''I've Got a Tiger by the Tail'' is an album by

Buck Owens Alvis Edgar "Buck" Owens Jr. (August 12, 1929 – March 25, 2006) was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was the frontman for The Buckaroos, which had 21 No. 1 hits on the ''Billboard'' country music chart. He pioneered what came ...

and his Buckaroos, released in 1965. It reached Number one on the

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 advertis ...

Country charts and Number 43 on the Pop Albums charts. It was re-released on CD in 1995 by

Sundazed Music Sundazed Music is an American independent record label founded and based in Coxsackie, New York. It was initially known as a '60s-centric surf, garage, and psych label. Over time with the additions of imprints such as Modern Harmonic, American ...

with two bonus tracks, both live performances recorded in

Bakersfield, CA Bakersfield is a city in and the county seat of Kern County, California, United States. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley, which is located in the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's population as of the ...

at the Civic Auditorium in October 1963. The album was included in Robert Dimery's

1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die ''1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die'' is a musical reference book first published in 2005 by Universe Publishing. Part of the ''1001 Before You Die'' series, it compiles writings and information on albums chosen by a panel of music criti ...

Style

The album was an example of Bakersfield sound, country music developed in the mid to late 1950s around

Bakersfield, California Bakersfield is a city in and the county seat of Kern County, California, United States. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley, which is located in the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's population as of th ...

, and influenced both by rock and what was called

hillbilly music ''Hillbilly'' is a term historically used for White people who dwell in rural, mountainous areas in the United States, primarily in the Appalachian region and Ozarks. As people migrated out of the region during the Great Depression, the term sp ...

. The album featured the distinctive sound of

Don Rich Donald Eugene Ulrich (August 15, 1941 – July 17, 1974), best known by the stage name Don Rich, was an American country musician who helped develop the Bakersfield sound in the early 1960s. He was a noted guitarist and fiddler, and a ...

playing the

telecaster The Fender Telecaster, colloquially known as the Tele (), is an electric guitar produced by Fender (company), Fender. Together with its sister model the Fender Esquire, Esquire, it was the world's first mass-produced, commercially successfulLes ...

Reception

In his

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

review, critic Cub Koda called the album "Owens' Bakersfield honky tonk sound at the height of its freight-train rumbling powers." The album was

Billboard's ''Billboard'' (stylized in lowercase since 2013) is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events and styles related to the ...

first #1 country album of the year, in 1965.

Track listing

;Side one # "

I've Got a Tiger By the Tail "I've Got a Tiger By the Tail" is a song made famous by country music band Buck Owens and the Buckaroos. Released in December 1964, the song was one of Owens' signature songs and showcases of the Bakersfield sound in the genre. In 1999, the song ...

" (

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 is credited with writing more than 4,000 songs, over 100 of which reached country mus ...

, Buck Owens) – 2:12 # "Trouble and Me" (Howard) – 1:54 # "Let the Sad Times Roll On" (Owens,

Red Simpson Joe Cecil "Red" Simpson (March 6, 1934 – January 8, 2016) was an American country music singer and songwriter best known for his trucker -themed country songs. Biography Joe Cecil Simpson was born in 1934 in Higley, Arizona, and was raised ...

) – 2:14 # "Wham Bam" (Buck Owens,

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

) – 2:01 # "If You Fall Out of Love With Me" (Owens, Owens) – 2:15 # "Fallin' for You" (Owens, Owens, Rich) – 2:01 ;Side two #

"We're Gonna Let the Good Times Roll" (Owens) – 2:15 # "The Band Keeps Playin' On" (Red Simpson, Fuzzy Owen) – 3:02 # " Streets of Laredo" – 2:55 # "

Cryin' Time ''Cryin' Time'' is an album by blues pianist and vocalist Otis Spann recorded in Chicago in 1968 and released by Vanguard Records. Reception AllMusic reviewer Mark Allan writes "While the Muddy Waters sideman is best known for piano, his soulf ...

" (Owens) – 2:30 # " A Maiden's Prayer" (

Bob Wills James Robert "Bob" Wills (March 6, 1905 – May 13, 1975) was an American musician, songwriter, and bandleader. Considered by music authorities as the founder of Western swing, he was known widely as the King of Western Swing (although Spade C ...

) – 2:33 # "

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Mem ...

" (

Chuck Berry Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, guitarist and songwriter who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and de ...

) – 2:27

1995 bonus tracks

"This Ol' Heart" (Eddie Miller, Bob Morris) – 1:12 # "

Act Naturally "Act Naturally" is a song written by Johnny Russell, with a writing credit given to Voni Morrison and publishing rights transferred to Buck Owens. It was originally recorded by Buck Owens and the Buckaroos, whose version reached number one on ...

" ( Johnny Russell, Voni Morrison) – 2:28

Personnel

–

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

, vocals *

– guitar,

fiddle A fiddle is a Bow (music), bowed String instrument, string musical instrument, most often a violin or a bass. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including European classical music, classical music. Althou ...

, vocals (lead vocal on "Wham Bam") *

Doyle Holly Doyle Floyd Hendricks (June 30, 1936 – January 13, 2007), known by the stage name Doyle Holly, was an American musician best known as the bass guitar player of the country music band Buck Owens and the Buckaroos and for his solo hit songs "Qu ...

– bass, guitar, vocals (lead vocal on "Streets of Laredo") *

Tom Brumley Thomas Rexton Brumley (December 11, 1935 – February 3, 2009) was an American pedal steel guitarist and steel guitar manufacturer. In the 1960s, Brumley was a part of the sub-genre of country music known as the " Bakersfield sound". He performed ...

– pedal steel guitar, guitar * Willie Cantu – drums *Mel King – drums *Bob Morris – bass, vocals *Jay McDonald – pedal steel guitar *Jelly Sanders – fiddle, guitar

References

{{Authority control 1965 albums Buck Owens albums Capitol Records albums Albums produced by Ken Nelson (United States record producer) Albums recorded at Capitol Studios