Marty Robbins/Johnny Horton: "Best of 2 Super Artists on 1 Great Compact Disc."

It's an interesting pairing and it even makes a kind of sense. Robbins and Horton were turning out their most memorable hits at roughly the same time, in the late 1950s through early 1960s. Their songs might be categorized as novelty tunes, although unlike most songs so labeled, they were not comedic (unless you count Horton's "The Battle of New Orleans," with its lines: We fired our cannons 'til the barrels melted down, then we caught an alligator and we fought another round; we filled his head with cannon balls and powdered his behind, and when we set the powder off the gator lost his mind! That image made my brother and me laugh whenever we heard it. Where was PETA back then?).

Robbins' and Hortons' songs also have a strong "guy appeal." I've never met a woman who likes them much, although Robbins' "El Paso" is a romantic ballad as much as it is a gunfighter song. Horton's songs in particular sound kind of hokey now, but their melodies were some of the catchiest ever put to record.

Both men's music is available in a number of other collections. This particular CD was a K-Tel special, produced by Sony Music. I never saw a late-night commercial for it but I can imagine it: "Where were you when you first heard this great song by Johnny Horton ...?" Cut to a romantic couple sipping wine by the fireside as the strains of "Sink the Bismarck" start up in the background. No, I can't imagine it either.

I found my copy in a mark-down bin at Wal-Mart. To me it's a treasure.

From Marty Robbins you get all these:

El Paso - Long for a pop song at the time (4 minutes, 24 seconds), it tells the story of a gunfighter who falls for a Mexican girl in "Rosa's cantina" in the "west Texas town of El Paso." He shoots another man over the girl, Felina, and then makes his getaway on a stolen horse, "out to the badlands of New Mexico." But his love for "the Mexican maiden" is too strong and he rides back to Rosa's. A posse overtakes him and guns him down. As he's dying, his beloved Felina appears at his side and gives him a farewell kiss. "El Paso" was a number 1 hit for Robbins in 1959.

Devil Woman - Another tribute to some women's mesmerizing power.

My Woman, My Woman, My Wife - A love song pure and simple.

A White Sport Coat (And A Pink Carnation) - Robbins departs from the gunfighter persona on this song about "a man all alone in romance" who is stood up by his prom date.

Singing the Blues - This is Robbins' catchiest song and I can imagine it being covered in interesting ways by a host of other singers. I'm surprised I've never heard any other versions of it, though I'm sure they must be out there. It has the elements of a pop standard.

I once had the 45-rpm single of "El Paso," and remember that the flipside was another great gunfighter song, "Running Gun." If it had been up to me I would have cut, say, "My Woman, My Woman, My Wife," and included "Running Gun" if I couldn't have them both.

From Johnny Horton you get:

The Battle of New Orleans - Horton's best by far and his biggest hit, recounts the victory of Andy Jackson over the British during the War of 1812. The details, such as they are, are quite historically accurate (except the alligator part, I assume). It has been covered by others, notably The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. Homer and Jethro parodied it with a song about a troop of Boy Scouts chasing some Girl Scouts through the woods after coming upon them skinnydipping.

Sink the Bismarck - A song about the great German battleship in World War II and the British navy's effort to find her and "put her down."

North to Alaska - A man hits a bonanza during the great Alaskan gold rush, but it's not enough. Sings he: Sam, you're a-lookin' at a lonely, lonely man; I'd trade all the gold, that's buried in this land, for one small band of gold to place, on sweet little Jenny's hand.

When It's Springtime In Alaska (It's 40 Below) - Another tune set in the far North, and a sober warning never to dance the caribou crawl with another man's girl.

All for the Love Of a Girl - A love song. Well, they can't all be historical ditties.

If you like novelty songs and really catchy tunes, you should enjoy Marty Robbins and Johnny Horton. In offering them both, this CD is a double treat.





Recommended: Yes