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Includes music from Orville Couch, Ray & Lindy, Lucky Wray, Eddie Noack and Thumper Jones (an alias for George Jones). 30 tracks total! CD

Some of the most home-grown, hard-hitting work of the rockabilly generation – which is maybe no surprise, as the legendary Starday Records had a very unique approach to their music! Starday was both a commercial record label, and a place where obscure talents could go to get their records pressed up – which meant that the Texas company had their ears very close to the ground, and was able to snatch up some of the best work that was bubbling up on the scene! And while the Starday name may be more associated with country over the years, they were a key force in the Texas and Louisiana scenes during the early years of rock and roll – and definitely had plenty of artists who mixed in lots of hillbilly touches too. This killer 33 track set is overflowing with obscure Starday gems – work from Rudy Grazell, Sonny Fisher, Glen Barber, Larry Nolen & His Bandits, Link Davis, Truitt Forse, Lou Walker, Lucky Wray, Bill Browning, Al Runyon, Tommy Castle, and many others! CD

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Great work from the mighty Sonny Burns – one of the hippest artists recording on the young Starday Records label – at a time when the great Pappy Daily was bringing a lot of his Texas indie genius to the company! Sonny's a singer who often sings country, but with the attitude of a young rocker – maybe that mix of rocka/hillbilly you'd find in the early work of George Jones – who was one of Burns' label mates at the time – although Sonny has maybe more of a honky tonk vibe that comes through especially well on the mellow tunes! CD features 23 tracks in all – including "I'm Not Long for This World", "Powder & Paint", "Girl Of The Streets", "A Place For Girls Like You", "Six Feet Of Earth", "Too Hot To Handle", "Heart Like A Dollar Sign", "Blue Blue Rain", "If You See My Baby", and "Satan's A Waitin". CD

Fantastic work from the young George Jones – working here at the height of his powers, and in a raw live setting that's a nice change from some of the polish of his studio recordings of the 60s! George's voice is great – already hitting that wider range that marked his Musicor material as a huge step forward from his years on the Mercury and Starday labels – but the live setting also returns some of the grit of those early days, and has Jones working with the very romping Jones Boys combo – who can not only cook on stage, but also bring in some of the searing guitar that made George's initial singles appeal to the young rock market too. The group get a few instrumental moments in the spotlight, too – which makes for a nice addition to the set – and although the material had been issued before, this set goes back to the original tapes, remasters the whole set, and also features a total of 26 titles that include "Who Shot Sam", "White Lightnin", "Jole Blon", "The Race Is On/Hold It", "Big Harlan Taylor", "The Window Up Above", "She Thinks I Still Care", "We Must Have Been Out Of Our Minds", "Aching Breaking Heart", "Sing A Sad Song", "Act Naturally", and "I'm Ragged But I'm Right". CD

Allstar Records was a great Texas indie back in the day – and although not as well-known as Sun or Starday, the company issued some killer singles in the late 50s! As you might guess from their location in Houston, Allstar often has a bit of country in the mix – and this collection is a wonderful illustration of the thin line between hillbilly and rockabilly during the early years of rock and roll – a balance that's covered here in great detail in the notes, which as with the rest of this series, are as illuminating as the music on the CD! There's a whopping 35 tracks in all – including surprising early gems from artists like Link Davis, Eddie Noack, and Johnny Bush – plus lots more from Larry Butler, Daniel James, Tommy Graham, Barney Vardeman, Red Mansel, Smilin Jerry Jericho, and many others. CD