The Singles 1959-1969

Bobby Bare

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The Singles 1959-1969 Review

by Stephen Thomas Erlewine

If BMG International's 2001 double-disc set Singles: 1959-1969 looks and feels like a Bear Family release, there's good reason for it: The label's president and mastermind, Richard Weize, produced this reissue, and it bears that label's typeface and zeal for completion. Considering that Bear Family covered this era in depth on their four-disc 1994 box set All-American Boy, some might wonder whether a thorough, 47-song double-disc set like this is necessary, but it is, because it's the sharpest, savviest overview yet of this great body of work. Throughout his career, Bobby Bare produced surprising, unpredictable country music that mixed in elements of rock & roll, honky tonk, folk, and even a hint of pop -- a sound that he etched out during those fruitful, successful years at RCA chronicled here. While not as concise as a single-disc collection, this not only offers more hits than any single CD, it also illustrates how far-reaching and imaginative the bulk of his RCA work is. True, this sprawls out over its two discs, and there are a couple of merely OK songs scattered throughout its running length (including two tracks in German), but there are so many great songs here -- not just "All American Boy," "Detroit City," "The Streets of Baltimore," and "500 Miles Away From Home," either, but sides like "Just to Satisfy You" and "Times Are Gettin' Hard" that didn't climb so high on the charts -- that such complaints seem churlish. Yes, completists will opt for the box set, and Razor & Tie's 1994 single-disc collection remains an excellent introduction, but those listeners that merely want a comprehensive look at Bare's most essential recordings should turn here.

Track Listing - Disc 1

	Title/Composer	Performer	Time	Stream
1	All American Boy Orville Lunsford / Bill Parsons	Bobby Bare	03:02	Spotify Amazon
2	Shame on Me Bill Enis / C. Williams	Bobby Bare	02:48	Spotify Amazon
3	Above and Beyond Harlan Howard	Bobby Bare	02:13	Spotify Amazon
4	Detroit City Danny Dill / Mel Tillis	Bobby Bare	02:49	Spotify Amazon
5	Heart of Ice Don Crawford	Bobby Bare	02:28	Spotify Amazon
6	Five Hundred Miles Away from Home Bobby Bare / Hedy West / C. Williams	Bobby Bare	02:42	Spotify Amazon
7	It All Depends on Linda Bobby Bare / C. Williams	Bobby Bare	02:38	Spotify Amazon
8	Miller's Cave Jack Clement	Bobby Bare	02:54	Spotify Amazon
9	Jeannie's Last Kiss Bobby Bare / C. Williams	Bobby Bare	03:03	Spotify Amazon
10	Have I Stayed Away Too Long Frank Loesser	Bobby Bare	02:11	Spotify Amazon
11	More Than a Poor Boy Could Give Bobby Bare	Bobby Bare	02:34	Spotify Amazon
12	Four Strong Winds	Bobby Bare	02:45	Spotify Amazon
13	Take Me Home Jack Clement / Allen Reynolds	Bobby Bare	02:46	Spotify Amazon
14	Times Are Gettin' Hard Bobby Bare	Bobby Bare	02:36	Spotify Amazon
15	One Day at a Time Willie Nelson	Bobby Bare	02:18	Spotify Amazon
16	It's Alright Mac Gayden / Jerry Tuttle	Bobby Bare	02:39	Spotify Amazon
17	She Picked a Perfect Day Bobby Bare	Bobby Bare	02:29	Spotify Amazon
18	Just to Satisfy You Don Bowman / Waylon Jennings	Bobby Bare	02:25	Spotify Amazon
19	Memories Bobby Bare	Bobby Bare	02:06	Spotify Amazon
20	Talk Me Some Sense	Bobby Bare	02:25	Spotify Amazon
21	Delia's Gone Traditional	Bobby Bare	02:45	Spotify Amazon
22	In the Same Old Way Spooner Oldham	Bobby Bare	02:40	Spotify Amazon
23	Long Black Veil Danny Dill / Marijohn Wilkin	Bobby Bare	02:40	Spotify Amazon

Track Listing - Disc 2

	Title/Composer	Performer	Time	Stream
1	The Streets of Baltimore Tompall Glaser / Harlan Howard	Bobby Bare	02:38	Spotify Amazon
2	She Took My Sunshine Way Bobby Bare	Bobby Bare	02:31	Spotify Amazon
3	Homesick B.J. Cole	Bobby Bare	02:31	Spotify Amazon
4	Guess I'll Move on Down the Line	Bobby Bare	02:45	Spotify Amazon
5	Charleston Railroad Tavern	Bobby Bare	02:16	Spotify Amazon
6	Vincennes	Bobby Bare	02:10	Spotify Amazon
7	Come Kiss Me Love Ian Campbell	Bobby Bare	02:37	Spotify Amazon
8	Sandy's Crying Again Bobby Bare	Bobby Bare	02:43	Spotify Amazon
9	The Piney Wood Hills	Bobby Bare	02:26	Spotify Amazon
10	They Covered up the Old Swimming Hole Jack Clement	Bobby Bare	02:37	Spotify Amazon
11	Find Out What's Happening Jerry Crutchfield	Bobby Bare	02:14	Spotify Amazon
12	When Am I Ever Gonna Settle Down	Bobby Bare	02:14	Spotify Amazon
13	A Little Bit Later on Down the Line Chip Taylor	Bobby Bare	02:19	Spotify Amazon
14	Don't Do Like I Done Son Bobby Bare	Bobby Bare	02:35	Spotify Amazon
15	The Town That Broke My Heart Tom T. Hall	Bobby Bare	02:45	Spotify Amazon
16	My Baby Bobby Bare	Bobby Bare	02:38	Spotify Amazon
17	(Margie's At) The Lincoln Park Inn Tom T. Hall	Bobby Bare	03:21	Spotify Amazon
18	Rainy Day in Richmond	Bobby Bare	02:28	Spotify Amazon
19	Which One Will It Be G Martin	Bobby Bare	03:20	Spotify Amazon
20	My Frame of Mind	Bobby Bare	02:35	Spotify Amazon
21	God Bless America Again Bobby Bare / Boyce Hawkins	Bobby Bare	02:50	Spotify Amazon
22	Baby What Else Can I Do	Bobby Bare	02:25	Spotify Amazon
23	Rosalie Kurt Hertha / Henry Mayer	Bobby Bare	02:40	Spotify Amazon
24	Alle Glauben Dass Ich Glücklich Bin Fini Busch	Bobby Bare	02:52	Spotify Amazon

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The Singles 1959-1969

Bobby Bare