Hits & Highways Ahead

Lee Roy Parnell | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 24, 1999)
• Original Release Date: August 24, 1999
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Arista
• ASIN: B00000JYA4
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #253,216 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Give it a listen, June 20, 2000

By 

James E. Bagley "Jim Bagley" (Sanatoga, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hits & Highways Ahead (Audio CD)

Considering he has been recording - and making the country charts - for the past decade, the media has never given Leroy Parnell his due (certainly no where near the level of attention of fellow Arista Nashville flagship artist Alan Jackson and Garth you know who). Hopefully a bit more respect will go Parnell's way with the release of this retrospective Hits and Highways Ahead.

As advertised, the emphasis of this collection is on the hits. We get all eight of Parnell's top ten charters (released between 1992 and 1996) and a diverse lot they are. "Heart's Desire" offers a nice blend of R & B meets Southern Rock, while "What Kind Of Fool Do You Think I Am" and "Tender Moment" put the toe-tapping into overdrive. In contrast, the blue-eyed soul of "Love Without Mercy" and the proud "I'm Holding My Own" provide a few poignant moments. We even get a reminder of vintage Jackson Browne with Parnell's signature song "On The Road."

The Highways Ahead refers to the two new tracks. The up-tempo road saga "She Won't Be Lonely Long" and the gentle self-penned love song "Long Way To Fall" are acceptable, but not up to the standard of the previous hits. While heart-felt, they painfully reveal how Parnell's generic voice is unable to elevate an average song to something special. After all, it's his slide-guitar playing, not his singing, that is in frequent demand for Nashville sessions.

Far more effective are the last two selections on the disk: the raucous "If The House Is Rockin'" (a Parnell concert favorite) and the soul-stirring "John The Revelator" (originally released on the gospel collection Peace In The Valley). While neither was ever released as a single - let alone became hits - they nicely display the extremes of Parnell's character without ever appearing self-indulgent.

Ultimately, Hits and Highways Ahead manages to consistently entertain and at the same time reveal quite a bit of what makes the artist tick. Considering that the artist is an old pro like Leroy Parnell, this isn't much of a surprise.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Alot missing from this CD, April 11, 2006

By 

breezy0413 - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hits & Highways Ahead (Audio CD)

Why, why do they bother with these greatest hit collections, if they aren't going to put ALL the hits on the record? No less than 4 of Lee Roy's best songs are missing from this compilation, specifically: "Power of Love"; "Givin' Water to a Drowning Man"; the collaboration with Brooks and Dunn, "Take These Chains from My Heart"; and my personal favorite, "You Can't Get There from Here".

This cd is a waste of money without those other songs, in my opinion.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I have always liked Lee Roy Parnell's music!, October 29, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Hits & Highways Ahead (Audio CD)

Lee Roy Parnell has been overlooked far too often as far as I'm concerned. This should turn the heads of critics and get him his dues. This hits package is fairly solid. The two new tracks, "She Won't Be Lonely Long" and "Long Way To Fall" are good songs and welcome additions to Lee Roy Parnell's repertoire. Then there are his classic goodies, such as "Heart's Desire," "Love Without Mercy," "On The Road," "When A Woman Loves A Man," and "If The House Is Rockin'". Then comes my favorite songs on the album, which are "A Little Bit Of You," "What Kind Of Fool Do You Think I Am," and "Tender Moment." This is a great collection of songs that should finally get him the recognition that he has deserved for so long.