Nite Life: Greatest Hits and Rare Tracks, 1959-1971

Nite Life: Greatest Hits and Rare Tracks, 1959-1971

ASIN: B0000032TI

Track Listings

1. Man With the Blues

2. What a Way to Live

3. Night Life

4. Rainy Day Blues [*]

5. You'll Always Have Someone

6. Everything But You [*]

7. Mr. Record Man

8. Hello Walls

9. Crazy

10. Touch Me

11. Funny How Time Slips Away

12. Am I Blue [*]

13. Half a Man

14. Opportunity to Cry

15. San Antonio Rose

16. One in a Row

17. Bring Me Sunshine [*]

18. Me and Paul

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com essential recording
Five producers are represented in this sampler of pre-superstar Willie, including RCA titan Chet Atkins. (For a more thorough overview of Nelson's RCA years, investigate The Essential Willie Nelson.) The great appeal of this 18-song collection, however, lies in its scope. By the time he'd signed with RCA in 1964, Nelson was established as a proficient Music City songsmith whose own recordings were frustratingly underappreciated. While the likes of "Nite Life," "Hello Walls," "Funny How Time Slips Away," and "Crazy" (all represented here) may have been country hits for others (Ray Price, Faron Young, Billy Walker, and Patsy Cline, respectively), young Willie's takes reflect his remarkable talents as a vocalist. Then, too, there are the likes of the obscure "Opportunity to Cry," as dark a song as ever came out of Nashville. Nite Life presents a trailbreaker in the making, providing a perspective on an essential phase in Nelson's development. --Steven Stolder

Tracks:

Man With The Blues
What A Way To Live
Nite Life
Rainy Day Blues
You'll Always Have Someone
Everything But You
Mr. Record Man
Hello Walls
Crazy
Touch Me
Funny How Time Slips Away
Am I Blue
Half A Man
Opportunity To Cry
San Antonio Rose
One In A Row
Bring Me Sunshine
Me And Paul

Amazon.com essential recording

Five producers are represented in this sampler of pre-superstar Willie, including RCA titan Chet Atkins. (For a more thorough overview of Nelson's RCA years, investigate The Essential Willie Nelson.) The great appeal of this 18-song collection, however, lies in its scope. By the time he'd signed with RCA in 1964, Nelson was established as a proficient Music City songsmith whose own recordings were frustratingly underappreciated. While the likes of "Nite Life," "Hello Walls," "Funny How Time Slips Away," and "Crazy" (all represented here) may have been country hits for others (Ray Price, Faron Young, Billy Walker, and Patsy Cline, respectively), young Willie's takes reflect his remarkable talents as a vocalist. Then, too, there are the likes of the obscure "Opportunity to Cry," as dark a song as ever came out of Nashville. Nite Life presents a trailbreaker in the making, providing a perspective on an essential phase in Nelson's development. --Steven Stolder

Customer Reviews:

I guess Nashvile was the roughest........2007-04-11

Willie Nelson didn't become a country music superstar until 1975, when he was 42 years old. He had been trying to make it for over 20 years before he had his breakthrough hit, "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain". Before that, he was best known as a songwriter; having written hits for Patsy Cline, Ray Price, Faron Young, Billy Walker, Roy Orbison and others. He had some moderate success as a recording artist, with his biggest hit being "Touch Me" in 1962, which was a #7 Country hit. That song is on this CD, along with a few other minor hits and several non-hits. This material shows that Willie's unique singing style had been there from the beginning. Because he was so unique, prodcers often didn't know what to do with him, and sometimes stuck him with arrangements that didn't really suit him. Most of the material here works well, although not as well as when Nashville just gave up and let Willie do his own thing. This is a good sampler of Willie's early years. My personal favorite is the autobiographical "Me and Paul".

Great Cd .......2006-12-30

I ordered this for a member of the family looking for a few particular songs. This cd had them all and then some. He was very satisfied with the quality of the cd. I was very satisfied with Amazon service and fast shipping of seller. Great cd for all those long time Willie Nelson fans!

An Eclectic and Visionary Collection.......2006-09-25

This fascinating collection of early singles, rarities, and album tracks off of early Liberty and RCA recordings of Willie finds him searching for his voice, yet is entirely satisfying and remarkably consistent. It's a great record.

The early recordings of some of Willie's best known songs -- "Nite Life," "Crazy," "Healing Hands of Time," "Hello Walls" -- all benefit from the spare, open, and nuanced arrangements found here.

Willie's early rockabilly efforts are particularly successful -- "Rainy Day Blues" sounds a bit like early Mose Alison, and "Everything But You" could have fit easily onto a Johnny Cash or Elvis Sun Session recording.

Willie's bright and tasteful arrangement of "Bring Me Sunshine" -- perhaps the only song here that is not about a lost love and feeling blue and lonely -- clearly presages the work he would do a decade later with Booker T and the MGs on Stardust. I hope the album that track came off of is re-released in its entirety soon. Finally, his clever and economical songwriting style is highlighted in "One in a Row," one of his finest songs on an otherwise superlative album.

Fans of Willie would be well-served to pick up this early collection, it does not disappoint.

Outstanding Album.......2006-05-15

Let me start by saying that I'm not a big fan of Willie Nelson's voice and delivery of a song. But, I doubt if there will ever be (or has ever been) a songwriter of Willie's caliber....well, maybe Don Gibson? Still, this collection of early Willie Nelson is amazing, and in my opinion, his best vocal work. I'm especially partial to "Mr Record Man", "One in A Row", and "Man With the Blues". There's also an assortment of Willie Nelson penned numbers made famous by others, including "Hello Walls" and "Funny How Time Slips Away". While his take lacks the smoothness of Faron Young and Ray Price, it is interesting to see how Willie envisioned their delivery. It would be worth your time and money to grab this CD while it's still available. It presents a glance into a Willie Nelson that most folks didn't realize existed; a Willie Nelson that didn't quite fit into the Nashville Sound formula.

A Curiosity, Yet One of Willie's Best.......2005-12-03

Admittedly, I haven't heard everything in Willie's huge cataloge. But listening to this, I'm struck by how strong his voice was in the early '60s when these seminal tunes were cut. These are all wonderful genre-bending songs, relaxed, down and full of soul, with Willie's trademark, just-behind-the-beat vocal phrasing, the kind of thing jazz singers have long done. Accompaniments are generally just right, spare, bluesy and loose. Nothing here is dated. If you're a "Stardust" fan or a newcomer to Willie, you'll be greatly surprised by just how right this collection sounds. Pick it up, by all means. It's a total classic glimpse of, yes, a genius just starting out, but sounding like he's got the wisdom of an old man.

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