Customer Reviews

20 Old-Time Country Favorites

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I First heard Mac Wiseman when I was Eight years old (It was this very recording that I heard, on an old 8-track tape), and from that moment, I was hooked. I'm 15 now, but enough about me. This is a great album! Mac Wiseman has a warm tenor voice that cannot be equaled, even by the great opera tenors. Plus this album has some great country favorites such as I SAW YOUR FACE IN THE MOON, ROVING GAMBLER, MIDNIGHT SPECIAL, WRECK OF THE OLD '97, and others. This CD is a MUST for any True country fan!

i am a chinese,i have heard mac wiseman since 1988.we chinese hardly can hear mac wiseman.now i meet him again. its a very warm disc for me to enjoy traditional country music.

Great collection of old time country favorites done by one of the mellowest and richest voices in the genre

If you enjoy the beautiful, unique, and lyrical voice of Mac Wiesman you will enjoy this cd. It had so many of our favorites. The quality of the recordings is also very good. It is currently one of our favorites.

Playing Time - 40:55 -- With over 50 years in business, Rural Rhythm Records has built a catalog that connects many dots from past to present. Since its 1955 creation, Rural Rhythm has released hundreds of classic performances by many legendary bluegrass and old-time musicians such as J.E. Mainer, Don Reno, Red Smiley, Mac Wiseman, Vassar Clements, Hylo Brown, Bill Harrell, Jim Eanes, and many others. This album is part of that archival catalog. The label owes its Arcadia, California start to Uncle Jim O'Neal whose vision was to release the music of many top bluegrass and old-time musicians in the 1950-70s, seeking success where Starday had failed by producing records of limited appeal by lesser known, albeit talented, musicians.

Mac Wiseman was born on May 23, 1925. He hails from Crimora, Virginia but lives on Percy Priest Lake, near Nashville. He was born in 1925, the same year the Grand Ole Opry started. In 1944, Mac began his career as a DJ in in Harrisonburg, Virginia. In 1946, he worked with Molly O'Day, then in 1948 an original member of Flatt and Scruggs' Foggy Mountain Boys, and then in 1949 with Bill Monroe. From 1952-1956, Mac with his band "The Country Boys" recorded several hits for Dot Records including "Jimmy Brown the Newsboy," "Love Letters in the Sand," "The Ballad of Davy Crockett." From 1957-1963, he was an A & R man (Artists and Repertoire) for Dot Records and ran the company's country-music department. While at Dot, he was instrumental in the success of Pat Boone's career. It was Mac who suggested that Pat record the song "Love Letters in the Sand" which became a smash hit for the young singer. In 1958, Mac one of the founders of the Country Music Association (CMA) and its first secretary. In 1965, he performed at the first bluegrass festival in Fincastle, Virginia. In 1966, Mac managed WWVA Jamboree in Wheeling, West Virginia. That was the year that he recorded this album for Uncle Jim's Rural Rhythm Records.He was in fine country voice for songs that also include some uncredited accompaniment with drums, jew's harp, Dobro, harmonica, autoharp, electric bass, and others.

In more recent time, Mac's kept busy with music. In 1990, he was elected president of R.O.P.E. (Reunion of Professional Entertainers) in Nashville. One of the goals of the organization is to build a retirement home for country music entertainers. In 1991, he worked at the revived Old Dominion Barn Dance, Richmond, Virginia.
In 1992, he worked at the Willie Nelson Theatre in Branson, Missouri. In 1993, Mac was inducted into the IBMA's Hall of Honor. In 1997, he recorded with "The Groove Grass Boyz." In 2001, Wiseman recorded a duet with his old friend Johnny Cash: "When It's Reveille Time in Heaven."

Songcarriers and musicologists would be particularly interested in this type of archival material. Don't expect to hear vocal harmonies, elaborate arrangements or the same level of clarion studio recording quality we hear today. Rather, just enjoy and relive a classic country sound of yesteryear. Most of the cuts span about 2 minutes apiece. (Joe Ross, staff writer, Bluegrass Now)