A heck of a great record from Jim Ford – an early 70s country outsider whose early work hardly got any circulation at the time – but who's managed to go on to become the stuff of legend over the years! This set's got Jim at his best – maybe sounding even more country than on his two Capitol Records sessions, with slightly fuller production – but still that very individual, very distinct way of songwriting and putting over a tune – a quality that sparkles strongly on the album's batch of all-original material by Ford. A few tracks are reworks of numbers done on his unreleased second session for Capitol, taken in a very different way – and the whole thing has an offbeat vibe that's in the best left-of-Nashville mode of the early 70s. Titles include "He Turns My Radio On", "Family Tree", "Mixed Green", "I Call Her Baby", "Rising Sign", "Which Way", "If I Go Country", and "If There's A Will There's A Way". CD

Overlooked Texas genius from Buck Griffin – a singer who first recorded for the famous Lin label, then got a shot at the bigtime on MGM! Buck's maybe the epitome of a local vocal star – a singer who was on the radio daily, and who was able to absorb the best of the bigger early 50s acts – then sling things forth with a spirit that was all his own – this great mix of heartbreaking vocals and hard-edge twang – which worked equally well on the mellow cuts and the more upbeat numbers! There's some occasional rocking guitar in the mix, which only further emphasizes the strength of Buck's vocals – and although many of these tracks are later than the classic years, there's a strong hillbilly vibe on many of the numbers. Titles include "Go Stop Go", "Broken Heart With Alimony", "Stutterin Papa", "Girl In 1209", "Meadowlark Boogie", "Cochise", "Let's Elope Baby", "Next To Mine", "Lookin For The Green", "Twenty Six Steps", and "First Man To Stand On The Moon". CD

A cool collection of really oddball numbers – unusual country, offbeat pop numbers, and a fair bit of cuts that have a popcorn groove somewhere down there at the bottom! These aren't the usual sorts of cuts you might expect – and instead, the collection's definitely on the hipper side of the spectrum from the things we hear from the Stag O Lee label – maybe the farther reaches past Bear Family and Ace records – into the real hinterland of the obscure 45. CD brings together material from the 10" LP sets vols 3 and 4 – and tracks include "Fire Of Love" by Jody Reynolds, "Lonely Moon" by Johnny Wells, "On The Horizon" by Ben E King, "Squaw Girl" by Fatima, "Hellbound Train" by Marie Robertson, "Tennessee Hillbilly Ghost" by Eddy Arnold, "Hard Working Man" by Dorsey Burnette, "Lumber City" by Big Buddy K, "Wild Streak" by Johnny Fallin, "Ghost Town" by Eddie Miller, "Down Bound Train" by Frank Gay & The Gayblades, "Bury Me Deep" by Bill Shaw, "The Living Dead" by Jim Burgett, "Mistery's Child" by Richard Hayes, "Workin On The Santa Fe" by Randy Starr, "Cell Walls" by Craig Brown, and "Rebel Heart" by Larry Hall. CD

Rare rockers from a very obscure source – material pulled from two different California labels of the 50s – both companies that grew up in the recording boom of the big move west from all points south at midcentury – and which were close to the ground, and very well poised to capture some of the best up-and-coming sounds on the scene! The work here is the sort that came about from a label being more open to new ideas than having some sort of larger plan to conquer the world of pop music – as these companies might have recorded hillbilly and R&B equally well, which often shows in the approach to the music – nicely free, open, and almost genre-hopping at times – very different than the house styles of some of the more iconic labels. As with other volumes in the series, the set list is great, and supported by very detailed notes – a whopping 33 tracks in all, with work by The Empala Six, The Fretts, Linda & The Epics, The Downbeats, Chuck Royal & The Sharpsters, Gradie O'Neal & The Bella Tones, Pat LaRocca, The Martells, Shorty Joe, and others! (Rock, Folk/Country) CD