Customer Reviews

Hillbilly Band from Mars

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I played the few records we had by Joe Carson when I was a country music dj in the mid to late 60's. I've looked for them and any others for almost 40 years. It was worth the wait. A friend from Scotland emailed that he has had nothing else in his cd player since he first got this in the summer of '02. After hearing it, I understand why.

Forget the title cut, it's a novelty, I fear just the name will keep classic country fans who need this cd from buying it.
Spend your egg money or knock off the kid's piggy bank, but get it ASAP!

The legendary guitar picker Tommy Allsup (who lost the flip of a nickel and gave up his seat on the plane Buddy Holly had chartered in Clear Lake, Iowa, to Richie Vallens) produced the West Coast sessions ... "Helpless", "Last Song I'm Ever Gonna Sing", and, of course, "Double Life."

Allsup is quoted: "They had actually demoed 'Double Life' for a Bob Wills record, and I thought, 'Boy, what a good song.'" If you think you've heard that voice singing harmony with Joe on "Double Life" and "Helpless", you have:

"Glenn Campbell had demoed those ... he made the demo on 'Helpless' and 'Double Life'. Glen had made kind of a western swing demo to pitch it to Bob Wills..."

That's Glen Campbell playing guitar and singing harmony, along with Sonny Curtis, Glenn Hardin, Allsup, and a star cast of others. Buck Owens playing guitar on an earlier session. The book insert notes the different sounds of the Nashville sessions and the Ken Nelson, then Tommy Allsup, produced West-Coast recordings. As with many Bear Family sets, the earliest material is interesting, but not what you're buying it for. The last 15 or so cuts, with the exception of the title cut, are simply pure country gold.

The book that comes with the cd is as good as Bear Family ever produced for a one-cd package. Tons of new information on the music and musicians who passed through Carson's life. It adds important new perspective (with never-before-seen photos) to Texas-based country music in the early 60's. There's a hilarious story of Joe banging on the door of George Jones' bus, with predictable results. And then telling Ray Price after a multi-day drinking bout with George he'd found a better singer than him. With predictable results!

If you can afford only one cd in the next year, and you love the classic country/shuffle beat of Ray Price, Faron Young, Mel Tillis, George Jones, etc., this is the cd you should get. Too many times memory tricks the mind into recalling something was better than it turns out to be. Memories from 35 years ago were right on target. Joe Carson should finally get his Gold Record, despite the hideous title. It's that good!

I first heard Joe Carson back in the early -70's while going through some of my folks' 78's. At first, I thought it was Webb Pierce (on one of his best days); then I distinctly heard Hank; on the other hand, there was the sound of Ray Price (his Cherokee Cowboy Days). All of these sounds came from a young kid (16 when he started performing) who should have, by every right, been the most heralded Country/Hillbilly/Honky Tonkin' singer ever; and yes, that includes even the great Hank Williams. But, Joe Carson's life was cut short just as he was hitting his stride. If there was a way to rate this collection higher than 5 stars, I would not hesitate to do so. As with all of the Bear Family Records releases, this one is an outstanding collection, beautifully recorded and mixed, and a thorough set of liner notes/booklet. Not only does this album showcase the stellar voice of Joe, the backing band (all legendary members of the Hank Thompson era) will knock your socks off. While there are 33 songs here (3X more than most current releases), there are a few real standouts: "I Gotta Get Drunk", "The Last Song I'll Ever Sing", and "Shoot The Buffalo" all showcase his voice. And, there are a few old favorites here as well, inlcuding "Fraulein" and "Who'll buy the Wine". This is one of those albums you have to own; and I can assure you, you'll be shaking your head in amazement at Joe Carson's talent. A++++

Little Joe Carson's musical legacy is rich, and not just in the context of an artist whose career was tragically cut short by a car accident that robbed him and his fans of a career that should have ultimately ranked him as an icon among the top of country music's all-time greats. Dead before the age of thirty, with a career that was just beginning to gather momentum, Carson's masterful vocals suggest influences as far ranging as George Jones, Ray Price, and Gene Autry. His vocals and songwriting skills easily rank him among the elite of the Texas honky tonkers of his era. This recording represents his total recorded output from 1954 to 1964, and treats the listener to a view of an emerging vocalist progressing from a prodigious teen to a world-class artist who could have held his own with any of the top country male or female artists of his day. This is no small feat, considering that legends like Patsy Cline, George Jones, Marty Robbins, and Lefty Frizzell were all at or approaching the peaks of their artistic powers during this time. The production and performances on these sessions are of sterling quality featuring performances by Joe Maphis, Glenn Campbell, and James Burton. Standouts include ballads like "I'll Never Love No One But You," and "Who'll Buy My Memories," uptempo honky tonk rousers like "I'm Not Allergic to Love,"
and "I Gotta Get Drunk," as well as laments like "Passion & Pride" and the unforgetable "The Last Song I'm Ever Gonna Sing." The true tragedy of Joe Carson is not simply that of a gifted artist whose life was cut short. That fate has been shared by too many recording artists over the years. The real tragedy is that, unlike Patsy Cline, Buddy Holly, Hank Williams, and so many others in this category, Joe Carson remains largely unrecognized to this day, in spite of a talent that should have guaranteed him worldwide recognition for years following his death. Any fan of traditional 50's and 60's country music will discover they've struck pure gold in this CD.

Most fans of country music will not have heard of Joe Carson. He died too young, and without enough hits to make a name for himself. But one short listen to this reissue of his extant recordings, and anyone will see that had he lived Carson would rank among the great honky tonk singers. His style is closest to Ray Price, Jimmy Heap, and other Texans of the 1950s. The finally reissued "Hillbilly Band from Mars" is a classic and much better than one might think.

In 1984 i bought an album with Joe Carson.

In 1985 cd`s came.

I wrote Richard Weize of Bear Family records if they could do an re-relese on cd.

Sure they did with all the recorded songs by Joe Carson.

The song "The last song(i`m ever gonna sing)" is the ultimate best country recording there is.Buy this,you won`t regret.

How many times have you asked yourself the question "What if"? "What if I had chosen a different profession?" " What if I had chosen a different wife or husband ?" Well what if a young promising singer like Joe Carson had not been killed in an automobile accident just as his career was taking off? The answer! He would have been a superstar.

In the first two cuts on this CD he sounds like a mixture of Hank, Senior and Webb Pierce. He was barely seventeen when he made his first recordings but he sounded more hillbilly and better than later juvenile "country" stars like Billy Gillman. With "I'll Do The Dishes" he starts to develop his own recognizable sound and it keeps getting better as his short time on earth passes. Songs like "Careless Words" (which he wrote), "Passion and Pride", "Double Life" and "Helpless" all are unforgettable in Mr. Carson's capable hands. By the time the aforementioned numbers were recorded, Joe's voice had matured and was uniquely different from other singers of the day. "How was that?" you ask. Well listen to this CD and you won't ask that question anymore.

This CD covers the period from 1953 to 1964 but there were three years, 1960, 1961 and 1962 in which Joe did not record at all. Who knows what he would have done if he were signed to a record label in those years, But then we would be playing the "What if" game! During his all too short recording period, Joe recorded in Nashville, Texas and on the coast. While he adapted to the sounds of those regions, his voice and identity are never lost.

This CD was released around 2003. At that time, the number of minutes on a CD was limited to 79 minutes and 59 seconds. Therefore two demo numbers "Take Me In Your Arms" and Ray Price's "I'll Be There" were omitted. Formal later studio recordings of these numbers are included on this single CD. In recent years the geniuses at Bear Family has managed to extend the CD music time to around 86 minutes. If this CD were issued today, the two demos would be included. Hopefully Bear Family will put them on a future miscellaneous compilation.

Over the years Joe Carson and his music have obtained a cult following. When you listen to this CD, you'll know why. When we ask "What if" we are speculating but this CD is not speculative-it is REAL hillbilly music.

"Little" Joe Carson was my Dad's best friend. My Dad, Bobby Joe Stewart, is pictured inside the "Hillbilly Band From Mars" sleeve, along with Joe and Tex Winter.

I didn't even realize that this CD existed until I got a call from my sister one day saying that she was looking up some old information about Dad and happened to call a gentleman from Alabama that said he owned this CD and that it had a picture of my Father in it. Needless to say, I was shocked and ordered it right away.

Although I was only a baby when Joe Carson died I've heard many stories of him and Dad and their "exploits", as well as playing with Tommy Allsup and others at the Southern Club in Lawton, Oklahoma. Joe was an excellent musician (as was my Dad) and I'll be holding on to this piece of valuable history to show my children one day when they're older.

If you're a fan of western swing I highly recommend you grab a copy of "Hillbilly Band From Mars".

There are already great reviews here that say much of what I wanted to say, so I don't have to add much. Real Country Music wouldn't be complete without Joe Carson's enormous contribution. Out of thousands of CDs in my library, this is one of the dozen-or-less that I play over and over.

--Paul Moratto, Houston