A really special album in the career of the great Merle Haggard – a moment when he really started looking back to give credit to those who inspired him – and when he was also really able to express himself in a longer format too! Part of the credit might go to Capitol Records, who trusted Merle so much they not only let him record a concept album, but a 2LP set as well – plenty of space for Haggard to deliver some great spoken passages about the great Jimmie Rodgers, his life, and music – then move into some of Jimmie's classics, but updated nicely with a vibe that's very much Merle's own! Given the way that Hag was stretching out his vocal skills tremendously at the end of the 60s, there's a sense of inflection that's perfect for the bluesy currents of the songs – on titles that include "Blue Yodel No 4", "Waitin For A Train", "Mother The Queen Of My Heart", "My Old Pal", "No Hard Times", "Travelin Blues", "Down The Old Road To Home", "Jimmie's Texas Blues", "Train Whistle Blues", and "Mule Skinner Blues" – plus the classic train song "Hobo Bill's Last Ride". CD

The sixth volume of American Recordings from Johnny Cash – recorded in the months between June's & Johnny's passing – produced by an increasingly reverent Rick Rubin and put together with care and consideration. Cash sounds justifiably weary on these late recordings, with songs chosen from the work of great friends, admirers and the Man In Black himself. It's the second posthumous set in the series, but it's truly good stuff, and certainly respectful of Johnny's astounding legacy. Includes "Ain't No Grave", "Redemption Song", "For The Good Times", "Satisfied Mind", "I Corinthians 15:55", "I Don't Hurt Anymore", "Cool Water", "Last Night A Stranger Had A Dream" and "Aloha Oe". LP, Vinyl record album

Pure greatness! This set compiles all of the early work of the one and only Hag, from his early days at the indie Tally Records, through his first several years at Capitol. Pretty much everything Hag recorded up to and including Mama Tried – and not a stinker in the bunch! Includes all of the early album tracks plus singles and alternate versions, including "I Threw Away The Rose", The Bottle Let Me Down", "Mama Tried", "I'm A Lonesome Fugitive", "Green Green Grass Of Home", his absolutely perfect version of "Folsom Prison Blues" – all of the greats! Also included in the fantastic package is a huge book full of info about Hag's, let's just say, interesting personal life, recording details, tons of photos – flawless! CD

New Train Same Rider is a set that has Tom T Hall maybe bringing a bit more sentiment to the mix than before – hitting some of those tunes that are still as reflective as his other work, but maybe a bit less pointedly critical – maybe showing a warmer side of Hall as his songwriting career continued to flourish. Yet the album's also got a few key cuts that are really great, too – including his great commentary on all the outlaw singers who were recording outside Nashville – and his great ode to whiskey. Titles include "Burning Bridges", "Dark Hollow", "I'd Rather Die Young", "May The Force Be With You Always", "Come On Back To Nashville", "Mabel You Have Been A Friend To Me", and "I Wish I Loved Somebody Else". LP, Vinyl record album

Four of the more obscure RCA albums from the great Bobby Bare – all brought together here in a single set! First up is the very unusual English Countryside album – a special set that has the vocals of Bobby Bare paired with a group from the UK – Liverpool's Hillsiders, who sing with a style that's a bit folk, and a bit rock – but which takes on a very distinct country vibe amidst the RCA production of Chet Atkins! Both Bare and The Hillsiders sing solo on the record – but most of the set has them paired together, and the presence of all those voices on the tracks create a nice sense of spontaneity – maybe a hint at the more relaxed recording approach that Bobby would use on his big albums of the mid 70s! Titles include "Sweet Dreams", "Six Days On The Road", "Find Out What's Happening", "Love's Gonna Live Here", "Goin Home", "Blue Is My Lonely Room", and "I Washed My Face In The Mountain Dew". Margie's At The Lincoln Park Inn is a seminal album in the career of Bobby Bare – and the record that really has him turning from a young smiling country singer to the kind of more adult, mature talent that would really send him over the top! The album's promise of "controversial country songs" is certainly apt – as in addition to the great Tom T Hall title cut, the album also features Bare taking on great material from Kris Kristoffersen, Mel Tillis, and even the team of Spooner Oldham and Dan Penn – all set to arrangements that are nicely more sophisticated than those used on the more pop productions of some of Bobby's earlier albums. Titles include "Margie's At The Lincoln Park Inn,", "The Law Is For The Protection Of The People", "Watching The Trains Go By", "Skip A Rope", "Rainy Day In Richmond", "Cincinnati Jail", "Wild As The Wind", and "Drink Up & Go Home". I Hate Goodbyes is the record that marked the return of Bobby Bare to RCA Records in the early 70s – and one that also marks the start of a very different phase in Bare's career! This time around, Bobby's handling the production himself – working with the kind of thoughtful, mature material that would really let him open up – songs from Billy Joe Shaver, Mickey Newbury, the team of Bill Rice and Jerry Foster, and even an early tune from Shel Silverstein – who would soon become one of the biggest contributors to Bobby's records. The vibe is very different than his RCA material of the mid 60s, and in a great way – on titles that include "I Hate Goodbyes", "Restless Wind", "Ride Me Down Easy", "Send Tomorrow To The Moon", "You Know Who", "An Offer She Couldn't Refuse", "What's Your Mama's Name Child", and "Poison Red Berries". Last up is Cowboys & Daddys – an overlooked gem in the mid 70s RCA years of the great Bobby Bare – and a set that really shows the dedication that Bare had during these years to finding the most sophisticated material of the new country generation! The list of songwriters alone is great – as the set features tracks from Terry Allen, Shel Silverstein, David Hickey, and Tom T Hall – plus an early contribution from Bob McDill, with whom Bare would soon record a lot more material on albums to come. There's a mature, laidback vibe to the whole set – different than some of the more playful Bobby Bare albums of the time – and titles include "Chester", "The Cowboy & The Poet", "Amarillo Highway", "Speckled Pony", "Calgary Snow", "Last Dance At The Old Texas Moon", "Pretty Painted Ladies", and "The Stranger". CD

A landmark album in the British folk scene at the start of the 70s – one of those records that was maybe a bit ignored at the time, but which has gone on to shape the sound of generations in the decades that followed! Anne Briggs has a really haunting voice – one that's got this spare, eerie quality that maybe follows from earlier American work by a singer like Jean Ritchie – and she's also a hell of a guitarist too, playing here with a complexity and sense of sound that instantly rivals some of the greats of both the Takoma Records generation, and UK contemporaries like Bert Jansch and John Renbourn. The album mixes vocals and instrumentals beautifully – and although the sound is lean, the whole thing has a tremendously powerful sound – on titles that include "Standing On The Shore", "Tangled Man", "Clea Caught A Rabbit", "Fire & Wine", "Highlodge Hare", "Sandman's Song", "Time Has Come", and "Tidewave". LP, Vinyl record album

A record that really has Fairport Convention knocking it out of the park – making a bold turn towards British traditional music, but in a way that imbues these relics with a whole new life of their own! The album came at a key turning point – after an accident that took one of their members, and which almost saw the group disband – but instead turn towards the past for even deeper inspiration than some of their contemporaries, whom they'd covered on other records – at a level that seems to set Sandy Denny free into this sublime territory of her own! Denny's vocals are incredible – like a thing unlocked from some ancient vault – and they're given this wonderful focus through the growing complexity of Richard Thompson's guitar work, and the understated brilliance of Ashley Hutchings' bass – both of which bring in these modal inflections that are very 60s, and hardly conceived of as accompaniment with the original tunes. The result is tremendous – tunes that are completely transformed, as a touchstone for generations. Titles include "Matty Groves", "Reynardine", "Come All Ye", "The Deserter", "Tam Lin", and "Crazy Man Michael". LP, Vinyl record album

Folk legend Woody Guthrie was no stranger to struggle – which is the subject highlighted in most of these tunes – pulled together in the shape of this album, which offered a great counterpoint to the Bicentennial madness in America when it was released in 1976! The titles of the songs give plenty of an idea of the nature of the music – with classic Guthrie recordings done for Folkways in the 40s, including "The Dying Miner", "Waiting At The Gate", "A Dollar Down & A Dollar A Week", "Lost John", "Union Burying Ground", and "Ludlow Massacre" – many of which echo the continuing struggle of the working man, even as America was shining forth as an industrial giant. The recordings mostly feature Woody on vocals and guitar, but there's also some guest contributions from Cisco Houston and Sonny Terry – both key contemporaries of Guthrie. LP, Vinyl record album

Sublime early work from Bonnie Dobson – really spare, really beautiful tracks recorded years before Dobson became more of a pop phenomenon – with a classic sound that's instantly mesmerizing, right from the very first note! The record just features Bonnie's guitar and her amazing voice – recorded perfectly by Rudy Van Gelder, who did as great of a job here as with any of his jazz sessions for Prestige Records – maybe even more so, given the intimacy of the record. Titles include "The Cruel War Is Raging", "Mistress Bond", "Envoyons De L'Avant", "The Road To Grandmere", "The Old Maid's Lament", "Across The Blue Mountain", and "Frankie Slide". CD

Obscure 60s work from Rex Allen – recorded for a smaller label than some of his bigger hits, and done in a more laidback style that's mighty nice! There's less of the western themes on the record than you might guess from Rex's look on the cover – and a fair bit of the album has an easygoing approach to honky tonk – with almost echoes of Hank Thompson at times. Titles include "I'll Keep On Loving You", "Down The Wrong Highway", "Sure As Your Name's Kate", "Sixteen Hundred Miles", "Cold Cold War", and "You Don't Care What Happens To Me". CD

A stunning live prison performance from the Man In Black, recorded in conjunction with a television special. Titles include "Starkville County Jail", "I Walk The Line", "Folsom Prison Blues", an incredible version of "Wanted Man", and what became the single off the LP, "A Boy Named Sue". LP, Vinyl record album

A treasure trove of work from a singer who's finally getting his due – Louisiana legend Jimmy Donley, an artist whose career was as short-lived as his time on the planet – but who worked during the early 60s in a wonderful blend of soul, R&B, and rough-edged rock! The package is amazing – and a much-needed look at this artist who burned incredibly brightly for a few short years, before taking his own life in the mid 60s. Jimmy's a hell of a singer, and a damn great songwriter too – and according to the notes, most of the tunes on the set originated with him, but were sold quickly to others to earn cash – a fact that hardly keeps the music from being a great representation of Donley's genius. There's definitely some echoes of New Orleans soul in the recordings, but given that many of the sessions were handled by Huey P Meux, there's also a west Louisiana vibe, too – with almost some grittier east Texas elements as well. The sound is quite unique – and uniquely breathtaking in this scope – a 2CD set that features 20 songs issued on singles for the Tear Drop label – plus another 36 tracks as demos, duets, and other rare material! Titles include "A Woman's Gotta Have Her Way", "Think It Over", "Strange Strange Feeling", "Love Bug", "Baby Ain't That Love", "Just A Game", "Santa Don't Pass Me By", "Baby Heaven Sent Me You", "Loving Cajun Style", "Forever Lillie May", "I Still Care", "It's Time To Say Goodbye", and "I'll Keep On Movin". CD

A weird bit of folk funk rock – and a totally cool record on early 70s Verve! The album was recorded during the Mike Curb years at MGM – and has a similar pop crossover, adult hip kind of sound to some of Curb's other big success stories. The sound's an unusual blend of folk and growing 70s pop modes – and the track "Let's Love" is a nice spacey groover with a flanged-out pop sound. Songs include "Butterfly", "From Japan To America", "Low Lay Low", "Teddy Bear", "Harlequin", "Caroline", "Face Of A Clown", "The Gun", "Rain", "Elie Lama Sabacthani", and "Let's Love". (Rock, Folk/Country) LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful early 70s debut LP from a then 20 year old, Halifax-reared Catherine Howe – produced and arranged by US jazz pianist Bobby Scott in a mode that manages to feel lush and opulent while never belying Catherine's warmth, intimacy and maturity! The sound is warmly baroque, and Catherine's lovely vocals and evocative songwriting style is sheerly natural – recorded in a fairly stripped down setting and fleshed out with strings by the London Symphony Orchestra. The mix of intimacy and grandeur makes the record a bit of stylistic cousin to Nick Drake's Bryter Layter – we take our Drake seriously and we don't throw that comparison out lightly! Released by a doomed Reflection Records, which closed up shop the same year – the album was almost instantly relegated to obscurity, but has become the stuff of legend over the years – thanks to reissues, and interest in Howe's music from younger generations. Titles include "Up North", "On A Misty Morning", "Nothing More Than Strangers", "My Child", "The Innocence Of A Child", "It Comes With The Breezes" and more – plus the bonus demo "In The Hot Summer" – which led to the next phase of Catherine's career at RCA. CD