Customer Reviews

25 Cowboy Classics: The Western Collection

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Varese Vintage Gene Autry Series keeps gathering plenty of tunes with this latest release "The Western Collection-25 Cowboy Classics". The sound quality is excellent and nostalgic for the wranglers who grew up listening to "SIOUX CITY SUE", "SOUTH OF THE BORDER (DOWN MEXICO WAY)", "TAKE ME BACK TO MY BOOTS AND SADDLE" absolutely essential for all cowboys and gals. Gene's good guy image with catchy lyrics and beautiful melodies are pleasant and extremely calming. After listening to this album over and over, you are transported back in time when life was simpler and the good guys always won. Gene was the screen's first "Singing Cowboy", already well known in the late '20s as a radio and recording star. Autry began making films in 1934 and the rest is history. Varese Records rides down the trail to Melody Lane, with the only entertainer with five stars on the "Hollywood Walk of Fame". One each for radio, recordings, films, television and live appearances. The Autry Museum of Western Heritage is a world-class center devoted to preserving and interpreting the rich history and traditions of the American West. This album and Varese Vintage Records is a big part of that...so pardners saddle up and relive those thrilling days of yester-year.

Total Time: 59:14 on 25 Tracks ~ Varese Records 302-066-271-2 ~ (10/30/2001)

I rate this CD as 5 star. Of course only Gene Autry could sing 5 stars western, because he was the only entertainer that had 5 Stars on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame. The song "Oklahoma Hills" is one of my favorites. It is the first song that you hear in the first movie made by Gene (Soux City Sue) in 1946 upon his return from serving his country in the war. He made a great come back and this song really made him look good. Then "Call of the Canyon" is one of the great love songs sung by him with a haunting melodious tune. There are so many great songs on this CD that any Autry Fan or Collector like myself will enjoy and appreciate. These songs span his career from beginning to end. Many were sung in the great "B" westerns in which he starred. Some are even used at the titles of these movies. I highly recommend this CD. Remember, Gene Autry was "America's Favorite Singing Cowboy" and 5 star all the way!!!

A great collection of Gene Autry's cowboy songs. I couldn't find another cd with his "Gold Mine in the Sky" recording.

living in today's crazy mixed up world,you can only get by with these GREAT "GOLDEN OLDIES"TO fully appreciate what real MUSIC,
by the greatest of them alL, is allabout
thanks to MR.G AUTRY AND THE OTHER GREAT COWBOY SINGERS.
FROM SOUTH-AFRICA.

Full of Autry classics. Wonderful old time music. More of this type needs to be played on the radio. They dont make simple music like this anymore.

I agree with the other 2-star review. I love Gene Autry's music, and I've owned several CDs (the best being the "Essential Collection" and the "Ultimate Collection," the latter now deleted but still available online), and I had high hopes for this one. The sound quality is generally good, considering the dates and the radio transcriptions, but the introductory narratives to more than half of them definitely make this a one-timer for me. I could listen to the music repeatedly -- although I prefer smaller "western" bands instead of the big band sound of some pieces -- but I don't need to hear the story-telling more than once. Maybe it would be fun for people with more of a historical interest in Gene Autry and the "singing cowboy/radio days" genre.

The music on this CD includes narrative introductions by Autry on many of the songs. A closer look at the CD liner notes revealed that each of the 25 songs on this CD are recordings from motion pictures, Autry's Melody Ranch Radio Show, and The Gene Autry Show. Not something one would know until the CD was in-hand.
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There IS a Gene Autry LP I would love to have. It was a major prop in an old Burt Reynolds movie, the title of which I can not recall. The actor played a character that played the songs on the LP over and over throughout the entire movie. Perhaps it is a prop LP, made especially for the film. However, I am sure someone will correct me; so please, tell me the name of the film in question, or better yet, the title of the LP. That music is the kind of music I want from the real Gene Autry.