''Jewels'' is a studio album by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

singer and songwriter

Waylon Jennings Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music. Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...

, released in 1968 on RCA Victor.

Background

Jennings, who had enjoyed his biggest hit yet with the #2 hit country single " Only Daddy That'll Walk the Line" in 1968, followed it with the Top 5 hit "Yours Love," which was written by

Harlan Howard Harlan Perry Howard (September 8, 1927 – March 3, 2002) was an American songwriter, principally in country music. In a career spanning six decades, Howard wrote many popular and enduring songs, recorded by a variety of different artists. C ...

and included on ''Jewels'', Waylon's ninth LP for RCA. The album is also significant for featuring two songs composed by

Merle Haggard Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler. Haggard was born in Oildale, California, toward the end of the Great Depression. His childhood was troubled a ...

, who was recording for

Capitol A capitol, named after the Capitoline Hill in Rome, is usually a legislative building where a legislature meets and makes laws for its respective political entity. Specific capitols include: * United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. * Numerous ...

with producer Ken Nelson in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

and enjoying a degree of musical autonomy that Jennings was pining for in Nashville. In his 2008 book ''

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album '' Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of '' Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (1 ...

'', author Joe Nick Patoski observes that "the more records Waylon made and the more he understood how the system worked, the less he appreciated what RCA thought was best for him. As his record sales increased, his complaints grew louder. The

Nashville Sound The Nashville Sound originated during the mid-1950s as a subgenre of American country music, replacing the chart dominance of the rough honky tonk music, which was most popular in the 1940s and 1950s, with "smooth strings and choruses", "sophist ...

was cramping his style." The album also includes

Mel Tillis Lonnie Melvin Tillis (August 8, 1932 – November 19, 2017) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Although he recorded songs since the late 1950s, his biggest success occurred in the 1970s as part of the outlaw country movement, ...

' "Mental Revenge," which hit #12 for Jennings in 1967.

Track listing

#"New York City, RFD" ( Larry Collins, Alice Joy) #"Today I Started Loving You Again" (

Bonnie Owens Bonnie Owens (October 1, 1929 – April 24, 2006), born Bonnie Campbell, was an American country music singer who was married to Buck Owens and later Merle Haggard. Biography She was born Bonnie Campbell in Blanchard, Oklahoma, United Sta ...

) #"

Folsom Prison Blues "Folsom Prison Blues" is a song by American singer-songwriter Johnny Cash. Written in 1953, it was first recorded in 1955 for his debut studio album '' Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar!'' (1957), appearing as the album's eleventh track. T ...

" ( Johnny Cash) #"If You Were Mine to Lose" (Mickey Jaco) #"See You Around (On Your Way Down)" (

) #"Six Strings Away" (Waylon Jennings) #"Yours Love" (Howard) #"How Much Rain Can One Man Stand" (

Dallas Frazier Dallas Frazier (October 27, 1939 – January 14, 2022) was an American country musician and songwriter who had success in the 1950s and 1960s. Life and career Frazier was born in Spiro, Oklahoma, on October 27, 1939, but was raised in Bakersfi ...

) #"Mental Revenge" (

) #"I'm Doing This for You" (

Hank Cochran Garland Perry "Hank" Cochran (August 2, 1935 – July 15, 2010) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Starting during the 1960s, Cochran was a prolific songwriter in the genre, including major hits by Patsy Cline, Ray Price, Eddy ...

) #"You Love the Ground I Walk On" (Howard, Don McHan) #"My Ramona" (Haggard) Waylon Jennings albums J RCA Victor albums Albums produced by Chet Atkins {{1960s-country-album-stub