This release continues the series which we re-established a couple of years ago and which comprises selected annual collections of the biggest US country hits of each year. This great value100-track 4-CD collection goes back to the start of the 1950s, when the relevant Billboard chart was called the Best Selling Retail Folk (Country & Western) Records, and apart from a few weeks at the start of the year, when there was a Top 15, was restricted to a published Top 10. The collection comprises many of the records which appeared in the chart during the year. Although there were many records which harked back to the styles of traditional hillbilly and western swing music, many of the artists featured were those who had established themselves during the late 1940s and would enjoy prolific hit-making careers during the '50s until the business changed significantly in the wake of the rock 'n' roll explosion. Artists like Hank Williams, Eddy Arnold, Red Foley, Ernest Tubb and Tennessee Ernie Ford are therefore well represented along with many artists whose musical legacy is less well-known these days, as well as pop artists like Margaret Whiting and Kay Starr making forays into the genre through duets with country stars, which makes it a fascinating snapshot of the business as a new decade dawned. With an in-depth 10,000+ word booklet with background notes on every record, it gives a solid overview of the most popular country music of the year.
Track Listing
Disc 1:
- Margaret Whiting & Jimmy Wakely - Slipping Around
- Tennessee Ernie Ford - Mule Train
- Tennessee Ernie Ford - Anticipation Blues
- Eddy Arnold - C-H-R-I-S-T-M-A-S
- Margaret Whiting & Jimmy Wakely - I'll Never Slip Around Again
- Hank Williams - My Bucket's Got A Hole In It
- Eddy Arnold - Will Santa Come To Shanty Town
- Ernest Tubb - White Christmas
- Gene Autry - Here Comes Santa Claus
- Hank Williams - Lovesick Blues
- Hank Thompson & His Brazos Valley Boys - Whoa Sailor
- Eddy Arnold - I'm Throwing Rice At The Girl I Love
- Mervin Shiner - Why Don't You Haul Off And Love Me
- George Morgan - Cry Baby Heart
- George Morgan - I Love Everything About You
- Stuart Hamblen - (I Won't Go Hunting, Jake) But I'll Go Chasin' Women
- Red Foley - Sunday Down In Tennessee
- Red Foley - I Gotta Have My Baby Back
- Leon Payne - I Love You Because
- Red Foley - Careless Kisses
- Red Foley - Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy
- Pee Wee King - Bonaparte's Retreat
- Bob Wills - Ida Red Likes The Boogie
Disc 2:
- Red Foley & Ernest Tubb - Tennessee Border No. 2
- Eddy Arnold - Take Me In Your Arms And Hold Me
- Eddy Arnold - Mama And Daddy Broke My Heart
- Little Jimmy Dickens - A-Sleeping At The Foot Of The Bed
- Eddy Arnold - There's No Wings On My Angel
- Roy Rogers - Stampede
- Ernest Tubb & Red Foley - Don't Be Ashamed Of Your Age
- Owen Bradley (Jack Shook & Dottie Dillard) - Blues Stay Away From Me
- Johnnie Lee Wills - Rag Mop
- Ernest Tubb - Letters Have No Arms
- Three Suns with Elton Britt & Rosalie Allen - Beyond The Sunset
- Ernest Tubb - I'll Take A Back Seat For You
- Tennessee Ernie Ford - The Cry Of The Wild Goose
- Hank Williams - I Just Don't Like This Kind Of Livin'
- Margaret Whiting & Jimmy Wakely - Broken Down Merry Go Round
- Ernest Tubb - Unfaithful One
- Margaret Whiting & Jimmy Wakely - The Gods Were Angry With Me
- Elton Britt & Rosalie Allen - Quicksilver
- Mervin Shiner - Peter Cottontail
- Hank Williams - My Son Calls Another Man Daddy
- Hank Williams - Long Gone Lonesome Blues
Disc 3:
- Eddy Arnold - Why Should I Cry
- Eddy Arnold - Little Angel With The Dirty Face
- Red Foley - Sugarfoot Rag
- Johnny Bond - Love Song In 32 Bars
- Red Foley - Steal Away
- Red Foley - Just A Closer Walk With Thee
- Ernest Tubb - Give Me A Little Old Fashioned Love
- Margaret Whiting & Jimmy Wakely - Let's Go To Church (Next Sunday Morning)
- Red Foley - Birmingham Bounce
- Little Jimmy Dickens - Hillbilly Fever
- Cactus Pryor - Cry Of The Dying Duck In A Thunderstorm
- Kenny Roberts - Choc'late Ice Cream Cone
- Hank Williams - Why Don't You Love Me
- Bud Messner - Slippin' Around With Jole Blon
- Red Foley - Mississippi
- Ernest Tubb - Throw Your Love Away
- Eddy Arnold - Cuddle Buggin' Baby
- Red Kirk - Lose Your Blues
- Hank Snow - I'm Moving On
- Red Foley & Ernest Tubb - Goodnight Irene
- Eddy Arnold - Enclosed, One Broken Heart
- Ernest Tubb & Red Foley - Hillbilly Fever No. 2
- Stuart Hamblen - (Remember Me) I'm The One Who Loves You
- Kay Starr & Tennessee Ernie Ford - Ain't Nobody's Business But My Own
Disc 4:
- Jimmy Wakely - Mona Lisa
- Red Foley - Cincinnati Dancing Pig
- Eddy Arnold - The Lovebug Itch
- Hank Williams - Why Should We Try Anymore
- Kay Starr & Tennessee Ernie Ford - I'll Never Be Free
- Ernest Tubb - You Don't Have To Be A Baby To Cry
- Hank Williams - They'll Never Take Her Love Away From Me
- Red Foley - Our Lady Of Fatima
- Tex Ritter - Daddy's Last Letter
- Margaret Whiting & Jimmy Wakely - A Bushel And A Peck
- Bob Wills - Faded Love
- Eddy Arnold - A Prison Without Walls
- Hank Williams - Nobody's Lonesome For Me
- Lefty Frizzell - If You've Got The Money, I've Got The Time
- Gene Autry - Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer
- Hank Williams - Moanin' The Blues
- Gene Autry - Frosty The Snowman
- Ernest Tubb - Blue Christmas
- Tennessee Ernie Ford - Shotgun Boogie
- Pinetoppers - Mockingbird Hill
- Hank Snow & His Rainbow Ranch Boys - Golden Rocket
- Lefty Frizzell - I Love You A Thousand Ways
- Arkie Shibley & His Mountain Dew Boys - Hot Rod Race
- Patti Page - Tennessee Waltz
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