AC Reviews

[ACcountryFan]

Hello Meesa and LadyC.

Have you ever seen The Pirate Movie? I'd love to hear your thoughts if you've seen it...

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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 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..."

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..." 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.

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

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

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. 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

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.
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I got an autograph and met him

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Meesa: I'm jealous of you! 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...

[KSChristian4Clay]

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.

[ACcountryFan]

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.

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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 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 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??"

"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.... 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.

[KSChristian4Clay]

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!

[ACcountryFan]

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!

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On the home video i'm about to review, Ray came out on stage on a motorcylcle 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".

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 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

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!" 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.

[ACcountryFan]

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...



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!

[ACcountryFan]

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!

[Franny]

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.

[ACcountryFan]

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.

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Hello Franny! I'm used to seeing you over in the Manilow thread 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

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 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..."

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

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

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.

[ACcountryFan]

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!

[ACcountryFan]

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.

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

[ACcountryFan]

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.

[ACcountryFan]

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"

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

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.

[ACcountryFan]

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.

[ACcountryFan]

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!

[Franny]

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.

[ACcountryFan]

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.

============================
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!

[ACcountryFan]

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.

[ACcountryFan]

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"

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

[ACcountryFan]

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.