Tommy Collins - The Singles & Albums Collection 1951-60 (2023)

Tommy Collins was a country singer, songwriter and guitarist who was instrumental in creating the Bakersfield sound during the 1950s and ‘60s. As an artist he had a string of hits during that era, as well as writing songs which were hits for other artists, notably “If You Ain’t Lovin’ You Ain’t Livin’”, a Top 10 hit for Faron Young in 1954 a No. 1 for George Strait in 1988. This excellent-value 58-track 2-CD set comprises just about all his A & B sides on the Morgan and Capitol labels during these years, and most of the titles from his Capitol albums “Words And Music Country Style”, “This Is Tommy Collins” and “Songs I Love To Sing”. It features all his U.S. country chart entries from these years, including the No. 2 “You Better Not Do That”, and the Top 20 hits “Whatcha Gonna Do”, “It Tickles”, “Untied”, “I Guess I’m Crazy” and “You Oughta See Pickles Now”. The collection offers a fairly comprehensive overview of his work up to the time when he took a sabbatical from music to enter the ministry, from which he returned to resume recording after a break of a few years. Sharing similar musical influences and outlooks to other Bakersfield pioneers like Buck Owens, his music covered plenty of musical bases across the years, from pure country to pop and rock ‘n’ roll flavoured and this set is an entertaining showcase for his talents as both performer and writer.