Release Date: 9/21/1999
Recording Date: 1/1985
Tracks: 12
Length: 00:12:19 Hrs
Label: Q
Type: CD
- Genre/Styles
- Traditional Country, Country-Pop, Contemporary Country, Honky Tonk, Urban Cowboy, Traditional Country, Honky Tonk
Album Tracks (12)
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What the Critics Say
This is a curious item in the sense that only part of it was previously available on the box set of various artists entitled Live at Gilley's. This is the entire set recorded sometime before the club closed in 1986 and does not have an exact date attached to it, but it hardly matters. This is one stompin' piano-pumpin' rock-a-rolla country set with Mickey Gilley revisiting his entire career in song, from 1974's "Room Full of Roses" (his first number one) and "She Called Me Baby" (the B-side), to the Jerry Foster classic "Here Comes the Hurt Again" and "A Headache Tomorrow or a Heartache Tonight," to Hank Cochran's classic "That's All That Matters" with many more. And, yes, "Don't All the Girls Get Prettier at Closin' Time" is here in the most over-the-top rock version ever recorded. It's fast, furious, exuberant, and hedonistic. But with ballads such as the Keith Stegall/Stewart Harris tearjerker "Lonely Nights," Gilley's deeply emotional and sensitive side comes across in spades. As a singer, Gilley was always underrated, and that's a shame because, as he proves in front of an audience, he is a monster of an interpretive vocalist. Another winner is "The Blues Don't Care Who's Got 'Em," a tune associated very closely associated with Charlie Rich. Gilley's version is a raw honky tonker with gorgeous piano runs and backing vocalists sweetly singing a doo wop chorus in the background. One of the true stunners on the set is Gilley's version of the Ben E. King/Leiber/Stoller classic "Stand by Me." His live version rivals King's and John Lennon's for pure emotional honesty and searing commitment. There are some limitations in the source tape on this set, but they do absolutely nothing to detract from the power of this 12-track set. For Gilley fans this is essential, as it may be his best live document. For roots rock and honky tonk fans, this is revelatory. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide
