Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Just what the pop/country junkie is looking for, August 6, 2002
Eric Records has done it again. Just when you thought the "once-heavily played, but now completely ignored" genre has reached its acme, along comes Hard To Find 45s On CD: Pop & Country Classics.
This CD ranges in a time period from Ferlin Husky's 10-week No. 1 country smash, "Gone" in 1957 to David Frizzell's novelty, "I'm Gonna Hire A Wino (To Decorate Our Home)," which topped the C&W charts in 1982.
If you're like me (and you must be to be interested in these compilations), you have seen the sad demise of the all-inclusive Top 40 AM radio era in which I grew up. The same station, within the same hour, would play the Beatles, Martha & The Vandellas, Roger Miller, Elvis Presley, Clyde McPhatter, Lawrence Welk, Bill Anderson, The Everly Brothers, Smokey Robinson...Well, you get the point.
Today, radio has balkanized to the point that each subgroup is neatly divided and the word "crossover" has become obscene. Thank goodness Eric has the foresight and SOUL to bring wistful individuals like yours truly an opportunity to trip back through Memory Lane - for 62 minutes and 26 seconds, at least.
Some of my favorites in this collection include "I Remember You." by Frank Ifield, though not a country hit by the Austrailan crooner, is nevertheless one of my picks. Other tunes which make me smile in this compilation, the extremely-silly "Tennessee Bird Walk," Henson Cargell's country classic, "Skip A Rope," Billy Grammar's fiesty, "Gottoa Travel On," and my favorite county hit of the 1960s, "Saginaw, Michigan (how this great Lefty Frizzell number could have only reached No. 85 on the Hot 100 in January of 1964 - at the same time that Bobby Vinton's "There! I Said It Again" rule the charts - is FAR beyond my feeble ability to comprehend).
Moving into the 1970s, a weak decade for most music, Eric salvages my palatte with "Easy Loving," and the goofy, but catchy Bellamy Brothers ("Let You Love Flow") hit, "If I said You Had a Beautiful Body, etc.", the 1975 double No. 1,"Hey, Won't You Play Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song (B.J. Thomas' second chart-topper since "Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head"), and the great Roy Clark with his only Top 40 pop hit, "Yesterday When I Was Young."
The song from the 1980s that I most enjoy on this CD is Sylvia's C&W No. 1, "Nobody," which also broke into the pop top 15.
All told, I can, again, give an unqualified thumbs up and five stars to Eric's latest compilation, with a fevered hope for many, many more to come.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Inspired collection of crossover pop/country hits, October 24, 2002
Eric Records has quietly been returning numerous original singles to circulation with their "Hard to Find 45s on CD" series. This volume turns their focus to nineteen tracks, dating from 1957's "Gone" by Ferlin Husky, and continuing through 1983's "Baby I Lied" by Deborah Allen, that found success on both the pop and country charts. Also included are a pair of tracks (Frank Ifield's "I Remember You" and David Frizzell's "I'm Gonna Hire a Wino to Decorate Our Home" that only made one chart (pop and country, respectively), but had crossover potential, and are difficult to find on CD.Eric Records' usual attention to detail (true stereo where available, chart position and date) is supplemented by excellent liner notes by Greg Adams. The background on the bands and songs is especially enlightening for pop fans approaching songs that originated in the country realm, and vice-versa. Even more interesting is how his notes follow the arc of the music's dual absorption of country and mainstream pop influences, from the original Nashville Sound of Ferlin Husky's "Gone" through the nearly unrecognizable country influence of Sylvia's new-wave, synthesizer-based "Nobody." Throughout there are terrific memories (check the song list!), many of which are very difficult to find elsewhere on CD (or, if found, often turn out to be other than the original 45 take or mix). Eric Records' meticulous approach to selecting masters and converting them to the digital realm, complemented by their excellent ears for selecting and organizing tracks, has resulted in a truly superb spin.
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
fine collection of hard to find songs shining brighter than silver and gold !!!, May 30, 2008
Hard to Find 45s on CD: Pop & Country Classics has many hidden gems on it and the sound quality is terrific. All too sadly, these good songs just aren't remembered the way they should be--but maybe with CDs like this that could change. The artwork is very nicely done and there's a strong diversity of artists on this CD.
Ferlin Husky starts things off with a lovely country tune entitled "Gone." This touching torch song has Ferlin Husky singing so very well and the backup chorus enhances the natural beauty of this number. The guitar work is pretty impressive as well. "Gonna Find Me A Bluebird" by Marvin Rainwater features his remarkably fine voice; Marvin could really sing and the music that accompanies him just can't be beat! I always enjoy hearing this tune by Marvin Rainwater. Leroy Van Dyke does a great job as he performs "Walk On By;" this tune mixes country with a twist of early rock and roll that really makes this number shine brighter than silver and gold! Leroy Van Dyke sings this very passionately, too.
Bobby Edwards makes good on his tune entitled "You're The Reason;" "You're The Reason" is another country tune that sounds so good especially after they add just a slight twist of rock and roll to this ballad. "You're The Reason" is brilliantly performed by Bobby Edwards and I really like this song. There's also "Tennessee Bird Walk" by Jack Blanchard & Misty Morgan; Jack and Misty perform this with feeling and panache and "Tennessee Bird Walk" is a major highlight of this album. "If I Said You Have A Beautiful Body Would You Hold It Against Me" is one of the longest names for a song I've seen in quite a while; The Bellamy Brothers harmonize very well and their voices are quite strong as they sing this charming country ballad. The percussion helps to mark the beat and The Bellamy Brothers really should have received more recognition than they received.
"Nobody" by Sylvia is a tune that has a very pretty melody and again the mixture of country and early rock and roll works wonders for this song. Sylvia turns this out with grace and style and she sings with all her heart--great! "Yesterday, When I Was Young" gets the royal treatment by the great Roy Clark; Roy sings this without a superfluous note and the backup chorus sounds great along with a very lush musical arrangement.
"I'm Gonna Hire A Wino To Decorate Our Home" by David FRizzell strikes me as a type of country style novelty song--but make no mistake about it, this is a very good song. The CD also ends very nicely with "Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" by B.J. Thomas. "Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" is a classic tune that I could listen to over and over again; B.J. Thomas delivers this flawlessly with all his heart and it moves me to hear this tune.
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~ Hard To Find 45s On CD (Series)
~ Various Artists
~ Various Artists
~ Hard To Find 45s On CD (Series)
~ Hard To Find 45s On CD (Series)
See all 21 tracks on this disc
