Customer Reviews

For the Last Time

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have hundreds of CDs, and more tapes. If I had to have one, this would be it. This is a masterwork. In fact, thinking about it, I wonder why I dont listen to it all the time!
Wills is joined by the best of the survivors (although I would have preferred having Joe Holly there along with Johnnie and Keith), along with Tommy Allsup (bass player in Johnnie Lee Will's band and in the second edition of Buddy Holly's Crickets) Haggard, Jody and Hoyle Nix (whose band Wills performed with after the Playboys disbanded). Smokey Montgomery the virtuoso tenor banjo player of the Light Crust Dough Boys ran the control boards. Wills suffered a stroke the second day of the session and never recovered full consciousness.
The work is superb. Even though all of these men had worked with Wills in the 30s and 1940s, it's all up to date. I think a lot of it invokes some of the advances in Western Swing represented by Leon McAuliffe's Western Swing Band, particularly the jazzy and quirky fiddling of Keith Coleman who worked with McAuliffe on tenor and violin, but not with Wills. The fiddle work by Johnnie Gimble and Keith Coleman is excellent. There's also a great old time fiddle tune done by Hoyle Nix with some grade back beat drum work by Jody Nix. Leon McAuliffe's work all over the album is really great.
It's hard to believe that this was just a pickup date with head arrangements and that players on the album had been with wills in different periods. Only Eldon Shamblin, the guitarist who worked with wills the whole stretch from 1937 until the Playboys disbanded in the 1960s, as either guitarist or band manger manager), could have said to have worked with most of the players. Some were in the prewar group; a few were in the groups in the 1940s and early 1950s. However, these were the players Bob asked for, or players Leon McAuliffe, who Bob asked for first and wanted to run the session, selected.
I would advise listeners to pay special attention to the rhythm work done by Smokey Dacus, Eldon Shamblin, and Tommy Allsup. It is much better than first rate. It sets a level of rhythm playing for Western Swing that aspires to the quiet fire that the all American rhythm section performed for the original Basie Band. If you are serious about playing any kind of music, sit and listen to it.
Finally, there is Leon Rauch. Rauch was one of Bob's last singers. On the historic Liberty sessions in the 1960s he only appeared as a backup singer for Tommy Duncan. He does most of the vocals on this record and shows what a master of voice and its subtleties he is.
This record is fun, instructional for those of us who aspire to musicians, and fun to listen to.
No wonder, it is the first album ever put into the Country Musical Hall fame on its own.

There is pure magic in this album, which has been one of my favorites for years. I have often named Bob Wills & His Texas Playboys as my favorite band. Although I am very fond of his 1930's and 1940's recordings, this album is special.

As others have noted, Bob only participated in a quarter of the songs that appear on this album. The next day, he had his final stroke and entered a coma from which he did not regain consciousness, and died about a year later. An oft-told story is how the Playboys did San Antonio Rose with tears streaming down their faces, as they knew they would never see their beloved leader again.

Bob Wills left a legacy of hundreds of wonderful recordings, and if you like this one, I urge to check out his classic records from the 1930's and 1940's (his 1950's and 1960's sessions aren't bad, either).

There are two comments here that I would like to correct - the original vinyl album contained every track on this CD; nothing is missing. One reviewer said that the vinyl contained only ten tracks; mine has all 24 tracks. Another reviewer complained that Take Me back To Tulsa is missing from the CD release; but that song doesn't appear on my two-record vinyl.

If you're unfamiliar with Bob Wills, For The Last Time - his last album - is not a bad place to start - highly recommended.

Bob Wills bucked the odds and and played his own brand of ecclectic Western/Swing (he pretty much invented the genre) much to the raised eyebrows of "legite" musicians of his day. Unwittingly, he created a monster. This album was concieved and recorded by those who loved him and helped create the Legend of Bob Wills, The Texas Playboys. Knowing his days were numbered, they gathered in Dallas TX in 1973 and made these cuts with their old master (wheelchair bound) and paid homage. Bob made it through the first day's session and managed a few "Ah haas!" to the delight of the old guard. He suffered a stroke and fell into a coma the following night. The Playboys completed the session the next day without his watchful eye. The music is sweet, poignant and necessary for every seeker of a slice of western music. Bob's last few strained hollers in these cuts mark the end of a voice that will haunt generations of music lovers come. A must for your collection of classic americana

The reviews above are mostly excellent, reflecting a sincere appreciation of the music and the musicians. "For the Last Time" is remarkable because it is both an historical monument and thoroughly enjoyable entertainment. There are several additional reasons to add this to your collection.

Merle Haggard is the lead vocalist on three tracks, "Playboy Theme," "I Wonder If You Feel the Way I Do," and "Yearning," and plays fiddle on other tracks. Merle was a Texas Playboy for a single day.

The liner notes alone are worth ordering the record. They were written by Dr. Charles Townsend who subsequently published "San Antonio Rose," the definitive Bob Wills biography. He won a Grammy for the liner notes. Dr. Townsend also is the announcer who kicks off the record with "The Texas Playboys Are On The Air!" which started their radio broadcasts for years.

Of the 24 tracks, seven are songs written by the extraordinary Cindy Walker. Cindy had a long and very prolific songwriting career, and Bob recorded more than 50 of her songs (she had about 500 recorded by some of the most famous performers in C/W and popular music). Cindy died in Mexia, Texas in March, 2006. A few days earlier Willie Nelson had released an excellent tribute, "You Don't Know Me: The Songs of Cindy Walker."

The recording picks up the musicians' chatter between some of the songs, and it's funny and interesting.

The recording's only downside is that Bob Wills was unable to contribute his "hollars" except in a very strained way. As another of the reviewers suggested, get a recording of a little earlier vintage to appreciate Bob's "hollars."

Nowhere in the world can you get a better piece of American music history for less than $8!!! I bought this album when it was first released in the early 70's. It was my first real "Country" music purchase as I was trying to find music that sent shivers up my spine. At the time, my two favourites were Jimmy Reed and Frank Zappa!!!!!!! Then along came Bob Wills and I found another. This album started my long and fruitful journey into country music and I find it difficult to recall a better album. Most of the reviewers here have got it right, except that Take Me Back To Tulsa was NOT on the original album. I particularly endorse the reviewer who wrote about the rhythm section and guitars. I am a guitarist of humble expertise and have been trying to copy some of the rhythm guitar patterns off these songs for the last 30 years or so and still struggle to work out how it's done. This is very sophisticated music, make no mistake. It may sound slight at first listen but delve deeper into the music and you will be richly rewarded. This album contains some of the best music and songs (esp. the late, great Cindy Walker) performed in the last century of American "roots" music. It is not a tribute album but the final Texas Playboys record and, given the technology of the day, probably the finest album made by one of the finest groups in music history. "Take it away Leon".

As another reviewer said, "For the Last Time" is the album to take to the desert island or the fallout shelter. If you don't own any Bob Wills music, buy this first. Great musicians (most from the Texas Playboys at one time or another), great vocals (but too bad Tommy Duncan wasn't still alive), and first-class old-fashioned recording: everyone in the studio at the same time, performing like they were on the stage, and having a great time. It shows! And super liner notes.

It does not get much better than this right here. I don't know if it is possible for an album to bring the listener so many different emotions. In one sense, the music is just so fun to listen to, but at the same time it is hard to listening to knowing that the king of Western Swing was less than a day away from going into a coma which would eventually take his life.

All in all, this is country music at its best. Be aware: if you listen to country radio today, you probably have never heard anything like this. This is REAL. This is music that you can tap your feet to and appreciate the lyrics. It is not the cookie cut crap that comes from the radio today.

As someone who was into blues, swing, rock & roll and psychedelic music in the early 70's this recording was a revelation to me.

We had gone to visit a friend to smoke a little dope and the guy said "Have a listen to this. There's some good playing on here."

I went out and bought the two disc set the next day and have listened to some if not all of the tracks at least once a week since. The quality of the musicianship is absolutely 1st class, the songs are funny/sad/happy all at the same time and the tightness of the players is amazing, considering they had not all played as an ensemble before. It's real foot-tappin' stuff.

Play this in the car on a long trip and you'll be there before the question is asked "Are we there yet?".

On the regret of other reviewers that Take Me Back to Tulsa is not on the current CD, it is certainly on the original 2 disc set. It can also be downloaded from certain file sharing sites.

I don't believe it is an over-statement to say that Bob Will's "For the Last Time" may very well be one of the best and most important recordings of the 20th -century. It encapsulates a genre, a time, and originality all in one LP. It's as if Louis Armstrong and his entire Hot Five band from 1925 suddenly appeared in 1973 and recorded an album. It has that kind of historical jolt.

Western Swing music is its own original category of music mostly created and marketed by Bob Wills. He took strong elements of blues, dixieland, swing jazz, and folk fiddling to create a style he never detoured from. Unlike jazz as a whole which changed and fragmented multiple times in the 20th-century, Western Swing music never really changed. Wills made it popular and kept it popular. He was on his game for 35 years. He was the only band leader ever that could play a small town with a population of 5000 and have 600 people show up for a dance. That very thing happened to Wills even into the 1960s - a full 20 years after the heyday of big band swing music.

How often does a man who almost single-handedly created an entire musical genre come back 40 years after he started, with many of his earliest musicians, to lay down an original modern recording? If it happened before, I doubt anyone would have gotten these results.

The musicianship is superb on this album. This is not granddad picking up an instrument that he hasn't played in 20 years. Nor is it a collection of egos wanting a put some icing on old career. These musicians may be the best in their field, and they recorded as a team on this day in 1973 as a tribute to their band leader, Bob Wills.

This album captures the original style of Bob Wills and is played in a near-perfect recording environment. There is little that is synthetic and there is no sense of anything over-produced or artificial. It's music with a kick, a sense of humor, and a style.

The only thing missing from this album is the horn line - several brass and reed instruments he used in the 30's and 40's for his big band sound. But you won't miss it here. Instead what you hear are Keith Coleman and Johnny Gimble in synchronized jazz fiddle harmony. You hear virtuoso performances by Eldon Shamblin and Leon McCauliffe picking at the electric and Steel guitars respectively. Al Stricklin pounds on his piano like a man in honky-tonk heaven, and if you ever wondered if a white man could sing the blues, just listen to Leon Rausch and his pitch perfect rendition of "Milk Cow Blues." The rhythm section is backed admirably by Smokey Dacus on drums and Tommy Allsup on bass. All of these men played with Bob Wills at one time in his career. Most played with him for many years.

Two days into this recording, Wills had a stroke and went into a coma. He was already partially paralyzed from an earlier stroke, but he insisted on this final recording even though it cost him his health. The recording went on but with a great sense of sadness. Wills never came out of the coma and died eighteen months later.

The album is brilliant, and it's a great tribute to the man who helped create it. I can't imagine someone listening to it without a smile on their face.

I will let the far greater minds dissect this work technically, all I can say is this thing moves me. This is one of the few discs that can put a chill down my spine. Most notably when the harmony vocals kick in on "Faded Love" and the twin guitar work on "Cow Town Blues."

On an emotional level this is right up there with Porter Wagoner's "Wagonmaster", only much less haunting.

Good time music from some veteren's of an era long gone.