Rating:
Genre:
Country
Release Date: 05/17/1995
Run Time: 31:59
Buck Owens had his share of
country hits prior to the release of
I've Got a Tiger by the Tail and the hit single that spawned it. But
"I've Got a Tiger by the Tail" was
Owens' national breakthrough, featuring everything right about his
Bakersfield honky tonk sound sweated down to a 2:12 single that proved to be a irresistible piece of crossover magic to non-
country fans without diluting his basic sound one iota. This 14-track CD reissue brings together the original
Capitol tracks from that album (which also included the hit
"Cryin' Time," later to be a crossover hit of its own when recorded by
Ray Charles), along with two bonus tracks. These are live versions recorded in Bakersfield at
the Civic Auditorium in October 1963 of
"This Ol' Heart" and
"Act Naturally," taken from the
Capitol anthology album
Country Music Hootenanny. The sound of
Don Rich is all over this album, with his signature biting Telecaster guitar style, plus his vocalizing on
"Wham Bam" (which features
Owens on lead guitar) and a feature with
Buck on a duet of
Chuck Berry's
"Memphis." Bass player
Doyle Holly handles the vocal chores on
"Streets of Laredo," while
Don Rich's fiddle work is highlighted on the instrumental
"A Maiden's Prayer." But ultimately it's
Owens' show with tracks like
"Trouble and Me," "We're Gonna Let the Good Times Roll," "If You Fall Out of Love With Me," "The Band Keeps Playin' On," and the
ballad "Let the Sad Times Roll On" being classic examples of
Owens'
Bakersfield honky tonk sound at the height of its freight-train rumbling powers.
~Cub Koda, All Music Guide
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