I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry/Tomorrow Never Comes

B.J. Thomas | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 12, 2010)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Collector's Choice
• ASIN: B002MCI97A
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #178,133 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. I m So Lonesome I Could Cry

2. It s Not Unusual

3. Bring Back the Time Midnight Hour

4. The Titles Tell There ll Be No

5. Teardrops Tonight

6. I Wonder Hey Girl

7. Mama

8. Wendy

9. Terri Maria

10. Plain Jane

11. My Home Town

12. Ashes of Dreams You Let Die

13. Tomorrow Never Comes

14. Baby Cried Mystery of Tomorrow

15. Gonna Send You Back to Georgia

16. The Rains Came

17. I Don t Have a Mind of My Own

18. Daddy

19. Candy Back

20. Walkin Back

See all 22 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

B.J. s first two albums, both 1966 releases! Includes his hit version of the Hank Williams title track, plus It s Not Unusual ; Bring Back the Time ; Midnight Hour ; The Titles Tell ; There ll Be No Teardrops Tonight ; I Wonder ; Hey Girl ; the hit Mama ; Wendy ; Terri ; Maria ; Plain Jane ; My Home Town ; Ashes of Dreams You Let Die ; Tomorrow Never Comes ; Baby Cried ; Mystery of Tomorrow ; Gonna Send You Back to Georgia ; The Rains Came ; I Don t Have a Mind of My Own ; Daddy ; Candy Back , and Walkin Back , plus the bonus tracks Your Tears Leave Me Cold and I m Not a Fool Anymore . 26 tracks!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars +1/2 -- Future chart-topper warms up with country, soul and blues, January 23, 2010

By 

hyperbolium (Earth, USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry/Tomorrow Never Comes (Audio CD)

B.J. Thomas is often remembered for his biggest pop hits, "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry," "Hooked on a Feeling," "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" and "(Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song." But like many artists whose careers were longer than their pop chart success, there's a lot more to Thomas' catalog than these four songs. In addition to 1980s success on the country charts, Thomas recorded albums throughout the mid-60s and 70s that turned up lower-charting hit singles and terrific album sides. Collectors' Choice has gathered Thomas' first eight solo albums for Scepter as a series of four two-fers, starting with his 1966 label debut, I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry, and concluding with 1971's Billy Joe Thomas.

1966's I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry reprised the title song with which Thomas reached #8 on the charts as the lead singer of the Houston-based Triumphs. Thomas re-imagines Hank Williams' country classic as pop-soul with slow, measured vocals underlined by a mournful organ, low bass and drums lightly counting out the waltz time. A falling horn line at the end of each verse adds some Stax flavor, and the song's heartbreak is brought to a head in the anguished wails with which Thomas takes the song out. He takes Williams' "There'll Be No Teardrops Tonight" similarly down-tempo, with a harpsichord in place of organ, a guitar carrying the blues and Jordanaires-styled backing vocals adding their moan.

Thomas proved himself a fetching blue-soul singer on the jukebox themed "The Titles Tell" and adds punch to a cover of "Midnight Hour" with horns, handclaps and female backing singers. The album spun off a minor hit in Mark Charron's sentimental original "Mama," and his other titles, though a bit maudlin in tearjerkers like "I Wonder" and "Bring Back the Time," are good vehicles for Thomas. There's frat-rock energy in "Wendy," a pre-Beatles boy-singer pop melody in "Terri," and a Texicali-tinge to "Maria." Thomas also sang covers of Tom Jones' "It's Not Unusual" and Freddie Scott's "Hey Girl," mostly following the originals but adding a distinctive touch with his vocal tone.

Thomas followed up the same year with the album Tomorrow Never Comes. The track list once again includes a slow, soulful pass at a country legend's song, this time building Ernest Tubb's "Tomorrow Never Comes" to a show-stopping crescendo. Mark Charron once again supplies most of the originals, this time writing about the supercharged emotions of teenagers and young adults. The little known "Plain Jain" is the story of a lonely girl who kills herself after falling for a prank prom invitation; though only charting to #129, it's a worthy entry in the death-song genre. Charron captures the end-of-the-world melodrama of found love, broken hearts, friendlessness, failure and occasional moments of self realization, youthful optimism and redemption.

Thomas' style was all over the map at these early points in his career, crooning, rocking and emoting atop pop, soul, blues and country arrangements of guitar, bass, drums, strings and horns. Those horns come to the fore on a rousing cover of Timmy Shaw's "Gonna Send You Back to Georgia," and the album closes with the fine, bluesy frat-rocker, "Candy Baby." Collectors' Choice adds two bonus B-sides, the countrypolitan kiss-off "Your Tears Leave Me Cold" and a torchy cover of Robert Thibodeux's "I'm Not a Fool Anymore." All tracks are stereo except 1, 2, 8, 21 and 24, and the set's 8-page booklet includes liner notes by Mike Ragogna and full-panel reproductions of the album covers. Making their first appearances on CD, these are two great places to start an appreciation of Thomas that extends deeper than his well-known hits. 4-1/2 stars, if allowed fractional ratings. [©2010 hyperbolium dot com]

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent releases, February 15, 2010

By 

AnotherMusicExpert (Duluth, MN USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry/Tomorrow Never Comes (Audio CD)

It is downright wonderful to see these albums reissued on CD, and 2-on-1 at that. Good liner notes, which is a step up for Collector's Choice (they previously had poor packaging). The only reason I took 1 star away is the mastering. These recordings lack punch, low end and could have given a slight bit more clarity. Scepter vinyl was low grade, but I find the reel to reels of BJ's albums sound better than these CDs. Not a big deal, these are still an essential and welcome addition to all BJ Thomas fans!