Track Listing

1. Take an Old Cold Tater (And Wait)
2. Country Boy
3. Pennies for Papa
4. My Heart's Bouquet
5. A-Sleeping at the Foot of the Bed
6. Hillbilly Fever
7. I'm Little But I'm Loud
8. It May Be Silly (But Ain't It Fun)
9. Y'all Come
10. Rockin' With Red
11. Out Behind the Barn
12. Take Me as I Am (Or Let Me Go)
13. We Could
14. (I Got) A Hole in My Pocket
15. John Henry
16. Farewell Party
17. Violet and a Rose
18. Another Bridge to Burn
19. Life Turned Her That Way
20. May the Bird of Paradise Fly up Your Nose
21. Country Music Lover
22. (You've Been Quite a Doll) Raggedy Ann

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #100833 in Music
• Released on: 1996-05-21
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .21 pounds

Amazon.com
As the title implies, Dickens has a robust and roaring set of pipes that belie his size. And despite the novelty tag that follows him around (and that he in fact encouraged), his approach to music is dead serious even if his lyrics are often comical. This 22-song collection includes both his hits and his greatest performances. Top-quality musicians abound: Early 1949 cuts feature Ernest Tubb’s guitarist Billy Byrd and Roy Acuff’s Smoky Mountain Boys; his own talented Country Boys included at various points Grady Martin, Red Taylor, Tommy Jackson, Buddy Emmons, Harold Bradley, Cecil Brower, and Pig Robbins. His spirited vocals roll through traditional Acuff-influenced country, proto-rockabilly, Western swing, and earnest (if not overblown) ballads. Rather than polish up his hillbilly background, he flaunts it for all to notice. This pint-sized package packs a mean punch. --Marc Greilsamer

Customer Reviews

good country music from the 50s, before Elvis
Wednesday, September 02, 1998

Little Jimmie Dickens was an original of the 50s. He was a great showman. This country music great was also a pretty good singer.

Though most of his hits are considered novelty songs, one song "Take Me As I Am Or Let Me Go," was recorded by many great country music singer that came after Little Jimmie Dickens was no longer popular. Don Gibson had a great recording of the song, as did other country greats.

"Take an old cold tater and wait," was a song that most country boys could identify with. I was a real country boy until I was 12 years old. And my country heritage stayed with me, to a large degree. When I first heard this song on the radio in the 1950s, I enjoyed it very much. It always made you feel good when you heard the song.

"Out behind the barn," was one of Dickens largest hits. Another novelty tune that made you feel good when you listened to it. It's an upbeat song, as most of Dickens hits were.

Sleeping at the foot of the bed was another Little Jimmie Dickens tune that is a feel good song that country boys from the 1940s could identify with.

Little Jimmie Dickens did some great ballads. But he was not known for them in his own period of popularity. More than one of his ballads became standards in country music. In the 50s, Little Jimmie Dickens was never identified with his great ballads, love songs that moved you. His identity was always with his novelty songs.

The musicians on Little Jimmie Dickens Recordings were incredible talented. Grady Martin is one of the all time great Nashville Studio Guitarist who played on thousands of country music recordings that came out of Nashville in the 1950s, 60s, and on into the 1970s. Grady Martin came to Nashville when he was about 15 years old, and worked professionally as a guitarist. He is a gifted guitarist who I heard is now touring with Willie Nelson. Nashville got rid of most of the great 50s and 60s studio musicians in the 1980s, so Grady Martin had to go back on the Road Again, with Willie Nelson.

I saw Little Jimmie Dickens on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry in the 1950s. He made a great impression on me. As art of his band were twin guitars. His two guitarists were playing dark green Gretch Electric Guitars that were simply beautiful. I can still see those two guitars as Little Jimmie Dickens looked over at them when they took their break between verses.

If you like real country music, before Elvis came and changed everything, Little Jimmie Dickens recording is a great one to have. However, you can see in his jump tune, his fast novelty tunes, that country music was headed where Elvis would eventually take it and change music for all time.

A great recording.

I'm Little But I'm Loud
OH! What can one say about Little Jimmy. So much fun. And this CD has all of the ones--and more--that he sang to us when he was up here in Anchorage (about 1960 the first time). He liked it so well, and we loved him so much, we were able to get him to come back.
He is remarkable. He remembers everyone. And he can have his back to you when you quietly aim the camera at him, and before you get it focused he has turned around with a big smile. No one told him, he just KNEW!
One of my most prized shots is of him in his "little pink pajamas" (his western outfit he wore both times he was here). I gave the picture to him and he really liked it.
I had a hard time finding his cds until someone suggested I try Amazon.com. For a lot of down-home fun you have got to listen to this cd.It'll make you laugh and your toes tickle.

Jean Flynn
Anchorage, Alaska

Here's everything you need to know about the dude!
This is the CD to pick up if you want to learn about the style of Little Jimmy Dickens. Everything here is original and unlike some of the Greatest Hits LP's that abound out there on the market for collectors, this is stripped of all of the fake stereo of years past that plauged songs like "Ya'll Come" & others. This IS the only CD to own if you want the hits and/or a good intro to his music. All who buy it will enjoy.