Despite hearing Martina McBride open for Garth Brooks back in 1992, I have never been a real fan. That's not to say I don't appreciate her talents, it's just that I have found her material lacking as far as the style and content of the genre I call "country" music. What is heard on country radio today is, sadly not country music and despite giving lip service to some of the greats, there are only a mere handful of today's so-called country singers who the greats would call truly country. By paying homage to the country music of yesteryear, Martina McBride has redeemed herself in my eyes (and ears) by gifting us with an album that any true country aficionado would be proud to add to their collection.
From the very popular to some that may be less familiar, these covers are like listening to country music history from the 50s, 60s, and 70s. And although many of these songs have been covered by others over the years (and sometimes a bit better) it's great to have them all in one concise package.
One complaint is that these are still a bit over-produced unlike the more simple productions of most of the originals. That said it is hoped by listening to some of these classics that the so-called country fans today will get a taste of what country music really is.
It is fitting that McBride should open with a Hank Williams tune with You Win Again - Williams is not only a name everyone should be familiar with but also absolutely worthy of the distinction of being included on a CD of classic country songs.
I'll Be There (If You Ever Want Me) was a hit for Ray Price but I recall the great Gail Davies cover in the 80s. This version, while good, does not come close to Davies'.
I Can't Stop Loving You was written by Don Gibson and was a country hit for him but is best remembered as a Ray Charles hit from several years later and one of the greatest (if not THE) greatest country song of all time.
With her version of I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, McBride does more than justice to the song for which Lynn Anderson won Grammy in 1970.
Merle's Haggard's Today I Started Loving You Again is another example of a nearly perfect country song. Full of the heartbreak that has made both fans and critics of the genre, this song can make a grown man cry.
What would a CD of country classics be without a good Loretta Lynn song? McBride has chosen You Ain't Woman Enough (to Take My Man) that although lacking Loretta's grit, certainly belongs here on the CD
And then we come to the wonderful Once a Day. Although this may have been Connie Smith's greatest hit it is only one of her great songs -- Smith may be one of the most under-rated of the great country singers of our time and I urge anyone reading this to give her a listen.
Mc Bride follows by two more classics Pick Me Up on Your Way Down, a Charlie Walker hit penned by the incomparable Harlan Howard and I Don't Hurt Anymore which was a hit by the great Hank Snow.
A surprise addition is True Love Ways, a hit for Buddy Holly and then again the English duo Peter and Gordon, I never really thought of it as a country song even after Mickey Gilley covered it.
A welcome addition is Tammy Wynette's 'Til I Can Make it On My Own. All these years later, I can't listen to this song without getting tears in my eyes and thinking of somebody very special - Jerry Johnson in 1978 who gently and kindly soothed me through the end of our relationship. I am sure the words in this song spoke to many women out there and still do.
On Johnny Cash's I Still Miss Someone, McBride is joined by Dolly Parton. It goes without saying that no one will ever do this song better than The Man in Black. That said, it was a good choice of a Johnny Cash song to include.
One of my favorite cuts is Heartaches by the Number, the old Ray Price song. Perhaps it's because I just like duets and McBride's duet here with Dwight Yoakam is wonderful.
Satin Sheets is another song whose words I know by heart. I remember singing duets with my friend Pam in 1973 pretending the hairbrush was a microphone. Oh how I loved Jeanne Pruett"s song! And oh how glad I am that another generation is hearing it by McBride including it on this CD!
Satin sheets is followed by three other memorable classics Thanks A Lot (Ernest Tubb) Love's Gonna Live Here (Buck Owens who I used to watch as a grade schooler when he had his TV show in Tacoma, Washington) and the poignant Eddie Arnold hit Make the World Go Away
McBride ends the CD with a song from my favorite composer of all-time, Kris Kristofferson, Help Me Make it Through The Night, first made popular by the late Sammi Smith in the early 1970s.
A group of old classics, songs for a new generation. Whether you've heard these songs for years or are just now hearing them for the first time, they are all so very special, award-winning by so many Country Music Hall of Famers, I am so glad that McBride has brought these to life again. Thanks for making me relive so many wonderful old memories from those times. And for those of you in your 20s and 30s who are just now listening to these songs for the first time -- remember THIS IS WHAT COUNTRY REALLY IS.
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