| THE BIRTH OF THE "OUTLAW MOVEMENT" IN NASHVILLE ! (and the rest of the world, too) |
Wanted: the Outlaws (1976) is the album that changed country music forever. Although most of the songs on the album had been previously released, the way it was all packaged and marketed reached an audience that hadn't been interested in this genre before, young rock music fans. The album cover featured photos of the long-haired, bearded, and rugged-looking Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, and Tompall Glaser, along with Waylon's attractive wife, Jessi Colter, on an old wild-west WANTED! poster. The music inside is a collection of country music, most of it on the rowdy side, with a couple of catchy ballads by Jessi. Waylon and Jessi sing an energetic duet on Elvis' Suspicious Minds. Willie sings of a musician's rowdy life on the road in Me And Paul, and then creates a thoughtful barroom scene in Yesterday's Wine. Waylon's at a bar, too, but he's country rocking with his song, Honky Tonk Heroes. He also sings the reflective My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys. Jessi's ballads, I'm Looking For Blue Eyes and You Mean To Say are very good, and she's a great singer. Waylon and Willie duet on Heaven And Hell, and their co-written anthem Good Hearted Woman, which includes an audience track to sound "live". Tompall adds his country-rock version of Jimmie Rodgers' T for Texas and the hilarious Put Another Log On The Fire. The album sold millions, and opened the door for a new brand of country music that would dominate the scene for the next decade. Even ol' Buck and Roy started sporting beards on the TV series Hee Haw, and so did Glen Campbell! Other country singers, like Hank Williams, Jr., David Allan Coe, and Johnny Paycheck got on board, and older outlaws like Johnny Cash and Merle Haggard enjoyed new interest in their careers. Country rock acts, like Charlie Daniels and The Marshall Tucker Band joined in, and the "Outlaw Movement" became an influential force in contemporary music. This 20th anniversary issue is well put together, remastered to sound better than ever, and includes many songs that weren't on the original. The songs are listed as "The Original", "The Lost", and "The New". "The Original" are the songs that were included on the original release. "The Lost" are previously released songs by the singers as separate artists. The best of these are Waylon's (I'm A) Ramblin' Man and Slow Movin' Outlaws, Willie's You Left A Long, Long Time Ago and Healing Hands Of Time, and the duets with Waylon and Jessi. "The New" is the Steve Earle produced Nowhere Road, which is a new country rocker that features Waylon and Willie together. Wanted: The Outlaws is an important country music album, a peice of history, really, and is essential for every fan of country music, or music in general. |
5 Rating
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| Wanted: The Outlaws |
I think this reissue of the 70's classic is a perfect example of less being more. I am not certain if any of the new additions make this CD better than the first version. In fact, to be honest, I think the first version is a 5 star classic, while this reissue overall deserves a solid 4 stars. My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys is the best of the bunch here, while the cover of Suspicious Minds is outstanding. I always loved the two songs from Colter, and I think the addition of more from her lessens the overall impact of You Mean to Say and Looking for Blue Eyes. A great CD. The sound here is fantastic. |
4 Rating
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