Classic albums from 1968 and 1969
Peter Durward Harris | Leicester England | 12/10/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The title track of the Bonnie and Clyde album was one of several songs about the legendary outlaws, as Georgie Fame in Britain and Serge Gainsbourg in France were also successful with different songs about them. With Glen Campbell on banjo and harmony vocals, Merle's record became a number one country hit. However, the record label made a huge mistake in selecting as the B-side another song on the album, Today I started loving you again. As listed on the original album, the Today is missing from the title, but most of the 100+ covers of the song make it the first word of the title, as do most Merle Haggard compilations on which it appears. Had it been released as a single in its own right, it might well have been another number one hit for Merle. Sammi Smith eventually had a top ten country hit in the seventies with her cover of the song.
Among the other songs on the Bonnie and Clyde album is a cover of You've still got a place in my heart, which has also been recorded by Glen Campbell, George Jones, Dean Martin and Dottie West among others. A trio of Dallas Frazier songs (Love has a mind of its own, The train never stops at our town, Will you visit me on Sundays?) are among the other highlights on this excellent album.
The title track of the second album here didn't make number one on the country charts although it came close, peaking at number three. It nevertheless is among Merle's most recognized songs, ahead of some of his number one hits. Merle wrote six of the songs for this album including the title track, although he included covers of California blues (Jimmie Rodgers) and It meant goodbye to me when you said hello to him (Lefty Frizzell).
These two high-quality albums are typical of Merle's music, and will give much pleasure to all fans of traditional country music."
Track Listings (23) - Disc #1