Roy Rogers - Hoppy, Gene and Me

Television's most recognized and best-beloved singing cowboy, Roy Rogers, sings songs from the old west and the new, including the chart-climbing title song. Maybe just for nostalgia, or for the honest old-fashioned "true blue" TV cowboy in everyone, this disc just makes you smile.

Although I've of course known the name Roy Rogers all my life. I can't remember when I didn't. I came along too late to ever really watch him in the theatres or on TV, but I knew him and I knew Dale and Trigger and "Happy Trails," just like everyone else in my generation and age group. Roy was gone from the airwaves by my time, but we knew his name. I'm not sure why precisely Roy's music wasn't played in my household during my childhood, so I really wasn't familiar with his singing; therefore I was kind of surprised to discover that the beautiful tenor voice of the most popular singing cowboy has a real tough time staying on key. Of course, these songs were recorded before ProTools enabled anyone with a good smile and a guitar to become a Star, so if nothing else, these songs are honest.

"Hoppy, Gene and Me," originally recorded in 1973, was originally an idea by the producer of the disc, Snuff Garrett, and the song was eventually written for Roy and became his the last of his chart-toppers, hitting the country charts in 1975. This is the first time this disc has been made available on CD, and it's obviously long overdue.

Roy Rogers remains the undisputed King of the Cowboys, the white hat who rode hard, shot straight, won the day (and the girl), and always had a smile and a song on his lips. As the song says, "Just stories from the silver screen/ now most of them forgotten. Double features, Saturdays, with Hoppy, Gene and me." Just plain good Western music.