by peterchecksfield » Sun Aug 23, 2009 11:26 pm
(1) Pumpin' Piano Rock (curiously overlooked amongst his other 50s rockers, check out that piano solo!)
(2) I Could Never Be Ashamed Of You (forget 'You Win Again', this is his finest Hank Williams interpretation at Sun)
(3) I Know What It Means (a strange mixture of country, blues & old time pop, but one of his most heart-felt vocals)
(4) She Was My Baby (He Was My Friend) (this pop-rhythm 'n' blues song was actually released as an A-side though few seem to mention it these days)
(5) Skid Row (unreleased at the time & first released on an early 80s bootleg EP, this is superior to almost everything on 'Country Songs For City Folks')
(6) If I Had It All To Do Over (the B-side to 'Memphis Beat', just check out that soaring vocal as well as the beautiful string arrangement)
(7) It's A Hang Up Baby (soul, R&B, pop...whatever it is, this remains one my favourite recordings of all time by anyone, & I wish he'd recorded more material like this)
(8) All The Good Is Gone (another B-side, though this would almost certainly have been a giant country hit if released as an A-side, & I love the Ray Charles-influenced vocals!)
(9) Mom And Dad's Waltz (most of the material on the 'Country Music Hall of Fame Hits' LPs are of a very high standard & this Lefty Frizzell song is no exception)
(10) I Know That Jesus Will Be There (probably Jerry & Linda's finest ever duet, & check out the production, proof that they didn't need Jerry Kennedy!)
(11) Mother, The Queen Of My Heart (a beautiful version of the old Jimmie Rodgers song, though avoid the 1987 'At Hank Cochran's' version)
(12) Don't Be Cruel (many fans these days over-look 'The Killer Rocks On' in favour of 'The Session', but this was a far more consistent album & this song is one of my faves)
(13) No Traffic Out Of Abilene (criminally just buried away on the patchy 'Who's Gonna Play This Old Piano' album, this is a strong candidate for Jerry's finest ever recorded vocal performance!)
(14) Raining In My Heart (when discussing Jerry's blues recordings this Slim Harpo song is rarely mentioned but to me this 'Southern Roots' outtake is superior to almost everything on the released album)
(15) The Old Country Church (the 'Country Class' album was like a breath of fresh air after the previous few albums - gone was the ragged vocals, the over-production & the tedious ad-libs, & in was a very straightly-sung selection of songs. Jerry sounds genuinely emotional during the talking part when mentioning his mother)
(16) Wild & Wooly Ways (Jerry's attempted this 'live' several times over the years but it never quite works, shame as it's a far superior song to 'Before The Night Is Over' on the same album!)
(17) Let Me On (to my mind all three Elektra albums were very strong indeed, & this song could've worked great 'live')
(18) That Was The Way It Was Then (the MCA albums were far more patchy but this song is an obvious high-light, & superior to the unreleased Elektra version)
(19) Softly & Tenderly (another song attempted at Elektra, this very heart-felt version from 'Four Legends' was actually played at Webb Pierce's funeral)
(20) Wake Up Little Susie (Everly Brothers songs are usually un-coverable, but Jerry makes this one his own with some very nifty piano work!)
OK, who else wants to choose 20 songs???