Charley Pride - Anthology

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Music reviews of Anthology

Music Review: Best Pride Collection Available
Rating: 5 Stars

Pride created his own vocal style by melding the smooth delivery of Jim Reeves with a natural twang that recalled Lefty Frizzell and Ernest Tubb. The early singles (1966-68) that lead off disc one, like "Just Between You And Me" and "The Easy Part's Over," are all ballads sung in a lower key. With the 1969 live recording of Hank Williams' "Kaw-Liga," Pride added an uptempo hit to his repertoire that finally captured his warm baritone in its natural register (which he used on all recordings thereafter).

"Kaw-Liga's" follow-up, the ballad "All I Have To Offer You (Is Me)" gave Pride the first of twenty-nine number one country hits at RCA. Aside from a gospel number "Did You Think To Pray," the tracks that make up the rest of disc one - covering 1970 through 1973 - also hit number one and are among Pride's most enduring recordings, including the uptempo "Wonder Could I Live There Anymore," "Is Anybody Going To San Antone" and his signature tune "Kiss An Angel Good Mornin'," as well as his common man odes "I'm Just Me" and "All His Children."

Disc two is dominated by relationship tunes - mostly ballads - such as "Then Who Am I" and "She's Just An Old Love Turned Memory." This disc also denotes a change in producers (from Jack Clement to Jerry Bradley). While not reflected in their first collaboration - 1974's seemingly biographical "Mississippi Cotton Pickin' Delta Town" - Bradley's production approach eventually altered Pride's sound dramatically. Adding layers of strings and supersweet background vocals that created a lushness more typical of Ronnie Milsap (particularly on "More To Me" and "When I Stop Leaving"), Pride's voice - which had grown more expressive over the years - is often rendered indistinctive on these mid-70s through mid-80s singles.

While most of Pride's hits are here, Anthology omits some key tracks: his first single "Snakes Crawl At Night," his last big RCA hit "Every Heart Should Have One," the haunting "Missin' You," and the nostalgic "Burgers And Fries," among others. It's too bad that BMG didn't include the ten additional tracks that it easily had room for in order to get this overview absolutely right. Incidentally, there is a fifty-track Pride collection (Legendary) that is available as an import from RCA-Australia, but Anthology is still the superior set due to its chronological track sequencing and far better track selection and booklet/packaging.

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