Merle Travis - The Very Best '2002

Tracks list

       With a guitar style so innovative that it has its own name (Travis
picking), a comfortable, warm voice, and considerable skills as a songwriter,
Merle Travis was a triple-threat performer, merging folk and country with jazz
and swing textures, all rolled into a comfortable, down-home populist tone. This
collection features live performances drawn from the Jimmy Wakely Radio Show in
the mid-'50s, and while it is titled The Very Best of Merle Travis, it really
isn't, with only "16 Tons" (a huge crossover hit for Tennessee Ernie Ford in
1955) falling into the "best-of" category. That said, this is a charming set of
tunes, with the live setting giving Travis a little room to stretch out and
improvise on guitar (he was playing electric by this point in his career), and
the radio format is perfect for letting loose his natural good old boy charm.
The sound quality is clear and uncluttered, making this an ideal compilation for
die-hard Travis collectors. It isn't, however, the place to start for the casual
listener. One of the tracks here, the instrumental "Bye Bye Blues," was recorded
two decades later, in 1976, and for some reason was inserted in the running
order.



1.01 - Merle Travis - 16 Tons (2:10)
1.02 - Merle Travis - Detour (2:09)
1.03 - Merle Travis - Texas Tornado ((Instrumental)) (1:46)
1.04 - Merle Travis - Nobody (3:38)
1.05 - Merle Travis - John Henry (2:43)
1.06 - Merle Travis - I'll See You In My Dreams ((Instrumental)) (1:40)
1.07 - Merle Travis - Homny Grits (2:51)
1.08 - Merle Travis - Guitar Rag (1:45)
1.09 - Merle Travis - Gambler's Guitar (2:49)
1.10 - Merle Travis - Bye, Bye Blues ((Instrumental)) (1:26)
1.11 - Merle Travis - Follow Through (1:46)
1.12 - Merle Travis - Medley: No Vacancy / Smoke, Smoke, Smoke / I'll See You In
My Dreams / 16 Tons (4:12) 

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