A few weeks ago, I mentioned how relevant Vince Gill's 1998
disc The Key was to reminding country
music fans of the tradition of this great format. The next year, Alan Jackson
took it one step further.
In the fall of 1999,
Jackson released Under The
Influence, a collection of songs from the past that had influenced him. The
first single was a remake of "Pop A Top," a 1967 hit for Jim Ed
Brown. By that point, there was a whole new generation of fans who didn't know
about Brown....or Mel McDaniel....or Johnny Paycheck, all of whom were
represented on the collection.
Other artists had done covers albums before. So, Under The Influence wasn't unusual from
that standpoint.....but, the album took somewhat of a different turn with the
song selection being a little more obscure.
For example, he covered Haggard.....but not "Okie."
Rather, he showed his a-game with "My Own Kind Of Hat." He covered Jones,
but chose “Revenoor Man,” a forgotten side from “The Possum” during his wild
and crazy days on Mercury Records.
Now, at the same time, there were some iconic songs getting
the cover treatment – such as “Kiss An Angel Good Morning,” “Farewell Party,”
and “Margaritaville,” which kicked off a nice working relationship with Jimmy
Buffett.
Jackson’s hits from Under
The Influence include “Pop A Top,” “It Must Be Love,” and “The Blues Man,”
originally recorded by Hank Williams, Jr. for his 1981 disc Habits Old and New. With Under The Influence, Jackson served reminder
to the older Country fans about the greatness of the format – and also an
educator at how good the good stuff really was….and is!
Under The
Influence will be the featured album of the week as part of “The Music
That Built Me Series” on Crazy Chucky’s Country Classic Corner – Wednesday,
October 28 from 1-3pm on WNKX 96.7 FM. The show is brought to you by Tennessee
Properties.
