Various Artists - Country Number Ones

I really do feel like all have to do to review this disc is list the names of the songs and the artists singing them. Each one of these songs landed at #1 - some for the year, some for multiple weeks - the chart information is listed inside the CD case. There's a lot of years missing - nothing appears from 1952 - 1955, 1957 - 1958, 1960, 1962 - 1964, 1966 - 1969, 1972 - 1973, 1975 - 1976, 1979, 1983 - 1986, and all of the 90's. Several years, on the other hand, have multiple representatives, such as 1970, 1978, and 1981. Of course, some of those years are notable times for artists who are likewise missing, such as Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Buck Owens, and Tammy Wynette. Of course, that may simply be a matter of record labels and ownership rights - still, it does make for a lack of comprehension, considering everything that's missing. Still, for what's here, it's of course glorious - certainly up until the late seventies, when things start to wobble somewhat, with far lower lows and fewer gems. While I know it was a popular hit, "Elvira" isn't a standard by which music should be judged; and except for the brief appearance of George Jones in the final lines, Barbara Mandrell's "I Was Country When Country Wasn't Cool" may be the least country-sounding "classic country" song of all time.

But popularity doesn't always signal quality nor longevity, which is precisely what makes this list so distinctively excellent - most of the tunes that have made number one on the country charts not only went to #1, but they also have the solid quality that gains a song true longevity. The timeless perfection of Hank Williams; the cowboy crooning of Marty Robbins; the torchy sound of Patsy Cline; the beauty of Tom T. Hall's storytelling - it all makes for country greats as well as chart-toppers. Makes sense, starting off a collection such as this with Hank Williams and Johnny Cash, two artists who constantly top lists of "greatest men of country," with either one or the other taking the top spot, depending on who you talk to (in my opinion, Hank deserves the #1 spot, but Cash is certainly a close second). Following them with Marty Robbins is not just chronological, it's also common sense, as Robbins may not have had the influence the previous two did, but he may very well have had the greatest voice country music ever saw (until Vince Gill came along to give him a run for his money), and he's followed by the next great male vocalist, George Jones, and finally country's greatest female vocalist, Patsy Cline. Country's songwriting genius is shown with great lyricist Roger Miller, storyteller Tom T. Hall, and the remarkable Willie Nelson, as well as perhaps the two greatest female country songwriters of all time, Loretta Lynn and Dolly Parton. The collection wraps up with some more contemporary greats, male and female - Randy Travis and Patty Loveless.

Of course, the disc only chronicles the years from 1951 through 1981, so there's a lot of time in the 80+-year history of country music unaccounted for - one has to hope that there are plans for more volumes of "number ones" for us to enjoy.