During the nineties boom, there was a mad rush to get the catalog of older country artists available on CD. For older country albums, this wasn’t always the best approach. Many of these discs had only ten tracks, so even with a handful of bonus songs, the entire running time could still be under 40 minutes. Some labels took the smart approach of pairing two albums to one disc, but for the most part, it was landmark albums or lengthy compilation discs.
The digital age has finally made it both practical and affordable to get those old albums. Vintage sets are now available from legends like Merle Haggard and Glen Campbell, and even not quite legends like Jeannie C. Riley. But there are still some glaring omissions that need to become more readily available.
Topping my wish list is Evangeline by Emmylou Harris. Some tracks were included on her box sets, but the bulk of this album, the last one by Harris to gold, remains unavailable. Given that among those tracks is “I Don’t Have to Crawl” and “Oh Atlanta”, it’s really time to get a move on.
What albums would you like to be reissued, either as a CD or digital download?
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WW-wwHLcZeI
There’s too many
Country Charley Pride (actually all of Pride’s first five albums). Also
Skip A Rope – Henson Cargill
Good and Country – Marty Robbins
In Search of A Song – Tom T Hall
Ladies Love Outlaws – Waylon Jennings
Margie’s At The Lincoln Park Inn (And Other Controversial Songs) – Bobby Bare
among others
I can’t find Rosanne Cash’s Rhythm and Romance album on iTunes.
Soundtrack to “Every Which Way But Loose”. Although maybe I could cobble together the album by looking for singles . . .
Two words: Slim Dusty. I am trying to put together a discography but there is no definitive list available, let along a back catalog online (although it is substantially growing).
These folks have a lot of Slim Dusty
http://www.countrymusic.com.au/
Their prices are in Australian $$ but I’ve ordered from themand have been quite pleased with their service – they have MANY (40+)Slim Dusty albums available
Dolly-
“The Seeker/We Used To”
“Great Balls Of Fire”
“Touch Your Woman”
“Porter Wayne and Dolly Rebecca”
“Heartbreak Express”
“Great Pretender”
“The Bargain Store”
It really would be nice to see some of Gene Watson’s albums from after the Capitol years back in print. The MCA/Epic and Warner Brothers recordings are basically unavailable (the Broadland & Step One material has been released on the King/Gusto/TeeVee family of labels)
Dolly Parton’s early RCA catalog is definitely a contender. I’d also like to see some of Conway Twitt’s albums from the same period released on disc.
@Michael: While it’s still not available digitally, I got my copy of Rhythm and Romance by ordering this two-disc set that also includes 1982’s somewhat forgotten Somewhere In the Stars:
http://www.amazon.com/Somewhere-Stars-Rhythm-Romance-Rosanne/dp/B00008J2OI/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1267331874&sr=1-12
Ah, thanks for the tip, J.R.! :o)