox hits. His most remembered songs for Capitol are "Live Fast, Love Hard, Die Young", "Hello Walls", "Alone With You"; "I Miss You Already and You're Not Even Gone"; "I've Got Five Dollars and It's Saturday Night", "Sweet Dreams", and "Goin' Steady". There is an up-tempo version of that love ballad and it's showcased on this CD i'm reviewing. It is track #8. Faron had a hit on both tempo's of the song and so he had the rare opportunity to be able to sing "Goin' Steady" as a slow love ballad or as an up-tempo dance song and the crowd like either version.

This CD kicks off with a duet with Margie Singleton entitled "Keeping Up with the Joneses". It is a novelty song of sorts and it's about a couple who try their best to keep up with the Joneses, a phrase used to describe someone who's in competition with richer neighbors. Anyway, the song takes an ironic twist but this couple Faron speaks of still wants to compete with the rich couple in every way.

The next single, "Walk Tall", is about a mother's advice to a son that he carries throughout his life's experiences. The next two songs, "Unmitigated Gall" and "I Just Came To Get My Baby" show us the Faron Young of the future for Mercury. The first one is an up-tempo dance song and the next one is so good. It's about a woman who loses herself in a bar and Faron's character shows up to get her from the bar's evil clutches.

Now we arrive at track #5. "Wine Me Up" is one of those songs that only Faron could have a hit with. In another's hands, the song would in fact be a novelty but Faron's delivery makes it a real honky tonk classic. This is followed by "Your Time's Comin", a cheating song about a woman who just can't keep away from men. Faron starts off the song singing from another man's point of view about the woman he's hanging all over in a bar...then in verse two, Faron and the woman apparently sleep together...then Faron spies this same woman hanging all over another man and he gives this man the same advice he had previously been given about this woman... "you know she's a cheater, son, but you believe that you're the one who's got a lot of what it takes to change her..."

For whatever reason, "Occasional Wife" was not included on this collection. In hindight i would have added that song and removed "Walk Tall" simply because that single reached #10 while "Occasional Wife" reached #6. The rest of the collection is classic Faron. "If I Ever Fall in Love with a Honky Tonk Girl", track #7, continues that same rhythm of the other Texas country dance hall music. It isn't western-swing, though...but it's dance floor style music. The next song is his up-tempo re-recording of "Goin' Steady". The tempo slows down with the following single, "Step Aside". Following in the same mid-tempo is "Leavin' and Sayin' Goodbye" about a guy who recalls a woman he once loved and the fact remains that "sayin' your leavin' was so much easier than Leavin' and Sayin' Goodbye". Faron's classic waltz-like hit, "It's Four in the Morning" is track #11. I can listen to that song over and over. It's the melody and his vocal delivery. The CD ends with the somber and quiet "This Little Girl of Mine" showing a softer side of Faron's tough guy public image.

This CD was everything i had hoped it would be because i had known and heard of these songs for years but had never owned them on CD until now! It is a wonderful CD. Faron really sang his heart out on these songs and you can tell. I say that because it's true and also because many people dismiss his Mercury hits as no good in comparison to his Capitol hits. I like all of the hits...musical backgrounds do not change Faron's voice. It remains the same. He is one of the few who can sing any arrangement a song requires and still make it his own. George Jones is another one.

YOUR TIME's COMIN'

Well I knew she belonged to someone else at the time
But lonely lookin' women are a weakness of mine
So I bought all she said about the love he never gave her
And figured I'd just love her some and do us both a favor
Just as I got up to leave he walked through the door
And I guess I thought he'd be surprised
But he looked at me as if to say he's been there before
And he offered me these words to the wise

He said you know she's a cheater son but you believe that you're the one
Who's got a lot of what it takes to change her
And I know now that you can't get her, you ain't much, but that don't matter
Nothing suits her better than a stranger
And the stranger man the better and the chances are she'll set her eyes on you
The next time she goes slummin'
So you sit back and wait your turn boy you got lots of times to learn boy
Cool it while you can, Your Time's Comin'

Well it happens that in time it happened just like he said
And soon enough her shoes were sittin' under my bed
And I'll confess I did my best to prove that man had lied
But nothing short of suicide could keep her satisfied
So buddy, losing her to you was just a matter of time
And it's her time for finding something new
Nothing I can say is gonna make you change your mind
So I'll just give the same advice to you

You know she's a cheater son but you believe that you're the one
Who's got a lot of what it takes to change her
And I know now that you can't get her you ain't much but that don't matter
Nothing suits her better than a stranger
And the stranger man the better and the chances are she'll set her eyes on you
The next time she goes slummin'
So you sit back and wait your turn boy you got lots of times to learn boy
Cool it while you can, Your Time's Comin'

I said, cool it while you can 'cause Your Time's Comin'

JERRY

Good comments on Barry Manilow
It only goes to prove that you do not have to be young and goodlooking to survive the test of time.
TALENT is what it is all about.

NEIL DIAMOND is still selling out his concerts and look at the long career live of Sinatra.

There are just too many "flash in the pan" stars now. Not many of them have the chance of longivity as some of the older and talented singers.
I think the Country Western stars are probably the best example of Survival. They have a faithful fan base and  seem to release more and more albums as they get older.

They also seem to write their own music, and that is a real plus for me. Example; Barry and Diamond!!

Always read your thread but I do not always comment.

Keep up the great work, you are a fount of information

Luv
Jan

HELLO JERRY  :wave A VERY NICE REVIEW ON FARON YOUNG.  SOUNDS LIKE YOU REALLY ENJOYED THE CD.  IT MAKES IT INTERESTING WHEN YOU LIST THE SONGS AND THE WORDS.  DO YOU KNOW IF HE IS STILL TOURING?  AS JAN MENTIONED, IT IS GOOD TO SEE ARTISTS WHO ARE STILL AROUND AND DO STILL TOUR SO THAT WE CAN ENJOY THEM IN PERSON.  YOU REALLY  HELP THEIR MUSIC COME ALIVE THROUGH YOUR POSTS.  THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
BE BACK SOON.

HELLO JERRY.  STOPPING IN AND CHECKING TO SEE IF THERE ARE ANY NEW REVIEWS.  I WANT ALSO TO THAMK YOUR FOR POSTING THE INFORMATION I ASKED ABOUT FARON YOUNG IN THE OCD.  IT WAS REALLY GOOD TO HEAR THAT HE WAS INDICATED INTO THE COUNTRY MYSIC HALL OF FAME.  HE DESERVED TO BE RECOGNIZED.
I'LL BE BACK SOON.  LOOKING FORWARD TO ANOTHER REVIEW.

RAY STEVENS INTERVIEW, 2002 (http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/about.aspx?id=12760&printer-friendly=y)

The above link is to this interview...i had to cut out a lot of it because there's only a 20,000 word limit...i got in a lot, too, but i edited out his talk about him recording his MISTY single in 1975...

Ken Paulson: Welcome to “Speaking Freely,” a conversation about free speech in America. I’m Ken Paulson. Our guest today is the remarkable Ray Stevens.

Ray Stevens: [Sings and plays] “Osama, yo’ mama didn’t raise you right./ When you were young, she must have wrapped your turban too tight./ She should have kept you home on those Arabian nights./ It’s plain to see you need some therapy./ Osama, yo’ mama could’ve done a lot better, though I bet every day, you did something to upset her./ By the way, we got an answer to your anthrax letter./ New York City’s where it’s from./ It’s called a smart bomb./ And I can hear your mama sayin’ now: ‘You in a heap of trouble, son./ Now just look what you’ve done./ Saw you on TV with that gun./ Mercy sakes, I can’t do a thing with you./ Told you W’s gonna get you.’ [Gobbling noise] And I can hear W saying: ‘You in a heap of trouble, boy./ And I don’t think you will enjoy our game of search and destroy./ Yeah, we got your terror right here, and we gonna run it up your rear.’ [Gobbling]”

Paulson: It is great to have you here. Thank you for being part of “Speaking Freely.”

Stevens: Nice to be here.

Paulson: We’re glad to have a new Ray Stevens album out. And yet it’s been more than 40 years since you first walked into the recording studio. And now your name shows up on about 75 albums, 20 or more hit records. Is that pretty much what you dreamed of when you first became a recording artist, that kind of longevity?

Stevens: Yeah, well, I don’t know about the longevity, but that’s all I ever wanted to do. I mean, I’ve — I think I’ve wanted to write songs and make records since I was a sperm. So, thank goodness I was able to do that — so far.

Paulson: And it began in the late ‘50s? Is that your first time to walk into a studio?

Stevens: Yes, ‘57. I was still in high school and made my first record in Nashville at what’s now called RCA Studio B.

Paulson: Which is a revered site in Nashville.

Stevens: Yes. It’s sort of a relic now.

Paulson: A lot of great records made there.

Stevens: Absolutely.

Paulson: Is that when you first made the acquaintance of your good friend, Chet Atkins?

Stevens: I think it was. I think I met Chet — I was living in Atlanta at the time. And I drove up to record here. Because in Atlanta, at that time, there weren’t any great studios. And Chet was there. I think he was running RCA, the Nashville office of RCA. And I think I met him on that trip.

Paulson: So, your first song, I understand, was a hit in Atlanta.

Stevens: Yeah.

Paulson: “Silver Bracelet.” Is that, that had to be kind of a rush for you as a young performer to actually hear your song on the radio.

Stevens: Oh, yeah. I remember the first time I heard it, though. The disc jockey introduced me as Ray Peterson. And I think I got introduced as Ray Price a few times. But they finally got it right, I think, down the road a little bit.

Paulson: Well, you eventually went on to record a kind of song that not many people did then and not many people do today. I mean, the so-called novelty record — you can call it parody — I think your first time you dabbled with that, would that have been “Sergeant Preston”? Or was that earlier than that that you wrote your first humorous song?

Stevens: I think “Sergeant Preston” might have been the first one. And I don’t do parodies. I do comedy songs. But — I have done one or two parodies but not as a general rule. But “Sergeant Preston” was a song about — well, I’ll do you a little of it. It goes like: [Plays and sings] “Well, in the frozen north of the Yukon/ lived the king of the Royal Mountie Fuzz./ Sergeant Preston was his name./ King his dog’s name was./ He had a big red coat and big black boots/ and a whistle on a chain./ And all the crooks ran for cover/ because he always got his man./ He said, ‘On, King. On, you great husky.’/ And that great husky said: [Howling].” Anyway, we had to pull the record off the market. It was taken off — it was gonna be a hit, I think. But in my exuberance, I had neglected to get permission from the folks who owned the character Sergeant Preston to use him in a song, and so they made us kill the record. But it did give me an idea as to where I could go and get some airplay, so —

Paulson: And so you found this other voice. Where did that come from? Where did you get the notion that you could be funny in song?

Stevens: Well, other people were doing it, so why not me? I mean, I was a big fan of The Coasters, Leiber and Stoller’s group, that did so many great records — “Yakety Yak,” “Charlie Brown,” “Along Came Jones,” all those. And I was a big fan of Spike Jones, Dave Gardner, who was a great southern comedian back in those days.

Paulson: And in one day, you end up recording something on your own, something called “Ahab the Arab”?

Stevens: Yeah, we cut that — I think we cut that in the month of January right after I moved up here. And that was a — that was a lucky day, I think, for Shelby because that morning we cut “Ahab the Arab,” and at 2:00, we cut “Walk On By” with Leroy Van Dyke. And at 6:00, we cut “Wooden Heart” with Joe Dowell. All three records were big hits, all done in one day. So, I think the stars were lined up right.

Paulson: Absolutely. Where did “Ahab the Arab” go? I mean, today Americans have their sense of Arabs and the Arab culture. Clearly in 1962, there’s a different sense of that.

Stevens: Yeah. And you know, the song really wasn’t political or have any politically incorrect intentions. It was just an outrageous look at a guy who had a camel, and he named him Clyde, just like Roy and Trigger, you know? And he was a hero, and he’d ride through the desert and make off with the sultan’s prettiest girl in the harem. But, you know, I don’t know where that song came from. The night before the session, I had my material picked out. And I didn’t like any of it. And so in desperation, I wrote “Ahab the Arab” the night before the session. And sure enough, it turned out pretty good. I think there were spirits up there guiding me or something.

Paulson: Any recollection of the reaction you got when you first walked in the studio and said, “I’ve got a song called ‘Ahab the Arab’”?

Stevens: Well, you know, the reaction — let me tell you, those guys — [Laughing] they work so many sessions and recorded so many wild songs. I mean, you know, so what? “Okay, let’s hear it.” But it did. Once it came over the playback system, it did get a rise out of a lot of people.

Paulson: Oh, I’m sure. You’ve recited the lyrics. And people in their living rooms are now singing it. Could we have a little bit of “Ahab the Arab”?

Stevens: Oh, yeah. Let’s see. [Plays and sings] “Let me tell you about Ahab the Arab,/ sheik of the burning sand./ He had emeralds and rubies just dripping off of him, had a ring on every finger of his hand./ He wore a big ol’ turban wrapped around his head, scimitar by his side./ Every evening about midnight, he’d jump on his camel named Clyde/ and ride silently through the night to the sultan’s tent, where he’d secretly meet with Fatima of the seven veils,/ swingingest Grade A number one U.S. choice dancer in the sultan’s whole harem, ‘cause him and her had a thing going./ They’d been carrying on for some time now/ behind the sultan’s back, and you could hear him talk to his camel as he rode out across the dunes./ His voice would cut through the still night desert air, and he’d say: [Imitating Arabic speech] which is Arabic for, ‘Whoa, baby.’/ And Clyde’d say, [Sucking in air] ‘Whaaaa.’ ” My camel voice went away today. “[Braying] Which is camel for,/ ‘What the heck’d he say anyway?’ ” And it goes like that.

Paulson: That’s great. Any conservative estimate of how many times you’ve sung that song?

Stevens: No, I’ve sung it enough to have worn out my Clyde voice.

Paulson: I see. That had to be kind of a revelation to you. You talked about being able to do novelty songs or comedy songs and get on the radio. And this just exploded. I mean, it was a huge record. And then — you’re a guy who had been recording relatively straight romantic songs earlier. Did you just say, “Okay, I’m funny from this point on”?

Stevens: No, I like all kind of music, comedy music being one facet of that. And, you know, I never considered myself exclusively tied to any particular style of music. And I still don’t.

Paulson: And we’re going to talk about some of your more serious songs. What I find intriguing is that about this work and then the later songs like “America, Communicate with Me” is that you really are this voice from Middle America or the mid-South. I mean, there’s — much of what you’ve written is about there’s no need to be extreme left. There’s no need to be extreme right. We can all be together and take pride in the kind of country we live in. It’s really kind of a — you know, it’s an anthem for people who live their lives, daily struggle with challenges, but in the end, feel good about their lives and their country.

Stevens: You know, I’m interested in politics, but I — and a lot of the Republican or right-wing views I agree with wholeheartedly. But then I’ve surprised myself and found myself agreeing a lot with some of the views held by the Democrats and the left side. So, you know, I think the middle is a good, safe — well, I didn’t choose it ‘cause it was safe. But it’s a good common sense area. And, you know, I think common sense is the key phrase here.

Paulson: Given that you didn’t plan this and this is not a manipulation — you didn’t say, “You know, what the world really needs now is, is an album of protest songs for the middle,” it had to shock you, then, that “Mr. Businessman” became such a huge hit. Had — pleasant surprise?

Stevens: I don’t know if I was surprised or not. You know, every hit’s a surprise — don’t get me wrong. But I really thought it was a well-written song and — even if I do say so myself — and so, yeah, it was a surprise, but still, I could see why it was successful, to a certain degree.

Paulson: Oh, sure. It’s just that I think today the industry may be a little bit more calculating, a little bit more market-driven, and I think that conversation about, “I have a single here. It’s about, you know, overreaching by businesspeople who lose their values.” I mean, that would not sound like something Britney Spears would cover. [Laughing] Could we hear some of “Mr. Businessman”?

Stevens: Yeah. [Hitting single piano note, plays and sings] “Itemize the things you covet/ as you squander through your life./ Bigger cars, bigger houses, term insurance for your wife./ Tuesday evenings with your harlot,/ and on Wednesdays, it’s your charlatan analyst./ He’s high up on your list./ You’ve got air-conditioned sinuses/ and dark, disturbing doubt about religion,/ and you keep those cards and letters going out./ While your secretary’s tempting you,/ your morals are exempting you from guilt and shame./ Heaven knows you’re not to blame./ You better take care of business, Mr. Businessman./ What’s your plan?/ Get down to business, Mr. Businessman,/ if you can before it’s too late/ and you throw your life away.” Then it goes into the bridge.

Paulson: The album is full of songs that make you think. A song recorded in 1969 that also became the theme of your television show that was — it was substituting — summer replacement show for Andy Williams.

Stevens: Oh, yeah, right.

Paulson: A song called “Everything Is Beautiful.” And that, I understand, you wrote pretty quickly?

Stevens: Actually, it took about three days. But the song itself, after I waded through all the bad ideas and there was this much crumpled paper on the floor around the piano, when I hit on the idea, it wrote pretty fast. But I think what set it up so well was the fact that we took a portable recording of — a portable recording machine to my two daughters’ school here in Nashville and recorded their class singing “Jesus Loves the Little Children.” And we spliced that onto the front of the recording and bridged the splice with a big string chord, and it really set it up — very well.

Paulson: And was being on TV every week a dramatic change for you? Was that —

Stevens: Oh, it was terrifying, yeah. [Laughing] I didn’t want to admit it at the time, but it was — and at the same time, it was a lot of fun too. It was a very big learning experience for me. And we shot the show up in Toronto, Canada. And we were up there, I think, six weeks and shot eight or ten episodes, which was the summer block. And it was a lot of fun.

Paulson: And it played a lot of your, a lot of your strengths: comedy, music.

Stevens: Yeah, we had some great writers and people behind the scenes.

Paulson: Now, before we leave today, we’re definitely going to have to ask you to share “Everything Is Beautiful” with us. But I wanted to ask you about another recording you had from that period by a relatively unknown songwriter named Kristofferson. You had the first recording of “Sunday Morning Coming Down”?

Stevens: Yeah, a good friend of mine, Bob Beckham, who’s a publisher here in town. Back in those days, he was running, I think, Combine Music for Fred Foster. And Kris was a new writer they had signed — relatively new writer they had signed. And he brought in three songs. And Bob said, “Let me play you these three songs.” And one was “Sunday Morning Coming Down.” One was “Help Me Make It through the Night.” And I forget what the third one was, but it was a big hit. And so I said, “I love the ‘Sunday Morning Coming Down’. Let me record that.” He said, “Fine.” So, I went in the studio and spent a lot of time and had made what I thought was a really good record. And I was very proud of it. And I got a call from Hal David, who wanted me to fly out to L.A. and hear a song that he and Bacharach had written for a movie, “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.” And so I said, “Sure,” and I flew out. And I heard “Raindrops Falling On My Head”. And I said, “Well, you know, that’s a great song. But if I cut that, that means I’m going to have to postpone releasing ‘Sunday Morning Coming Down,’ and I don’t want to do that because somebody else might beat me out with it. So, thank you very much.” And so, nobody ever heard my record of “Sunday Morning Coming Down.” It came out, but it — and I know why now. I just didn’t have the image to sell that lyric. My image was not that song. And Johnny Cash’s was. He had a hit with it later. But it turned out well, I think. Because the very next record I had was “Everything Is Beautiful.” And of course B.J. Thomas sang the heck out of “Raindrops Falling.” I don’t think I could have sung it that good.

Paulson: So, you’re going to have a number one hit one way or the other. Either way it worked out well for you.

Stevens: Right.

Paulson: Let’s talk a little bit about Osama-Yo’ Mama, the album. You’ve been out of the studio for a while. It’s good to have a new release from Ray Stevens. And it was preceded — before you can have Osama-Yo’ Mama the album, you have to have the single.

Stevens: Right.

Paulson: And, as we speak, it is one of the top two best-selling singles in the country markets across the country. And yet it doesn’t show up as much, as prominently, in the airplay lists. What is that about? Why is it that people are buying it, and we’re not hearing it as much on the radio?

Stevens: I don’t know. I’ve asked that same question. You know, the soundtrack from “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” suffered the same fate and went on to be album of the year. Gosh, I’d love to see that happen again. I’m not looking for that, though. But it’s a strange thing out there. I don’t know who programs radio now, but they don’t seem to be playing the songs that people want to hear.

Paulson: And what does that do to you as an artist? Somebody who’s clearly wanting to please your audience, but you also would like to be on the radio.

Stevens: Well, sure, yeah. Well, you know, you just have to bite the bullet and say, “Oh, okay. That’s the way it is.” But it does, you know, make you ask a lot of questions. Maybe it’ll come back around one of these days to radio stations playing what people are buying, you know?

Paulson: So, how is it different when you walk into a studio today and record your new album compared to 1957 when you walked in?

Stevens: Oh, gosh. Well, in ‘57 — I don’t even think we had eight-track back in ‘57. We had three tracks, and that was it. And that just a kind of a back-up thing. That was a little insurance policy. We really recorded mono, I believe, and — singles, singles anyway. And all the musicians were there, and you did it all at one time. And if you overdubbed anything, it was only one pass. Because more than that and you’ll get layers of hiss build-up, you know? Now, with digital — and in my little studio, I have 48 tracks. And I can just overdub till the cows come home, and you won’t hear a speck of hiss. And they have keyboard instruments that have synthesized — they call it sampling — every sound known to man. So, if you play a keyboard, you can put all kind of sounds on there, just stack them on one after the other. It’s really a lot — you get a lot more, I think, creative freedom today due to the technology than you had back then, but it’s not as exciting. Because when you walked in back in those days, you knew you had to nail it, and you’d get in there, and all the guys in the studio were really — you know, you were all trying to work together. And some magic happened, you know? And of course, you can make magic happen today, but you have to hold back on your enthusiasm till you get everything on there. And then you can adjust, you know? It takes a long — a lot more time to record these days.

Paulson: We cannot close the show out today without asking you to perform what is arguably your biggest hit. I was listening last night to “Everything Is Beautiful” and was struck by this line, this series of lines: “We must not close our minds./ We must let our thoughts be free.” And I thought, “That’s a great fit for what we do here.” And kind of marveling that that is the lyric of one of the hottest records ever. 1969 it was the number one record. It won the Grammy for you and works on so many levels. It’s melodically beautiful. It’s — you can’t get it out of your head after you’ve heard it a few times. Given that endorsement, would you play that for us?

Stevens: I sure would. [Plays and sings] “Everything is beautiful — in its own way./ Like a starry summer night or a snow-covered winter’s day./ Everybody’s beautiful, in their own way./ Under God’s heaven, the world’s gonna find a way./ And there is none so blind, as he who will not see./ We must not close our minds./ We must let our thoughts be free./ For every hour that passes by, you know the world gets a little bit older./ Time to realize that beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder./ And everything is beautiful in its own way./ Like a starry summer night or a snow-covered winter’s day./ Everybody’s beautiful in their own way./ Under God’s heaven, the world’s gonna find a way.”

HELLO JERRY  :wave I NOTICED THE LAST SONG IN YOUR REVIEW AFTER I READ IT.  "EVERYBODY'S BEAUTIFUL IN THEIR OWN WAY", REALLY HIT HOME WITH ME!  THIS PARTICULAR SONG HAS BEEN MY MOTTO FOR YEARS!

I HAVE OFTEN WONDERED HOW RAY HAD SO MUCH MATERIAL ROLLING AROUND IN HIS HEAD.  I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN SO IMPRESSED WITH HIM.
DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY AWARDS HE HAS WON, BECUASE HIS SONGS ARE A BIG RANGE FROM COUNTRY, COMEDY AND BEAUTIFUL BALLADS.
THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN FOR THE GREAT REVIEW.  SEE YOU AGAIN SOON HERE.

Jerry :wave I did get a chance to read your tribute to Ray Stevens for his 68th birthday.  Very nice!!!  I also read your post about Leann, gosh to think she was so young when she started out.  Do you happen to know how old she is now?

I was pleasantly surprised to see "Benny Hill".  I watched his show frequently.  He was so funny with his skits.  You never knew what he was going to come up with next.  A great comedian.  The outfits he wore were hilarous.
I've been looking for some info on Minnie Pearl but can't find anything.  Do you have any?  Thanks.
Be back soon!

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:wave I thought i'd post some pics of me holding a few of my cassette tapes. I don't listen to them much anymore but i wish a lot of my cassettes were on CD!

The first picture is me holding up Conway Twitty's FALLIN FOR YOU FOR YEARS tape from 1986; the second picture is me holding up his 1985 tape DON'T CALL HIM A COWBOY. Ray Stevens is up next with a GREATEST HITS collection released on RCA. Up next is a 1983 George Jones tape, JONES COUNTRY. Lastly, a Conway Twitty double-pack. Two albums on one cassette. The albums are HEART AND SOUL and REST YOUR LOVE ON ME.

HELLO JERRY!  THANK YOU FOR ALL THE INFORMATION ON MINNIE PEARL.  I CAN STILL SEE HER WITH HER HAT AND THAT PRICE TAG HANGING THERE.  I WAS ITERESTING TO KNOW THAT SHE EVENTUALLY HAD A PARTNER.
SEEING THOSE PHOTOS OF YOU HOLDING CASSETTES  WAS NICE.  MY HOW THINGS HAVE CHANGED WITH THINGS BEING RECORDED ON CDS NOW.  BUT I STILL ENJOY ALL OF THE CASSETTS I HAVE.  I HAVE A COUPLE OF CONWAY'S I MY COLLECTION.  THINK I WILL GET IT OUT AN LISTEN TO IT.
THANKS AGAIN AND I WLL BE BACK TO CHECK ON ANY NEW REVIEWS YOU MAY HAVE.

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Title: Looney Tunes: Golden Collection, Volume 4
Format: DVD
Year of Release: 2006

Hello Charlene! Glad you liked that Minnie Pearl briefing i posted on here.

Last night i watched just a few cartoons on this 4 DVD collection. I watched DVD #3, specifically, because it contains the Speedy Gonzales character. I put the DVD in as i was going to bed. I managed to watch the first 2 or 3 cartoons on DVD #3 before falling asleep. I did watch one of the extra's, an hour long documentary on Friz Freleng, one of the directors of those cartoons. Friz spent the majority of his career at Warner Brothers...directing a whole lot of cartoons. The Tweety and Sylvester cartoons were directed by Friz Freleng...a good 90% of them were. Freleng, after the Warner Brothers cartoon department shut down, went and created a new company with David DePatie. The two of them directed the PINK PANTHER cartoon series. The documentary is entitled "Friz on Film".

One of the things about this DVD collection that i noticed by just watching part of DVD #3 was that there was no intrusive disclaimer from Whoopi Goldberg, which were featured in the previous volumes. It was nice to put in the DVD without having to fast-forward through her speech about political correctness and all of that garbage, which was always out of place on a cartoon DVD that was to celebrate the classic cartoons of Warner Brothers. I'm glad to see that little segment from her finally gone. The special "Bugs Bunny: Superstar" is contained as a 2-part special. That special aired in 1975 and was 3 hours in length, i believe. If that's the case, the special after being broken down into 2 parts will contain 1 hour and 30 minutes in each segment. What puzzles me, though, is why in this DVD age wasn't the whole special aired without it being broken up? Do DVD's have running lengths as well? I'd never thought of that. Anyway, one separate DVD containing just that special would've been better but i'm glad to see that special finally making it to DVD. The special is featured on DVD #1 and DVD #2.

On DVD #2 there is a new cartoon short, Porky and Daffy star in "The William Tell Overture". Each DVD is divided into themes. DVD #3 is Speedy Gonzales, the fastest mouse in all Mexico but as the series went on the pronouncing of Mexico became "Meh-hi-co". This marks the first really in-depth look at the Speedy cartoons. Director Frank Tashlin gets the spotlight on DVD #2...a lot of his cartoons were over-shadowed, though, because of the cartoons being churned out at the same time by other directors: Friz Freleng, Chuck Jones, and Robert McKimson...but Tashlin's cartoons are contained in DVD #2.

For those that want to hear audio commentary over the cartoons, they have that available once again. Click on "audio commentary" and you can watch the cartoon and have behind the scenes people talking over the cartoon as you watch it. Sometimes i turn on that feature so i can hear about the cartoons but sometimes i have that feature off so i can just watch the cartoons without having the talking going on in the back-ground. June Foray and Stan Freberg return to give audio commentary. Freberg is heard on "Cat Tails For Two", the first Speedy Gonzales cartoon on DVD #3, since he did the voice of the "Benny" character while Mel Blanc did the other voices. Benny was a spoof of the Lenny character from OF MICE AND MEN. The Lenny/George pairing from that movie was always being spoofed. Foray is heard on several of the cartoons giving commentary about them. Also, Foray can be seen in that "Friz on Film" special on DVD #3...delivering the voice of GRANNY. She inherited the role of GRANNY from Bea Benederet.

DVD #1 features Bugs Bunny, which we all know, is Warner Brothers biggest character. It includes 15 cartoons starring Bugs Bunny. One of the highlights is the cartoon "Knighty Knight Bugs" which won an Oscar. For those who don't know, these cartoons all played in theatres and therefore were qualified for the Oscar as "Best Short Subject". The cartoons would run before the main movie began...this is why the cartoons all have an adult-approach and lack a lot of the cartoony elements of the Disney cartoons. The cartoons were made for adult movie going audiences of the '30s, '40s, '50s, and most of the '60s before Warner Brothers started making cartoons directly for TV in the late '60s. On the back of the case, it contains the disclaimer: 'THE LOONEY TUNES GOLDEN COLLECTION VOL 4 IS INTENDED FOR THE ADULT COLLECTOR AND MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN'. I don't agree with this...imagine these simple, hilarious cartoons being unsuitable for children as this disclaimer points out. It isn't like the cartoons are bloody and full of sexual imagery which can be found on lots of Japanese cartoons of today...i'll never agree with those kind of comments about these Warner Brothers cartoons. It was obviously put on this and the previous collection's DVDs to satisfy focus groups, advertisers, etc.

As is the case with the previous Golden Collection DVDs, this one is a must-have.

REVIEW (http://www.dispatch.com/features-story.php?story=dispatch/2007/02/19/20070219-B3-01.html)

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George Jones hits 76 this year. The picture i am using is from a photo session in 1991. It looks similar to the one that appeared on his MCA album, AND ALONG CAME JONES. In a career that dates back to the early 1950s, he is one of the last remaining links to that era in country music. Even remarkable, he is one of the very few who are still in the public eye after all of these years. Although listeners of 'new country' radio do not get to hear anything from George Jones unless it's during a "classic song of the day" feature, this does not take away from the presence of the road. Scaling back on his touring, which had become his main drawing power throughout the 1990s when country radio was in the process of scaling back on his airplay, causes a touch of sadness for the fans of George Jones and of the music he showcased on his tours. He regularly featured his band-members doing instrumentals and his back-up singers singing songs.

I've done several tributes to George Jones on this thread...i've lost track at how many. While looking through the dozens upon dozens of singles that reached the country charts for George, it is unreal taking in all of it. How can one artist command 167 singles!? Then you begin to realize the artist has been releasing music since 1952, reaching the country chart for the first time in October 1955. His last appearance on the charts, to date, was late last year when his duet album with Merle Haggard reached the Top-30. The album KICKIN' OUT THE FOOTLIGHTS...AGAIN was a reunion of sorts...each singer sang the other's hit songs while the two combined voices for 5 new duets. The appearance of his name on the music charts in 2006 extended his longevity to 51 years. Merle and George had recorded an album prior to 2006...the 1982 classic A TASTE OF YESTERDAY's WINE.

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The look of Solomon Grundy says it all. He is after SuperFriends! He won't stop until he has those SuperFriends!

Grundy says: "Solomon Grundy destroy SuperFriends!! Solomon Grundy more powerful than SuperFriends!!"

For those who do not know, Solomon Grundy is a villain...in the cartoon series CHALLENGE OF THE SUPERFRIENDS, Grundy was a member of the Legion of Doom. This legion contained evil and injustice...a group of the most sinister villains of all-time. As Bill Woodson, the famed narrator of the series, aptly describes: "somewhere in the bleak and dismal swamp, the swamp creatures are not alone for the Hall of Doom houses creatures of a more sinister nature...".

Grundy spoke his name whenever referring to himself...as you can see in my made-up dialogue at the start of this write-up. Grundy was a giant zombie who spoke southern...but spoke like Frankenstein's monster a lot of times given the fact that Grundy isn't human. He originates from a swamp...Solomon Grundy born on a Monday...an energy source came up from the swamp and restored life to a person apparently tossed into the swamp left for dead. This scenario is dealt with and made reference to in the episode MONOLITH OF EVIL about a power source in the center of the Earth.

The members of the Legion of Doom are: Lex Luthor, Sinestro, Bizarro, Solomon Grundy, Black Manta, Scarecrow, Cheetah, Brainiac, Captain Cold, Grodd the Gorilla, Riddler, Toy Man, Giganta.

Bizarro is the evil Superman...he wears a backward S on his costume...he is from the planet, Bizarro World, which is square instead of circular. This is why you will see what appears to be two Superman's in the clash picture further down below...Giganta is a giant, well, she stole some of the potion that enables Apache Chief to grow into a giant.

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starting at the bottom left: The Flash; Batman; Robin: Wonder Woman; Hawk Man; Superman; Aquaman; and Green Lantern

That is the main cast of CHALLENGE OF THE SUPERFRIENDS. The superheroes that are missing from the cast picture are Apache Chief, Black Vulcan, and Samuri. The reason for their disappearance in this photo is because the producers of the cartoon decided at the last minute to add in some racially diverse superheroes at the last minute. Apache Chief is an Indian who can grow into a tall giant...Black Vulcan is a superhero who can use the power of lightning bolts to strike the enemy...and Samuri is a Japanese superhero who can turn himself into a human tornado and spin all over the world if need be. Apache Chief says the magic phrase "In Eck Chock" to grow into a giant while Samuri chants "Hazzi Hiamoto" to turn into a tornado. Of course, i am only guessing at how those phrases are spelled.

In one of the episodes of this series, which lasted 16 episodes, Lex Luthor discovers the secret origins of some of the SuperFriends. In his twisted scheme, Luthor travels back in time and changes history so that Superman, Green Lantern, and Wonder Woman never become Superfriends. This is the episode card from the series...it shows the classic rumble pose as the good Justice League of America is heading straight into the evil Legion of Doom in their never-ending battles...

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Here are some pictures from that episode where Luthor tampers with the past...

This is Lex Luthor after he travels back to 1941 to prevent Hal Jordan from becoming Green Lantern...
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Cheetah, one of the female members of the Legion of Doom, traveled back in time to prevent Diana Prince from becoming Wonder Woman...this is Cheetah without her cat suit, exposing her blonde hair...
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Luthor also travels back to when the planet Krypton was about to explode...he causes the ship that carried Kal El, real name of Superman before his adopted name of Clark Kent, he caused the rocket carrying the baby to land on another planet instead of Earth. After removing those three, the remaining Superfriends have no memory of Superman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern. The Legion manages to capture the remaining Superfriends who are then taken captive. For the Legion's amusement, a spell is cast causing the Superfriends to fight one another.

Later, everything is sorted out and the Superfriends discover there were three other Superfriends whom they have no memory of...prompting the decision to get to the bottom of things while they come to the conclusion they need to travel back in time to put history back on track. Batman and Robin use the BatRocket and break the time barrior to intercept Luthor as he's diverting the rocket carrying the future Superman...the rocket lands on Earth and the rest is history. Flash goes to the Amazon and intercepts Cheetah...creating the opportunity for Diana Prince to win the prize of being Wonder Woman. Black Vulcan is waiting in 1941 to stop Luthor from tampering with Hal Jordan's quest of becoming the Green Lantern.

That's just one re-cap of this thrilling 16 episode series...many of the episodes revolved around good vs evil and how evil always lost.

CHALLENGE OF THE SUPERFRIENDS i own on DVD. All 16 episodes!

 :wave JERRY - BOY DO I REMEMBER THESE SUPERHEROS.  I USE TO WATCH THEM WITH MY KIDS AND BY MYSELF.  I WISH THE CARTOONS OF TODAY WERE LIKE THESE AND OTHERS.
DIDN'T THEY MAKE A TV SERIES OF WONDER WOMAN?  I BELIEVE THE WOMAN WHO PLAYED THE ROLE WAS "LINDA CARTER".  I AM CORRECT?  YOU SAID YOU HAVE THE DVD OF IT.  WHERE DID YOU GET IT?  I WOULD LIKE TO GET ONE FOR MY GRANDSON. 
I READ YOUR REVIEWS O GEORGE STRAIGHT AND GEORGE.  TWO FABLOUS PERFORMERS.  I HAVE ONE MORE QUESTION FOR YOU.  DO YOU HAPPEN TO KNOW HOW OLD GEORGE STRAIGHT IS?
THANKS AGAIN FOR THE REVIEWS. ALWAYS A PLEASURE TO COME HERE. OOPS, ONE MORE THING, CAN YOU FIND ANYTHING ON "VINCE GILL"?   BE BACK SOON.

HI JERRY

ALTHOUGH I DO NOT POST VERY MUCH ON YOUR THREAD, I READ IT ALL THE TIME. IT REALLY KEEPS ME UP TO DATE ON WHAT IS GOING ON AND MORE IMPORTANT WHAT "HAS " BEEN GOING ON YEARS AGO.

DO YOU REMEMBER THE "SONS OF THE PIONEERS" ?????

WHEN I WAS A LITTLE GIRL MY DAD JUST LOVED THEM AND HE PLAYED THEIR RECORDS ALL THE TIME. I DO REMEMBER THAT THEY HAD A WONDERFUL HARMONY.
I THINK THEY HAVE FADED AWAY AS I SURE HAVE NOT SEEN ANY NEWS, RECORDS, CD,S, PICTURES OF THEM FOR YEARS.

LOVE
JAN, A COUNTRY WESTERN MUSIC FAN. THE REAL COUNTRY MUSIC THAT IS.

PS
FAVORITE CARTOON WAS ALWAYS THE "ROAD RUNNER"

Jerry, I have to laugh when I read about
"THE INCREDICALE HULK".  I really enjoyed Bill Bixby in that role and watched it all the time.  The funny thing was that my son was maybe 5 then and he use to run and hide under a chair because he was scared of the hulk, and say, mom turn if off.  We laugh about it now.
WOW, you had so much info on Vince Gill.  I wondered how he started out in the business and I do remember the group he was in.   I will listen to hear him on my Conway Twitty cd.  I'll look for his greatest hit cd.  If I can't find it, I sure you could help me out with that.
I still don't kow how you do it, but you are the KING of knowledge when it comes to so many artists!  Thank you once again and I will be back soon!

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Title: Super Hits
Artist: Ray Price
Year of Release: 1997
Label: Sony/Columbia

This 10 song collection spotlights the SUPERHITS...and all of them are included here...well, except for a rare track that kicks off the CD. "Release Me" is credited as 1954 but it's clearly a recording from the late '60s...you can tell by the arrangement of the song. The rest of the songs are pretty much the biggest of his career...the songs jump from styles a little bit going from the late '50s honkytonk Ray Price to the mid-late '60s crooner Ray Price.

I enjoyed the CD and it's so rare to find original recordings anymore of these artists. A person almost always walks away with re-recordings if they feel they're buying the actual hit songs. I am glad this CD contained the original recordings pretty much...except for "Release Me". In reality, "Release Me" was a #6 hit as the B-side of "I'll Be There"...but the version here isn't that recording for some odd reason.

The rest of the collection is vintage Ray Price...all of the big hits are here from both styles he recorded...

Track List
1. Release Me
2. Crazy Arms; 1956
3. My Shoes Keep Walking Back To You; 1957
4. Heartaches by the Number; 1959
5. She's Got to Be a Saint; 1973
6. Invitation to the Blues; 1958
7. City Lights; 1958
8. I Won't Mention It Again; 1971
9. For The Good Times; 1970
10. Danny Boy; 1967

There were several other big songs that aren't included on here...the most notable of the missing are "I've Got a New Heartache", "I'll Be There", "The Same Old Me", "One More Time", "Touch My Heart", "Walk Me To The Door", and "You're The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me".

"Crazy Arms" from 1956 is the biggest hit for Price. It was on the country charts 45 weeks!! Not only that, it was #1 for 20 weeks! That is unheard of today...nowadays if a song is at the top 3 or 4 weeks, radio thinks the song has overstayed it's welcome and they intentionally start to wean a listener off a song...not so back when Ray Price was having hits. Songs were on the charts however many weeks they were selling good...even after the heavier airplay had died down. There are 52 weeks in a year and "Crazy Arms" was charted 45...lacking 7 weeks for a full year on the charts. Monster hit...and i might add...it never made a dent in the Hot 100 at all...amazing!

Price's second biggest hit, "City Lights", came from Bill Anderson...who in 1958 was just a songwriter...never really focusing on being a singer. "City Lights" is a great picture song...it tells of a man who escapes his problems in bar rooms...the allure of those city lights...as far as the eye can see...it was a different take on the drinking song, which is a foundation of country music. "City Lights" was #1 for 13 weeks...on the charts 30 weeks...and crossed over to #71 pop...making it Price's second cross-over hit. The first, "My Shoes Keep Walking Back To You", which hit #1 country for 4 weeks in 1957, charted for 37 weeks, and hit #63 pop, is the third biggest hit in Price's career.

Ray Price is 81 years old...currently on tour with Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson. The trio have a new CD...being released on March 20th called THE LAST OF THE BREED.

HELLO JERRY!  IT'S BEEN A WHILE SINCE I HAVE STOPPED IN, AND I'M GLAD IT DID.  GOOD REVIEW ON RAY PRICE.  I REMEMBER ONE OF MY MOST FAVORITE SONGS WAS "FOR THE GOOD TIMES" BY HIM.  I CAN SING EVERY WORD TO IT IN MY HEAD.  GLAD TO SEE HE IS STILL TOURING AND DID A CD WITH THE GREAT COUNTRY SINGERS.

ITS HARD TO BELIEVE THAT HE IS THAT OLD NOW, BUT I DO KNOW HE HAS BEEN AROUND FOR A LONG TIME.

DID YOU EVER DO A REVIEW ON WILLIE NELSON?  HE IS A CHARACTHER BUT A GREAT PERFORMER.  A FRIEND OF MINE HAS SEEN HIM TEN TIMES IN CONCERT.  IF YOU HAVEN'T DONE ONE ON HIM AS YET, COULD YOU?
GOOD TO COME AND STILL BE ABLE TO READ YOUR REVIEWS.  THANKS AGAIN!
BE BACK SOON.

Charlene: I don't believe i've ever did a Willie Nelson review. I don't own anything by him. I know of his songs through my studies of country music and i do have that trio CD he just released with Merle Haggard and Ray Price. LAST OF THE BREED. I like Willie but i'm not a huge, huge fan. Did you know he gained his fame as a songwriter? He wrote "Funny How Time Slips Away" which became a hit for Billy Walker; "Hello Walls" became a hit for Faron Young; his most famous song, and the one recorded by a lot of artists, "Crazy", was recorded by Patsy Cline and she had the big hit with it. Willie also wrote many of the songs he sung himself but by and large he's known to bring back pop standards and Willie-ize them...the way he sings and performs a song. A couple more songs you may have heard but never realized Willie wrote them are "Pretty Paper", the song by Roy Orbison...and the gospel song "Uncloudy Day" which has been recorded lots of times. As you know, Willie is also an actor...he's appeared in several western-type programs. He is one of the Outlaws...the group of singers who recorded their own way...and not the way Nashville dictated. Along with Willie there was Tompall Glaser, Waylon Jennings, and his wife Jessi Colter. Tompall's biggest hit was "Put Another Log on the Fire". He and his two brothers, Chuck and Jim, made up the trio THE GLASER BROTHERS. Their last name is pronounced Glazer. Willie and Waylon, though, became the two most indentified with the Outlaw country movement even though Buck Owens, who i am reviewing now, could've been called an Outlaw in his era...the information about the Glaser Brothers i found on-line.

Artist: Buck Owens
Title: 21 #1 Hits- The Ultimate Collection
Year of Release: 2006
Label: Rhino

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I purchased this CD from Wal*Mart today. Amazingly, though, it had been there for awhile before i decided to purchase it. I didn't have any Buck Owens in my CD collection...and i felt a CD of just his #1 hits was just what i was needing. I think that the CD is great and it serves as a nice introduction to the songs that the public at large may only be familiar with. Buck had been having hit singles as far back as 1959...he had several monster Top-5 hits before having his first #1. These singles became just as popular as the #1 hits. "Under Your Spell Again" hit #4 in 1959 and was on the charts 22 weeks. "Above and Beyond" was charted 30 weeks and reached #3 in 1960. Then came his 3 week #2 single "Excuse Me I Think I've Got a Heartache" in 1960...that was charted 24 weeks. In 1961 he had another huge hit stalling at #2 for 8 weeks...called "Foolin' Around". This one was charted 26 weeks. He continued on until finally reaching #1 with "Act Naturally" in 1963. His biggest #1 is "Love's Gonna Live Here", which stayed #1 for 16 weeks in 1963.

When you open the CD, and remove it, you will see a row of pictures. Contained is a nice shot of Buck and his band, the Buckaroos. There are also a few pics of him from his days on HEE-HAW, a TV show he co-hosted with Roy Clark during 1969-1986. HEE-HAW continued on until 1992. Buck became famous to a whole new generation as the man with the red, white, and blue guitar who sang and told corny jokes on HEE-HAW.

Ken Nelson produced just about every song on this collection...Buck's monster hits came on Capitol Records at the time...and Ken was the main man at the label back then. Buck's music is rooted in honky tonk, rockabilly, AND blues...that might surprise some. He created this style of music...called the Bakersfield sound...which blended all of those styles together. Buck never moved to Nashville...he preferred to stay in California...in and around Bakersfield. He influenced several artists, most notable being Dwight Yoakam who recorded a duet with Buck that went to #1 and it is included on this collection, of course. Buck became famous for his telecaster electric guitar that he'd play on records as would Don Rich. They were nick-named the twin telecasters because both guitars looked a like and both he and Don played in unison. Buck may have been the first country singer to include electric guitars in his songs...they stood out on country radio back in the early and mid '60s when compared to the smooth country that was on the radio from Bill Anderson, Jim Reeves, Patsy Cline, Eddy Arnold, etc etc

I love all of the songs on this collection...i love "Before You Go"...it blasts on with the electric guitars and up-tempo singing and then during the chorus the tempo is slowed down to a ballad delivery...i also love "Streets of Bakersfield", "Made in Japan", "Buckaroo", "Sam's Place", "Love's Gonna Live Here"...so many songs...another aspect of his career was his songwriting. Buck wrote or co-wrote nearly all of these #1 hits. Also, his earlier hits were "monster hits" as they were referred to at that time. A single that remains on the charts for MONTHS and MONTHS. Buck was so hot then that he even had that rare opportunity to claim a #1 with an instrumental...his "Buckaroo" is just an electric guitar-driven instrumental. Country fans have heard that instrumental for years at some point in their lives but perhaps never realized it was an actual hit single...

The CD booklet contains liner notes by a music critic i've often had bad things to say about...Rich Kienzle. He's a bit too much into alternative country but surprisingly does a good job with the liner notes. The liner notes speak of the image Buck Owens cultivated in the 1970's and 1980's as a result of him being on HEE-HAW...Kienzle writes of the death of Don Rich...he was the high tenor voice of the Buckaroo's and was always at Buck's side in concert. In early episodes of HEE-HAW you can see Don Rich prominently. His premature death from a motorcycle accident have lead numerous music critics and historians and writers to speculate that Don's death created a void in Buck's music and sound it led to his semi-retirement from the road...only to focus on HEE-HAW and his group of radio stations he owned. Buck's string of #1 hits ran from 1963-1972 before things started changing. In the late '60s as you will see, his #1 hits started to slack off...having more Top-10 and high Top-20 hits instead of #1's in that time period. A lot of that, also, can be traced back, if you are to believe it, to Buck's embrace of HEE-HAW which was in contrast to his rockabilly music.

In 1980 he won the rights to all of his music from Capitol Records...therefore there was never a huge flooding of Buck Owens albums of previous hits filling up store shelves in the years that followed. Such albums are commonplace with mostly every singer. In this time period Buck was recording for Warner Brothers...still hosting HEE-HAW as well. Buck left Warner Brothers shortly afterward and eventually got out of recording altogether until idol Dwight Yoakam convinced Buck to return to making records again. He went back with Capitol but it wasn't the same as in times past. The big star when Buck returned to Capitol was Garth Brooks. Capitol and Liberty Records had merged as did Capitol and CURB...Buck made an album of material before going back into semi-retirement again...doing concerts at his Crystal Palace theatre.

This CD captures all 21 singles that reached the #1 spot on Billboard. Buck lived from August 1929 to March 2006. He was 76 when he passed away. He died of a heart attack.

CD Songlist:
After the year it hit #1, i've put the number of weeks it was #1

1. Act Naturally; 1963: 4 weeks.
2. Love's Gonna Live Here; 1963: 16 weeks.
3. Streets of Bakersfield; 1988 with Dwight Yoakam: 1 week.
4. I've Got a Tiger by the Tail; 1964: 5 weeks.
5. My Heart Skips a Beat; 1964: 7 weeks.
6. Together Again; 1964: 2 weeks. {the B-side of MY HEART SKIPS A BEAT}
7. I Don't Care Just as Long as You Love Me; 1964: 6 weeks.
8. Before You Go; 1965: 6 weeks.
9. Only You Can Break My Heart; 1965: 1 week.
10. Buckaroo; 1965: 2 weeks.
11. Waitin' In Your Welfare Line; 1966: 7 weeks.
12. Think of Me; 1966: 6 weeks.
13. Open Up Your Heart; 1966: 4 weeks.
14. Where Does the Good Times Go; 1966: 4 weeks.
15. Sam's Place; 1967: 3 weeks.
16. Your Tender Loving Care; 1967. 1 week.
17. How Long Will My Baby Be Gone; 1968: 1 week.
18. Who's Gonna Mow Your Grass; 1969: 2 weeks.
19. Tall Dark Stranger; 1969: 1 week.
20. Made in Japan; 1972: 1 week.
21. Johnny B Goode; 1969 live recording at the London Palladium: 2 weeks.

Foolin' Around
1961 #2 hit for Buck Owens

I know that you've been Foolin' Around on me
Right from the start
So I'll take back my ring and I'll take back my heart
And when you're tired of foolin' around with two or three
Come on home and fool around with me.

I wasn't Foolin' Around the day I said I do
But many a night I wished that I had been a-foolin' too
I know it's foolish taking all this misery
But when it's you a fool I'll always be

I know that you've been Foolin' Around on me
Right from the start
So I'll take back my ring and I'll take back my heart
And when you're tired of foolin' around with two or three
Come on home and fool around with me.

So honey fool around you know right where I'm at
Don't worry if I'm lonesome because I'm used to that
And when you're tired of foolin' 'round with two or three
Then come on home and fool around with me

I know that you've been Foolin' Around on me
Right from the start
So I'll take back my ring and I'll take back my heart
And when you're tired of foolin' around with two or three
Come on home and fool around with me...

JERRY - I had no idea that Willie Nelson wrote songs for so many artists. That's interesting because I watched Roy Orbison on a PBS program and he sang one of Willie's songs. I think it was "Pretty Papers". My friend who is a big fan will enjoy knowing the iformation you wrote on him.
Buck Owens wrote and sang songs that told a story. He had a side kick on Hee Haw, do you remember who that was? That was a fun show with lots of great guests on it.
I have been tyring to remember who Dolly Parton partnered with when she first came out. He had his own show, but what was his name?
Great fun reading and as always a great job you do. Thank you. See you back here soon!

I GOTTA GET DRUNK
1979 by Willie Nelson and George Jones

Both: Well I Gotta Get Drunk and I sure do dread it cause I know just what I'm gonna do
I'll start to spend my money callin' everybody honey and I'll wind up singin the blues         
I'll spend my whole paycheck on some old wreck
                         
Willie: And brother I can name you a few

Both: Well I Gotta Get Drunk and I sure do dread it cause I know just what I'm gonna do

George: I Gotta Get Drunk...I just can't stay sober
There's a lot of good people in town
Who like to see me holler, see me spend my dollar and I wouldn't dream of lettin 'em down
There's a lot of old doctors who tell me: "George, you'd better start slowing it down"

Willie: But there's more old drunks than there are old doctors
So I guess we'd better have another round

Both: Well I Gotta Get Drunk and I sure do dread it cause I know just what I'm gonna do
I'll start to spend my money callin' everybody honey and I'll wind up singin the blues         
I'll spend my whole paycheck on some old wreck

George: And Willie, i could name you a few

Both: We gotta get drunk and we sure do dread it
Because we know just what we're gonna do

 This album was released in 1967...Willie was still known as a songwriter and his unique vocals weren't being accepted on country radio at the time. A lot of critics like to point out that Willie's career prior to an album he did entitled RED HEADED STRANGER isn't worth looking back on. If you've heard early Willie...he sounds pretty much the same as the Willie everyone knows...only younger sounding. This is from 1967...

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jerrytoons/CountryMusicStuff/WN_Make20Way20for20Willie20Nelson.jpg)

One of Willie's knacks is singing duets with just about everyone who's stepped in front of a microphone. Either one-time duets or a series of duets, like the ones he recorded with Waylon Jennings, Willie is known for his duet career. His most famous duet, in terms of international and pop airplay, is the single he recorded in 1984 with Latin singer Julio Iglesias... TO ALL THE GIRLS I'VE LOVED BEFORE. This is the cover of their single...

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jerrytoons/CountryMusicStuff/julioi01.jpg)

Willie was also the writer of a song that George Jones and Merle Haggard had a #1 hit with, YESTERDAY's WINE. Ray Price had a hit with Willie's NIGHT LIFE.

The song i wrote out at the top of this entry comes from a duet album of George Jones...it was released in 1979 and called "My Very Special Guests". Willie, of course, wrote I GOTTA GET DRUNK. Ironically, that album opens up with George's duet with Waylon Jennings...singing Willie's NIGHT LIFE.

Willie has written tons and TONS of songs for himself that i can't even begin to mention because there are so many. He is still reaching the country album charts with his releases. He had two back to back #1 hit duets recently. One was a duet with Lee Ann Womack, MENDACINO COUNTY LINE. The other, with Toby Keith, was BEER FOR MY HORSES...which was a more light hearted song by comparison.

Jerry, something else you might not know about Willie is that he wrote "Night Life" and he sold it to I beieve it was Ray Price for $50.00 when he was broke a long time ago. I have heard him say so may times that he never had any idea it would be the hit that it became.
Geraldine, Porter Wagoner was the person who got Dolly started.

 :wave JERRY--O MY GOSH, THE COVER OF HIS "RED HEADED STRANGER",, well makes him look so  young and unrecognizable.  IF I SAW THAT IN A STORE I WOULD NOT KNOW THAT IS WILLIE.  HE STARTED WAY BACK WRITING SONGS!  ITS FUNNY HOW THE THINGS YOU DON'T KNOW ABOUT SOME OF THESE ARTISTS.  I DO BELIEVE THO THAT HE STARTED "FARM AID".  I HOPE I AM CORRECT! I WILL LET MY FRIEND WHO IS AN AVID FAN KNOW THE INFORMATION IN YOUR REVIEW.  THANK YOU FOR DOING A NICE JOB ON IT   :bigsmile

BE BACK AGAIN SOON.  SOMETHING ALWAYS POPS UP IN MY HEAD ABOUT AN ARTISTS, BUT  KNOW WHERE TO COME FOR GREAT INFORMATION.  :bouncy  :clap  :bigsmile

:wave Thanks for the commentary about the Willie semi-review!

Charlene: Willie started FARM AID in 1985 with the help of John Mellancamp, Neil Young, and John Conlee. Well, Conlee was a major contributor...the top 3 were Willie, Mellancamp, and Young. Conlee is a farmer off-stage...spending most of his time on his farm in Tennessee. Conlee is from Versailles, Kentucky. I don't know if the town's name is spelled right or not. He was a DJ and a mortician before becoming a country singer.

Janet: Did you know Kris Kristofferson did almost the same thing to Ray Price in 1970 trying to get Ray to record "FOR THE GOOD TIMES". Kris, as i think you know, also landed in Johnny Cash's backyard by helicopter...trying to get Johnny to record "SUNDAY MORNIN' COMIN' DOWN". Faron Young, i know from stories i read, also recorded Willie's "HELLO WALLS" in much the same manner...by loaning money to Willie in return for recording the song.

 :wave JERRY.
YOUR WELCOME  :bigsmile
I WAS WATCHING A SHOW THE OTHER NIGHT ON LEGEND SINGERS LIKE, JOHN DENVER, GLENN CAMPBELL, ect. I THINK JOHN DENVER WAS CONSIDERED "FOLK".  BUT NOT SURE ABOUT GLENN CAMPBELL.  WAS HE COUNTRY OR POP OR BOTH?  I LIKED HIS SONGS SUCH AS "RHINESTONE COWBOY", SEE THAT'S WHAT MAKES ME WONDER ABOUT THE COUNTRY PART.  MAYBE YOU COULD FIND OUT FOR ME?  WOULD THE INFORMATION BE IN THE COUNTRY CHARTS OR THE POP CHARTS.  NATURALLY I DON'T KNOW HOW TO LOOK THESES THINGS UP.  THANKS.

 John Denver was a folksy pop singer...one of the things that's ironic about John Denver is he won the CMA Male Vocalist of the Year award in 1975...the CMA is the Country Music Association. The presentation is infamous because of Charlie Rich...if you remember him...well, Charlie was a little bit tipsy as anyone can see and he opens the envelope and is about to read the winner of the award and he sets it on fire...right there on national television :lol :lol Then he says "my buddy, John Denver..." whose out of the country and shown on a monitor accepting the award. One of the things i think was a little unfair back then was John Denver or his people never set out to "be country" or anything...country radio back then played his songs because of his pop appeal but lots of people who listened to country radio cussed out John Denver and others like him when in fact the blame was on the record labels and the ones who ran country music back then behind the scenes. His records, along the ones being played on country radio from Olivia Newton John, were about as country as Yanni :lol

Anyway, Denver was a good singer and his place was on soft-rock/AC radio...unfortunately there weren't an abundance of soft rock stations out there then and many of the acts were played on mainstream Top-40 radio...creating an annoyance to the rock music fans who didn't like soft-rock. Denver had some success on the country charts but it was by accident.

Glen Campbell on the other hand was what you'd call a country-pop singer. His songs, like the ones of Johnny Cash and Marty Robbins and Elvis and a few others, were played heavily on country and pop radio. Campbell as you know had a TV show as did Johnny Cash. Marty Robbins had a series of TV shows as well...they didn't command the same longevity of the Campbell or Cash program's, though. Glen's show was THE GLEN CAMPBELL GOODTIME HOUR. His songs sounded as pop as John Denver's did...but, the only difference was, Campbell's label marketed his songs country and pop on purpose. The song you mentioned, "Rhinestone Cowboy", was a #1 country and #1 pop hit in 1975...it was his biggest hit...but not his only one to do well on the pop chart. I liked a lot of Campbell's songs...he became strictly "country" in the early 1980's when he was no longer able to chart as high on the Hot 100 because his singles weren't selling as high, by comparison, to the new acts on pop radio back then: Michael Jackson, MaDonna, Billy Joel, and all of those rock groups from England.

Campbell had a long affair with Tanya Tucker...a female country singer. He's also been known to abuse drugs and alcohol but it had never, ironically enough, became a part of his career...in other words, he never recorded songs that seemed to hype or exploit that kind of lifestyle as other singers would have. Here's something you might not know: Campbell discovered Alan Jackson, a country singer. Alan was working at the mail room for the Nashville Network and somehow became associated with Glen's publishing company and one thing led to another and Alan ended up on Arista Records in 1989 and the rest is history.

Glen's more familiar songs:
1. Gentle On My Mind
2. Galveston
3. By the Time I Get To Phoenix
4. Witchita Lineman
5. Try a Little Kindness
6. Rhinestone Cowboy
7. Southern Nights
8. Country Boy, You Got Your Feet in L.A.

Glen's last big hit was "The Hand That Rocks the Cradle" a duet with country singer, Steve Wariner, in 1988.

WELCOME TO MY SALUTE TO ROGER THORPE!

I found this on-line and it was fascinating! I could've wrote all of this out myself but i didn't have the time. This being April 1st, it marks an anniversary of sorts for a character on GUIDING LIGHT, a soap opera, that i enjoyed: Roger Thorpe. Michael Zazlow portrayed Thorpe from April 1, 1971 to April 1, 1980, and again from 1989-1996. Here is a re-cap of his character during 1971-1980...i'll add the 1989-1996 part afterwards...broken down into several parts...
 

1989-1996...Part 1:

1989-1996, Part 2...

Part 3...

Part 4...

Part 5...

Lastly...Part 6...this is the storyline that i didn't really like that well but it did show Roger being enraged and very violent, which had been missing in the character for awhile. At one point in this storyline he nearly strangled Dinah with a scarf...


The last paragraph was buy the author of the Roger look-back! Dennis Parlato, a soap actor from ALL MY CHILDREN, filled in for Zaslow in 1997...when it was made public that Zaslow had inoperable Lou Gehrig's Disease, Parlato filled out the rest of Zaslow's contract and the Roger character was written off with Amanda Spaulding. I agree with the author's take on the whole Zaslow controversy. I hope you could bare with the author's mis-spelled words!! Zaslow passed away in 1998.

 Jerry -- WOW, you've been a busy little beaver. These reviews are excellent! I remember Michael from "The Guiding Light". I feel he was one of the best soap opera actors there was. His longevity proved that. It's so nice when you do a review to honor someone's career. They shoud be remembered. Reading it was like watching the show all over again!!
It was interesting to learn so much more about John Denver and Glenn Campbell. I've been a fan of John Denver since he sang with a trio [whose name I can't remember]. I know that he was an enviormentmentalist as well. Even tho I have followed his career, the things you mentioned surprised me. Especially the one about "Charlie Rich"! His biggest hit was "Behind Closed Doors",,Right? Glenn Campbell's show I faithfully watched every week. Both really good singers.
Thank you for all the great information. Now you'll have to do a review on Charlie Rich, ha ha. Really tho, would you? Be back again. :hugg

Jerry, What a wonderful review of Michael. I agree with Geraldine he was one of the best actors I have ever seen. I couldn't believe it when I heard he had ALS. Thank goodness you are around to keep  his name out there for us.

Jerry - Just stopped by to check if you had any new reviews as I do.  Come back soon here ok?

Don't forget about a review on "Charlie Rich".  When you can that is. Thanks, be back soon.

 

 :wave Janet
Jerry really does a great job of bringing back good memories for us, I agree. 

Hello Charlene, Janet, and the rest who lurk... :wave

I found some things on Charlie Rich but everything is already in the public domain. He lived from December 14, 1932 until July 25, 1995. The cause of death was a blood clot in the lung. They never, in the things i was reading, said which lung it was. He was nick-named THE SILVER FOX and various fans and music critics have given their idea as to why he was nick-named this. I happen to agree with many who say it's because of of his silver/white hair at such a young age. It made him stand out :yes

1973 CMA Male Vocalist of the Year
1973 CMA Album of the Year: Behind Closed Doors
1973 Grammy Award - Best Country Vocal Performance
1974 CMA Entertainer of the Year

That is not an over-view of his awards...he had four more from the ACM.

Charlie had a LONG climb until reaching success in 1972. He had recorded jazz and blues and rock songs for a list of record labels starting in 1958 and running through 1967, the year before he signed with EPIC. He had moderate success in that 9 year period until 1972, 5 years after signing with EPIC. Charlie was promoted countrypolitan...the sound that EPIC was famous for in the 1970's where country music was blended in with opera-like music one might hear from the Metropolitan Opera House, this is where the term "Countrypolitan" originates from. Almost everyone who recorded at EPIC for Billy Sherrill recorded countrypolitan.

Once his big hit up to that point arrived in 1972, the #6 "I Take It On Home", he continued having big hits on through the rest of the 1970's. "Behind Closed Doors" and "The Most Beautiful Girl" were the follow-up singles and both were #1 hits. In fact, "The Most Beautiful Girl" was #1 country and #1 pop. These singles set the stage for his huge rocket to superstardom in 1973...as i was referring to in an earlier post, Charlie's behavior as a result of his success involved drinking. His televised burning of the the CMA envelope showing John Denver's name was the impetus for the downfall in Charlie's career. He didn't crash and burn over-night...but he was no longer the biggest name in country music anymore. After this 1975 incident, the Top-10 hits almost ended, though. There have been many opinions as to why he burned the CMA envelope. Lots of critics say it was because Charlie opposed John Denver not being country enough...if one is to believe that, then one has to ask why Charlie would take that position because Charlie himself worked his way into superstardom playing/singing jazz, blues, and rock...long before he thought to incorporate country music into his career. Charlie's son, Charlie Rich Jr, has a web-site that goes into detail about that and other things about his father's career.

However, while Charlie was having big hits, they came quickly...in 1974 he had a succession of #1 hits on the country charts: "There Won't Be Anymore," "A Very Special Love Song," "I Don't See Me In Your Eyes Anymore," "I Love My Friend," and "She Called Me Baby". That single had been recorded by a lot of other acts...Patsy Cline had the more famous version, hers of course was called "He Called Me Baby". After 1976 he had a few more hits...including "Rollin' With the Flow" and "Beautiful Woman," "Puttin' In Overtime At Home," and "On My Knees", which became his last #1 hit. Also interesting was his previous labels were re-releasing his material and they, as a result of his country success, were finding their way onto the sales charts, which during the original time of release was lacking.

In 1981 he "retired" and remained in seclusion and to himself. He came out of retirement in 1992 with a jazz album but that was his last CD because he died in 1995, 3 years later, at the age of 62.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jerrytoons/CountryMusicStuff/charlie2pnofull.jpg)

HELLO JERRY---I LEARNED SOMETHING VERY INTERESTING BY READING YOUR REVIEW!  SEE,,,I ASSUMED THAT HE ONLY WON AN AWARD FOR THE SONG "BEHIND CLOSED DOORS".  I DIDN'T REALZE HE WON SO MANY OTHER AWARDS.  HIS silver hair REALLY WAS HIS TRADEMARK.  I  HAD SEEN HIM PERFORM ON A LOT OF CMA AWARDS SHOWS.
I ENJOYED HIS PIANO PLAYING AS WELL. 

THIS IS ONE OF THE NICEST PICTURES I HAVE EVER SEEN OF HIM.  I'M GLAD YOU ADDED IT TO THE REVIEW.  I AM GOING TO COME BACK AND READ THIS ONE AGAIN.  I REALLY LIKE HIM, AND YOU DID SUCH A GOOD JOB.  THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN.
SEE YOU HERE SOON!
:hugg

:wave Hello Charlene!! I thought i'd copy and paste something here about Charlie Rich. Charlie came along during the 1950s and recorded for SUN Records at one point...Sam Phillips was the head of everyone at SUN Records...and this is what Sam, whose no longer living, had to say about Charlie...



1963...Charlie and the Jordanaires...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jerrytoons/CountryMusicStuff/charlierich.jpg)

This is his classic GREATEST HITS album once he became a country superstar...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jerrytoons/CountryMusicStuff/SME_0101_EK_034240.jpg)

Jerry - Where did you ever find that picture of Charlie Rich when he was young? Was that taken in Sam Phillips studio?  A great complimentary statement about him by Sam Phillips.  I have his "GREATEST HITS" one but, on vinyl record.
Do you know if he has a DVD because I love to watch him sing and play the piano.  You know, what comes to my mind is that he is rich, I mean he has a "rich voice"!  Very, very nice information on him.     
 :clap  :clap  :bigsmile
Thank you, be back soon.

AC,

I enjoyed the article about Charlie Rich.  As I said in another post, my friend at the birthday luncheon today received a gift card to a restaurant called, "The Silver Fox."  And we were all trying to remember who the singer was called, "The Silver Fox."

I remember the early 70's well.  I was in my mid-twenties, and I remember seeing Charlie Rich a lot on TV and hearing his hits on the radio.  He seemed successful for several years and then just disappeared.

Thanks for the review!
Prissy

Charlene: :wave I googled that image of Charlie Rich. If you're at Google, in case you never tried this, you click on the "image" option and it shows all kinds of images of whatever you're searching. I stumbled onto that younger picture and decided to post it on here because it's a SUN and more than likely Elvis was in the vicinity as well...that is, if he hadn't gone to RCA by that time.

Prissy: :wave I saw your OCD post about the Silver Fox and that prompted me to make reference to this review. I had never heard of the restaurant The Silver Fox until reading you post about it. You're right...Charlie had his success and then decided on his own to retire. Changing styles in music helped make the decision and he grew tired of the road.

AC,

I looked up the  Silver  Fox Restaurant and see there are four in Texas.  They seem "kinda" expensive, too! :eek

Here's a link:

SILVER FOX RESTAURANT (http://www.opentable.com/rest_profile.aspx?rid=4955)

Prissy

As i was saying on the OCD, that place is expensive!! I would probably eat there once in a great while.

I found a big picture of Ray Stevens. This is from 1982 i believe...it is a picture that RCA had in their files and used this as the cover of a GREATEST HITS release from the RCA label in 1983. The funny thing about that album is only two RCA songs were showcased...the rest were his classic pop/country songs from the late '60s and early '70s. The album should have contained his RCA singles and then perhaps some other hits but it didn't. A customer would have to wait until 1985 when RCA released the COLLECTOR's SERIES project on RCA artists past and present. Ray was among the acts who were featured and his COLLECTOR's SERIES featured 8 songs on the album...the only collection, to this day, to spotlight a good chunk of his RCA material. Ray was with RCA from 1980-1983.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/JerryFunnies/stevens20face20color.jpg)

JERRY,  I just got caught up here again. I loved the review of Charlie Rich. I never knew about him burning the envelope with John Denver's name. I wonder how I missed that! Thanks for ALL the excellent reviews you write.

:wave Hello Janet!! I never knew of that until several years ago...it was around the time of his death. TNN had a show at the time called Country News and they did a short segment all about Charlie Rich and they shown that clip.

I found the 1985 RCA album of Ray Stevens called COLLECTOR's SERIES in my photobucket album. It was tucked away in one of the sub-albums. This is to date the ONLY collection that has ever attempted to give spotlight on Ray's 1980-1982 recordings for RCA...it says COLLECTOR's SERIES on the cover up at the top in the circle banner housing those vinyl records. It was a waste of album cover space...look at all that room and had it been a legitimate Ray Stevens release where he had control over it, i doubt the cover would look so blank...even though in 1977 he did release an album called FEEL THE MUSIC where his face isn't even on the front, you have to turn the album over to see his picture.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/Clay/7e_1.jpg)

Hello Jerry - just stopped in to say hi, and to let you know that after reading your review on Charlie Rich, I went and bought that cd you posted on here.  It's a really good one!
See you soon back here.

 JERRY - DO YOU HAVE AN IDEA OF THE NUMBER OF CDS, RECORDS TAPES, OR DVDS THAT RAY STEVENS HAD OUT??  I WROTE A REQUEST TO A RADIO STATION FOR THEM TO PLAY "EVERYTHING IS BEAUTIFUL".  I ALSO ASKED IF THEY COULD PLAY MORE OF HIS SONGS.  I HEARD AN OLDER SONG THE OTHER DAY, IT WAS "PAPER ROSES" BUT, DID NOT KNOW WHO THE SINGER WAS.  IT WAS ON ONE OF THE CLASSICS COUNTRY STATION. WOULD YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHO THAT MIGHT BE???  IT WAS A MALE SINGER BY THE WAY.  I KNOW MARIE OSMOND RECORDED IT TOO. 
THANKS AGAIN FOR DOING THESE REVIEWS  :bigsmile

Hello Charlene...that would be a big task to undertake considering he's been releasing music since 1957 in various formats: singles, albums, cassettes, CDs, and home video/DVD...not to forget 8-Tracks. Of course a lot of duplication over the years but if you're only talking about official released albums where Ray was in charge of their release and you're not talking about all of the countless compilation albums that are out there...these are Ray's officially released albums. He never made albums before 1962...

1. MERCURY-1962: 1837 Seconds of Humor
2. MERCURY-1967: This is Ray Stevens {1963, 1964, 1965}
3. MONUMENT-1968: Even Stevens
4. MONUMENT-1969: Gitarzan
5. MONUMENT-1969: Have a Little Talk With Myself
6. Barnaby-1970: Unreal
7. Barnaby-1970: Everything is Beautiful
Barnaby-1972: Greatest Hits {1968, 1969, 1970, 1971}
8. Barnaby-1973: Nashville
9. Barnaby-1973: Losin' Streak
10. Barnaby-1974: Boogity Boogity
11. Barnaby-1975: Misty
Barnaby-1975: The Very Best of Ray Stevens
12. Warner Brothers-1976: Just for the Record
13. Warner Brothers-1977: Feel the Music
14. Warner Brothers-1978: There is Something On your Mind
15. Warner Brothers-1978: Be Your Own Best Friend
16. Warner Brothers-1979: The Feeling's Not Right Again
17. RCA-1980: Shriner's Convention
18. RCA-1981: One More Last Chance
19. RCA-1982: Don't Laugh Now
RCA-1983: Greatest Hits {1968, 1969, 1970, 1974, 1975, 1980}
20. MERCURY-1983: Me
21. MCA-1984: He Thinks He's Ray Stevens {GOLD album}
22. MCA-1985: I Have Returned {GOLD album}
23. MCA-1986: Surely You Joust
MCA-1987: Greatest Hits {1969, 1970, 1971, 1974, 1975, 1980, 1984} {PLATINUM album}
24. MCA-1987: Crackin' Up
MCA-1987: Greatest Hits, Vol. Two {1961, 1968, 1976, 1979, 1985, 1986, 1987} {GOLD album}
MCA-1987: Get The Best of Ray Stevens {1961, 1968-1971, 1974-1976, 1979, 1980, 1984-1987}
25. MCA-1988: I Never Made a Record I Didn't Like
26. MCA-1989: Beside Myself
CURB-1990: His All-Time Greatest Comic Hits {1969, 1970, 1974, 1976, 1980, 1984, 1987} {GOLD album}
27. CURB-1990: Lend Me Your Ears
28. CURB-1991: #1 With a Bullet
CURB-1991: Greatest Hits {1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973, 1975, 1987, 1989}
29. CURB-1993: Classic Ray Stevens {new material in spite of the title}
30. MCA-1997: Hum It
31. MCA-1997: Christmas Through a Different Window
32. CLYDE-2000: Ear Candy
33. CURB-2002: Osama Yo Mama {2000, 2002}
34. CLYDE-2004: Thank You
CURB-2006: Box Set {this is a collection of songs from Ray, some new and some old, some re-recordings of his earlier hits; it's not a definitive collection because a lot of the hits are re-recordings instead of the originals}

I counted up the studio albums from Ray and he's released 34 albums since 1962. The "Osama Yo' Mama" album from 2002, however, contains a majority of songs that had been recorded in 2000 and from his EAR CANDY album that at the time was only available to fan club members. CURB released several songs from that album, plus a few unheard of recordings, and issued them in 2002 on the OSAMA YO MAMA album. THANK YOU is, at the moment, the last album he's recorded. In 2005 he released a single only...this was called "The New Battle of New Orleans".

If you notice not much out-put in the 1990's...that's because he was releasing his comedy videos during that time period. These are the home video and or DVD projects:

1. CLYDE-1992: Amazing Rolling Revue
2. CLYDE-1992: Comedy Video Classics {Ten Times Platinum: 1,000,000 sold}
3. CLYDE-1993: Ray Stevens Live {Five times Platinum: 500,000 sold}
4. CLYDE-1993: More Ray Stevens Live
5. CLYDE-1995: Get Serious! {Platinum: 100,000+}
6. CLYDE-1996: Latest and Greatest
7. CLYDE-2000: Funniest Video Characters
8. CLYDE-2003: Cartoon Video Collection
9. CLYDE-2004: Complete Comedy Video Collection
10. CURB-2006: Teenage Mutant Kung Fu Chickens**
11. CURB-2006: Gourmet Restaurant**

**-in 2003, Ray experimented with animated music videos. The animation wasn't Disney-esque or anything. In 2006, CURB released two DVD's of animated music videos from Ray. Each DVD contained 5 music videos. CURB is the label that has issued many of Ray's videos to stores since Ray's label, CLYDE Records, doesn't have store distribution and is only a mail-order company. The DVD's have been available at Wal*Mart near the music section.
============================================

By the way...the singer you were thinking of who sang "Paper Rosie" is Gene Watson. He also sang "Farewell Party", "Love in the Hot Afternoon", "Got No Reason Now for Going Home", "The Jukebox Played Along", "You Could Know As Much About a Stranger", and "Pick the Wildwood Flower" among others. :smile

 :wave Jerry  Wow I guess I asked the million dollar question.  Woooo,,Ray Stevens had so many didn't he!  Ummm Jerry,  what are compilation
 cds?  With so any no wonder he is such a super star.  I still like him because he is multi-talented!    :bouncy with his comedy and ballads, he can make you laugh and make you cry.  I don't think you would have enough room to hold all of his recordings, haha  But you never know, right?

I have heard of Gene Watson and his songs but never associated "Paoer Roses with him.  The next time I hear it on the radio I will listen for his name.

I was watching CMT and they showed Lori Morgan.  Haven't seen much of her lately. I wonder if she is still recording and doing tours.  I had to ask right?  I know that she married another country singer, something Kershaw.  But that about all I know about her and do have one cd.  What do you know about her?  Could you find out if she is recording now?
Thanks once again for your great information.  Oh, I almost forgot, there is a country special of the Grand Old Opry with lots of big name stars but, not sure exactly when.  I should be announced again Sat on the show.
I'll Be back again soon!

 :bigsmile

Jerry - I came back to read a couple of your reviews!  I like to do this every so often.  There is always some information I missed.  I need to write down the names of the cds you post about, so when I go to a store I can have them with me and look for them.

I'll be back to check and see if you have found anything on "Lorrie Morgan".  See you here soon.

 I don't believe Lorrie Morgan is recording anything anymore. I know she's still active here and there. I heard her on the Opry several weeks ago. She's been a member of the Opry since 1984. Ironically, though, she never had any really major hit songs until 1990. Her father, as you may or may not know, is George Morgan. George was an Opry member from 1948 to 1956 and again from 1959 until his death in 1975 a few days after turning 51. George was born on June 28, 1924 and died July 7, 1975. Lorrie was practically "raised" at the Opry. She's been married and divorced a few times. Her most famous marriage was to country singer Keith Whitley. She was married to him from 1986 up until his death from alcoholism in 1989. She married another singer, Jon Randall, in 1996. That marriage was short-lived and soon she married Sammy Kershaw, another country singer. That marriage ended shortly as well. I do not know who she's married to now or if she is. She had a lot of Top-10 hits during 1990 through 1998. Her biggest hits were "Five Minutes", "I Didn't Know My Own Strength", "Go Away", and "We Both Walk". Lorrie, by the way, was born on June 27, 1959. So, her father was born a day after her but in 1924. Her birthday being June 27, 1959 and his being June 28, 1924.

 Jerry,  I forgot about Keith Whitely.  He was a country superstar in his time too wasn't he?  That's right, Sammy Kershaw is who Lorrie Morgan is marrried to now.  I think they did a duet a while back.  I saw her do an interview and talk about her dad.  But you know, I can't remember what he sang?  Do you?

You did a nice review on Charlie Rich and when I was at a friend', who is an avid country star, we heard him on the radio.
Did I or did I not see the CMA will be on the 16th of this month?  I think that's tomorrow night.  There is a duo, "Brooks & Dunn who win every year an award.  I love their music, but do not know much about them.  Would you mind seeing what you can find out about them.  My favorite song of their's is "My Maria".  There are not too many duos around anymore. 

Thank you for the information I asked for.  I'll be back to check in to see if you were able to find something on Brooks & Dunn.
See you soon. :bigsmile

 Charlene: It's the ACM Awards that are on Monday night. The ACM is the Academy of Country Music and then later in the year, the CMA Awards air. The CMA is Country Music Association. I typically don't watch award shows anymore because nobody i like is up for anything hardly and my singers aren't given any air-time to sing. If i find out George Strait will appear i'll watch it or pay more attention to the categories if he's nominated.

From off the top of my head, Brooks and Dunn arrived in 1990 and became the top country music duo...it was around this time that the Judds were beginning their "farewell tour" because Naomi Judd, the mother, had some medical issues. So with the Judds no longer touring and recording as a duo, it left Brooks and Dunn to be the next big duo. Kix Brooks, the one who rarely has the lead vocals, is a songwriter...Ronnie Dunn is the singer on many of their songs even though his name appears second in the duo's name. Kix Brooks sang lead vocals on the songs "Lost and Found", "Rock My World", "You're Gonna Miss Me", and a few more. Ronnie Dunn is the duo's lead singer...they've been around for almost 20 years. 17 years to be specific. They're still releasing songs but they're not the duo at the front of everyone's mind in country music anymore. Montgomery Gentry and a few more have come along to eat away at the hold Brooks and Dunn had on country music/country radio. As you may know, Ronnie Dunn is the lead vocalist on "My Maria", the song you said was your favorite. It was a hit in the 1960's by B.W. Stevenson.

JOHN INMAN/BBC (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/6429573.stm)

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jerrytoons/CountryMusicStuff/B93A87C72A934D1886B77D95A747E475.jpg)

Title: Storyteller, Poet, Philosopher
Artist: Tom T Hall
Release Year: 1995
Label: Mercury

Tom T Hall is one of the unique figures in country music. He is equally known as a songwriter as he is a singer. The fact that 90% of his recordings were written or co-written by himself allowed his reputation to build. A good number of his songs tell stories. Now, i don't mean a plot-driven story...those are found in the typical songs...the stories in Tom's songs are based essentially on real life experiences he's encountered and people he met. I listened to CD #1 and i'm listening to CD #2 now. A clever song entitled "The Monkey That Became President" has just ended. I had never heard that song until now. It was a big Top-20 hit for Tom, reaching #11 in 1972.

One of the things that stands-out on this collection, 50 songs...25 on each CD...one of the things that stands out is the fact 80% of the songs were not released as singles. He had a lot of hit singles during 1967-1985 but only 10-20% of those are collected here. The songs, well, the ones recorded for Mercury, were all produced by Jerry Kennedy. Tom had a brief stop at RCA Records in the late '70s/early '80s before returning to Mercury. As i mentioned, 80% of the material were non-hits and that gives this boxed set a collector's feel because a lot of this songs have not been available since their original vinyl release. So, for those who want to hear Tom T Hall beyond just his more famous songs, this is the collection that fits the bill. A rare duet with Patti Page, "Hello, We're Lonely", which Tom would put in the category of 'little darlin' type of songs, appears in this collection. It's on CD #1...it was a big Top-20 hit, reaching #14 in 1972.

Track 14 on CD #2 is a cute novelty song with Dave Dudley, "Day Drinkin". Each of them trade almost-slurry vocals to give it that drunk feel. It's a play on words of the phrase 'daydreamin'. The single hit in 1970, reached #23. It had never been on any album until it's inclusion on this box set. The next song, track 15 on CD #2 is an unlikely hit single on country radio given it's in your face Dixieland arrangement...the song in question is "That Song Is Driving Me Crazy" and it reached #2 on the country chart and crossed-over to #63 pop in 1974. This goes to show you how huge of an act Tom T Hall was in this era...even though he never acted like a star or a celebrity and always remained down to earth. His dislike for many attitudes of celebrities is legendary.

Further along on this box set collection we hear Tom perform versions of songs he's written but were hits for other artists. Bobby Bare and Dave Dudley were the two artists who recorded Tom T Hall songs the most. Bobby Bare had the hit versions of two songs you'll hear by Tom...the first "That's How I Got to Memphis" and "Margie's at the Lincoln Park Inn". Politics is touched upon as well...in addition to "The Monkey That Became President" we hear Tom get way serious on "Watergate Blues", which was a big Top-20 hit in 1973, reaching #16 and nearly making the Hot 100 pop chart, bubbling under at #101. We also hear "America the Ugly" and "Hang Them All...Get the Guilty". Bill Monroe appears in mandolin form on a duet with Tom called "Molly and Tenbrooks"...a song Bill wrote. Johnny Cash of all people makes an appearance on CD #1. A song Tom recorded with Johnny in 1988, "Last of the Drifters", which Tom wrote.

There are several songs on here that Tom didn't write. "Old Five and Dimers Like Me" and "Willy the Wandering Gypsy and Me" were both written by Billy Joe Shaver. One of Tom's last Top-10 hits, "Fox on the Run", which closes out CD #1 reached #9 in 1976 and was written by Tony Hazzard. Billy Edd Wheeler's "Levi Jones" is on here...Tom recorded it but it was never put on his 1973 album. This is the first time it's been available. The last single for Tom to make the country chart is on here...the 1986 single "Down at the Hall", which reached #65. That song was written by Roger Murrah and John Schweers.

Several of Tom's classics are here...the ones that leap to mind when one thinks of Tom. I didn't want you to think Mercury left them all out. The classics contained here are "The Year That Clayton Delaney Died", "Salute to a Switchblade", "That Song is Driving Me Crazy", "A Week in a Country Jail", "Homecoming", "The Ballad of Forty Dollars", "Faster Horses", "Ravishing Ruby", "I Like Beer", and "Old Dogs, Children, and Watermelon Wine".

"The Son of Clayton Delaney" and "More About John Henry" are included in this collection. Two sequels to previous songs. The first, a sequel to Tom's own "The Year That Clayton Delaney Died", is about a stranger who comes into town and by the end of the song the people notice familiar things connected with him and Clayton Delaney. On the song "More About John Henry", it tells the other side to John Henry...moving beyond the familiar vision of John being a steel driving man, lord-lord. One of my favorites among the many is "The Old Side of Town", a #9 hit in 1980. The box set closes with his big gospel song, "Me and Jesus", which hit #8 in 1972.

Tom T Hall's songs have been recorded by a boatload of artists. A lot of them tucked away on albums and some released as singles. Johnny Wright recorded Tom's "Hello Vietnam" and had a big hit...as mentioned earlier, Dave Dudley nearly made a career recording Tom T Hall songs. "Mad" being one of the earliest songs to hit for Dave that Tom wrote. George Jones is no stranger to Tom T Hall songs, either. George's biggest hit that Tom wrote was "I'm Not Ready Yet", a #2 single in 1980 for George Jones. Tom's biggest hit as a songwriter still remains "Harper Valley PTA" which was recorded by Jeannie C Riley.

Tom was placed in the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1978. In 1988 he abruptly stopped recording...he continued to tour a little...he never made another album or recording until a collection of new songs was released in 1996 called SONGS FROM SOPCHOPPY which included a song he wrote, that would become a huge #1 for Alan Jackson, "Little Bitty". In 2000 he released the collection HOME GROWN which featured his big hit on the Bluegrass charts, "Bill Monroe For Breakfast".

Meanwhile, this box set from 1995, spanning the years 1968-1988, captures the songs that built the legend of the songwriting/storytelling/philosopher Tom T Hall.

Hello Jerry  :wave I am surprised by the passing of the actor on "Who are you Serving".  I watch that show all the time.  It is British made, right?  On PBS, through the BBC.  So sad.

Brooks and Dunn came out in the 60's.  They've been around for a long time.  I have yet to find a cd with the song "My Maria on it.  Maybe amazon.com has one, do you think?  Did it come out as a single?  They are primarly the reason I watch the country award shows, to hear them perform.

I am very familiar with Tom T Hall.  In fact, I dated a fellow that was in a band called "Sleepy LaBeef", honestly and the lead singer was a good friend of his.  Tom T Hall came here once to sit in on one of his friends rehersal sessions and I was there and met him.  The key boardest sang a lot of Charlie Rich songs!  Just a ittle history of me here, haha  See this is why your reviews mean so much to me   :lol They all bring back good memories.  And your reccommedations of cds are great.  Thank you for all of them. :bigsmile  :bigsmile
I bet you have never heard of Sleepy LaBeef.  Let me know if you have ok.
Be back soon.

Hi JERRY,  I really enjoyed your review of the Tom T Hall CD's. I always loved to hear him sing and he always seemed so down-to-earth just like  you said in the review.  Thanks for all the interesting reviews that you do. 
I had forgotten about  a couple of the songs you mentioned, "OLD FIVE AND DIMERS LIKE ME"  and "THE DAY THAT CLAYTON DELANEY DIED".  Is the song about "I lOVE" (I can't remember the name of it) on there? I loved that song too.

 :wave JERRY,  I CAME BACK TO RE-READ YOUR REVIEW ON BROOKS AND DUNN.  I DIDN'T REALIZE THAT THERE WERE OTHER WHO HAD THE SONG "MY MARIA" RECORDED BEFORE THEM.  I HAD ASSUMED ONE OF THE PAIR WROTE IT.
DO YOU KNOW IF EITHER ONE OF THEM ARE SONG/WRITERS?
BE BACK AGAIN TO CHECK FOR ANY NEW REVIEWS. :bigsmile

JERRY - Stopping in to say thank you   :bigsmile I found the cd for Brooks and Dunn's GREATEST HITS, & ordered it and now is on it's way.

Be back to check on any new Reviews you may have posted.

Charlene: I'm glad you found that GREATEST HITS cd. I am not as familiar with the original version that much but i will say that Brooks and Dunn's version is better than the original since i have heard it...but only once or twice. Yes...both of them are songwriters. Kix Brooks used to write songs with Deborah Allen and her husband, Rafe Van Hoy. Kix was a famed songwriter in Nashville long before he became part of the Brooks and Dunn duo. Ronnie Dunn, the singer who sings the lead vocals most of the time, isn't as known as a songwriter as Kix Brooks is.

JERRY - BROOK AND DUNN'S CD SHOULD BE HERE AMY DAY NOW.  THIS MAY SOUND SILLY BUT, I NEVER KNEW EITHER OF THEIR FIRST NAMES.  :bduh 

I WATCHED QVC LAST NIGHT AND NEIL SADAKA WAS ON THERE.  OFCORSE HE MENTIONED CLAY DOING HIS "SOLITAIRE" SONG.  HE WAS SAYING HE GOES WAY BACK IN THE MUSIC BUSINESS. IT WAS AN HOUR SHOW SO, THERE WERE JUST BITS AND PIECES OF HIS CAREER TALKED ABOUT.  DO YOU HAVE INFORMATION ON HIM?  HE HAS BEEN AN ALL TIME FAVORITE OF MINE. WOULD APPRECIATE ANY INSIGHT ON HIM YOU CAN FIND OUT.

OH--I'M GLAD TO KNOW THAT BOTH BROOKS AND DUNN ARE SONG WRITERS.  NO WONDER THEY HAVE WON SO MANY AWARDS!  THANKS AGAIN!  :bigsmile
BE BACK SOON.

:wave Well, off the top of my head...i know that Sedaka wrote songs with Howard Greenfield. Him and Howard are known among the songwriting crowd as legends...a songwriting team...another songwriting team that leaps to mind is Elton John and Bernie Taupin. Barry Manilow has written songs with a lot of people but his "core" team consists of Marty Panzer, Bruce Sussman, and Adrienne Anderson.

Sedaka is also a record producer and piano player...of course, he's also a singer. Did you know he recorded and had a hit twice with the same song? "Breaking Up Is Hard To Do" was an up-tempo pop single in the early days rock but then he re-made the song in the early '70s as a slow ballad. It was a #1 hit all over again when it hit #1 on the AC chart. Sedaka co-wrote a song called "Stupid Cupid"...i don't know if you remember it or not but Connie Francis recorded it. He recorded "Calendar Girl" as well...do you remember the song "Oh, Carol"...then there's "Laughter in the Rain" and "Bad Blood"...i did some digging and found another song called "Happy Birthday Sweet 16". Oh, another song Sedaka had a hand in writing was "Love Will Keep Us Together" by the Captain and Tennielle.

I don't have anything from Sedaka on CD but we all know Sedaka co-wrote "Solitaire". It has been recorded by a lot of artists but of course around here, it's Clay Aiken who reigns supreme when it comes to that recording.

JERRY  :wave THE REVIEW ON NEIL SADAKA WAS "SO" INTERESTING!  I KNOW THAT IF YOU TURN ON AN OLDIES STATION, THERE IS NO DOUBT THAT YOU WILL HEAR ONE ON HIS SONGS. I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW THAT HE HAD A WRITING PARTNER IN THE EARLY YEARS.  SOME OF THE SONGS YOU MENTIONED, ARE SO FAMILIAR.  I REMEMBER "STUPID CUPID" BY CONNICE FRANCIS, BUT DIDN'T KNOW HE WROTE IT.  WOW - HE HAS REALLY HAD A GREAT CAREEER. AND YES OFCORSE, LIKE YOU SAID, CLAY IS THE SUPREME SINGER OF "SOLITIRE".  IN FACT, I REMEMBER WHEN NEIL GUEST HOSTED ON AL2, HE SAID "THIS WILL BE FOREVER A CLAY AIKEN SONG".  WELL MY GOODNESS, I AM LISTNEING TO AN OLDIES STATION RIGHT NOW AND THEY ARE PLAYING "CALENDAR GIRL".  I DON'T HAVE ANY OF HIS CDS EITHER.  I WISH I COULD HAVE ORDERED ONE FROM QVC BECAUSE THERE WAS A BONUSE CD WITH IT.  I WILL LOOK FOR THE NEW ONE THO IN WALMART TODAY.  THANK YOU SO MUCH. :bigsmile

:wave You're welcome for the mini-review off the top of my head about Sedaka! I saw the episode of Idol where Clay sang SOLITAIRE and the camera twirled around in circles as he sang the glory note :yes

This isn't new...but i thought i would post it here...


BLADE (http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070412/ART10/70412017/-1/ART)

Here is George Jones through the years! One of the greatest country singers ever...

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/TAMMYGEORGE.jpg)
1975...Tammy Wynette and George...i do not know who the other man is

This is George and Ronnie Prophet...George appeared on Ronnie's TV show a lot...the program aired in and around Canada...never had a big American following...judging by his appearance, i'd guess and say this was taped in 1976...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/JonesProphet2.jpg)

Very rare album...1990's YOU OUGHTA BE HERE WITH ME...i have it on cassette
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/emoticons/114739.jpg)

This is George in 1981...accepting one of his CMA Awards. George blanked out while on stage...he was under the influence at the time...and he looked out into the audience and thanked "Kitty Wells and Johnny Wright", two artists who had nothing to do with his career at all :lol :lol
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/georgejones01.jpg)

George as a kid when he played his guitar on the streets of Beaumont and other Texas towns in the early 1940's.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/emoticons/youngkid.jpg)

This is modern-day George Jones...picture was taken in 2005...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/GEORGE-JONES-1.jpg)

George Jones in 1969...performing his 1968 Top-10 hit "When The Grass Grows Over Me"
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/productFull2325-N5-CS.jpg)

This album arrived in 1986...it's a GOLD Album...selling over 500,000 copies...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jones_winecolored.jpg)

This is a 1999 collection from MCA Records...spotlighing his material during 1991-1998
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/simg_t_od484884x7fb.jpg)

This is a publicity picture from 1962...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/emoticons/gjones.jpg)

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/george_jones_GI.jpg)
1987 photo

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/JerryFunnies/ns60301172153.jpg)
This is one of his most recent publicity pictures

This is George and Leona Williams singing BEST FRIENDS in 1984 on the TV show "Nashville Now"...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/JerryFunnies/wleona8x10bw-jones.jpg)

This is another picture of George taken around the time of 1983/1984...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/JerryFunnies/sing.jpg)

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jerrytoons/CountryMusicStuff/georgejonesopry2_h_j.jpg)
That is George Jones at the Grand Ole Opry...a view from the announcer's eyes...

Another appearance at the Opry, 1992...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jerrytoons/CountryMusicStuff/jonesgeorge.jpg)

This is a 1983 picture...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jerrytoons/CountryMusicStuff/georgejones.jpg)

Okay...one more picture...this is George and Ernest Tubb from 1979...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/jerrytoons/CountryMusicStuff/ernest_tubb.jpg)

Hi Jerry, I just got caught up over here again. I really enjoyed all the pictures of George. I still say the older he gets the better looking he gets. Thanks for all the reviews.

:wave Hello Janet!! I found some more i had in Photobucket but tucked away in the back pages there of some of my photoalbums...

In 1983 Ray Charles started working on a country album called FRIENDSHIP. A few of the songs were released as singles. The biggest hit was a duet by Ray and Willie Nelson called "Seven Spanish Angels" in 1984. The second biggest hit was "We Didn't See a Thing" which featured Ray and George Jones...this is a photo taken during that time frame in 1983. Chet Atkins was featured on that single, playing lead guitar.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/JerryFunnies/GeorgeJonesAndRayCharles.jpg)

Hello Jerry - I'm glad you got the chance to see Clay do the GLORY not on Solotiaire, it was just as awesome, in fact even more thrillig in person.

Was that picture of George Jones and Ernest Tubbs taken backstage at the grand old opry?  As I was reading your review on him, I saw the pic of him and Tammy, and I always wondered if she did the song "D I V O R C E",  before or after her divorce to George Jones.

Really Great Review today
 :clap I still am amazed at how you keep on top of all these wonderful artists.  Thank you  :bigsmile Be back again.

:wave Hello Charlene! I'm glad you were able to see those George Jones pictures. I really have more than what i posted but that was a good over-view of his career in pictures if i do say so myself :bigsmile

Tammy Wynette had out the song "D-I-V-O-R-C-E" during her marriage to George Jones :yes As you can tell, both her and his singles were often written about themselves. Billy Sherrill, the record producer, would help write songs with a stable of songwriters in an effort to exploit their up and down marriage and it worked. Nearly every single George put out during 1969-1975 were 90% released because the subject matter could be tied into his and Tammy's real-life relationship. Ironically, Tammy didn't release too many singles that seemed to reflect her personal life...she did release a few but not in the same consistency as George. When the two hit a rough spot in their marriage, George released the single "We Can Make It" in 1972 and it was a #6 hit song. The two recorded the duet "We're Gonna Hold On"...but it wasn't released until news leaked out that the two were having arguments...and the tie-in with their real life bickering and promise to patch things up caused the duet to reach #1 in 1973. While the two were having good times, EPIC was releasing happy love songs from George: "What My Woman Can't Do Can't Be Done" was a #6 hit in 1973; "Once You've Had the Best" was a #6 hit in 1973; "Loving You Could Never Be Better" hit #2 in 1972; "I'll Share My World With You" reached #2 in 1969 but that was a single on MUSICOR, the label George was on before going to EPIC in 1972. "I'll Take You To My World" was recorded on an album by George...Tammy released a version of the song as a single...her version was called "Take Me To Your World". It was the same song...but some of the lyrics were changed to make it a song from a woman's perspective.

When the two were having bad times...a lot of sad songs were released by George: "A Picture of Me Without You" hit #5 in 1972; "Nothing Ever Hurt Me Half as Bad as Losing You" hit #7 in 1973; "The Grand Tour" hit #1 in 1974; "The Door" hit #1 in 1975; and "These Days I Barely Get By" hit #10 in 1975. When the single "The Grand Tour" hit the market, George and Tammy had officially separated but were still legally married...the song deals with a man going through his house after his wife left him...and it shot up to #1. "The Door" starts out about a man who's experienced a lot in his life but not even being sent off to a war could compare how he felt when he heard the door slam shut...realizing his wife has left him. The hook of that song comes at the end...

"...and earthquakes, storms, guns, and wars...lord, nothing has ever hurt me more...than that lonesome sound, the closing of The Door..."

George and Tammy's divorce was finalized in January 1975...and soon after, a song from George about not being able to get by from day to day was released. It's a song about a man who has all kinds of bad luck...and it's lyrics about "my wife left and didn't say why..." and "worst of all was when she told me goodbye...whoah These Days I Barely Get By..." tied in with his divorce...and it reached #10. It didn't reach any higher because at that time in country music, pop-country was starting to really pick up steam again on country radio. John Denver and those singers were being played heavier than others. George's personal life also started to really go out of control and during 1975-1979 only three of his singles reached the Top-10 on the country chart: following the 1975 #10 peak of "These Days I Barely Get By", only these 2 singles from George reached the Top-10...the 1976 #3 hit "Her Name Is..." and the 1978 #6 hit "Bartender's Blues". The only other times he was in the Top-10 were with duets with Tammy Wynette of all people...they still recorded after their 1975 divorce and a 1978 duet with Johnny PayCheck. "Golden Ring" was a #1 hit for him and Tammy in 1976...they hit #1 again in 1977 with "Near You"...and they reached #5 with "Southern California" in 1977. It was clear that his duets with Tammy were his biggest hits during the late '70s. George's Top-10 with Johnny PayCheck, "Maybelline", reached #7 in early 1979. By himself, George released these singles during 1975-1979 after the #10 peak of "These Days"...this serves as a display of his solo recordings as compared to his Top-10 recordings with Tammy...

SOLO HITS
1975: Memories of Us; #21
1975: I Just Don't Give a Damn; #92
1976: The Battle; #16
1976: You Always Look Your Best Here in My Arms; #37
1977: Old King Kong; #34
1977: If I Could Put Them All Together; #24
1978: I'll Just Take It Out in Love; #11 {so close to the Top-10}
1979: Someday My Day Will Come; #22

Now...here's a list of his duet releases in that same time frame...

DUET HITS with Tammy Wynette unless otherwise noted:
1975: God's Gonna Get'cha For That; #25
1976: Golden Ring; #1
1977: Near You; #1 {for 2 weeks}
1977: Southern California; #5
1979: Maybelline; #7 with Johnny PayCheck
1979: You Can Have Her; #14 with Johnny PayCheck

Thanks for asking about that picture! That picture of George and Ernest Tubb was taken in 1979 at Cachet Records. Ernest was recording a lot of duets for his own label, Cachet. The album was released in 1979...George recorded several songs with Ernest in 1979 and that's where the photo was taken...somewhere inside Cachet Records.

 :wave JERRY - NOW THAT YOU MENTION THE BAD TIMES GEORGE JONES HAD SUCH BAD TIMES, I RECALL THERE WAS A MADE FOR TV MOVIE OF HIM ANY TAMMY.  HER DIVORCE ALBUM WAS THE VERY FIRST COUNTRY ONE I BOUGHT.  I ALSO REMEMBER "STAND BY YOUR MAN".  I ALWAYS THOUGHT IT WAS WRITTEN FOR HER WITH GEORGE IN MIND.  THEY SURE DID HAVE A LOT OF HITS TOGETHER AND A SINGLE CAREER AS WELL.  I THINK THEY WERE ONE OF THE MORE FAMOUS HUSBAND AND WIFE TEAM IN COUNTRY MUSIC.  YOU CAN'T LISTEN TO THE RADIO AND NOT HEAR BOTH OF THEIR SONGS.

YES,, I REALLY DID LIKE THE WAY YOU DID THEIR CAREER STORY IN PICTURES.  LIKE THEY SAY, A PICTURE TELLS A THOUSAND WORKS! 

ON THE LAST AI SHOW MATINA MCBRIDE WAS THE GUEST ON THERE.  THEY TOLD SOME ABOUT HER CAREER.  SHES'S BEEN AROUND FOR QUITE A WHILE TOO. FOR SOME REASON I HAVE BEEN ONLY FAMILIAR WITH HER SONGS IN RECENT YEARS.  DO YOU KNOW WHEN AND HOW HER CAREER STARTED? 

THANKS AGAIN FOR A GREAT JOB, AND LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING MORE REVIEWS.  BE BACK SOON  :bigsmile

:wave I like Martina McBride...not a huge fan of hers...i like some of her songs, though. Her current single, "Anyway", is #5 on the country chart. She's been around on country radio since the mid '90s. She signed a contract with RCA Records in 1991 and released an album in 1992. She had a Top-40 hit with her first single in 1992 but two follow-up singles in late 1992 and mid 1993 didn't reach the Top-40. It wasn't until she released the single "My Baby Loves Me" in late 1993 that she became a "star" in country music. She became a super-star when she released the single "Indpendence Day" in 1994. Even though the single reached #12 on the country chart, it became a big music video hit and was adapted at many political conventions for Republicans.

Martina continued having Top-10 and Top-40 singles throughout 1995 and 1996...with "Broken Wing" being a monster #1 country hit. Then she followed that in 1997 with "Valentine", which hit #9 country but #3 on the AC chart and this caused her music to cross-over...her country career and her profile rose...becoming a huge selling country act. A lot of her singles were vocally demanding on her voice and she took a break for 2-3 years...during the late '90s, though, Martina was the #1 female country singer...she made a return to the country Top-10 in 2001 with "When God Fearin' Women Get The Blues". Several of her singles were crossing over to pop/AC radio with a lot of frequency...and that is probably why you only heard of her in recent years.

She is married to John McBride. Martina was born on July 29, 1966.

These are Martina's Top-10 hit songs:

1993; "My Baby Loves Me" #2-Country
1994;  "Life #9"  #6-Country
1996; "Safe In The Arms Of Love" #4-Country
1996; "Wild Angels"    #1-Country
1997;  "A Broken Wing"    #61-pop    #1-Country
1997;  "Valentine" (w/Jim Brickman)    #50-pop   #9-Country    #3-AC
1998;  "Happy Girl"     #2-Country
1999;  "Wrong Again"    #36-pop    #1-Country
1999;  "Whatever You Say"    #37-pop    #2-Country
1999;  "I Love You"    #24-pop    #1-Country    #21-AC
1999;  "Love's The Only House"    #42-pop    #3-Country
2000;  "There You Are"   #60-pop    #10-Country    #15-AC
2001;  "When God-Fearin' Women Get The Blues"    #64-pop  #8-Country
2002;  "Blessed"    #31-pop    #1-Country
2002;  "Where Would You Be"    #45-pop    #3-Country
2002;  "Concrete Angel"    #47-pop    #5-Country
2003;  "This One's For The Girls"  #39-pop   #3-Country  #1-AC
2004;  "In My Daughter's Eyes" #39-pop #4-Country  #3-AC
2007;  "Anyway" #5-Country {current single}

 Jerry, that is so ironic, I came back on for a few mins and was going to ask you if she was the one who sang "Independence Day" and "Broken Wings".

To my surprise you had already posted a review on Martina McBride.  Thank you so much.  So she went back as far as the 90s, wow, she looks quite young.  I believe she sang her new song on AL. 

You cleared up the fact that I assumed that it was Sara Evans who sang "Broken Wings".  I'll have to check out her cds in the country section of Walmart.  No wonder I couldn't find that song, wrong artists.  That's why I appreciate what you do here in your thread. :hugg 

Jerry - I read your post about the DVD called, Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman.  Is that a cd or is it a cartoon character?
I'll keep checking in here to see when you have done your review on it.
Be back soon.

 :wave JERRY
I READ YOUR POST ON JACK BENNY OVER AT THE OCD.  DID HE DO A CHARACTER DRESSED AS A WOMAN?  OR AM I THINKIG OF SOMEONE ELSE.  I KNOW THAT HE PLAYED THE VIOLIN AND MADE A JOKE OUT OF IT BUT, WAS REALLY GOOD AT WITH THAT INSTRUMENT.  HE REMINDS ME A LITTLE BIT OF YOU, WITH HIS SKITS.  NOW THAT IS MEANT AS A COMPLIMENT! :bigsmile

DO YOU REMEMBER IS SCOOBY-DOO OR SNAGGLEPUSS WAS INCLUDE WITH THE YOGI DVD I ORDERED.  HOPE YOU SO A REVIEW NOW ON THE DVD YOU FINISHED WATCHING.
BE BACK SOON.

:wave Thanks! I read your PM a few minutes ago! Amazon says my Mary Hartman DVD will arrive between April 30th and May 7th. So anyday now it should be here. They had to do a "back-order" because the original supply sold out quicker than expected. That's why it's taking longer than normal.

Thanks again for the remarks about Jack Benny!! I could go on and on and on and on about him. I grew up watching his TV show on Sunday mornings on the local PBS station. It would air for an hour...9-10am...two back to back episodes. At 10am Sid Caesar's show, YOUR SHOW OF SHOWS, aired. At 10:30 on Sunday mornings the show that typically aired was BURNS AND ALLEN or Jackie Gleason's LIFE OF RILEY. Now, this was an obscure program...William Bendix actually portrayed Riley on radio and on films...when it came to TV, they picked Gleason to play the role. It wasn't a big hit but it's famous among the nostalgia fans because it's Jackie Gleason.

As far as Jack Benny...as you pointed out in your PM...his feminine walk and his vanity were part of his character...as was his bad violin playing and him being a cheapskate. In earlier episodes that aired on radio, Jack stopped aging at 39. He had grey hair during his later radio episodes but his vanity routine caused him to darken his hair as a joke and so all through his TV show he kept his hair dark. On radio he would often visit his basement...where he supposedly had a moat filled with alligators and an assortment of falling knives...these were security devices for his money.

In the storyline, Jack kept all his millions in a vault in his basement. Once you get passed the falling knives, you open a vault door...we hear it creak open...then more falling knives...then we hear another creaking vault door open...then, still, hear more falling knives...the joke was that Jack built several outer layers to his money vault...finally, after the last creaking vault door was heard opening, you'd hear splashing water...then hear alligators...creating the illusion that Jack was rowing across a moat. Then once he got across the moat, you'd hear him opening up the main vault...when it opened, all sorts of sirens and whistles and loud noises blasted. It was like a burglar alarm. Then, once the alarm was shut off, you'd hear footsteps from Jack and then hear off in the distance "Hault! Who Goes There? Friend or Foe?". This was Ed, the Vaultkeeper...a man that Jack kept in his vault to protect his money :lol :lol :lol :lol

Do you remember the DENNIS THE MENACE show? The man who played the first Mr Wilson, Joseph Kearns, was the man who played Ed on Jack's radio show. The second Mr Wilson, by the way, was Gale Gordon...he had a long career in radio as well but became famous as Lucille Ball's side-kick when he played the character, Mr Mooney. Anyway, Gale Gordon had a recurring role on Jack's radio show...he typically paired up with Harold Gould...playing an IRS agent. Usually around tax time, shows were written around Jack's money and Gale Gordon was usually the IRS agent who didn't say much in comparison to the character Harold Gould played. By the way, Gould played on RHODA...he played the part of the father. In later years, Gould was on the GOLDEN GIRLS playing the man who dated Betty White's character, Rose.

Title: Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? The Complete Third Season
Format: DVD...2 DVD collection
Running Time: 359 Minutes

On this collection, we are treated to 16 episodes of Scooby-Doo that came on the scene in the late '70s. There was a TV program called SCOOBY's ALL-STARS. It ran 90 minutes...it featured re-runs of SCOOBY-DOO, WHERE ARE YOU? from 1969 and 1970 plus among the re-runs, these all-new 16 episodes were featured. It was billed as "lost episodes" because the cartoons were drawn in the style of the 1969 series...complete with the same style of mysteries. Anyway, this is why the DVD is called SCOOBY-DOO, WHERE ARE YOU: THE COMPLETE THIRD SEASON when in fact there was no third season of that series because it was only in production from 1969-1970 and 1970-1971...two seasons. What we have here as i mentioned, are 16 episodes from 1978 patterned after the 1969 series.

These episodes are rarely shown in all of the numerous Scooby programs that have aired...the original 1969 series often gets the most airplay since they were the originals. On these episodes we see Scooby and the gang solving mysteries that are often filled with the super-natural and there is usually the utter of the classic catch-phrase: "i would've gotten away with it, too, if you and that dog hadn't shown up!". The opening sequence of the episodes show Scooby water skiing and being chased by killer sharks. The program is called THE SCOOBY-DOO SHOW. So, the name of this collection set the more hardcore Scooby fans into a fit.

One of the highlights is tucked away on DVD #2 on side B. It's a behind the scenes look at the show's production...from the drawings to the writing to the voice acting to the time it hits the air. There's a lot of clips of the staff. Scooby was created by Ken Ruby, Joe Spears, and Iwao Takamoto...Hanna-Barbera produced the show and because they liked to be involved with the show and were the "face" of the company, they get a lot of the credit for the shows even if they never personally created the characters. The creators never minded, though...they made millions and millions from Scooby and still are.

One of the episodes on this DVD that i liked real well was "Make a Beeline Away from that Feline" in which Scooby and the gang are puzzled by a cat monster. The Bermuda Triangle legend is spoofed in one of the cartoons on DVD #1, "A Creepy Tangle in the Bermuda Triangle". In the 1969 series, homages were frequently payed to Boris Karloff...there were often Karloff-inspired villains on that series...well, the theme was re-visited on this DVD with the inclusion of the phrase Inner Sanctum into the storyline in one of the episodes. Inner Sanctum was the name of a Karloff horror program.

Here is a history of Scooby-Doo i copied off Wikipedia...this is told on another DVD collection of Scooby-Doo that i have...

In 1968, Fred Silverman, executive in charge of children's programming for the CBS network, was looking for a show that would revitalize his Saturday morning line-up and please the watchdog groups at the same time. The result was The Archie Show, based upon Bob Montana's teenage humor comic book Archie. Also successful were the musical numbers The Archies performed during each program (one of which, "Sugar, Sugar", was the most successful Billboard number-one hit of 1969). Silverman was eager to expand upon this success, and contacted producers William Hanna and Joseph Barbera about possibly creating another show based around a teenage rock group, but with an extra element: the kids would solve mysteries in between their gigs. Silverman envisioned the show as a cross between the popular I Love a Mystery radio serials of the 1940s and the popular early 1960s TV show The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis.

Hanna and Barbera passed this task along to two of their head storymen, Joe Ruby and Ken Spears, and artist/character designer Iwao Takamoto. Their original concept of the show bore the title Mysteries Five, and featured five teens (Geoff, Mike, Kelly, Linda, and Linda's brother "W.W.") and their dog, Too Much, who were all in a band called "The Mysteries Five" (even the dog; he played the bongos). When "The Mysteries Five" were not performing at gigs, they were out solving spooky mysteries involving ghosts, zombies, and other supernatural creatures. Ruby and Spears then had to decide what to make their dog. At first, they chose between a large cowardly dog and a small feisty dog. When the former was chosen, the options became a large goofy Great Dane or a big shaggy sheepdog. After consulting with Barbera on the issue, Too Much was finally set as a Great Dane, primarily to avoid a direct correlation to The Archies (who had a sheepdog, Hot Dog, in their band). Ruby and Spears had feared the Great Dane would be too similar to the comic strip character Marmaduke, but Barbera assured them it would not be a problem.

Takamoto consulted a studio colleague who happened to be a breeder of Great Danes. After learning the characteristics of a prize-winning Great Dane from her, Takamoto proceeded to break most of the rules and designed Too Much with overly bowed legs, a double chin, and a sloped back, among other abnormalities.

By the time the show was ready for presentation by Silverman, a few more things had changed: Geoff and Mike were merged into one character called "Ronnie" (later renamed "Fred", at Silverman's behest), Kelly was renamed to "Daphne", Linda was now called "Velma", and Shaggy (formerly "W.W.") was no longer her brother. Also, Silverman – not being very fond of the name Mysteries Five – had rechristened the show Who's S-S-Scared? Using storyboards, presentation boards, and a short completed animation sequence, Silverman presented Who's S-S-Scared? to the CBS executives as the centerpiece for the upcoming 1969–1970 season's Saturday morning cartoon block. The executives felt that the presentation artwork was far too frightening for young viewers and, thinking the show would be the same, decided to pass on it.

Now without a centerpiece for the upcoming season's programming, Silverman turned to Ruby and Spears, who reworked the show to make it more comedic and less frightening. They dropped the rock band element, and began to focus more attention on Shaggy and Too Much. According to Ruby and Spears, Silverman was inspired by the ad-lib "doo-be-doo-be-doo" he heard at the end of Frank Sinatra's interpretation of Bert Kaempfert's song "Strangers in the Night" on the way out to one of their meetings, and decided to rename the dog "Scooby-Doo" and re-rechristen the show Scooby-Doo, Where are You! The revised show was re-presented to CBS executives, who approved it for production.

And so, that is how Scooby-Doo came to be in 1969. This DVD captures 16 of Scooby's adventures...Shaggy and Scooby make the show as we all know. Scooby and Shaggy, both scared and nervous of the slightest noises, typically run into the ghost or demon...the formula worked for years and years. The voices of the characters on this collection are as follows:

Don Messick: Scooby-Doo
Casey Kasem: Shaggy
Frank Welker: Fred
Heather North: Daphne
Nicole Jaffe: Velma

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/JerryFunnies/12339000.jpg)

Casey Kasem in later years chooses when he wants to voice Shaggy. Currently, he isn't the voice of Shaggy on the latest version, Shaggy and Scooby-Doo Get a Clue. He was the voice of Shaggy on the previous series, What's New Scooby Doo.

TV series in the Scooby history; 1969-current day; the years on the air do not reflect the actual years in production...

1. Scooby-Doo, Where are You!    1969–1972; CBS    25 episodes
2. The New Scooby-Doo Movies    1972–1974; CBS    24 episodes
3. The Scooby-Doo Show               1976–1979; ABC   40 episodes
4. Laff-a-Lympics     1977–1979; ABC    24 episodes
5. Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo    1979–1980; ABC    16 episodes
6. Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo    1980–1982; ABC    33 episodes
7. The All-New Scooby and Scrappy-Doo Show    1983–1985; ABC  26 episodes
8. The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo    1985–1986; ABC    13 episodes

~there was no Scooby show in production or in re-runs in 1987~

9.  A Pup Named Scooby-Doo    1988–1991; ABC    29 episodes
10. What's New, Scooby-Doo?    2002–2005;  Kids WB    42 episodes
11. Shaggy & Scooby-Doo Get a Clue!    2006–(present), Kids WB on The CW  13 episodes so far

Hello, Jerry - I must say, Jack Benny not getting older than 39, is something I forgot about him.  He was just so multi-talented!  I watched his show all the time too.  You never knew what he was going to come up with next!  YEP, you really do remind me of him.  See we here never know when your going to post a skit, and it always turns out so funny!  Playing a skin-flint with his money was one of the greatest parts of his routine.
I think people realted to him because he touched so many hearts with his comedy.

Boy, what a memory, I do remember Deninis the Menace and Gayle Storm as well.  There were so mnay comdeians back then.
Down to earth entertainment.  I wish there were  more shows on Tv like those in these days.  In my opinion, the world needs more laughter!

Thank you once again for the great reviews.  I hope to get the cartoon characters DVD by this weekend.  And thanks for helping me pick the best of the best DvD to enjoy.
Be back soon! :bigsmile

Jerry,  I stopped in today to let you know that it is nice to have these reviews available when someone is looking to buy a CD or DVD.  So many times I have bought one, then didn't really care for a lot of the songs, or other things they put on them.  This way, I can pick and choose ahead of time, which one I like best, in addition when going to a store, know exactly what to look for.

Thank you for the time and effort you put into doing these reviews! :bouncy  :bouncy

Hello Jerry - I watched an hour interview the other night with TRACE ATKINS. He had quite a career there for a while. Nothing was mentioned about what he is doing now. Do you know who I am talking about? I was wondering if you knew weather or not he is still recording, or touring? Could you see if you can find some information on him?
Oh,I forgot, One more thing, remember that show on PBS, Who Are You Serving, a BBC production. My brother is interested in buying some DVDs of the show. Not sure if it is out on DVD or not. If you have time to check, I can let him know, thanks!
Be back soon.

 Charlene: :yes I know of the show you're speaking of. One of it's stars, John Inman, passed away recently. He played the gay character, Mr Humphries. The show was ARE YOU BEING SERVED? I was at Amazon and they have several DVDs and videos of the show. I have seen just about every episode PBS has to offer. There are some episodes that have never been shown in America before...they have a complete collection DVD but that's a big price to pay. I'd pay for it if i were totally wrapped up in the show...but i can get by with my memories of it.

Trace Adkins is still making music. He had a huge hit last year with a weird song called "Honky Tonk Ba Donk a Donk". He's had several other hits as well on country radio. His big hit to date is that song i just mentioned. His biggest serious hit song is "Every Light in the House is On". He's also had hits with "The Rest of Mine", "Lonely Won't Leave Me Alone" and "This Ain't No Thinkin' Thing". They were all country radio hits.

Hi Jerry- "It Aint No Thinking Thing" by Trace Atkins was the first time
I saw him.  He had that signature dance when he sang that song, ocforse the ladies went crazy over that, yes me to haha.    "Honky Tonk Ba Donk a Donk", I hear many times on the radio, but didn't associate it with Trace Atkins.  Glad to hear he is still recording.


Thanks for the information on WHOSE BEING SERVED!  I will give the information to my Brother.  Since I am  bad with names, now I know exactly which character left us.  He was a great part of that show! 

Like I have said before, you are like a walking encylopedia!  I love music and comedy, they both make you laugh and sometimes cry.  Thank God for PBS and all of the CDS & DVDS that are out in the stores and by websites, many, many enjoyable hours watching them.  And ofcorse, people to see sing the songs in person, especially our CLAY!

 :clap  :clap

 You're welcome! I've always liked the show as you know from reading my reviews.

I'm watching episode #11 of my MARY HARTMAN dvd. I had seen episodes #1 through #9 on TV Land during a short marathon so i started watching episode #10 on DVD #2. There are 18 episodes total...9 episodes on 2 DVD's. There is a third DVD as well...there are seven episodes on that collection. Each show is nearly 21 minutes minus commercials.

Dody Goodman is on now in a scene and she and Mary Kay Place are going back and fourth in a kitchen. Dody played Mary's mother, Martha Shumway. Mary Kay Place played country singer, Loretta Haggers. Loretta made a remark about how Mary must use cream on her face because age seems to not affect her and Martha said in that voice: "Well, cream or no cream Mary's gonna be as wrinkled as an accordion if things don't straighten up". Martha and Loretta were talking about the crisis going on in their life. Tom Hartman, the husband of Mary, has an affair starting with episode #10 and it continues in the following episodes despite him knowing the woman he's with is also married and has a string of lovers by her own admission.

Mary, on the other hand, is typically being pursued by a local policeman who is in love with her. Elements of real soap opera's were the basis for this series and the comedy came from the absurdity and eccentrics of the characters. Charlie Haggers, the husband of Loretta, in a scene announced to Tom about Loretta's early news of being pregnant. Well, Charlie being all smiles said: "Tom! Guess what! I'm gonna have a baby!" and Tom grinned and laughed saying his congratulations saying "congratulations! that's wonderful news, Charlie, you're having a baby!" and he looked at Loretta and in all seriousness said "and you, too!" :lol :lol :lol

In these episodes, the on-going storyline is about Heather Hartman being missing...she's the daughter of Mary and Tom. Well, the storylines are all tangled together...there's a mass murderer on the loose as well...Heather eventually returns but it's all still a mystery why she was missing and why she has to go back by 6:30pm. The joke, even though it's dark humor, is Heather, Mary, and Martha talking about it casually...Mary decides to visit on her own by 6pm instead of sending out Heather. This launches the show into another short storyline about Mary being held captive by the mass murderer of Fernwood. It's something a person has to view to really grasp since trying to explain all of the chaos that goes on. One thing that's funny is George Shumway, Mary's father. He seems to be the only "sane" person on the show and can read between the lines of everything that's going on.

If you remember the show WKRP IN CINCINNATI, the program director, Andy Travis, he was the only sane one among the nutty DJ's and radio people. This is much like George on MARY HARTMAN...he was the sane, rational thinker...but it was comical because he could outburst and hollar. One of the things is George's ranting would build up like a song...he'd start out yelling and it get intenser as he went on and on and on until he exploded his frustrations to any who would listen. Mary Hartman's maiden name is Shumway...she married Tom Hartman. This is why the majority of the people on the show have the last name of Shumway.

Charlie figures out Tom is having an affair with another woman...the joke about the affair is the woman is so casual about it while Tom's mind is full of guilt...but then again, Tom never shown any interest in being intimate with his own wife to begin with. Debralee Scott co-stars as Cathy Shumway, Mary's younger sister whose written on the show as a loose woman. One of the funnier lines between Martha and Cathy is about Cathy's date, a man who's deaf and can't speak...Cathy wonders about herself and ponders the idea of never being able to find another man and Martha says to her daughter casually "Oh Cathy, stop that kind of talk, you've never had any trouble finding men" :lol :lol

Martha's father is a regular cast-member...he goes by the name Grandpa Larkin. He's known as the Fernwood Flasher because he likes to flash people. Cathy's deaf mute boyfriend knows of the grandfather...the boyfriend pulled his zip-up sweater in an open and close fashion as his way of saying "ohhh, i know of him...he's the flasher".

The entire soap as i spoke of in previous posts is played like an actual soap opera. This DVD i have showcases just the first 25 episodes of the show and in season one alone there were 325 episodes because the program aired everyday like a regular soap opera. Near the end of the second season, not on this DVD obviously, Mary has a nervous breakdown on THE DAVID SUSSKIND SHOW...it's one of the last episodes featuring Louise Lasser, the actress who played Mary Hartman. She ran away with the policeman she was having an affair with.

I hope there is another collection made available soon...it'll contain the more bizarre episodes involving the mean Garth Gimble and his wife, Pat...Merle Jeter, a sleazy politician, and his on-going affairs...and the infamous episodes dealing with the death of Merle's son, an eight year old evangelist who was electrocuted in his bathtub plus the death of Garth Gimble who met his demise in a bizarre way. Near the end of the show's original run, Garth's twin brother, Barth, shown up. The program's name was changed to FOREVER FERNWOOD after the second season when Louise Lasser left the program. The town that everything took place in was Fernwood, Ohio. The episodes that are not on this DVD collection feature the town mayor, Merle Jeter, played by Dabney Coleman. Martin Mull as Garth Gimble/Barth Gimble...anyway, this MARY HARTMAN, MARY HARTMAN collection is filled with the zaniness that layed the foundation for what the show is known for. Barth Gimble would become the host of a series called FERNWOOD 2-NITE, a spoof of late-night talk shows, with Martin Mull reprising his role and Fred Willard and Frank DeVol joining as announcer Jerry Hubbard and bandleader Happy Kyne, respectively.

A cast picture of the main characters:

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v345/ACcountryFan/Clay/mkp070.jpg)

Back row: Mary Kay Place as Loretta; Graham Jarvis as Charlie; Greg Mullavey as Tom; Louise Lasser as Mary; Victor Kilian as Grandpa Larkin.

Front row: Dody Goodman as Martha; Claudia Lamb as Heather; Phil Bruns as George; and Debralee Scott as Cathy.