Singer of Sad Songs

1970 studio album by Waylon Jennings

Singer of Sad Songs

Studio album by

Waylon Jennings

Released| November 1970
Recorded| June–December 1969
Studio| RCA (Hollywood, California)
Genre| Country
Length| 26:44
Label| RCA Nashville
Producer|

* Danny Davis
* Lee Hazlewood

Waylon Jennings chronology
| Ned Kelly
(1970)  | Singer of Sad Songs
(1970)  | The Taker/Tulsa
(1971)

|
|

Singer of Sad Songs is a studio album by American country music artist Waylon Jennings, released in 1970 on RCA Nashville.

## Background

[edit]

Unlike most other RCA country albums, Singer of Sad Songs was recorded at their "Music Center of the World" studios in Hollywood with Lee Hazlewood producing. Only the title track (which hit #12) was recorded in Nashville with producer Danny Davis. As a result, RCA Victor was unwilling to promote the album, and the situation got to the core of Jennings' frustrations with the constraints RCA imposed on his music. In the audio version of his autobiography, the singer recalled:

"If you were a country artist signed to Nashville, the record company treated you like an uninvited guest at the dinner party...Their corporate base was in New York City or Los Angeles and we were out of the power structure. No matter how many records you sold, all their promotion went to the big pop acts signed to both coasts. You had to fight and scratch for any attention at all from the record company. Country music reacted to that by drawing the wagons, gettin' defensive, and building a wall around Nashville that kept country artists in rather than outsiders out...They wanted all of the country hit records to be cut in Nashville."

Singer of Sad Songs finds Jennings inching his way towards the full-blown revolt he would wage against RCA a few years later and features selections originating from untraditional country sources, such as the Rolling Stones song "Honky Tonk Woman" and Tim Hardin's folk song "If I Were a Carpenter." The album has a guitar-laden sound and buoyancy that Jennings would continue to explore as he honed his sound on vinyl, with Thom Jurek of AllMusic observing:

"Up to three and four guitars play on each track, with Hazlewood stripping everything back while adding the layers of phase and reverb that would become signifiers of Jennings' trademark. The performances here are suave but not smooth, moving but far from melodramatic. In fact, they are archetypal - if not overly rowdy - readings of the renegade freedom songs that literally spawned the outlaw generation's reliance on anthems of alienated individuals at odds with everything and everyone, yet still seeking purpose and a way home from the edge of a drifting way of life."

Singer of Sad Songs gave Jennings his worst showing on the charts since 1967, peaking at #23 on the Billboard country albums chart, although this was primarily due to RCA's lack of support rather than the material. Waylon's new wife Jessi Colter is featured on the album cover.

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
Allmusic|  link

## Track listing

[edit]

No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

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|
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1.| "Singer of Sad Songs"| Alex Zanetis| 2:58
2.| "Sick and Tired"| Dave Bartholomew, Chris Kenner| 1:55
3.| "Time Between Bottles of Wine"| Jimmie Morris| 2:18
4.| "Must You Throw Dirt in My Face"| Bill Anderson| 2:17
5.| "No Regrets"| Tom Rush| 3:11
6.| "Ragged but Right"| George Jones| 2:12
7.| "Honky Tonk Woman"| Mick Jagger, Keith Richards| 2:58
8.| "She Comes Running"| Lee Hazlewood| 2:11
9.| "If I Were a Carpenter"| Tim Hardin| 2:24
10.| "Donna on My Mind"| Billy Barton| 2:12
11.| "Rock, Salt and Nails"| Utah Phillips| 2:08

* v
* t
* e

Waylon Jennings

* Albums
* Singles

Studio albums|

* Waylon at JD's
* Folk-Country
* Leavin' Town
* Nashville Rebel
* Waylon Sings Ol' Harlan
* Love of the Common People
* The One and Only
* Hangin' On
* Only the Greatest
* Jewels
* Just to Satisfy You
* Waylon
* Singer of Sad Songs
* The Taker/Tulsa
* Cedartown, Georgia
* Good Hearted Woman
* Ladies Love Outlaws
* Lonesome, On'ry and Mean
* Honky Tonk Heroes
* This Time
* The Ramblin' Man
* Dreaming My Dreams
* Are You Ready for the Country
* Ol' Waylon
* I've Always Been Crazy
* What Goes Around Comes Around
* Music Man
* Black on Black
* It's Only Rock + Roll
* Waylon and Company
* Never Could Toe the Mark
* Turn the Page
* Sweet Mother Texas
* Will the Wolf Survive
* Hangin' Tough
* A Man Called Hoss
* Full Circle
* The Eagle
* Too Dumb for New York City, Too Ugly for L.A.
* Ol' Waylon Sings Ol' Hank
* Cowboys, Sisters, Rascals & Dirt
* Waymore's Blues (Part II)
* Right for the Time
* Closing In on the Fire
* Waylon Forever
* Goin' Down Rockin': The Last Recordings

Live albums|

* Waylon Live
* Never Say Die: Live
* Live from Austin, TX
* Never Say Die: The Final Concert

Notable singles|

* "Stop the World (And Let Me Off)"
* "The Chokin' Kind"
* "Only Daddy That'll Walk the Line"
* "The Days of Sand and Shovels"
* "Brown Eyed Handsome Man"
* "Under Your Spell Again" with Jessi Colter
* "Good Hearted Woman"
* "Sweet Dream Woman"
* "You Can Have Her"
* "We Had It All"
* "You Ask Me To"
* "This Time"
* "I'm a Ramblin' Man"
* "Rainy Day Woman"
* "Dreaming My Dreams with You"
* "Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way"
* "Bob Wills Is Still the King"
* "Can't You See"
* "Are You Ready for the Country"
* "Luckenbach, Texas (Back to the Basics of Love)"
* "I've Always Been Crazy"
* "Don't You Think This Outlaw Bit's Done Got Out of Hand"
* "Amanda"
* "Come With Me"
* "I Ain't Living Long Like This"
* "Clyde"
* "Theme from The Dukes of Hazzard (Good Ol' Boys)"
* "Shine"
* "Just to Satisfy You" with Willie Nelson
* "Women Do Know How to Carry On"
* "Lucille (You Won't Do Your Daddy's Will)"
* "Hold On, I'm Comin'" with Jerry Reed
* "The Conversation" with Hank Williams Jr.
* "I May Be Used (But Baby I Ain't Used Up)"
* "Never Could Toe the Mark"
* "America"
* "Waltz Me to Heaven"
* "Drinkin' and Dreamin'"
* "Working Without a Net"
* "Will the Wolf Survive"
* "What You'll Do When I'm Gone"
* "The Broken Promise Land"
* "Rose in Paradise"
* "My Rough and Rowdy Days"
* "If Ole Hank Could Only See Us Now"
* "How Much Is It Worth to Live in L.A."
* "Which Way Do I Go (Now That I'm Gone)"
* "Wrong"
* "Where Corn Don't Grow"
* "The Eagle"

Collaborations|

Waylon & Willie

* Albums: Waylon & Willie
* WWII
* Take It to the Limit
* Clean Shirt

* Singles:"The Wurlitzer Prize (I Don't Want to Get Over You)"
* "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys"
* "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay"
* "Take It to the Limit"

Other collaborations

* Country-Folk with The Kimberlys
* Leather and Lace with Jessi Colter
* Heroes with Johnny Cash
* Old 97's & Waylon Jennings with Old 97's

Collaboration singles

* "MacArthur Park" with The Kimberlys
* "Suspicious Minds" with Jessi Colter
* "There Ain't No Good Chain Gang" with Johnny Cash
* "The Wild Side of Life/It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels" with Jessi Colter
* "Leave Them Boys Alone" with Hank Williams Jr. and Ernest Tubb
* "Somewhere Between Ragged and Right" with John Anderson

Compilations|

* The Best of Waylon Jennings
* Don't Think Twice
* Heartaches by the Number
* Greatest Hits
* Waylon's Greatest Hits, Vol. 2
* The Best of Waylon
* 20th Century Masters – The Millennium Collection: The Best of Waylon Jennings
* RCA Country Legends
* Ultimate Waylon Jennings
* 16 Biggest Hits
* Nashville Rebel

Related|

* The Waylors/Waymore's Outlaws
* Outlaw country
* Wanted! The Outlaws
* "We Are the World"
* The Highwaymen
* Old Dogs
* Jessi Colter
* Waylon Albright "Shooter" Jennings
* Buddy Holly
* The Day the Music Died

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

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