Glen Campbell cut plenty of fantastic songs for Capitol Records – but year after year, some of the best were written by the young Jimmy Webb – an important 60s songwriter who brought magic to a number of different singers, but maybe clicked most strongly with Glen! You'll know the key tracks here, as they represent some of Campbells biggest early hits – but his association with Webb goes way past those few tracks, through a legacy of great 70s recordings that are presented here – in a package that features every single Glen Campbell recording of a Jimmy Webb tune through the start of the 80s – including live material, and even a more obscure track done for Atlantic Records too. The sensitivity of Webb's material is really on full display here – and the whole thing is a great contrast to some of the thinner greatest hits packages of Campbell's material – presented with very detailed notes, lots of great vintage images, and a set list of 23 tracks that include "You Might As Well Smile", "Just This One Time", "I Keep It Hid", "The Moon's A Harsh Mistress", "Galveston", "Didn't We (live)", "In Cars", "Highwayman", "Early Morning Song", "Christian No", "It's A Sin When You Love Somebody", "Adoration", "Wichita Lineman", "Where's The Playground Susie", "I Was Too Busy Loving You", "Just Another Piece Of Paper", and "Ocean In His Eyes". (Rock, Folk/Country) CD

Cash's fourth volume of stark, sparely-arranged studio recordings for producer/set list provider Rick Rubin. As Johnny gets on in the years his always haunting voice, like Bob Dylan's, is weighted by age, but the heavily-breathed delivery only adds to the ghostly quality of the increasingly dark tunes. With this fourth set in the series we're far past being surprised by the choices of material – this time Cash conjures up spiritual takes on Depeche Mode's "Personal Jesus", Trent Reznor's "Hurt", Lennon/McCartney's "In My Life", and more traditional material like Hank Williams' "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" and the eternally underrated Marty Robbins' "Big Iron". You can't forget that Cash's pen is still pretty sharp, too, as the really spooky imagery in the title track and others testify. The accompaniment includes the great Randy Scruggs, Beck/Tom Waits guitarist Smokey Hormel, Marty Stuart, Glen Campell, and backing vocals by Nick Cave and Fiona Apple. Another great one from the greatest! LP, Vinyl record album

A surprisingly strong set of previously unreleased Johnny Cash – recorded with producer Billy Sherrill, mostly in 1984, but with a couple sessions from '81 – and it's honestly as great, and a heck of a lot better than a bunch of Johnny's music that actually DID see commercial release during the 80s! Our favorite Billy Sherrill productions are ones like this, where he's providing a clean, polished backdrop for hardscrabble honky tonk heroes, without compromising their gritty nature. He worked that kind of magic for Johnny Paycheck and George Jones, and it works just as well for Johnny. Johnny's voice is as rich and booming as ever – and it includes a couple duets with June Carter, and one with fellow Highwayman Waylon Jennings. Includes the great title track, "Baby Ride Easy", "She Used To Love Me A Lot", "After All", "I'm Movin' On", "If I Told You Who It Was", "Call Your Mother", "I Drove Her Out Of My Mind", "Tennessee", "Rock And Roll Shoes", "Don't You Think It's Come Our Time", "I Came To Believe" and a bonus Elvis Costello mix of "She Used To Love Me A Lot". CD

A set that's way more than just a "best of" sort of anthology – as the package features three full albums by the group, plus other material too! The set begins with the classic debut, Gilded Palace Of Sin – a true late 60s rock masterpiece – and like albums by Love and The Velvet Underground, a set that barely made a mainstream impact at the time – but which has gone on to be the stuff of influence and legend over the decades! The album's the first from Gram Parsons and the group – one of only two they would cut together – and the whole thing is a perfect blend of rough-edged rock and country influences rising up from the LA scene – all those glimmers of brilliance that Parsons had brought to the Byrds and other projects, maybe given their full flowering here in a mode that's unabashed about its country music influences – maybe even more so than some of Gram's later solo work. Sneeky Pete Kleinow's steel guitar really adds a lot – but so does the presence of Chris Hillman on guitar and mandolin, and Chris Ethridge on bass and piano. Titles include the brilliant "Sin City" – a track we'll love until we die – plus "Christine's Tune", "Do Right Woman", "Dark End Of The Street", "My Uncle", "Wheels", "Juanita", "Hot Burrito No 1", "Hot Burrito No 2", "Do You Know How It Feels", and "Hippy Boy". Burrito Deluxe is the second of only two albums recorded by Gram Parsons with the Flying Burrito Brothers – and a masterpiece that pushes the group's sound even farther than their debut! The set is filled with special moments – songs that show just why these guys were such a special bridge between late 60s country and rock music – and why all of the other groups they inspired just never came close to serving things up this well! Gram Parsons is fantastic on vocals, of course – but the whole group is great, especially Sneaky Pete on steel guitar. Titles include the fantastic romper "Man In The Fog", the very groovy "Lazy Days", the haunting "God's Own Singer", and the group's Jagger/Richards' approved take on "Wild Horses – plus other cuts that include "High Fashion Queen", "Image Of Me", "Older Guys", and "If You Gotta Go". Flying Burrito Brothers is The Burritos first LP, post-Parsons – and a pretty strong statement for the merits of the now unquestioned leader, Rick Roberts, and multi-instrumentalist new guy Bernie Leadon, who would later turn to the dark side and join the Eagles! Roberts penned or co-penned seven of the album's ten tunes, including "Colorado", "Hand To Mouth", "Just Can't Be", and "Four Days Of Rain". His contributions are for the most part nicely fragile, with just the right doses of sweetness and sadness. The group also covers Merle Haggard's "White Line Fever", Gene Clark's "Tried So Hard", and Dylan's "To Ramona". This is one of the band's rarer LPs, probably because of the absence of hipster hero Gram Parsons – truly a worthy piece of work! CD also features some other tracks recorded by Parsons with the group – including "Six Days On The Road", "Break My Mind", "Sing Me Back Home", and "Close Up The Honky Tonks" – and live tracks "Ain't That A Lot Of Love" and "Losing Game" – plus Gene Clark singing on "Here Tonight". (Rock, Folk/Country) CD

A set that's way more than just a "best of" sort of anthology – as the package features three full albums by the group, plus other material too! The set begins with the classic debut, Gilded Palace Of Sin – a true late 60s rock masterpiece – and like albums by Love and The Velvet Underground, a set that barely made a mainstream impact at the time – but which has gone on to be the stuff of influence and legend over the decades! The album's the first from Gram Parsons and the group – one of only two they would cut together – and the whole thing is a perfect blend of rough-edged rock and country influences rising up from the LA scene – all those glimmers of brilliance that Parsons had brought to the Byrds and other projects, maybe given their full flowering here in a mode that's unabashed about its country music influences – maybe even more so than some of Gram's later solo work. Sneeky Pete Kleinow's steel guitar really adds a lot – but so does the presence of Chris Hillman on guitar and mandolin, and Chris Ethridge on bass and piano. Titles include the brilliant "Sin City" – a track we'll love until we die – plus "Christine's Tune", "Do Right Woman", "Dark End Of The Street", "My Uncle", "Wheels", "Juanita", "Hot Burrito No 1", "Hot Burrito No 2", "Do You Know How It Feels", and "Hippy Boy". Burrito Deluxe is the second of only two albums recorded by Gram Parsons with the Flying Burrito Brothers – and a masterpiece that pushes the group's sound even farther than their debut! The set is filled with special moments – songs that show just why these guys were such a special bridge between late 60s country and rock music – and why all of the other groups they inspired just never came close to serving things up this well! Gram Parsons is fantastic on vocals, of course – but the whole group is great, especially Sneaky Pete on steel guitar. Titles include the fantastic romper "Man In The Fog", the very groovy "Lazy Days", the haunting "God's Own Singer", and the group's Jagger/Richards' approved take on "Wild Horses – plus other cuts that include "High Fashion Queen", "Image Of Me", "Older Guys", and "If You Gotta Go". Flying Burrito Brothers is The Burritos first LP, post-Parsons – and a pretty strong statement for the merits of the now unquestioned leader, Rick Roberts, and multi-instrumentalist new guy Bernie Leadon, who would later turn to the dark side and join the Eagles! Roberts penned or co-penned seven of the album's ten tunes, including "Colorado", "Hand To Mouth", "Just Can't Be", and "Four Days Of Rain". His contributions are for the most part nicely fragile, with just the right doses of sweetness and sadness. The group also covers Merle Haggard's "White Line Fever", Gene Clark's "Tried So Hard", and Dylan's "To Ramona". This is one of the band's rarer LPs, probably because of the absence of hipster hero Gram Parsons – truly a worthy piece of work! CD also features some other tracks recorded by Parsons with the group – including "Six Days On The Road", "Break My Mind", "Sing Me Back Home", and "Close Up The Honky Tonks" – and live tracks "Ain't That A Lot Of Love" and "Losing Game" – plus Gene Clark singing on "Here Tonight". (Rock, Folk/Country) CD

Incredible early work from Willie Nelson – quite different from his outlaw material of the 70s, but equally compelling in its own sort of way! As you'd guess from the title and cover, the set came out at a time when Willie was a real up-and-coming songwriting in country music – responsible for hits for artists like Faron Young, Patsy Cline, and others – and finally given the chance to start as a singer on his own. Willie's style is as amazing as his songs – very different than the mainstream, and often inflected with plenty of jazz – which, for some odd reason, as wonderful as it sounds, is what also kept Nelson away from stardom for most of the 60s. Yet don't let that put you off at all, as the presentation of the material is sublime – completely personal, almost heartbreaking, and still with all those charms that most of the rest of the world didn't discover with Willie for another decade or so. Titles include "Funny How Time Slips Away", "Crazy", "Mr Record Man", "One Step Beyond", "Wake Me When It's Over", "The Part Where I Cry", "Hello Walls", and "Darkness On The Face Of The Earth". LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic run of records – music that firmly established John Prine as one of the most inventive singer/songwriters of the 70s! Prine rose up out of the Chicago folk scene of the 60s – but he soon became something different than just a folk or country singer – even though he was admired strongly by both worlds of music. Instead, John's songs took on this new sense of wit and bite learned from folk, but delivered in a style that was maybe less preachy – but also not as rural as the vibe of country tunesmiths who were changing things up at the time. There's definitely echoes of the work of Kris Kristofferson or Shel Silverstein in Prine's words – but the execution is completely his own, and transforms wonderfully over the course of these records – at a level that shows just how much the singer was able to keep ahead of the pack, and keep his contributions relevant over the years. The box features the full albums John Prine, Diamonds In The Rough, Sweet Revenge, Common Sense, Bruised Orange, Pink Cadillac, and Storm Windows – in LP replica sleeves, with new notes, and poster inserts too. CD

The second album from the enigmatic Bridget St John – and a slightly more expanded version of the sound explored on her debut! Bridget's still very much in a folk-inspired sound here – but like the work of Nick Drake and some of her contemporaries on the British scene, this album has jazzier phrasings and some slightly baroque touches on some tunes – really deepening the feel of the songs, and giving the album a dark depth that we'd easily compare with some of Drake's greatest work. Studio genius Ron Geesin produced the set with a surprising degree of subtlety – just the right amount of edgey undercurrents to unsettle the tunes nicely – never threatening Bridget's presence on the album, but augmenting the moody spectrums that already came across so nicely on the first record. Titles include "A Day A Way", "City Crazy", "Back To Stay", "Seagull Sunday", "If You'd Been There", "Song For The Laird Of Connaught Hall (part 2)", "It Seems Very Strange", and a version of Donovan's "The Pebble & The Man". (Rock, Folk/Country) LP, Vinyl record album

A lovely little record – every bit as wonderful as you might expect from the cover, with an evocative sound that fits right in with the concept of a rainy day raga! Peter Walker plays acoustic guitar, but he does so in these long, winding ways that are clearly inspired by Indian music – yet which come across with much more of an Americanist vibe – supported with some additional guitar from Monte Dunn, a 12 string "drone" from Alex Lukeman, and even some flute from Jeremy Steig – plus a bit of tamboura and bells too! The album's one of the most haunting we've ever heard on Vanguard – way more than familiar folk – and titles include "Morning Joy", "River", "April In Cambridge", "Sunshine", "Rainy Day Raga", "White Wind", and "Bianca". (Rock, Folk/Country) CD

An obscure album by a group from Milwaukee – recorded at a time when that city didn't have much of a scene at all – which left these guys to perform in a coffee house for all the songs on the album! The set's got a vibe that's up-close, and more tightly produced than just a local live record – really great acoustics that bring out the personal, folksy qualities of the songs – which get strong direction from group leader Bill Camplin on vocals and guitar. The overall vibe is maybe more Marin County or Woodstock than any Midwestern music of the period – and titles include "Jesse's Mountain Range", "The Harvest", "Old Man", "Hold On", "Save The Life Of A Simple Child", "Red Velvet", and "Can A Star Disappear". (Rock, Folk/Country) LP, Vinyl record album

Beautiful, simply beautiful! The set features 23 tracks from a range of western-themed movies and TV shows – not really spaghetti westerns, but the sort of popular American work of the 50s and 60s, which often starred bigger names in show business, and which features popular vocal themes interpreted by chart stars of the time. The approach is quite different than most of our other soundtrack selections – a wealth of groovy pop vocal tunes united through western themes, and compiled together in a fantastic package with images from the films. Titles include "Fury" by The Prarie Chiefs, "The Man From Laramie" by Al Martino, "The Ballad Of Cat Ballou" by Nat King Cole & Stubby Kaye, "The Lonely Man" by Tennesse Ernie Ford, "Man With True Grit" by Glen Campbell, "Buttons & Bows" by Bob Hope, "The Wind The Wind" by Dean Martin, "Old Turkey Buzzard" by Jose Feliciano, "Marmalade Molasses & Honey" by Andy Williams, "The Legend Of Wyatt Earp" by Shorty Long, "Stagecoach To Cheyenne" by Wayne Newton, and "Bronco" by Johnny Gregory. (Soundtracks, Folk/Country) CD

The darker side of the hillbilly sound of the postwar years – a whole host of tracks that deal with inner fears, worldly temptations, and external terrors – served up in a mix of tracks that resonates strongly with the long running Hillbillies In Hell series! The approach here is a bit wider-ranging, and maybe a bit more rough around the edges – but we also appreciate that, and the way the package lets the CD format really open up the amount of tracks that are included – 28 numbers that include "Let Me Go Devil" by Wade Ray, "Spellbound" by Jimmie Holt, "Haunted Blues" by Jimmy Littlejohn, "Haunted House Boogie" by Happy Wilson, "Satan's Daughter" by Gene Davis, "Shudders & Screams" by Ben Colder, "Tennessee Hillbilly Ghost" by Red Folkie, "Spookie Boogie" by Cecil Campbell, "Satan's Chauffeur" by Jimmy Minor, and "Marijuana The Devil's Flower" by Mr Sunshine. CD