Jim Reeves - Welcome To My World [16 disc set] (1994)

This massive collection by the German Bear Family label is the most
intimidatingly thorough collection of Jim Reeves' work. Basically, it's
virtually everything from his recording sessions, and there are two separate
boxes of his radio transcriptions besides! But this one is unwieldy enough --
it's 16 CDs covering all of Reeves' recordings from his earliest in 1949 for
the Macy label to his move to Abbott in 1952, including ten unissued alternate
takes and rejected masters, a single side issued by Fabor, and then back to
Abbott. These sides make up the first two discs of the collection and offer what
most folks have never heard in Reeves -- his hillbilly records that reflect a beautiful
fusion of the Western swing, honky tonk and cowboy traditions; Reeves'
songwriting was also in full flower at this early period in Texas. The early crooning
style that hinted at his later pop recordings came in the latter period of his
association with Abbott. These songs are all revelatory in that they reveal without
doubt what it was RCA heard in Reeves and why he stood out: His relaxed,
smooth full-throated baritone delivery transcended country & western music.
Beginning with disc three and going all the way though disc 13 are Reeves'
complete recordings for RCA. The earliest of them are still very much in the country
and Western swing tradition, but in the production the sound is a bit more lush,
where the instruments begin to balance with Reeves' honeyed delivery. The fiddles
play more like strings and so does the pedal steel. "I'm Hurtin' Inside" slips along
without seam or stitch, and is a perfect example of where Reeves would go with
his style.

And it didn't take him long to get there. By the time Reeves recorded "Am I
Losing You" in 1956, the mature ballad style was already in his voice, and
producer Chet Atkins was aware of where it could go; still, it would be the
recording of "Four Walls" in 1957 that the real transition was in full swing. And
1957 was a big year. The Jordanaires and Floyd Cramer became integral to the
Reeves sound and the roots of countrypolitan were dug. They would begin to
sprout on "Everywhere You Go," from that same year, which was as much Nat
King Cole as it was Reeves: a brushed jazzy four on the drums, Cramer comping
with beautiful -- if a tad rigid -- jazz chords, and The Jordanaires singing a near
scat chorus behind Reeves. By December, with "I Love to Say I Love You" with
the Anita Kerr Singers backing him, the transition was complete. The story is well
known from here beginning on the fifth disc; Reeves' prolific output as the king of
country crooners was already evidenced by his chart success internationally. Even
after the Beatles changed everything in 1963, Reeves was charting in England. From
"He'll Have to Go" to "Welcome to My World" to "Missing You" and "Maureen,"
his last two sides before dying in a plane crash, it's all here. There's an entire disc
dedicated to the (in)famous charted overdub recordings from 1966 and 1967, as
well as two discs of demo recordings -- 59 tracks in all -- that make this set not only
a definitive document, but a testament to a legacy of genius, both Reeves and Atkins.
As per usual, there is a full-size book with an authoritative essay by Colin Escott,
exhaustive discographical documentation, and pages upon pages of photographs.
Only fanatics will want it, but if you are one, you will not be disappointed.
Also includes all artwork plus the book!