Tune in to KBEC 1390 this Thursday, July 21st, at 7pm to hear the entire George Jones – Live Recordings from the Louisiana Hayride album!
Track Listing
- You Gotta Be My Baby
- Color of the Blues
- Nothing Can Stop My Loving You
- I’m Ragged But I’m Right
- Too Much Water
- Accidentally on Purpose
- Big Harlan Taylor
- Don’t Stop the Music
- White Lightning
- Things Have Gone to Pieces
- The Race Is On
- Say It’s Not You
- She Thinks I Still Care
- You Better Treat Your Man Right
- Walk Through This World With Me
- When the Grass Grows Over Me
Here’s what Allmusic.com had to say about this album:
Of all the George Jones recordings out there (and there are many), no single volume better charts his development as a singer and performer than this one. Loaded with 16 tracks, the earliest material here predates the existing issued sources of Jones live performances by nearly ten years. Much of this has to do with the fact that the singer didn’t authorize any live recordings until 1985, when he okayed First Time Live on Columbia. But what really matters is how much this reveals about Jones and his ever-changing approach to his craft. The earliest material here, from 1956 and ’58, offers a view of Jones as a singer trying to master the delivery of Hank Williams. The 1950’s performances are all original tunes, among them the classic “Nothing Can Stop My Loving You,” a hillbilly stomper that walks the edge of honky tonk and rockabilly. And while they are all cut from the Williams mold, they are nonetheless exciting and fueled by something mercurial. By 1960, Jones was moving into his own, as evidenced by his tough honky tonk stroller “I’m Ragged but I’m Right,” and “Don’t Stop the Music.” By the time the listener gets to the 1968 live version of “White Lightnin” and “The Race Is On,” Jones is fully formed — the great country singer who had invented a style from the shards of his earlier influences — fromWilliams to Gibson to be sure, but also from hillbilly, rockabilly, barroom honky tonk and, of course, the newly emergent countrypolitan. As for the great balladeer, versions of “She Thinks I Still Care,” “Things Have Gone to Pieces,” “Walk Through This World With Me,” and “When the Grass Grows Over Me,” (the latter two from 1969, where the collection ends), offer glimpses of the performer who influenced everyone who came after him. The sound quality of these sides isn’t great, but it’s plenty good enough, and the music come through with great presence and emotion. The audience seems to really spurJones on, to dig into the nuances of these songs, even as the years pass. The confidence level of the mid-and late-1960s material is astonishing, not only in terms of his delivery, but in his willingness to take chances with the material and his band. Jones fans will need this one to fill in the gaps, and those who love raw, hard, country music will want to add this one to the shelf as well. – Thom Jurek
