Customer Reviews

Singles Collection

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Let's get the negative stuff out of the way first. For the material included in this collection, it is wonderful. My problem with it (and, it would seem, I am not the only one) has to do with the material NOT included. OK, a set called THE ORIGINAL SINGLES COLLECTION would not be expected to include demos or live recordings, but there were many songs released as singles that were left off. The songs recorded as Luke the Drifter are ignored ("Ramblin' Man", originally a Luke the Drifter single, was reissued and credited to Hank Williams as the B-side of "Take These Chains From My Heart" in July, 1953), as are many of the songs released as singles credited to "Hank Williams and His Guitar". While some of those songs appear here, some really good ones like "Faded Love and Winter Roses" and "Please Don't Let Me Love You" (released as both sides of the same single in 1955) were overlooked.

But enough with the problems with this set.

What we do have in this collection is a chronological journey through the studio recordings that Hank released under his own name during his brilliant and tragically short career. Listening to this material in order, one can hear the development of a true artist and pioneer. When Hank first started recording, electric instruments and drums were all but taboo in country records. After Hank, they were almost mandatory. His vocal delivery, while heavily colored with his southern accent, never sounded forced or affected. He just seemed to be doing what he was born to do.

The writing is top-notch, for the most part. There are some very clever hooks in many songs and, as a lyricist, Hank wrote in simple language, but he did it so cleverly that even intellectuals could appreciate it (pay attention to the lyrical symmetry in "I Won't Be Home No More" for an example of this).

The sound quality is variable in this set. The first few tracks (recorded as early as 1942) sound pretty bad by modern standards. Even early MGM recordings, such as 1948's "Mansion on the Hill" leave something to be desired. But as time passed and Hank's popularity (and, probably, recording budget) grew, the quality improved dramatically. The studio recordings from the early 1950s actually sound pretty good from a technical perspective and brilliant from an artistic one.

The book included gives good background on the recordings as well as the artist. A nice extra for the set.

This collection is a very good introduction to the music of an American treasure and I recommend it highly. But be warned. After listening to this, you will very probably want to go out and buy the 10-disc COMPLETE* HANK WILLIAMS. This stuff really is that good.

Hank Williams will always be the King of Country Music! No matter how hard CMT tries to make Johnny Cash look better or to seem more important, even the legacy of Johnny Cash in a hundred years, will fall short of that of Hank Williams". They placed Cash at #1 all time on their top 40 Men of country Music, with Hank at # 2. They gave Cash five songs and Hank only four in their best 100 songs of Country music, and made sure to place Cash's highest ranking song just ahead of Hank's. And gave Cash the #1 video of all time with "Hurt" and placed the historic "There's a Tear in my Beer" duet with Hank JR. all the way down at #18. This only makes CMT look uncreditable and silly. This set and especially "The Complete Hank Williams" put to shame "The Essential Johnny Cash 1955-1983" and his new "Unearthed" set. As much as I love Johnny Cash,(I actually believe that Merle Haggard is more talented and influential to pure Country music than anyone but Hank)Hank Williams will always be the reason Country made it to the mainstream and stayed there. NOW, What I am about to say is very important. If you are looking for a Hank set for yourself or as a gift for someone else, this is the one to get. Let me explain. "The Complete Hank Williams", lets face it, is not very affodable and would only be respected by a true Die Hard. "40 Greatest Hits", though very good, really needed to be extended, as was done here. "The Ultimate Collection" is harldly that, with the last five or six songs not being the original studio versions, but live recodings, and replacing some of the stadards from "40 Greatest Hits" with demos. The demos are great, but don't sacrifice the popular session songs for them. The U.K. box set "Hillbilly Hero", is great for the price, but it only goes through 1951, the 4th disc is Health and Happiness shows, which are nice to have, the problem is they are in place of all of his recodings from 1952. "Original Singles Collection" is great for what it includes as well for what it does not. It contains all the singles released under the name Hank Williams, which is almost every thing. It excludes, with the exception of one or two, the "Luke the Drifter" songs, which were more spoken than sung, and duets with Audery, which were over powered by her less than perfect voice. Those, as well, really throw off the rotation, they are better listend to by them selves. "Ramblin Man" is here because it is sung the all the way, and was re-released under Hank's name after his death in 1953. This set has alot of great demos but does not sacrifice any standards to place them there, and they are at the end of disc three so they don't interupt the flow of things. If you only had one set of one artist in all of popular music, this would be the one to have. Hank Williams was the best singer/songwriter ever and is the most important and influential artist in all of popular music. This set shows why.

I agree with the comments that this is a wonderful and almost complete set. But the comments about missing Luke the Drifter music is certainly valid. So "what the guldarn cat-hair do you want me to do." The answer was simple, Beyond the Sunset has them all and it's the perfect low cost companion to this collection of Hank's output. Of course, I also added I Saw the Light album, too, for the Gospel side. Hank isn't today's pop-country but "Be Careful of Stones That You Throw" and listen to the words and feel the simple, succicnt melodies.

A truly awesome collection of music here, from a distant past when song writing mattered.

As I listened to teh music and read the liner notes, it occurred to me that Hank Williams would probably not get a record contract today: he wasn't a pretty-boy, and he probably wasn't much for coreographed dancing either ...and, there would be no rumors that he was gay or into drugs (except alcohol -- a substance which he consumed by the barrel, until it killed him).

While the engineering and 'production' are downright crude by contemporary standards, there's a warmth to the singing and playing here that simply can't be reproduced in electronically enhanced music.

Great songs, like most other great art, manage to survive the initial hype, and become something that those who "know" would never want to be forced to do without. Just try listening to this and picking a "favorite". I guarantee that you'll have a new one each time.

There is not a 'bad song' (in terms of writing) in this 3-disc collection. Artists in Rock, R&B, and other genres have covered Williams' songs, and it's amazing sometimes how well the music crosses genres.

The music alternates between being inmspirational, happy, sad, and occasionally, downright depressing. But it's clear that Hank Williams songs have cast a long shadow over country, early rock & roll, and other forms of music. One almost wonders if the country music establishment has not spent the past 50 years searching for the next Hank Williams (or in the case of female country singers, Patsy Cline); someone who could pick up and write great hit songs every week, that people wanted to listen to for years.

As a historical document, and as a worthy addition to a music lover's collection, this is an "essential" piece.

The real tragedy in this music is not that Hank was sad & lonely, nor that he died "too young" (he was just short of 30 when he died), but that few people today actually can write music, especially lyrics, that stands on its own merits (as opposed to being background for video games, fillers on movie soundtracks, or audio-padding around hits on CD's).

Alright. This a fine and dandy box set, let's check out the pros and cons.
Pros:
*84 tracks, hey - that's a lot of music. 64 singles that include pretty much everything Hank every released plus 20 demos and unreleased tracks.
*the liner notes are very good. they include a bio of Hank's life and information on the release of each single.

Cons:
*The quality on two songs is bad. They are "I'm not Coming Home Anymore" and "Something Got a Hold of Me." These two song really [are bad] quality-wise and are painful to listen to. I don't know why there is a seperate credit for the company that remastered "I'm not Coming Home Anymore" because the team that handled that should be [fired]. Some stuff was unreleased for a reason, guys.
*Packaging, it's in a double-cd case. I'd prefer a box.
*It doesn't include the Luke the Drifters (with the exceptions "Please Make Up Your Mind" and "Ramblin' Man") or Audrey duets (with the exception of "Something Got a Hold of Me") - this isn't really a problem for me since I don't like the luke the drifter monologues, only Ramblin' Man is good..and, as proven by the one duet here, Audrey sucked - so I don't miss those either.

All in all this is a great box set. Pick it up if you want a great overview better than "40 Greatest" and less than "Complete Hank"

This collection is the next step up for those listeners who want more tahn "40 Greatest Hits" but cannot afford "Complete Hank Williams." This collection contains nearly every single released, with the exception of the Hank & Audrey duets and most of the Luke The Drifter singles, which the latter singles are on the CD Beyond The Sunset anyway. This collection is worth buying and everything that's been said has been said.

These songs are the most emotionally wretching sounds in the world. Lamentations on heartbreak, lonliness, destitution and hopelessness, this is plain-spoken fatalism in the tradition of Thomas Hardy. Many of these songs, especially on disc three, are powerful enough to make you stop, pause, and just listen to what is happening. These are little stories, each and every one, and it takes you somehow inside this enigmatic man, this perminant fixture in American music. And while we'll never know entirely why he was so 'Alone and Foresaken', perhaps just listen to the pain he can muster in songs like 'At The First Fall of Snow', "I'm Free At Last', 'I Can't Escape From You', 'All the Love I Ever Had' and, yes, 'There's A Tear in my Beer.' These are profound statements. Do not be fooled by the backlash against what is termed as country music. This is not what you may be thinking. This is blues, low-down, mournful, desperate blues served up in the bleakest chambe! r imaginable on the day your golddigger children kick the plug out of the life support. Remember the tissues.

I had only heard 24 of Hank's songs before I bought this box set, and quickly realized that more is better. My favorite thing about the box set is that the last 16 songs, I believe, are demos in which only Hank and his guitar can be heard. When it comes to conveying raw emotions and helping people through music, I don't know of many others that can better or equal Hank.

This three CD box set collects all the singles Hank Williams released under his own name during his lifetime. So that leaves out the songs he released as "Luke the Drifter", with two exceptions. Not sure why they weren't included, there is certainly room for them. In addition to the singles, there are also several demos included. Hank Williams was unquestionably the greatest country music performer of all time, and everything he recorded is well worth listening to. Highly recommended.

This is a missed opportunity on this set. Instead of giving casual fans a place to turn beyond 40 Greatest Hits, this is full of non-session takes with a few songs that were placed on there at the time to snag the completist ("I'm Not Comin' Home Anymore", "Tear In My Beer" & "All The Love I Ever Had") and several other excellent, but out of place, alternate takes.

Missing are his entire output with Audrey (one radio show cut makes it on here) and his Luke the Drifter takes ("Ramblin' Man" is included since it was close to Hank's regular style). Also missing is "I'm Satisfied With You".

Once again, it's a wasted opportunity. Instead of offering a cohesive collection of Hank material for the casual fan, Polygram once again chooses to bog it down with non-session takes.