(78 RPM, Folk/Country) 78 RPM, Vinyl record

Music from Sticks McGhee, Doc Watson, John Jackson, Bill Williams, Pink Anderson, Brownie McGhee, Archie Edwards, Lesley Riddle, Peg Leg Sam Jackson, Roscoe Holcomb and more. (Blues, Folk/Country) CD

With Baby Gramps, Richard Thompson, John C Reilly, Nick Cave, Bryan Ferry, Robin Holcomb, Teddy Thompson, Lucinda Williams, Bono, Sting, Andrea Corr and more. CD

Features Dwight Yoakam, Billy Joe Shaver, John Doe, Tom Russell, Iris Dement, Joe Ely, Rosie Flores, Marshall Crenshaw, Lucinda Williams, Dave Alvin, and more. 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

with 36 tracks including "Cry, Cry, Cry", "I Walk The Line", "Don't Take Your Guns To Town", "The Rebel – Johnny Yuma", "It Ain't Me, Babe", "Orange Blossom Special", "Girl Grom The North Country", and "The Night Hank Williams Came To Town". CD

Johnny Cash masterfully dips into the Hank Williams songbook – and what we get from it is and excellent Sun LP in which one of the greatest forlorn voices in honky tonk/proto rock/country music history pays perfect tribute to the originator! This one not only includes Cash's raw, unfussy earlyish Sun style takes on Hank classics, but some of Johnny's own standards, and it's as high quality of a beginning-to-end listen as just about any in his Sun canon. Includes "I Can't Help It", "You Win Again", "Hey Good Lookin'", "Give My Love To Rose", "Come In Stranger", "Mean Eyed Cat", "Come In Stranger", "I Walk The Line", "I Could Never Be Ashamed Of You" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Includes music from Randy Erwin, Tom Russell Band, Deighton Family, Peter Rowan & Nashville Bluegrass Band, Sidesaddle, Johnson Mountain Boys, Robin & Linda Williams, Patsy Montana, Glen Duncan, Bell & Shore, Red Knuckles & The Trailblazers, and more. CD

Music from Williamson Brothers And Curry, Memphis Jug Band, Mississippi John Hurt, The Carter Family, Lydia Mendoza, Carolina Tar Heels, Hattie Hart & The Memphis Jug Band, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Charley Patton, Joseph Falcon, Frank Hutchison, Jimmie Rodgers, and more. CD

Music from Williamson Brothers And Curry, Memphis Jug Band, Mississippi John Hurt, The Carter Family, Lydia Mendoza, Carolina Tar Heels, Hattie Hart & The Memphis Jug Band, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Charley Patton, Joseph Falcon, Frank Hutchison, Jimmie Rodgers, and more. LP, Vinyl record album

A great criss-crossing of modes at the end of the 60s – music that has roots in country, but which comes off with plenty of funk and soul as well – in styles that were burning strong from LA on eastward, all the way across the south at the time! Some of the grooves here might fall into the "swamp rock" mode of the time – while others showcase hip LA artists mixing rootsy elements with tighter studio production – and a few more have genre-crossing country artists trying on some more soulful modes for good measure. The range of work is really great – and quite surprising, too – and the whole thing's got a great look that really illuminates the music within. Titles include "Northeast Texas Women" by Willis Allan Ramsey, "Nobody" by Larry Williams & Johnny Watson, "Collection Box" by Thomas Jefferson Kaye, "Me & Mr Hohner" by Bobby Darin, "Hunger Child Blues" by Townes Van Zant, "California Women" by Hoyt Axton, "Pay Day Give Away" by Bill Wilson, "Shotgun Willie" by Willie Nelson, "Cajun Moon" by JJ Cale, "Sumpin Funky Going On" by Donnie Fritts, and "Don't Let Me Down" by Dillard & Clark. (Funky Compilations, Folk/Country) CD

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 shadow of Hank Williams still looms large in country music well into the 21st Century – but it had an especially strong force in the years after his too-early death – as you'll hear here in a great selection of covers, tributes, and other songs that continue the short-but-strong legacy of revolution that Hank brought to country music! Some of the cuts here are pop numbers, and show the way that Williams' original tunes found many different audiences in the 50s – yet most are pure country, and are way more than straight remakes of originals by the legend. As always with Bear Family, the package is great – filled with images and detailed notes on all the tracks and artists – served up on 33 tracks that include "Kaw-Liga" by Rusty & Doug Kershaw, "Calling You" by Hank Williams Jr, "I'm A Long Gone Daddy" by Bobby Helms, "Move It On Over" by Richard Hayes, "I Saw The Light" by Rose Maddox, "Honky Tonkin" by Audrey Williams, "I Just Don't Like This Kind Of Livin" by Johnny Horton, "Mind Your Own Business" by Ted Daigle, "Lost Highway" by Skeets McDonald, "Cold Cold Heart" by Louis Armstrong, "Lovesick Blues" by Rex Griffin, "Baby We're Really In Love" by Don Gibson, and "Half As Much" by Tennessee Ernie Ford. CD

A huge tribute to the long legend of country music on Capitol Records – with an especially strong focus on Bakersfield work! The set features 60 tracks in all – with work from Johnny Gimble, Merle Haggard, Louvin Brothers, Skeets McDonald, Tommy Collins, Jimmie Davis, Leon Payne, Tex Williams, Hank Thompson, Faron Young, Wanda Jackson, Joe Maphis, Dick Curless, Speedy West & Jimmy Bryant, Ferlin Husky, and others – but oddly no Buck Owens! LP, Vinyl record album

Music from Johnnie Lee Wills & His Boys, Charlie Adams, Billy Barnett, Hank Locklin, Larry Nolen & The Bandits, Terry Fell, Rod Morris, Kenny Roberts, Pee Wee King, Buck Griffin, Curley Williams, Charline Arthur, Jimmy Dolan, and more - 33 tracks in all. CD

A wide ranging collection from the Folkways label, including folk, blues, and even some jazz. Includes work by Lead Belly, Dave Van Ronk, Peggy Seeger, Mary Lou Williams, Bill Monroe, Lightnin' Hopkins, Lonnie Johnson, and others – 26 tracks total. CD