From Amazon.com
great singer
Album Rating: (5 of 5 stars)
Review Comments: my most favorite singer from my childhood. I just love too listen to her sing she can make you cry.
Still One Of The Most Honest Sounds Going
Album Rating: (4 of 5 stars)
Review Comments: I have never been particularly enthusiastic about country music and as a teenager during the 1970s I rejected it entirely. I held Tammy Wynette, whose last name I inevitably pronounced as "Whine-ette," in particular contempt. But over the years I've come to appreciate a number of key country music singers, and today I find Tammy Wynette among them.
It is widely assumed that Patsy Cline was a great star at the time of her 1963 death, but this is not quite the truth. Country music of the 1950s was pretty much a man's game, and while a great many recognized Cline's talents she was still often regarded as "the girl singer in the show." The first wave of major country music women came a bit later on in the 1960s, with Wynette among them.
Wynette's vocals were distinctly nasal and twangy but they also possessed a dreamy, romantic quality. Given the era and her blonde prettiness, this was a quality upon which her handlers quickly capitalized, and the result was a series of popular songs that could be best described as domestic drama weepers. In truth, Wynette's material was often second rate in terms of melody and lyrics--what distinguished them was Wynette herself. Her voice and the way she uses it is distinct, unique, unlike that of any other singer. She also possesses absolute honesty. There are no tricks, no glosses, no studio patch-ups, no pretense.
Wynette would build her career on sad songs about failed relationships, with "Til I Can Make It On My Own" probably her ultimate recording in the style. It is justly famous as an emotional punch recorded by a singer at the peak of her powers. But it is with more atypical material that her talents truly sparkle. Both then and now, "Stand By Your Man" has been criticized--unjustly, I think--as anti-feminist, but there's no getting around the fact that it is a showcase for Wynette's voice, beginning in a throw-away country style and then stretching to a belting finish that would have done any Broadway singer proud. Wynette could also turn out a knock-you-flat honky-tonk song when she wanted to, with the acidly funny "Your Good Girl's Gonna Go Bad" a memorable case in point.
TAMMY WYNETTE--20 GREATEST HITS leans hard on the singer's songs about wrecked marriages and failed love affairs; those were, after all, the songs that went over best with the public at the time, and certainly songs like "D-I-V-O-R-C-E" and "I Don't Want To Play House" are classics of their kind. All the same, it tends to short-change Wynette as a singer because it doesn't really show her range. Still, if you are looking for Wynette's standards, this is a reasonably good and inexpensive place to start.
GFT, Amazon Reviewer
Solid country
Album Rating: (5 of 5 stars)
Review Comments: Tammy Wynette sings about things we deal with everyday. I grew up with this music and it just doesn't get much better.
Simply The Greatest
Album Rating: (5 of 5 stars)
Review Comments: I recently purchased this disc after receiving the Grand Old Opry DVDs as a birthday present. Tammy has a number of performances on the DVD's and they are all very moving and it's great to see her in live performance. To say that her songs and her voice can evoke strong emotions in the listener is an understatement. So, I bought this disc to get a better sampling of The Queen Of Country. She is just magnificent! I'm almost reduced to tears hearing her on these recordings. No matter what your favorite genre of music is, just get this disc and enjoy. On this anniversary of her birthday (May 5, 1942) I'm reminded of the great loss we all suffered at her passing.
how sad it is we now live in a two story house
Album Rating: (5 of 5 stars)
Review Comments: I have always loved Tammy Wynette (may she rest in peace.) Her voice was always so beautiful and full of strength of inspiration. This CD includes all of her best-loved hits. Tammy was never one to shy away from controversy or topics of the heart and perhaps that's why all of her songs have withstood the test of time?
Some of my favorite tracks include:
Kids Say The Darndest Things - It's not exactly a song you can dance to, it's more of a song that will make you feel good because Tammy's singing relates to just about everyone.
Apartment #9 - This is right up my alley. It's a fast song but also somewhat of a somber tune. Tammy's voice as usual is everlasting.
D-I-V-O-R-C-E - Another very controversial song for Tammy. In today's climate it may not be so scandalous, but 40 years ago it sure was.
Of course my favorite track on Tammy's Greatest Hits is her worldwide signature classic: STAND BY YOUR MAN. I absolutely adore this song because it is so meaningful and maybe even dramatic in way. Her lyrics and her sound are so lovely. When Tammy first released this song some 39 years ago she was heavily criticized for going against "women's lib." But I dare say what's wrong with being a wife and a mother? I don't think there is a better job or a more challenging or rewarding one.
Tammy was always proud to be a woman and never let anyone shame her into being anything that she wasn't. When Hillary Clinton had the nerve to bring Tammy's song into her infidelity programs she was forced to eat her words and apologize to Tammy. And the ironic part was that Hil stood by her serial-cheater for years and years. Don't get me wrong, I'm not knocking Hil. Tammy taught me that there's no such thing as a wrong side of the bed as long as there's a man in it.
Purchases
1 You and Me - Tammy Wynette, Richey, George
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