Best of the Vanguard Years [ORIGINAL RECORDING REMASTERED]

Ramblin' Jack Elliott

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 31, 2000)
• Original Release Date: October 31, 2000
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Vanguard Records
• ASIN: B00004Z3VC
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #165,601 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

First it was Woody Guthrie who cast a shadow over Ramblin' Jack Elliott's art. "He sounds more like me than I do," Woody once quipped. Now Elliott's own legend threatens to obscure his fine music. This 25-song set shows how forceful, even peerless (at least among the folkies), his singing and guitar playing could be. Because Elliott released only one album on Vanguard, this "best-of" includes the whole of that 1964 debut plus 13 previously unreleased tracks, making for less of a useful introduction and more of a fan's dream come true. Unreleased tracks include old folk songs such as "Danville Girl," "Diamond Joe," and "Blue Eyed Elaine." Elliott's ultratwangy, unapologetically aggressive style lends the stories a cinematic intensity--and a delightful, cutting humor. This set also reveals just how much Elliott shaped the repertoire, flatpicking, and vocal style of the young Bob Dylan (who, in the guise of Tedham Porterhouse, lends harmonica to Elliott's frenzied version of "Will the Circle Be Unbroken"). As a portrait of the artist, these Vanguard recordings make clear just why Elliott remains so influential and revered. --Roy Kasten

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Bit Less Than the Best, February 25, 2003

By	Mark Oliva (Muenchsteinach Deutschland) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

One disagrees only reluctantly with another reviewer, but it simply is not true, that this CD offers "a great rare look at unreleased songs that Jack wrote while rambling around with Woody Guthrie!" There are, in fact, no songs at all that Ramblin' Jack wrote on this CD. RJE claims the authorship of precisely three numbers in the more than 50 years of his career: "912 Greens," "Cup of Coffee" and "Bleeker Street Blues." None of them are songs; all three are talking pieces. What is on this CD is a collection of traditional folk songs and works by such disparate folk, country and even rock musicians as Woody Guthrie, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Derroll Adams, Merle Travis, Bob Dylan, Ray Charles, A.P. Carter and Ernest Tubb, all Vanguard studio recordings from 1964. The first 12 were released in the same year on vinyl on the LP Vanguard simply called "Jack Elliott." These same 12 songs also are available on Vanguard's "The Essential Ramblin' Jack Elliott," which is a better buy at a lower price. Please see my review of that album for my comments on these songs. The remaining 13 are outtakes from the same studio session, songs that Vanguard had not released until now. Of the 13, the highlights are Guthrie's "Hard, Ain't It Hard," Dylan's "Don't Think Twice," the Traditional "Railroad Bill," and Ray Charles' rock 'n' roll hit "I Got a Woman," also made famous to a certain extent by Elvis Presley. The first three of these four songs are the kind of solid music one expects from RJE, but all three are available in better performances on other RJE CDs. "I Got a Woman" is fun and interesting, but Ramblin' Jack's version is unlikely to add anything to the song's legacy or RJE's. In essence, one understands why these 13 first time releases were outtakes in 1964. They're all fine but as a whole, just a bit duller than most of his other vinyl work from these years. Of course, I wouldn't personally want to do without this CD, but then again, there are but a few RJE recordings I'm willing to have outside of my collection. If your interest is more casual, skip this CD and order "The Essential Ramblin' Jack Elliott" instead. It includes the best of this CD, and it goes one better by giving you the best of RJE's superlative April 30,1965 concert at New York City's Town Hall as well - at a better price.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "The Lost Songs Of The Ramblin' Man", July 3, 2002

By A Customer

Take a trip with me in 1913! For those new to RJE or looking for rare Ramblin' tunes, well look no further! This is a great rare look at unreleased songs that Jack wrote while rambling around with Woody Guthrie! This is such a great find and proud to own it! This completes my Ramblin' collection. Stay away from The Essential Ramblin' Jack Elliott CD! It only has 1/4 of what this CD offers! As Jack says, "I've got's to ramble!"

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great and Great Fun, February 28, 2006

By	Eclectic (Bend, OR United States) - See all my reviews

If you want the genuine article in folk singers, Elliott's your man, and these are some of his best. He'll also make you laugh - "I Got a Woman" is worth the price of the album if you've got a sense of humor. As you can tell from that statement, Elliott doesn't necessarily confine himself to the folk genre. When you're the best there is at what you do, you can afford the risks. Don't pass up a chance to see him perform in person if he comes your way. If you're not familiar with him, watch "The Ballad of Rambling Jack" before you go so you have an appreciation for his place in the history of folk music in this country and an understanding of the man himself.