ég er john seven

I can’t find out any information on this album, not even the year it was released - though I’m guessing late ’60s or early ’70s - but this is a fine, fun, cool country gospel number recording in Hampton, VA. The Swordsmen’s phone number, on the back of the album, is 804-723-5231. Wonder if it’s still in service 40 years later … 

Once you sit through this 1980 whole album, you will find out that not only is Zeke Sheppard more than capable of creating perfectly maudlin lounge-style country music, but he is also quite talented at doing the same for over-dramatic outbursts of patriotism. Salute, silence, and enjoy.

Unearthly country muzak with psychedelic guitar and mournful choir. What more do you want post-Christmas?

Another slice of Carol Channing’s country music career, this time with a little extra - it’s a CAJUN ROCK country tune with Jimmy C. Newman. I should really post more of these. There is nothing else quite like them …

A cool song about a girl trucker, you say? This is just one awesome song on a whole album of awesome songs. This song, from 1966, is apparently the first time a woman ever recorded a song about being a truck driver and quite a feminist statement within its context. Whatever. It rocks! Adams was apparently quite an up-and-comer in the 60s, winning the CMA newcomer of the year award and getting nominated for best female vocalist - she apparently came out of the Bakersfield scene with Buck Owens - but seems to have faded away in the 70s. This was produced by Cliffie Stone, whose band performed on this awesome square dance rendition of “Tiny Bubbles.”

Here’s a nice Viet Nam era Republican-friendly country whine song, complete with strung out hippie chick in pro America garb to sell the album to the meat and potatoes working class American consumer with conservative values. Forty years later, and this could still represent what a lot of voters still see as their major issue … 

Another jaunty number from the Country and Western Jamboree album, a strange patriotic jumble of reveille and twang that goes out to my followers in the Navy …

Moving on from my Hawaiian theme, but yet still not abandoning it entirely, is this track from a square dance call record that completely surprised me. I’ve heard square dance call records and they are pretty much what you expect - this one, however, has an orchestra playing the dance music and a caller who sings the calls in the tune of the song and integrates the instructions with lyrics from the song, so there’s actually lots to enjoy about this weird little record. Tiny Bubbles is the track that captured my heart, however.

(Note: the audio has been fixed!)

I can see no acceptable circumstance under which Carol Channing would be allowed to step into a recording studio and tear through some country and western numbers, and yet here is proof that such a thing happened. Either no one was able to stop it from happening, or no one cared enough to try. This was in 1977, though, and it was a different world. I think we’ve learned some things since then.

This is an awesome little slice of hillbilly hellfire - it’s a cover of a Louvin Brothers song that points out while you may be missing a lot of fun while choosing not to sin, you are also missing out on something more eternal, more hot, and more painful. I couldn’t find a date on the album - you judge from the fashions, and keep in mind the artists and label are in Michigan.

This is a fun little song from an album called “Country and Western Jamboree” that came in a totally different cover - at first I was annoyed, but then found it had some good early ’60s (I’m guessing), of which this song is one.

French language country music from Canada? Who knew that was a genre? I certainly didn’t until I blundered upon this collection on a trip to Cape Breton. It’s interesting - some of it tries to ape American country, others sound particularly Acadian or Cajun, and then others have a French pop music underbelly to window dressing of country music. More to come!

This is an awesome little song on an awesome little record. Country protest of a liberal cause - it would never happen in this day and age. I want to hear Tommy Scott’s take on global warming!

There’s some nice western swing style songs on this album, but mostly what this particular song teaches me is that cowboys are very silly people.

I’ve had my copy of Sylvia Meadows Sings Gonna Take That Band To Nashville for about 15 years, and I’ve kept it sealed until tonight. I had no idea what I have been sitting on all this time. Among the facts I can tell you about Sylvia that are contained on the back of the record, she is a native of Thomasville, North Carolina,  she and her husband owned “a carry out grocery store” in Tecumseh, Michigan, together they were named “Mr. and Mrs. Tecumseh” for their participation in charitable affairs, that she regularly appeared at Jaycee events, and that her greatest achievement is her four kids - Robert, Kenneth, Randy, and Wanda Kay. Oh, and “each and every line from every song herein is a personal life experience she is sharing with you.” Yeah, Sylvia wrote all the songs. Enjoy this first taste of her genius.