Search - Emmylou Harris :: Songbird: Rare Tracks and Forgotten Gems

Truly Venturesome, Genre-Transcending Pathfinder

prisrob | New EnglandUSA | 09/22/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

""When Billboard Magazine honored Emmylou Harris in 1999 with its prestigious "Century Award," they appropriately lauded her as a "truly venturesome, genre-transcending pathfinder," whose award was meant "to acknowledge the uncommon excellence of [her] still-unfolding body of work." Billboard



As I was listening to the first couple of hours of this CD, I kept thinking "How to review this unbelievable 78 track CD." For forty years this magnificent voice has been a part of our culture. She has brought so many new and glorious voices with her as she paired country and rock and blues to the rhythm. Most of the voices appear on this CD. Emmylou started her discovery with Gram Parsons many years ago, and in the recent past she has made marvelous music with Mark Knopfler. And, all the in-between is covered nicely. I will divulge one of the best parts of these discs to me are the middle ones, where she pairs with the "Queenston Trio" as they were known , Linda Ronstadt and Dolly Parton. Sweeter, truer voices have not been heard.



Disc One covers the early years. The early seventies with Gram Parsons and her pairings and covers with and of Dolly Parton, the Beatles, Queen, Rodney Crowell and Waylon Jennings. Those older songs are bliss, true bliss.



Disc Two covers the 1990's- there was an important landmark when she recorded 'Wrecking Ball' which is said to have saved the Ryman theatre from extinction. She continued her writing with Anna McGarrigle at this time. Some of Emmylou's best work is from this decade.



Disc Three goes back to the late 70's and 80's and my favorite disc. Her CD's with Dolly Parton and Linda Ronstadtare marvelous. Of this song 'Softly and Tenderly' Emmylou says, "I was grieved that this [song] didn't come out with the origiinal CD, I think the singing is exquisite. When Linda goes up in that modulation you realize all over again why she is maybe the greatest voice of our time... and then of course Dolly was made to sing these old-time songs... It was an unbelievable experience to hear those voices on the same song." Tracks number 43 'Palms of Victory', #44 Softly and Tenderly', # 45 'My Dear Companion, and #47 'I Don't Love You Much Do I' are the Cat's Pajamas as Gramma used to say and worth the entire CD. What a miracle of music.



Disc Four has more duets, one with Mark Knopfler 'Alone and Forsaken' and 'Beyond The Blue' with Patty Griffin. And, Emmylou Harris's inspiration, George Jones she sings 'Here We Are'. 'Wildwood Flower' and "When We Are gone, Long Gone' are part of this disc. Gorgeous music.



"For more than a year, Emmylou Harris sifted through a treasure trove of music to serve as the foundation of Songbird: Rare Tracks & Forgotten Gems. Over the course of four CDs, she illuminates her favorite album tracks that never made it to radio, along with numerous collaborations and contributions that are worth rediscovering. In addition, a DVD spotlights several top-notch television performances from throughout her career." CMT



Emmylou Harris has sung in over 20 albums and has given country, folk, and county rock a name in the world of music. She appeared with one of my favorite groups, 'The Band' in 'The Last Waltz', and most recently with Neil Young in 'Heart of Gold'. She is a true treasure of our American music scene. This set of 4CD's in Songbird give us a glimpse of the magic of the woman and her voice.



Highly Recommended. prisrob 09-22-07



All the Roadrunning



The Very Best of Emmylou Harris: Heartaches and Highways



Wrecking Ball

"

Great Set - Semi-Terrible Packaging

J. McNally | 09/19/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"My God, I've loved Emmylou since I first heard her at the Chancery in Washington, DC, back in the early '70's - way before Pieces of the Sky. I have everything she's done either on LP or CD. I think this is an amazing collection and love it, with one exception - the package. While 90% of the box set package is first class, Rhino has made it extremely hard to get the discs out of their sleeves. I just tore the case trying to get disc 4 out. I am over 60 years old and my hands don't work as well as they once did.



As a side note, I wish all the CD/DVD manufacturers would give us old farts a break. We love music and movies just like the young ones they're aiming at. Is it really necessary to have all the shrink-wrap and adhesive strips all over every package? My God, if it's shrink-wrapped why do I have to face that damn adhesive strip on the jewel case? At least it's better than the old dog-bone that you couldn't completely get off but it's still unnecessary."

Incredible set!

Allen Chapman | STAFFORD SPRINGS, CT USA | 09/18/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The music on this set speaks for itself, you don't get the hits, instead you get the rare stuff, duets, tributes, album cuts etc. Incredible music. The packaging for this set matches the music. Inclosed in a hard case with two hard cover booklets inside. One houses the five discs, the other is a 200 page book with track by track notation, filled photos and song info and intro by Emmylou herself. A beautiful set and well worth the price of admission.

Note: The packaging is top notch, however the discs are very difficult to remove from the sleeves. You do have to be careful or risk tearing the sleeve."