Track Listing

1. It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels
2. Paying for That Back Street Affair
3. Crying Steel Guitar Waltz
4. Hey Joe!
5. One by One [With Red Foley]
6. As Long as I Live [With Red Foley]
7. Making Believe
8. Whose Shoulder Will You Cry On
9. There's Poison in Your Heart
10. You and Me [With Red Foley]
11. Searching (For Someone Like You)
12. Repenting
13. Oh, So Many Years [With Webb Pierce]
14. I Can't Stop Loving You
15. Jealousy
16. Mommy for a Day
17. Amigo's Guitar
18. Left to Right
19. Heartbreak U.S.A.
20. Unloved, Unwanted
21. Will Your Lawyer Talk to God?
22. This White Circle on My Finger
23. Password
24. I'll Repossess My Heart
25. You Don't Hear

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #423441 in Music
• Released on: 2000-08-15
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Import

Album Description
UK compilation subtitled 'First Queen Of Country Music', featuring 25 of the legend's 80 top ten country hits including 'It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels', 'Paying For The Back Street Affair' and 'Crying Steel Guitar Waltz'. 2000 release. Standard jewel case.

Customer Reviews

Snappy Offerings from THE Pioneer of Female Country Music
It is ironic (and I am thinking of the Bear Family releases from Germany here, as well as this KW compilation from the UK) that it is the Europeans who have rediscovered the music of America's classic country artists (Johnny Cash, Johnny Horton, Rose Maddox, etc.) re-mastered them on CD, re-packaged them, and brought them back home to be enjoyed. This complements a "discovery" of American jazz artists by the Japanese during the 1980s. Having said that, I must say I adore the music of Kitty Wells. Her high-alto vocal style, her simple yet compelling harmonies and haunting instrumental accompaniments take us back to the pre-Vietnam South of the 50s and 60s, to the underworld of honky-tonk men and their women, in songs about --what else?--unfaithfulness and broken marriage, loneliness(Whose Shoulder Will I Cry On); depression; regret(Oh So Many Years); alcoholism(Death at the Bar); female liberation (It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels); and Baptist-style Christianity (One By One). (Her pro-US involvement song "Hello Vietnam"recorded with hubby Johnny Wright, is still a catchy tune, if not by now infamous). Some dark stuff, but tempered with jumpy "pick-me-up" tunes like "As Long As I Live" that really get the feet to tapping. (Her duets with Red Foley are all--without exception-- priceless gems) Kitty was the first true female country star, and the first to sing country songs from a female perspective. Her signature song, "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky-Tonk Angels" actually shook up country listeners in 1952 with its criticism of male philandering. Her career still enjoys longevity in the Southern states today, though her inability (or, more probably, refusal) to alter her personal style to the times led to a falling off of her career in the 60s--but this only adds integrity to her music. It is all 100% KITTY, warts and all, as we always feel she is herself present in the songs, even when they occasionally fall into predictability, the "formulaic." (Notably, her rather twangy Southern accent apparently "bothered" many mainstream record companies and radio stations, and this kept her from reaching "superstar" status like her famous successors Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn.) Still, this is vintage radio-days country sound, folks, with more than a dash of gospel, excellent digital sound quality and downright captivating musical settings. The music goes straight to this fan's heart--even without a few shots of Old Kentucky Bourbon! The Bear Family 4-CD set "Kitty Wells:The Queen of Country Music" may be too exhaustive (and expensive) for Kitty novices. For those who need a little Kitty in their life, this offering from the UK is recommended as a good, standard primer of her music.

Best single cd overview of Kitty Wells...
This is the best single cd overview of Kitty Wells classic Decca records years and it fetches the big bucks on the secondhand market for just that reason. You can spend the same amounts of money and get the 4 cd Bear Family box which is just amazing, however that box only goes as far as 1958 and Kitty had a lot of great records after that that are represented here.("Amigo's Guitar","Heartbreak U.S.A", "Unloved Unwanted")

If you have to pick one go for the Bear set, it's a lot more bang for the buck. And hopefully Bear Family will release the follow up down the road and you'll end up with all the goodies. This is a real nice set tho if you want to spend that much on one cd. Edsel does a nice job on the sound and the packaging as well.