This is one of those cd's you don't find in smaller cd stores. I bought it and I think it is great.
In putting together this 1997 Mercury CD release of one of their vinyl LPs, Project Manager Kira Florita wasn't exactly being magnanimous, expanding it from the original 10 tracks to - gasp - all of 11 by adding 1974's That Song Is Driving Me Crazy [# 2 Country, # 24 Adult Contemporary, and # 63 Billboard Pop Hot 100].
In fact, that song was why I picked up the CD a few years ago, since at the time it was difficult to find in a quality CD format. But even then this volume is a bit misleading in its title in that Little Bitty and That's How I Got To Memphis - although written by Tom - were never hits for him.
Each of the other 8 were huge hits, however: Ballad Of Forty Dollars [# 4 Country December 1968]; A Week In A Country Jail [# 1 Country for two weeks in early 1970 telling how fried baloney and the jailer's wife both began to look good as the days passed]; The Year That Clayton Delaney Died [# 1 Country, also for two weeks, in summer 1971]; Old Dogs, Children And Watermelon Wine [# 1 Country for a week in early 1973]; I Love [# 1 Country (two weeks), # 2 Adult Contemporary, and # 12 Hot 100 in January 1974]; Country Is [# 1 Country for a week in October 1974]; I Like Beer [# 4 Country in October 1975]; and Faster Horses (The Cowboy And The Poet) [# 1 Country for a week in March 1976].
The thing is, though, this balladeer/storyteller deluxe had 40 charted songs for Mercury from 1967 to 1977 and again from 1983 to 1986, in addition to 11 for RCA from 1977 to 1981, and 2 more for Columbia in 1982. So, if they are contemplating re-issung this CD again, I would suggest they increase the contents to at least 20 tracks. And add some informative liner notes [there are none with this issue] while they're at it.
In the meantime, I would suggest you seek out one of the other compilations currently available.
