Customer Reviews
Average Customer Review
(10 customer reviews) 53 of 58 people found the following review helpful
Western Swing is Western Folk Jazz no Hillbillies here!,
December 11, 2003 Tony Thomas (SUNNY ISLES BEACH, FL USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Doughboys Playboys & Cowboys: The Golden Years of Western Swing (Mini LP Sleeve) (Audio CD)
This is a great panorama of Western Swing from its origins with Bob Wills and Milton Brown working together inthe Original Light Crust Dough Boys in the early 1930s to Tex Williams' great electric swing band from just after WWII. I've had these sides since Columbia issue an earlier version on LP more than 20 years ago. This music has little to do with what was considered Country music at the time or its emasculated mutant descendants in Nashville. This was not marketed as Country music. In fact in 1945 when Bob Wills, the acme of Western SWing, was the biggest grossing public attraction in the entertainment business, he had his sole invitation to the Grand Ole Opry, and then he almost walked out of there before he played a song because the hayseeds wouldn't let him bring on his drums and horns (not allowed onthe Opry until the late 1950s!). Western Swing comes from Jazz from the pop Jazz of the 20s and early 1930s, included people who went back and forth between bands like...Read more
25 of 27 people found the following review helpful
I Hate Country Music But Love This Stuff,
February 24, 2003 R. F. Mojica (Staten Island, NY United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Doughboys Playboys & Cowboys: The Golden Years of Western Swing (Mini LP Sleeve) (Audio CD)
This comes from a listener who hates what has become of country music and what passes for country music nowadays. It literally makes me sick, as do the "artists" who perform it, with their poofy hair, phony cowboy hats, phony twangy guitars and phony "country" accents. It is the worst music on the face of the earth--worse even than rap/hip hop (and that's saying something). The only thing as bad was that so-called "hair metal" from the 1980's, which is thankfully now a dead genre, while country music still lives on as the champ of awful musical garbage.I do like to listen to the old, REAL country music from early recordings. I don't know how genuine this is as "mountain music", or if it's considered real country, as it is a meshing of different styles of music. In a way it sounds a lot like Cajun music, without the accordions, and in English. Since they originated in close geographical proximity (Louisiana and Texas), I guess there was a lot of trading influences back and forth...Read more
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
The Real Deal: It doesn't get any better, a real bargin too!,
March 25, 2002 David J. Batten (South of Mayberry, USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Doughboys Playboys & Cowboys: The Golden Years of Western Swing (Mini LP Sleeve) (Audio CD)
A huge slice of 20th century Americana, this 4 cd collection is a bargin too. This set from the UK beats anything available in the USA for an all around review of western swing music. All the bases are covered, and in chronological sequence. You can hear the progression from a jug band and string band sounds of the 30's to where it blended into honky tonk in the 50's. If you're only familiar with Bob Wills & his Texas Playboys, this is a real treat. Nobody here beats him, but this provides a great context of where he came. You can hear the roots of honky tonk and rock and roll on these four sides, but this is great music that stands on its own. Recommended! All the people buying O Brother should pick this up, its the real deal!
