Country-Rock's Major Landmark
589898
In 1968, there were two ways an American band could make an impact on the charts: surrender to the trippy hippie stylings that would render your hit singles dated and ludicrous only a few years later, or try something totally divergent from whatever was selling. The Byrds took the second route, and ensured a place in history with "Sweetheart of The Rodeo".

Roger McGuinn, Chris Hillman, Kevin Kelley, and Gram Parsons put their musical heads together to come up with a new way of playing old standards from country and western music, and Parsons contributed some fine originals in "Hickory Wind" and "One Hundred Years From Now". After a dispute with the manager of Parsons's first group, his vocals were replaced mostly by McGuinn in an effort to avoid legal troubles and (possibly, as Parsons left before the record was released) to expunge any record of his participation by McGuinn. But the record that remained was well on its way to redefining the boundries between rock and country.

Within a year of its release, CCR dominated the charts with rollicking, countrified rock that sounded like Deep South boogies, and Johnny Cash was on his way to a second comeback that would last well into the seventies. The Band, already masters of the format, would produce more authentic versions of what the Byrds were trying to do on this record. But the release of "Sweetheart" certainly helped in pointing the way towards the blending of genres that still continues to this day.

It would be rash to say that "Sweetheart" is a harbinger of things to come, as the singer-songwriter movement of the seventies is probably not one that should be held up as a result. But it did make the fusion of rock sensibilities with a country style a reality.

The record as it is presented here restores Parsons's vocals on bonus versions of the album's songs, and it's hard to imagine that the album could sound any better than it does in this presentation. McGuinn acquits himself well as a vocalist on the standards (though he shines on the Dylan covers, which were always a Byrds forte). Hillman even gets in the mix with "I am A Pilgrim", a moving old ballad. All in all, this is a Byrds much removed from "Eight Miles High"/"Turn Turn Turn"/"Mr. Tambourine Man", but still uniquely their own. It's country, but with a twist.

Parsons, perhaps the most storied of the Byrds' various alumni, would die a few years later, leaving behind a recording legacy that is frustrating in its brevity. But this record is a solid testament to his love of country music, and his ability to convey that with his bandmates. "Sweetheart of The Rodeo" may very well be the finest example of roots rock ever committed to vinyl, and nothing can match the simple beauty of "You're Still On My Mind", "You Ain't Going Nowhere", "The Christian Life", and more. This is the album you need if you want to understand why rock and country (two radically different styles these days) share a common bond nonetheless. From 1968 to today, "Sweetheart of The Rodeo" is still relevant.
4509202
I grew up listening to country music, but that doesn't mean I'm a lifelong fan; once I left 'goat-roper country' for the university and beyond, I pretty much never looked back. I prefer classic rock, easy jazz, Mannheim Steamroller, and eclectic stuff like Celestial Navigations. I bought this CD & book for my daughter not because it's country, but because it's by Sandra Boynton & Co., and their last four albums have been smash hits in my household.  But listening to this album reminded me that country music can be pretty darn good too!  My favorites are the lively "Broken Piano", "The Heartache Song" because that is sooooo very like my kid, and "End of a Summer Storm" Because it evokes one particular memory for me, an experience that I haven't had since I left the sand &  sagebrush behind; the dark beauty of watching a summer thunderstorm rolling past on the horizon late at night.
3139630
The best thing about this reissue of Big Country's 1983 debut album, The Crossing, is that it includes the subsequent EP, Wonderland, which also contains some great songs. The CD thus offers over seventy minutes of psssionate e-bow-altered guitar and equally passionate lyrics, which feature the late Stuart Adamson's folk- and working-class inspired lyrics. This CD also sounds great, with a somewhat fuller sound than the original LP. It is, finally, a great bargain.
823623
This album represents the culmination of the musical talents of Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, John Bonham, and John Paul Jones. To date, this album has sold over 25 million copies. Black Dog has one of the most recognizable intros in rock history. The song was a perfect introduction to the rest of the albums well-crafted and thought provoking tunes. Rock & Roll is THE rock and roll song that encapsulates everything that rock is and should be, a fast-paced, fun-loving, and joyous compilation of everything rock represents. Misty Mountain Hop features what is arguably the best drum sound of John Bonham's storied career. The bass drum is hard-hitting and driving, as well as being highly precise and nuanced. Four Sticks is a departure from Bonham's usual technique, he employs four woods on this composition giving a sense of extreme urgency to the sound of the song. Going To California is Jimmy Page's stand alone track. He uses arpeggios, sweep picking, and alternate picking to give tonal variation. The song also has a decidedly country and folksy feel to it. Stairway To Heaven, the most requested song in radio airplay history, is a all-encompassing track that goes on for over eight minutes. The song starts slow, but builds in intensity throughout the track with a grand finale, Page, Bonham, and Jones playing at their best. The album closes with When The Levee Breaks, a song that gives the impression to the listener that you are on a long and compelling journey, much like being on a slow moving frieght train. The monotonous drumming of Bonham adds to this effect. This album is undoubtedly a MUST HAVE for ANY rock collection, your musical library is incomplete without it.
2015048
Anyone who remembers the roots of country music will surely enjoy this album. From love songs to foot-stompin' tunes, to songs that tell a story, "Close to the Edge" by Diamond Rio spans the entire spectrum. While the title cut is not my favorite tune, it is both the last and one of the liveliest. My favorite cut is "Sawmill Road", which in the tradition of Kenny Rogers' "Ruby, Dont Take Your Love to Town" recounts the life story of three young people raised in rural America, two of whom leave their roots behind for different reasons. I also enjoyed "Oh Me, Oh My, Sweet Baby", "In A Week Or Two", "It Does Get Better Than This",--and it does with "Old Weakness (Coming on Strong)" about a man who's old flame has come back to town. "Calling All Hearts (Come Back Home)" and "This Romeo Ain't Got Julie Yet" are tunes more in line with today's "Contemporary Country" sound, while "Demons And Angels", a song about a man's struggle between love for his woman and love for the bottle, harken back to country music's roots. "Nothing In This World" livens the pace which crests with the title cut "Close To The Edge." Beginning on a lively note, and ending on one, with a joyful, tuneful ride in between, this album is a nearly flawless diamond. I highly recommend it.
1916350
Despite not living in the UK, I've been a fan of Big Country for as long as I can remember (I live in the Southern U.S., so most people here think that Big Country is a country music band. I guess it's because the word "country" is right in the name?) As a child, the only album my dad had the compilation "The Best of Big Country," but it was enough for me to get me into the band as I got older. Over the years, my dad, my brother, and I have added most of the discography to our collection, from the first three albums "The Crossing", "Steeltown", and "The Seer", to later albums such as "Why the Long Face?" and "John Wayne's Dream." We've got live albums, such as "Without the Aid of a Safety Net" and compilations, such as last year's excellent "At the BBC" (which I also reviewed). But for the longest time, the one album that eluded me was this one, "Restless Natives and Rarities." Every review or article I read about the album made it sound like one of the greatest treasures of the Big Country discography (spoiler alert: it is). The only problems were how hard it was to find and how expensive it was when I did. Just look on here. The CD is going for $54 and up used and $192 and up new. But finally it's easily available here in the U.S. without paying a lot of money for it, and it was totally worth the wait.

If you're looking at this album you probably know what it is, but for the uninformed "Restless Natives and Rarities" is a compilation album. It's not a "best of" but, like the name suggests, is a collection of songs that are lesser known, not as available, yet still very good. It also includes the 35 minute soundtrack to the Scottish film "Restless Natives," which Big Country composed. The songs are a good mix of early, middle, and later Big Country and a lot of them lack the polish of tracks on primary releases, which is a great thing. To me, part of the appeal of last year's "At the BBC" was the rawness of the alternate recordings and live tracks. This is the case here as well, not just on the songs that I was familiar with but with the ones that are completely new to me.

If you're like me, and have really wanted the album but were unwilling to pay the high price or pirate it, you definitely need to download it now. If you're a new Big Country fan (and I hope there are always new Big Country fans) you can buy it too, but you will probably enjoy it more if you start with the first three albums I mentioned above.
300847
I was 17 when this album was released in 1968.  For The Byrds new album I was expecting, as McGuinn had said in interviews, something along the lines of the rock/electronic/jazzy experimentation of THE NOTORIOUS BYRD BROTHERS.  But no this was country music!  I was shocked and disappointed, as were many of the rock critics at the time.  The DJs on the then new "underground" FM rock radio stations didn't know what to make of it.  But, as Dylan said, "The Byrds can do things that most people don't even know about."  And, once again, they proved themselves to be light years ahead of the curve.  So far ahead, in fact, that this time the record buyers didn't buy the record.  But time has proved McGuinn, Hillman, Parsons, White, and Kelly to be right.  The trail they blazed, along with Gene Clark and Doug Dillard on THE FANTASTIC EXPEDITION OF DILLARD AND CLARK, also released in 1968, has proved so very wide, and opened up a lot of peoples' eyes (including mine) to just how great country music can be.  This album is fine, and I should know, because I've been listening to it for over 32 years.
2906196
Buck was the biggest selling Country artist of the 60's decade. He scored more top 10 hits than any other Country artist in that decade. I prefer this volume over volume 1 because of songs like "Made in japan", "Foolin around", "My heart skips a beat", and "Under the influence". Back in 1989 in Macon,Georgia at WDEN-I did a show called The Classic Country Showcase- I must've played Made in Japan every week (along with Easy Lovin by Freddy Hart and Room 269 by Freddy Weller)- "Japan" is  my favorite by him. Buck was just one plain cool country singer with an incredible sound. If you ever go through Bakersfield, California get on Buck Owens Boulevard at night and go see The Buck Owens palace showplace. It is absolutely beautiful. Keep Honky Tonkin'
2834443
It's strange what happened around 1978..1980, really. Country rock was suddenly completely out of fashion, which meant two things. Some bands returned to country music - and others, like Poco, Firefall, The Ozark Mountain Daredevils and Nitty Gritty Dirt Band turned to rock. Hard. Some, like Poco made their probably best ever albums, some were less successful. But most of those albums recorded between 1978..1982 both rocked hard and had amazing songs!

The (Nitty Gritty) Dirt Band's 1980 work "Make a Little Magic" is a nice effort, having both very good songs like "Anxious heart" and "Badlands" (not forgetting the title track with Nicolette Larson) and less memorable works. But it was "Jealousy" which really became this band's rock masterpiece. It reminds me a lot of Poco's absolutely powerful "Under The Gun" album - perhaps even on purpose. Most songs are strong, sometimes even fierce ("Crossfire"). Still, there are softer, even funny moments ("Forget it!") and great melodies everywhere. And, of course, Steve Lukather (Toto) blasting out in the title track...  (he remembered this album when I met him in Helsinki a couple of years ago)

A wonderful collection of everything this band has been about, from folkish country to fierce rock. Recommended! Next, I just hope we'll see a re-release of their next album "Let's Go"!
1707183
This one of those Greatest Hits / Best Of type of albums that will cater to anyone with tastes for music that span all genres ; from country to rock to metal and everything in between.

Althought it is primarily a hard rock & metal collection, there are some of Ron Keel's country and hillbilly-rock cuts featured on this disc.

I personally was not big on the country tracks (credited as released under Ronnie Lee Keel), even though I do like some country - just not from my metal heroes & icons, haha.

The other non-Keel tracks (from Iron Horse, Sabre Tiger, Fair Game, and Ron Keel) were not bad at all. Some good tunes there.

The biggest perk for me in getting this album was finding that RK had autographed the cover and personally signed not only a letter of thanks for my purchase, but he appears to have signed off on the customs mailing label as well - suggesting that he may have mailed it himself. Well, maybe not that far, but it indicates he had that much more involvement with the processing my order anyway, even if he didn't drop it in the mailbox himself, lol. Cool huh?

Overall, this compilation is good for the music fan of eclectic tastes, and the die-hard Keel fans.

WTW
368686
I have had this album for years, ever since it came out.  There is a great mix of music on here, but my fav has to be "little sisters blue jeans".  As picky as I am about my music, I only had 3 skip-over songs on this album: Addicted to a dollar, Thats a lie, and Wishbone.  The others are all fantastic.  A definite must for any country music collector or fan.
3098281
If you are a fan of Smokie, this is the album to get, there is plenty of fine country-rock and that pop sound from Mike Chapman and Nicky Chinn.  If you are not too familiar with Smokie this is a great introduction.  I prefer their country-rock material.  Sometimes the lyrics are not too strong, but the melodies and harmonies are gorgeous.  If you like this kind of music then you may like the following albums:

1) Banjos And Sunshine by Sixty Acres

2) Stranger's Almanac by Whiskey Town

3) The Ultimate Collection by Poco

4) Good To Be Here by Ernest Goodlife Band
1326755
Sturgill is, in my opinion, one of the greatest musicians of my time. As a guy in my early 20s and a fan of the classic outlaw country genre, Sturgill is a refreshing sound. He is one of the leaders of the modern "Anti-Nashville" sound that has begun to take root in today's country music, which is long overdue. This album won a Grammy for the Best Country Album of 2017, yet you won't hear a single song on the radio. The Pop-Country that took over the country music radio in the mid-to-late-2000s lead to the bro-country subgenre (it's a real thing, look it up) swept country music my storm and, again completely my own (biased) opinion,  all but killed the genre as a whole. But, as the old cliche goes, it's always darkest before the dawn. Sturgill Simpson, along with other artists such as Chris Stapleton, Jamey Johnson, Tyler Childers, Cody Jinx, Colter Wall and others, have rose from the ashes and are what I like to call the "Country Music Messiahs"
3247724
Southern rock always contained some country in it, but the amount varied with the band.  The Allman Brothers had only a tad and were more oriented towards blues and jazz.  Lynyrd Skynyrd had a bit more country, but they were more of a straight rock band.  With Marshall Tucker and the Outlaws the country influence becomes more apparent.

This album is a great showcase for both sides of the Outlaws.  The band's reputation rests upon its classic guitar songs, such as "Green Grass & High Tides".  The country ballads, however, are not throw-aways, and are more "country" than what you can hear on the radio nowadays.
1908992
Exile hail from Kentucky so nobody should be surprised that country music was where they were most consistently successful. In fact, they started off as a pop group and had an international hit with Kiss you all over. It topped the charts in America and also made the UK top ten. They had some minor hits on both sides of the Atlantic but nothing came close to matching the success of Kiss you all over.

Meanwhile, country singers were covering their songs and having success with them. Janie Fricke had a huge hit with It ain't easy being easy. Dave and Sugar did Stay with me.  Even more significantly, Alabama had number one country hits with Take me down and The closer you get. Mark Gray quit Exile to pursue a solo career as a country singer. Finally, the rest of Exile decided to go country although they remained firmly at the pop end of the country spectrum. Exile's music is not for die-hard traditionalists who like nothing else. I love traditional country but I also listen to many other forms of music too and there will always be a place for Exile in my collection.

Exile released four albums with the line-up that began their country career. Originally, they were all released on CD individually but they are now available as twofers. The first two original albums (Exile, Kentucky hearts) were, to my ears, sensational but I see that the record label has kept them apart when making up the pairs for release as twofers - a wise move commercially. Nevertheless, the third album (the first half of this twofer) is well worth hearing.

The first album (the second half of this album) begins with Take me to the river, my favorite Exile track. It was not released as a single - perhaps it was not what country radio was looking for - but it is a classic. The country hits were Woke up in love and I don't want to be a memory, both great songs, but every song here is outstanding. If I have to choose best of the rest, I'll go with Red dancing shoes and After all these years. Lee Greenwood makes a guest appearance, playing saxophone on one of the tracks.

The third album (the first half of this album) contains many fine songs including the title track, She's too good to be true, It'll be me, I could get used to you and Promises promises.

If you enjoy eighties pop-country music, particularly if you like Alabama or Sawyer Brown, you ought to give Exile a listen. Actually, I think that at their best (their first two country albums), they were better than those other groups, but they could not maintain that exceptionally high standard.
4694261
Kenny Rogers has maintained one of the longest and most successful careers in the music business by showing off a diverse and eclectic range of music styles from jazz, country-pop, folk, and everything in between. This box set is divided into three discs by mood, including duets with a wide range of singers from Don Henley of the Eagles to Dolly and Dottie, two of his favorite and most awarded singing partners. The three discs also contain one new recording each, including a surprisingly strong number with Dolly Parton that could be a hit single if modern country radio was not so age biased. Disc two features story songs including Rogers penchant for choosing some of the best and most original material the best songwriters in Nashville could offer.  Disc three offers the love songs Rogers is so noted for like Lady, She Believes In Me and the underrated and jazzy Morning Desire, one of Rogers 21 number one singles on the country charts. The remastered sound on 50 Years is crisp and clean and his gravelly, but evocative voice has never sounded better. Another true highlight of the set is Rogers cover of Lionel Richie's Goodbye, sung with passion and grit as only Kenny can do in his unique but soothing vibrato. A nice booklet accompanys the package with an insightful essay by colin Escott.
2629698
No country playlist is complete without this one.