''Bill Anderson Sings Country Heart Songs'' is a compilation album by American

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

singer-songwriter Bill Anderson. It was released in January 1962 on

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

and was produced by

Owen Bradley William Owen Bradley (October 21, 1915 – January 7, 1998) was an American musician and record producer who, along with Chet Atkins, Bob Ferguson, Bill Porter, and Don Law, was one of the chief architects of the 1950s and 1960s Nashville sou ...

. Despite it being a compilation, the project was Anderson's debut album release as a recording artist. It featured several of his early hits with the Decca label and included one song that would later be issued as a single in 1962.

Background, content and release

''Bill Anderson Sings Country Heart Songs'' included tracks Anderson recorded during his early years with the Decca label. These sessions were recorded between 1959 and 1961. They were produced by Owen Bradley, who would serve as Anderson's production collaborator for much of his career at the label. The recording sessions took place at the Bradley Studio located in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

. The sessions featured

The Nashville A-Team The Nashville A-Team was a nickname given to a group of session musicians in Nashville, Tennessee, USA, who earned wide acclaim in the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s. They backed dozens of popular singers, including Elvis Presley, Eddy Arnold, Pats ...

as the backing band. The album consisted of twelve tracks, most of which had been previously released. Six of the album's tracks were composed by Anderson himself. This included the tune "

City Lights ''City Lights'' is a 1931 American silent romantic comedy film written, produced, directed by, and starring Charlie Chaplin. The story follows the misadventures of Chaplin's Tramp as he falls in love with a blind girl (Virginia Cherrill) and ...

," which was recorded by Ray Price and elevated Anderson's career. Also included is Anderson's early hits for the Decca label, such as "

Po' Folks Po' Folks may refer to: * "Po' Folks" (Bill Anderson song), 1961 * "Po' Folks" (Nappy Roots song), 2001 *Po' Folks (restaurant) Po' Folks (later restyled as PoFolks) is an American family restaurant chain founded in 1975 in Anderson, South Caro ...

," " Walk Out Backwards" and "

The Tip of My Fingers "The Tip of My Fingers", also titled "The Tips of My Fingers", is a song written and originally recorded by American country music singer Bill Anderson. First included on his 1962 album ''Bill Anderson Sings Country Heart Songs'', the song was a T ...

." ''Country Heart Songs'' was released in January 1962 on Decca Records, becoming Anderson's first album released in his career. It was issued as a

vinyl LP The LP (from "long playing" or "long play") is an analog sound storage medium, a phonograph record format characterized by: a speed of rpm; a 12- or 10-inch (30- or 25-cm) diameter; use of the "microgroove" groove specification; and a ...

, containing six songs on each side of the record. Unlike many of his later releases, the record did not chart on any ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' list including the country albums chart. The album's track, "

Mama Sang a Song "Mama Sang a Song" is a country music song written and recorded by Bill Anderson. Released in 1962, this recitation — prominently featuring a backing choir singing Christian hymns — was Bill Anderson's first No. 1 hit on the ''Billboard'' H ...

," would later be spawned as the project's only single release in July 1962. The song went on to become Anderson's first number one hit on the ''Billboard''

Hot Country Singles Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

chart, reaching the position in October 1962. The album later received critical reception by

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

, which gave the project 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Track listing

;Side one #"

" – (Bill Anderson) #"

" – (Anderson) #" As Long as I Live" – (

Roy Acuff Roy Claxton Acuff (September 15, 1903 – November 23, 1992) was an American country music singer, fiddler, and promoter. Known as the "King of Country Music", Acuff is often credited with moving the genre from its early string band and "hoedown ...

) #"

Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" is a song written by songwriter Fred Rose. First recorded by Elton Britt in 1946, then made more popular by Roy Acuff in 1947, the song has been covered by many artists, including Hank Williams Sr., Johnny Russell, ...

" – ( Fred Rose) #"

It Takes a Worried Man ''It Takes a Worried Man'' is a British TV sitcom. It was made by Thames Television and ran for three series, broadcast from to . The first two series were broadcast on the ITV network, and the third and final series on Channel 4. Most episode ...

" – (traditional) #"

" – (Anderson) ;Side two #" Walk Out Backwards" – (Anderson) #"Wedding Bells" – (Claude Boone) #"Columbus Stockade Blues" – (traditional) #" Ninety-Nine" – (Anderson) #"

" – (Anderson) #"Yonder Comes a Sucker" – (

Jim Reeves James Travis Reeves (August 20, 1923July 31, 1964) was an American country and popular music singer-songwriter. With records charting from the 1950s to the 1980s, he became well known as a practitioner of the Nashville Sound. Known as "Gentleman ...

)

Personnel

All credits are adapted from the

liner notes Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for cassettes. Origin Liner notes are desce ...

of ''Bill Anderson Sings Country Heart Songs''. Musical personnel * Bill Anderson – lead vocals * Owen Bradley –

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

Harold Bradley Harold Ray Bradley (January 2, 1926 – January 31, 2019) was an American guitarist and entrepreneur, who played on many country, rock and pop recordings and produced numerous TV variety shows and movie soundtracks. Having started as a session ...

–

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

, guitar *

Floyd Cramer Floyd Cramer (October 27, 1933 – December 31, 1997) was an American pianist who became famous for his use of melodic "half step" attacks. He was inducted into both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His signature ...

– piano, vibes * Jimmy Day –

steel guitar A steel guitar ( haw, kīkākila) is any guitar played while moving a steel bar or similar hard object against plucked strings. The bar itself is called a "steel" and is the source of the name "steel guitar". The instrument differs from a conve ...

Pete Drake Roddis Franklin "Pete" Drake (October 8, 1932 – July 29, 1988), was a Nashville-based American record producer and pedal steel guitar player. One of the most sought-after backup musicians of the 1960s, Drake played on such hits as Lynn Anderson' ...

– steel guitar *

Hank Garland Walter Louis Garland (11 November 1930 – 27 December 2004), professionally Hank Garland, was an American guitarist and songwriter. He started as a country musician, played rock and roll as it became popular in the 1950s, and released a jazz al ...

– guitar *

Buddy Harman Murrey Mizell "Buddy" Harman, Jr. (December 23, 1928 – August 21, 2008) was an American country music session musician. Career Born in Nashville, Tennessee, Harman played drums on over 18,000 sessions for artists such as Elvis Presley, Jerry ...

– drums * Tommy Jackson –

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, th ...

Buddy Killen William Doyce “Buddy” Killen (November 13, 1932 – November 1, 2006) was an American record producer and music publisher, and a former owner of Trinity Broadcasting Network and Tree International Publishing, the largest country music p ...

– background vocals * Morris Palter – drums *

Johnny Paycheck Johnny Paycheck (born Donald Eugene Lytle; May 31, 1938 – February 19, 2003) was an American country music singer and Grand Ole Opry member notable for recording the David Allan Coe song "Take This Job and Shove It". He achieved his greates ...

– background vocals *

Jimmy Riddle James Lawrence Riddle (September 3, 1918 – December 10, 1982) was an American country musician and multi-instrumentalist best known for his appearances on the country music and comedy television show ''Hee Haw''. He was primarily known for ...

– harmonica *

Floyd Robinson Floyd Andrew Robinson (born May 9, 1936) is a former outfielder in Major League Baseball for the Chicago White Sox (1960–1966), Cincinnati Reds (1967), and the Oakland Athletics and Boston Red Sox (1968). He batted left-handed and threw right ...

– background vocals * The Anita Kerr Singers – background vocals Technical personnel * Owen Bradley – producer

Release history

References

{{Authority control 1962 albums Albums produced by Owen Bradley Bill Anderson (singer) compilation albums Decca Records albums