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He is the #1 novelty recording artist of the past 40 years. He placed nearly 40 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 Pop charts and for over two decades was a fixture on Billboard's Top Country Singles chart. And the man could croon with the best of them! Ray Stevens certainly made his mark on the American music scene. Much like the late Charlie Rich, another incredibly gifted and versatile performer, Ray Stevens might have achieved even greater commercial success had he concentrated on just one or two genres. But there were simply too many sides to Ray Stevens to allow that to happen. And he was a very gifted songwriter to boot.
This 1997 disc from Rhino is the most comprehensive Ray Stevens collection I have found. It includes many of the best known novelty recordings you would remember like "Ahab The Arab", "Gitarzan", "The Streak" and the hilarious "Bridget the Midget". One of my favorite Ray Stevens tunes is here as well, 1968's...Read more

After Spike Jones,Ray Stevens was the crown prince in the novelty song world. This single CD contains all his kooky classics such as "Ahab The Arab", "Gitarzan", & "The Streak." By the way, that was Ray's biggest all-time seller. It topped the Billboard "Hot 100" for three weeks in the spring of 1974. What's also exceptional about this collection,is that you hear Ray's serious side, as well. Check out "Mr.Businessman", "Sunday Morning Coming own", which by the way, was penned by an unknown singer-songwriter named Kris Kristofferson, & "America, Communicate With Me." The liner notes by Dr.Demento contain some interesting tidbits of information-For example,Ray was initially asked to sing "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" before BJ Thomas. I also liked Ray's version of "Misty"-He gives a real country feel to it-Anyway, if you're a Ray Stevens aficionado,purchase this CD.

As I state in other reviews, I'm interested in finding the original versions of songs from the 50's and 60's. This collection comes on up to about 1980 or so with "Shriner's Convention". As far as I can tell (with these aging ear drums), all of the earlier songs are the original versions I used to listen to on the AM radio in one of my old Ford coupes or my buddy's MG. However, I must admit that I never heard of some of the less popular ones. Your grandkids will love "Santa Claus is Watching You". You may have to explain about Clyde. In any case, whether you like Ray Stevens or not, this is a top notch collection of a unique genre which you can pass on to your descendants as the real thing.