So if I can't be your first love, I'll wait and be your last....

1961 was a pretty bad year for pop music. Coming off of the Elvis high, the music scene for the most part reverted back to sleep-inducing standards or kiddie-pop drivel. But for country music, it was a golden year, where the likes of Patsy Cline, Buck Owens, , and George Jones shined. That’s why Time-Life’s Country U*S*A 1961 is such a find. Containing 24 top-10 country songs (many of those “crossed over” to the pop chart) the set includes 7 of the 8 #1 country songs of that year. Among these are classic like Cline’s “Crazy” and “I Fall To Pieces”, probably the best examples of classic country ever made, Faron Young’s “Hello Walls”, Marty Robbins’ “Don’t Worry”, and George Jones’ “Tender Years”. Each of these songs depict love and heartbreak with such vividness that you can forget country music was more than proving how redneck you are. Don Gibson also appears twice with classics “Sweet Dreams” and “Sea Of Heartbreak”, as well as Buck Owens with “Under The Influence Of Love” and “Foolin’ Around”. This year country music had universal themes and accessible arrangements, which explains the pop success even of second-tier acts like Leroy Van Dyke (“Walk On By”) and Roy Drusky (“Three Hearts In A Tangle”). The female perspective trailblazed by Kitty Wells was thriving as well, with Wells herself (“Heartbreak USA”), belter Wanda Jackson (“Right Or Wrong”), and Skeeter Davis (“My Last Date (With You)”) represented on this compilation. Scattered amongst these gems are some hokier numbers (Bill Anderson’s “Po’ Folks”,Rusty & Doug’s “Louisiana Man”) and some novelties (Jimmy Dean’s proto-rap song “Big Bad John”, Tex Ritter’s pandering “I Dreamed Of A Hillbilly Heaven”). There’s even some hidden gems from the era’s semi-stars, like Hank Snow (“Beggar To A King”), Johnny Horton (“Sleepy-Eyed John”), and Porter Wagoner (“Your Old Love Letters”) with more standard good but run-of-the-mill fare. The sound on this disc of course isn’t remastered-pristine of course, and may be a little hard to find, but it’s really a well-chosen collection of country music of that year, and with 24 songs on the disc, quite a find.

Grade: A-
Best Cuts: “I Fall To Pieces”, “Heart Over Mind”, “Don’t Worry”, “Walk On By”, “My Last Date (With You)”, “Foolin’ Around”, “Hello Walls”, “Crazy”
Weakest Links: “I Dreamed Of A Hillbilly Heaven”, “Big Bad John”

"I Fall To Pieces" by Patsy Cline hit #1 country, #12 pop, and #6 adult contemporary.
"Heart Over Mind" by Ray Price hit #5 country.
"Walk On By" by Leroy Van Dyke made #1 country (for 19 weeks!), 5 pop, and #5 in the UK.
"Don't Worry" by Marty Robbins made #1 country (for 10 weeks) and #3 pop.
"Sleepy-Eyed John" by Johnny Horton hit #9 country and #54 pop.
"My Last Date (with You)" by Skeeter Davis hit #5 country and #26 pop.
"Foolin' Around" by Buck Owens made #2 country and #113 pop.
"The Window Up Above" by George Jones hit #2 country.
"Po' Folks" by Bill Anderson hit #9 country.
"Beggar To A King" by Hank Snow made #5 country.
"Heartbreak U.S.A." by Kitty Wells made #1 country (for 4 weeks).
"Sweet Dreams" by Don Gibson hit #6 country and #93 pop.
"Hello Walls" by Faron Young hit #1 country (for 9 weeks), and #12 pop.
"Louisiana Man" by Rusty & Doug hit #10 country and #104 pop.
"I Dreamed Of A Hillbilly Heaven" by Tex Ritter made #5 country and #20 pop.
"Three Hearts In A Tangle" by Roy Drusky made #2 country.
"Oklahoma Hills" by Hank Thompson made #7 country singles.
"Crazy" by Patsy Cline hit #2 country, #9 pop, #2 adult contemporary, and #14 in the UK.
"Big Bad John" by Jimmy Dean hit #1 country (for 2 weeks), #1 pop (for 5 weeks), #1 contemporary, and #2 in the UK.
"Your Old Love Letters" by Porter Wagoner hit #10 country.
"Tender Years" by George Jones made #1 country (for 7 weeks) and #76 pop.
"Right Or Wrong" by Wanda Jackson made #9 country and #29 pop.
"Sea of Heartbreak" by Don Gibson hit #2 country, #21 pop, and #14 in the UK.
"Under The Influence Of Love" by Buck Owens hit #2 country.

Listen: "Heart Over Mind" (link)
Buy: You can pick up a copy of Country U.S.A. 1961 at a used record store or sites like here.

And here's a clip of the #1 country song of the year, Leroy Van Dyke's "Walk On By"