Country Favorites Willie Nelson Style CD

Personnel: Willie Nelson (vocals); Leon Rhodes, Cal Smith (guitar); Buddy Charlton (steel guitar); Wade Ray (fiddle); Hargus "Pig" Robbins (piano); James Wilkerson (vibraphone, bass); Jack Drake (bass); Jack Greene (drums).
Producer: Chet Atkins.
Reissue producer: Rob Santos.
Recorded at RCA Victor Studios, Nashville, Tennessee on December 15 & 16, 1965. Originally released on RCA Victor (3528). Includes liner notes by Rich Kienzle and Wade Ray.
Digitally remastered by Elliott Federman (SAJE Sound, New York, New York).
It may be hard to believe but Willie Nelson wasn't always a national icon. In the mid-'60s, he regularly hit the charts, except from behind the scenes as a busy and acclaimed songwriter. His own recordings were less successful until, in 1966, Country Favorites, Willie Nelson Style became his first album to enter Billboard's country album charts, staying there 17 weeks and eventually reaching number nine. Perhaps because the album is a collection of familiar songs, Nelson's idiosyncratic vocals went over better -- or maybe his time had just come -- but in any case, it's certainly a small treasure. Supporting Nelson was Ernest Tubb's wonderful band the Texas Troubadours, who went uncredited because they were under contract to a different record label. The Troubadours' experience and sympathetic ears made a reliable backing for Nelson as they tackled such material as "San Antonio Rose," "My Window Faces the South," "Heartaches by the Number," and "Columbus Stockade Blues." There's nothing cynical or calculated to their light swing and open-hearted feeling, despite such a potentially unpromising album concept. Nelson had already learned how to handle his unconventional voice effectively, giving these songs the honest freshness and sharp sense of rhythm that would characterize his later work. Like many rebels, Nelson has always shown a deep respect for tradition; here he shares his affection with everyone. ~ Lang Thompson
Recorded over two relaxed sessions with Ernest Tubb's Texas Troubadours (originally uncredited due to contractual obligations), COUNTRY FAVORITES is a collection of honky-tonk and western swing staples documenting Willie Nelson, the singing star, just as he was finally ascending Nashville's ladder. Sure, by 1965 he'd already become a top tier Music City songwriter, but breaking in on the vocal circuit was that much rougher.
COUNTRY FAVORITES helped define Nelson as a unique vocalist and storied traditionalist, and the soulfully lonesome back-porch swing of Buddy Charlton's steel, "Pig" Robbins' piano and Wade Ray's fiddle only cemented this notion. Stalking Bob Wills' swinging string-boogie territory on the galloping "My Window Faces the South," the rollicking breakdown of "Home in San Antone" (with Leon Rhodes' lightning-style gee-tar fills), and the Texas Playboys' standard "San Antonio Rose," Nelson showed that he could lead a barn-dance as easily as he could produce the weepers he was already known for writing. His take on "I'd Trade All of My Tomorrows" showed that he could personalize other folks' sublime weepers as well.