Released June 2009 on Bear Family BCD 16513 AR, "Charlie Rocks" offers up 31 slices of the Silver Fox's varying styles - Rock'n'Roll, Blues, R'n'B, Crooner and even Sixties Pop. It covers 1958 to 1966 on Sun Records, Phillips International, Groove, Smash, Phillips and Mercury - and at a 74:34 minutes doesn't scrimp it on content or value for money.
Like all the titles in this extensive series, "Charlie Rocks" comes in a 3-way foldout card digipak with a large detachable booklet in the centre (40-pages for this one). The CD label itself repros the USA 45" for "Big Boss Man" - his fantastic cover of Jimmy Reed's blues standard - complete with its 1965 Groove Records label bag - and that's again repro'd in full on the flap beneath the see-through tray (a nice touch).
The substantial booklet features extensive liner notes from Page 2 to 28 by HANK DAVIS with a Discography for all 31 tracks from Page 29 to 36 by COLIN ESCOTT, HANK DAVIS, MARTIN HAWKINS and Bear Family's owner RICHARD WEIZE. It's peppered with several full colour plates of Rich from a previously unreleased photo session and many of his American 45's are pictured throughout the Discography - a typically top job done by Bear.
The remastered sound is by MARCUS HEUMANN and given the difference sources and years - it's uniformly superb - even on the unreleased rough `n' ready Sun sides. By the time you get to the Sixties stuff (recorded in good studios with top musicians), the sound quality is rocking.
CONTENT:
Tracks 1, 6, 10, 12 and 14 through to 21 are all from the 1998 4CD Bear Family box set "Lonely Weekend - The Sun Years 1958-1962" and were previously unreleased at the time.
Tracks 8, 11, 13 and 22 are all PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED and exclusive to this set.
All the other tracks are singles or album sides on the labels mentioned above.
His huge hit "Lonely Weekend" is on here twice - the master is track 7, while track 20 is a previously unreleased Undubbed Alternate Take. "Midnite Blues", "The Ways Of A Woman In Love" and "Mohair Sam" (lyrics above) epitomise his Sixties cool - like Roy Orbison at his sly best - great vocals, clever lyrics and an instantly catchy tune every time. There's a few tracks off his two superb albums for Smash Records in 1965 and 1966 - "The Many News Sides Of..." and "The Best Years" which will make you want more and talk of forgotten genius ("It Ain't Gonna Be That Way"). The lyrics to "I Washed My Hands In Muddy Waters" talk of "...keeping those bloodhounds off your trail.." and is kind of bluesy chugging piano tune Presley might have tackled on his superb "Elvis Is Back" album from 1960. Speaking of which...
Looking at the booklet and listening to the CD, you're struck by three things, (1) Charlie Rich was a handsome son of a bitch, (2) like Presley and Orbison, he had a voice to die for and could sing anything and (3) a whopping 24 of these 31 cuts are his own compositions. So he looked good, sounded awesome and wrote his own tunes. So why wasn't Charlie Rich huge during this period?
He would of course enjoy global success in the early Seventies with "Behind Closed Doors" and "The Most Beautiful Girl In The World" which would galvanize his crooning 'Silver Fox' image. But this disc gives us his preceding rocking years and it's an absolute eye-opener as to his talent and great way with a song...
I'm so glad I bought this CD - another cracker from those nice archiving people in Germany.
Recommended big time...
PS: The "Rocks" Series by Bear Family features the following artists:
1. Chuck Berry [see REVIEW}
2. Pat Boone
3. Johnny Burnette [see REVIEW]
4. The Cadillacs
5. Eddie Cochran
6. Bobby Darin
7. Fats Domino
8. Connie Francis
9. Don Gibson
10. Glen Glenn
11. Bill Haley
12. Roy Hall
13. Slim Harpo [see REVIEW]
14. Dale Hawkins
15. Ronnie Hawkins
16. Screamin' Jay Hawkins
17. Wanda Jackson [see REVIEW]
18. Sonny James
19. Buddy Knox & Jimmy Bowen with the Rhythm Orchids
20. Sleepy LaBeef
21. Brenda Lee
22. Jerry Lee Lewis
23. Smiley Lewis [see REVIEW]
24. Little Richard
25. Bob Luman
26. Frankie Lymon and The Teenagers
27. Carl Mann
28. Amos Milburn [see REVIEW]
29. Ella Mae Morse [see REVIEW]
30. Ricky Nelson
31. Carl Perkins
32. Roy Orbison
33. Lloyd Price
34. Piano Red (aka Dr. Feelgood) [see REVIEW]
35. Charlie Rich [see REVIEW]
36. Jack Scott
37. Shirley & Lee
38. The Treniers
39. Big Joe Turner [see REVIEW]
40. Conway Twitty
41. Gene Vincent & His Blue Caps
42. Rusty York [see REVIEW]
The Bear Family "Rockin' Rollin'" Series features:
1. Johnny Horton
2. Marvin Rainwater
3. Marty Robbins Vol.1
4. Marty Robbins Vol.2
5. Marty Robbins Vol.3
