I'm almost speechless. I see that Bear Abbott collection is going to cost around $75 for 76 tracks. Seriously? On the other hand, "The Great Jim Reeves", with 170 tracks, including many new overdubs of RCA material is about half that cost. Who in their right mind wants to hear 4 takes of "Beating On The Ding Dong"? For heaven's sake, that song is so bad, Jim Reeves fired people for even bringing it up to him, he hated that song so much. How the hell is that honoring the memory of Jim Reeves?
According to Mr. Den Dulk, "A few months ago, the project was suggested to Bear Family Records by senior Jim Reeves historian David Bussey." We already suspected that without his even confirming it. (I know Mr. Bussey is a senior citizen but he's no Reeves historian, that's for sure).
It is wholly deceptive to claim that this forthcoming, overpriced CD set is about "honoring" Jim. The fans shouldn't be lied to like that. Because as I've said -- and it's easy enough to prove because there is abundant evidence -- Jim DIDN'T WANT THIS MATERIAL TO BE CIRCULATED ANY FURTHER.
So what possible motive can one deduce other than that this release is more about a couple of guys wanting to try to reclaim the spotlight because they are jealous of all the wonderful new music being released by VoiceMasters/H&H? And they are willing to besmirch Jim's legacy even after lambasting me for supposedly hurting his legacy! That's hypocritical.
Just to be clear: this is not about my trying to shoot the other guys down. Their release has ZERO impact on any of the marketing potential of the new 8 CD "The Great Jim Reeves" set.
People who have followed this Fan Forum for years know that I have long been critical of the proliferation of the Abbott material by a huge number of labels around the world because they just didn't give a damn about the inferior stuff they were releasing on Jim. Up until now, I thought Bear was different.
Arie Den Dulk even claims "This new Jim Reeves release will no doubt be considered by many Jim Reeves fans as the most valuable and interesting 50th anniversary Jim Reeves release." WHY?
In the Abbott set you get FIVE copies of "Then I'll Stop Loving You," FOUR copies of "El Rancho Del Rio," THREE versions of "My Rambling Heart" and so on. Multiple copies of the same songs. These are no doubt with only slight variations in performance.
There are 76 tracks on the forthcoming Abbott release just as there were 76 tracks on the amateurish 3 CDs put out 10 years ago by the fan club. Though the new packaging is probably better. But is it really worth that much money?
While I agree Jim was forced to record some awful songs while at Abbott,the worst being 'Whispering Willow',closely followed by 'Mother Went A Walkin'' and 'El Rancho Del Rio',but he did some I quite like:-'Echo Bonita' (though I don't know why!),'Mexican Joe','Let Me Love You Just A Little' and 'Give Me One More Kiss',to name a few,and there are more than enough re-hashes of his Abbott material,he did record some 'Turkeys' while at RCA as well,I know there will be a lot of comments about my dislike for this first song,but I honestly don't care much for 'Old Tige',it is a bit 'sentimental' for my liking,and I find that 'An Old Christmas Card' appalling,it is too 'sugary sweet',I have the original LP,and the UK release (which had a different cover!),I NEVER play it,but that's just me,Are there any songs that you wish Jim had never recorded?I'm sure there are,and Which songs do you wish he HAD recorded?Two songs I wish he had done were 'On The Sunny Side Of The Street' and 'Love Me With All Of Your Heart!.
David, those are some interesting choices. I agree with your Abbott dislikes and I really do not like the duet with Carol Johnson (her voice ruined the recording in my opinion). I don't particularly care for "Scarlet Ribbons", "'Til The End of The World" and "How's The World Treating You". I wish he had recorded "Lonely Street", which he came so close to recording. You'll recall the story, I think in Larry's book, where there was time left over at a recording session and JR called Joyce to ask what songs she had said he should record. She remembered "Missing You" but then couldn't think of "Lonely Street".
David and Ron, I agree with only some of what you said. I think most of us agree about the low quality of the Abbott recordings, but I LOVE "An Old Christmas Card" and "Old Tige". Everyone has their own taste though, of course. Ron, I like all the songs that you said you weren't crazy about, although none of them are among my very favorites. Yes, Jim would have done a nice job with all the songs you both mentioned. It's too bad he never did those--especially "Lonely Street", which he did come close to recording. I always wished that Jim had recorded the song "Dear Heart", which was a big hit by Jack Jones. I think it would have been perfect a perfect song for him.
Ron, I'm SHOCKED! You named two of my best overdubs! I assume you mean you don't care for the ORIGINAL versions! :)
Actually, what we did on "The New Recordings" (which has been the single biggest seller in 11 years) was take the original "Scarlet Ribbons" which just featured Chet Atkins on guitar and Bob Moore on bass, and augmented this with a beautiful orchestral arrangement that included flute and strings. Danny Crawford, one of the top orchestrators in the country, wrote the charts and dramatically transformed the song. It is really beautiful.
I happen to agree with you on "Til The End of the World" and that's why I've never overdubbed it.
As for "How's the World Treating You," the original seemed lifeless and some of the guitar parts were not good. I had seen James Taylor and Alison Krauss sing this song and it was incredibly pretty the way they did it. Unlike a typical duet, where the two singers trade off on the lyrics, they both sang all the words all the way through. So I decided to take Jim's track and strip it down. I asked one of Nashville's top guitarists, Jim Frazier, to play nylon string guitar (and he also plays piano), and then I brought in Barbi Franklin to harmonize with Jim. It took us three days to cut the overdub as I kept reworking the musical arrangement.
I had her sing high and low parts and alternate within a phrase so then when she typically would have gone down the scale, for instance, she went up instead. The result is that it makes it sound like Reeves is harmonizing with her in parts.
This was so popular when released on "New Recordings" I couldn't resist putting it on the new 8 CD set, "The Great Jim Reeves" as well and I know it is going to get A LOT of airplay. In fact, I predict big things for this song and I have reason for saying that. I'll leave it at that for the moment.
With regard to "An Old Christmas Card," David I know that you do not like ANY songs that have a religious or holiday connotation. Musically speaking this is a fine tune, written by Vaughn Horton originally for Bing Crosby. Sara and I go into more detail in the 48-page booklet, "Songs & Recordings," that accompanies the new CD set. Incidentally, this is not some little CD-sized booklet. This is a full-sized approximately 5x7" booklet.
I have posted excerpts of the two songs which you can hear as samples by clicking the link below. First you hear Barbi and Jim; she matched his phrasing perfectly and is a very smooth singer. We even electronically measured the amount of reverb on Jim's voice and then applied the same amount to her, and she sang on a mic similar to what Reeves used. That's why we were able to make it sound like they were in the same room singing together. Barbi is well known in Southern Gospel music circles and her husband, Terry Franklin, is a former alumnus of the famed Gaither Vocal Band headed by Bill Gaither. Barbi also plays violin and is part of my string section, having done some string arrangements on the CDs as well.
If you listen closely to "An Old Christmas Card" you will notice that I brought in my string section to augment the original, but Scott Graham, who used to work for Billy Joel, and is now one of my arrangers/engineers in Florida, wrote new string parts. You will hear new strings playing around 10 seconds into the song and notice the TWO cellos going down the scale as well. It's really pretty.
Jim's Christmas songs now have a rich new patina, with lush strings and other instrumental enhancements that make them sparkle. Wait til you hear "Mary's Boy Child" and "O Little Town Of Bethlehem."
I know audio samples online don't do it justice but believe me, when you actually hear this music on your home stereo, you are going to be thrilled by the enhanced richness and clarity on Jim Reeves' voice, plus the spectacular new musical accompaniment, supplied by some of the world's top musicians. And that is not hyperbole. These 8 CDs and 48 page booklet are a bargain at only $39.95 -- less than half what Bear is charging for that God-awful Abbott crap, and more than 100 fewer songs than we're featuring. You can order our CD at: www.jim-reeves.com/greatjimreeves.html
I think "An Old Christmas Card" is a great song, and Jim sang it beautifully. As for songs I wish Jim had recorded, off the top of my head I can think of a few. I agree with everyone about "Lonely Street". And because I like the songs and would like to hear Jim sing them, I wish he had recorded a couple that I think were written by Hank Cochran, "Yesterday's Memories" and "I Want To Go With You", which Eddy Arnold did. Eddy also recorded "Don't Forget I Still Love You", "A Good Woman's Love", and "I'll Always Be In Love With You" that I wish Jim had recorded. I like those songs, and Jim is the best singer I've ever heard, so I would like to hear how they sound with Jim singing them.
I have one I'd like to add to the list of songs I wish Jim had recorded: My favorite hymn, "The Old Rugged Cross" -- and also "Away In A Manger."
Friends of his growing up said he used to sing "Old Rugged Cross" a lot when they'd all get together on somebody's porch and pick and sing. Why he never recorded that for one of his religious albums I don't know. Leo Jackson told me (and the Johnson Sisters who were at Jim's concert in Colorado the night after JFK's assassination), confirm that Reeves also performed "Amazing Grace." Again I ask: WHY did the man never record these songs?
Jim even commented on his Christmas Day 1957 radio show (which VoiceMasters released as a 5 CD set called "The Jim Reeves Show", available on the first page of this site), that "Away In A Manger" was his favorite Christmas song. Although he also told a studio visitor the night he was recording his Christmas album that "Mary's Boy Child" was the favorite one they were doing for the LP.
There were so many missed opportunities. Leo also commented that Jim and the Blue Boys routinely sang A LOT on the bus as they were traveling hundreds of miles between shows. (That and play cards and drink!) Leo said Jim did countless songs that he never did record. And he marveled that even then, Jim never missed a note or sang off-key.
Larry, I agree. "The Old Rugged Cross" is one of my favorites as well. And "Amazing Grace". You know, I think that had he lived, and had he recorded the songs, Jim could have been maybe the top selling Gospel singer in history. There are lots of good Gospel songs he could have recorded, and I think he would have done very well in that category. Sad to think about "what might have been".
I surmise that had Jim lived longer he would have recorded many more Christmas and Gospel songs. He was an excellent narrator. Wished he also recorded "Rock of Ages " the background music to his inspired narrative "The Amen Corner". . I love all his poetic recitations. How can you not like them??
Somewhere above I read that "Scarlet Ribbons" was not a favorite. I have to agree. I detested that song, I likened it to a funeral dirge.
Once I heard the beautiful new arrangement on "The New Recordings" I found it to be a very beautiful song. Now we finally have the perfect voice backed with the perfect arrangement.
Larry, it's hard to say for sure why Jim didn't record some of those great songs, but then we have to remember that Jim couldn't know for sure that he would die at such a young age, although I know he had mentioned a few times that he thought he might not live that long. Still, he might have thought there would always be time to record these at a later date.
If you heard the previously unreleased interview clips on "Jim Reeves: The New Recordings," Jim said there were so many great songs and he hoped that before his time came to depart this earthly scene, he hoped to do "a million" of them.
I wish Paul McCartney had written "Yesterday" a few years sooner.I think Jim's voice would have been perfect for this song and he could have recorded the most devastating version of "Yesterday"which likely could have outsold the Beatles' recording of this song.I think its interesting Jim wrote and recorded "There's A Light Shining Through" and he likely knew it wasn't commercially viable,he left it for Mary.Seems he may have sensed that his death was going to be sooner,not later.He wouldn't have told an interviewer that,though.Anita L. Cooper
It's strange how people's tastes differ,I actually liked 'Till The End Of The World' and 'How's The World Treating You?',in fact the whole of the 'Songs To Warm The Heart' record,it sounded more intimate,perhaps because of the lack of instrumentation,there is no doubt that it would sound a whole lot bettr if some of the 'hiss' could be removed,but I guess there is only so much that can be done.
The Beatles got to #4 in the UK with 'Yesterday' and was on the charts for only 7 weeks when it was Pop re-issued in 1976 (#1 in the USA!),meanwhile Matt Monroe peaked at #8 also,but in 1965 (didn't chart in the USA),but it remained on the UK on the UK 'Hit Parade' as it was called then,for 12 weeks!
Actually, Jim DID tell interviewers that he wouldn't live very long. He didn't say it directly, but the implication was clear. He told them in Europe that he had a bunch of songs in the can and when asked when they would be released, he said after he was gone. They were shocked by this statement and some of the journalists commented on this odd remark in print.
When I last saw Jim in February 1964 I had the feeling that I would never see him again and I got the impression from him that he felt the same way. It was just a feeling. I also felt the same feeling the night before my son Jimmie was killed tragically the next day. ESP? Always for Jim, Doris
on May 9, 2014, 7:51 pm