Rose Maddox

All 111 tracks -- and not a weak one among them -- that Rose Maddox cut for Capitol Records between 1959-1965, including seven numbers (one live) with Buck Owens, spread among four CDs and topped off with a 16-page booklet. As usual, the quality is excellent, in addition to the material being exceptionally attractive. Maddox's singing (sometimes joined by her brother, John, or Buck Owens) is powerful throughout, whether she's introducing new numbers like "Custer's Last Stand" or "Lies and Alibis," or covering familiar territory like Hank Williams' "Whoa Sailor" or "Honky Tonkin'," or Woody Guthrie's "Philadelphia Lawyer." Her honky tonk numbers are in a class by themselves, among the boldest material in this vein ever cut by a woman, and hearing it, it's easy to understand why her influence crosses generational lines in country music -- she was well ahead of her time. But it's also filled with surprises: her wonderfully robust and raspy rendition of "Honky Tonkin'," which could melt a lumberjack's chain saw, but also features a jewel of a mandolin break that would be a blessing on any bluegrass record; a frantic, rockabilly-flavored version of Williams' "Move It On Over" that ought to be part of any serious rock & roll collection; an enticing (and rocking) version of Tommy Collins' "Down Down Down" (never on any album); a stunningly moving version of "Please Help Me I'm Falling," which was later buried by Hank Locklin's version, recorded after but issued just a few weeks ahead of Maddox's; a dozen gospel numbers (most notably "That Glory Bound Train") that are among the most sincere, exuberant, upbeat, and rousing songs of their kind ever assembled in one place; and a killer live rendition of Buck Owens' "Down to the River" cut at an Owens concert in Bakersfield in September 1963. The complete contents of her albums -- including The One Rose, Glorybound Train, and Rose Maddox Sings Bluegrass -- are here, along with the dozens of tracks that the label never found room on its roster to release. The booklet is also fascinating, explaining how Maddox came to record so much and release so little during her years with Capitol (more than a third of the contents here have never been heard before), and how she came to be dropped from the label along with other country legends like Hank Thompson. ~ Bruce Eder, All Music Guide