Merle Haggard: I'm A Lonesome Fugitive + Branded Man CD Track Listing

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Merle Haggard I'm A Lonesome Fugitive + Branded Man (1967)
I'm A Lonesome Fugitive + Branded Man\n2006 Capitol Records, Inc.\n\nThis compilation released February 21, 2006\n''I'm A Lonesome Fugitive'' Originally Released 1967\n''Branded Man'' Originally Released 1967\n''I'm A Lonesome Fugitive'' Remastered CD Edition Released October 23, 2001\n''Branded Man'' Remastered CD Edition Released October 23, 2001\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: (This Compilation) In early 2006, roughly in time for the 40th anniversary of Merle Haggard's debut album, Capitol Nashville launched an ambitious Haggard catalog project, reissuing ten albums as a series of five two-fers, each adorned with bonus tracks. All these albums had been reissued before, either stateside by Capitol or Koch or in the U.K. by EMI or BGO, but they've never have been given such an excellent treatment as they are here. The albums are paired together in logical, chronological order, the 24-bit digital remastering gives these recordings the best sound they've ever had, the front cover artwork is reproduced for each album on a two-fer, and the liner notes are candid and detailed. Dedicated Hag fans certainly have nearly all this material in their collection -- not only have the albums been on CD, but the bonus tracks have by and large appeared on Bear Family's box Untamed Hawk, which chronicled his early work for Capitol, or showed up on Capitol's own box, Down Every Road -- but they still may be tempted by this series, since these discs not only sound and look terrific, but they're also more listenable than any previous CD incarnation of these classic albums.\n\nAnd make no mistake, all ten albums featured in Capitol Nashville's first wave of Haggard reissues in February 2006 are classic albums; some may be a little stronger than others, but there's not a weak one in the bunch, and they all stand as some of the finest music of their time. The second two-fer features Merle's two albums from 1967, I'm a Lonesome Fugitive and Branded Man. Both records expanded the template that Haggard & the Strangers laid down on his second solo album, 1966's Swinging Doors and the Bottle Let Me Down, continuing with the lean, propulsive spin on the Bakersfield sound pioneered by Buck Owens and Tommy Collins, but adding elements of folk and a stronger honky tonk underpinning. Haggard continued to mine the Tommy Collins songbook, and also started working Jimmie Rodgers tunes into his recorded repertoire ("My Rough and Rowdy Ways" on I'm a Lonesome Fugitive), but the biggest development on these two records belonged to Haggard as a songwriter. On both records, he grew by leaps and bounds as a writer, penning such classics as the ghostly "House of Memories," "All of Me Belongs to You," "Someone Told My Story," "Skid Row," "I Threw Away the Rose," and "Branded Man," along with other notable tunes like "Life in Prison," which consciously recalls his own life story. Since there's not much that separates these two albums in an aesthetic sense, they make for an excellent two-fer; paired together, they play like one long, excellent album. -- Stephen Thomas Erlewine\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: (''I'm A Lonesome Fugitive'') This early Capitol album contains the haunting "House of Memories." Haggard begins to really let his roots show on this one -- see "Rough and Rowdy Ways," the Jimmie Rodgers classic. In this great early period Haggard, while seeming entirely contemporary, could evoke the Ghosts of Country Past in an absolutely convincing way without nostalgia or imitation. -- George Bedard\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: (''Branded Man'') Like Swinging Doors before it, Branded Man/I Threw Away the Rose is merely a collection of songs pieced together to cash in on a couple of hit singles. Nevertheless, the intent of an album such as this doesn't really matter when the songs are this fine. In addition to the two title tracks, Haggard co-writes "You Don't Have Very Far to Go" and "Somewhere Between" (with Red Simpson and Bonnie Owens, respectively). While the latter isn't as good as his three other original songs ("Branded Man," "I Threw Away the Rose," "You Don't Have Very Far to Go"), the remainder of the album is comprised of outside material that ranks among some of Haggard's finest performances ("Go Home," "Long Black Limousine," "I Made the Prison Band," "Don't Get Married," "Loneliness Is Eating Me Alive"). -- Stephen Thomas Erlewine\n\nRolling Stone (03/14/2002) (''Branded Man'')\n5 out of 5 stars - ...beautifully crafted tales of lonely time in the can, demon drink and faded love....His music gets under your skin because its passion is authentic...\n\n(''Branded Man'') Q Magazine (4/02, p.130) - 3 out of 5 stars - ...Great songs about drunkeness and lost love...
This country cd contains 28 tracks and runs 74min 28sec.
Freedb: 9911721c

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