Nashville was the Roughest (disc 6)

The full orchestra returns with a vengeance for the session on November 24th, 1970, but Harlan Howard’s “Yours Love” (track 1) works for me for some reason.  I’d like to hear Willie do this in 2011.  It could be a great concert closer. Willie’s own rousing gospel number “Kneel at the Feet of Jesus” (track 2) stands out among these late 1960s, early 1970s recordings.  Kienzle calls Willie’s rendition of Merle Haggard’s “Today I Started Loving You Again” (track 3) “grossly overblown.”  This line redeems the song for me: “What a fool I was to think I could get by with only these few teardrops that I’ve cried.  I should have known the worst was yet to come and that crying time for me had just begun.”  That’s pure Willie.  Kienzle calls Willie’s take on Hank Williams’ “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry” (track 4) an “excessively orchestrated mess.”  On both recordings, Willie just seems to be trying too hard to sing in an operatic style that doesn’t play to his vocal strengths.      

A month later his house in Ridgetop burned to the ground, and it isn’t till the spring of 1971 that he realizes he has another LP due for RCA (his 12th).  Willie records material for three LPs at these May 1971 sessions: “Yesterday’s Wine,” “The Words Don’t Fit the Picture,” and “The Willie Way.”  The Bear Family presents the songs from “Yesterday’s Wine” in the order in which they appear on the album (not the order in which they were recorded) on disc 7, but the rest of the recordings from these sessions are presented in chronological order on disc 6.  Charlie McCoy’s harmonica makes an appearance on these recordings.  I’ve reviewed most of these songs previously on my blogs for these three albums, but suffice it to say these are some of Willie’s best recordings to date.  This version of “Wake Me When It’s Over” (track 7) is one of my favorite Willie recordings.  Only Willie can be so funky and so slow at the same time.  Most people have to go fast to be funky, but Willie can find the funk in the slowest of songs.  Willie seems to have found the perfect backing band for these recordings.  It’s a string of five-star recordings, including a stellar new version of “Rainy Day Blues” (Track 9).  Willie is clearly coming into his own here, but RCA ironically chooses this time to sever ties with Willie just before he breaks out with Phases and Stages, Shotgun Willie, and Red-Headed Stranger.   “Stay Away From Lonely Places” (track 13) is one of the best tracks on this disc.  This original version of “Good Hearted Woman” (track 14) isn’t as good as the famous (though staged) duet with Waylon, but it is interesting to hear it in its pre-famous form.  The harmonica stands out on this recording and seems to symbolize the important seachange in Willie’s music at this time.  Kienzle calls “My Kind of Girl” (track 16) “rather flat,” but “I’d Rather You Didn’t Love Me” (track 17) has some significant fizz.  “One Step Beyond” (track 19) reminds me of “Wake Me When It’s Over.”  Slow and soothingly funky (if that’s possible, gentle funk).  The unissued “I Want a Girl” (track 20) contains the surprising line “I want a girl whose heart has been broken.”  These versions of “Country Willie” (track 21)  and “You Left Me a Long, Long Time Ago” (track 22) are solid but unremarkable.  “London” (track 23) is a very unusual song in Willie’s repertoire.  “Rest your lungs, tomorrow’s on it’s way.” Track 24 is a more adventurous version of “A Moment Isn’t Very Long.”  The last four songs on this disc come from an April 27th, 1972 session with just Willie, Dan Spears (Bass) and Paul English (drums).  These are almost as raw as the Pamper demos, but with a bit of a funky rhythm with the drums and bass: “Who’ll Buy My Memories” (track 25),
“No Love Around” (track 26), “Come on Home” (track 27), and  “Mountain Dew” (track 28).  These last four tracks are worth the price of the entire box set.  Not sure you can find them anywhere else.  I wish Willie recorded more with just Paul and Bee.