Search - Tex Ritter :: Very Best of

Interesting late period re-recordings

hyperbolium | Earth, USA | 01/29/2002

(3 out of 5 stars)

"These tracks, from a 1964 session originally issued on Jimmy Wakely's Shasta Records label, were waxed two decades after Ritter laid down his first seminal sides for Capitol. There are some good readings here, including many of Ritter's better known tunes, but they're not the recordings upon which his reputation as a singer is based.Several of the tracks, including "The Fool's Paradise" "The Keeper of the Keys" and "(I Dreamed Of A) Hillbilly Heaven," feature unfortunate synthesized keyboards in place of strings, while others are more straight-up remakes of the originals. "High Noon," "These Hands" (recorded live) and a pair of children's songs ("The Boll Weevil" "Froggy Went A-Courtin'") are all quite spirited, with Ritter's bass voice sounding strong and expressive. An accordion-led instrumental treatment of Johnny Bond's "Cimarron" features Joe Maphis on guitar, and an otherwise unknown answer song to Lefty Frizzell's "Saginaw Michigan," titled "Son of a Saginaw Fisherman," is a welcome surprise.Ritter's classic tracks have been very unevenly released on CD. Germany's Bear Family label has produced the only high-quality issues, including a superb 25-track single disc anthology ("High Noon") and two multi-disc box-sets ("Blood on the Saddle" "High Noon [Box Set]"). The Country Music Hall of Fame has issued a single disc anthology of Ritter's pre-Capitol recordings for Decca.Beyond those, fans seeking the original Capitol material are limited to a thin 12-track collection on Curb ("Greatest Hits") and a mediocre 15-track selection on Capitol ("Vintage Collections") that replaced a more generous and somewhat better picked (and now out of print) "Collector's Series" disc. Capitol just doesn't seem to have much interest in keeping Ritter's material in print.Ritter's Shasta masters aren't "The Very Best" introduction to his career, but they give an accurate sense of his artistry, and they're fun listening. Those who already have the classic Capitol tracks will find this to be a valuable extra chapter."