Both DVDs consist of 15 live performances taken from a variety of sources spanning the careers of the artists as well as bonus features such as footage of their respective Hall of Fame inductions and archival interview footage.
Legendary Performances: Tammy Wynette starts with her 1967 performance of Loretta Lynn’s “Don’t Come Home A-Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ On Your Mind)” from the syndicated “Bill Anderson Show.” While the voice was still distinctively Tammy, it is the third track, “I Don’t Wanna Play House,” also from 1967 and a second appearance on the “Bill Anderson Show,” that the trademark tear in her voice comes out strong. The performances span 1969 to 1981 and cover most all of Wynette’s biggest hits: “D-I-V-O-R-C-E,” “‘Til I Can Make It On My Own,” “Your Good Girl’s Gonna Go Bad” and, of course, “Stand By Your Man.” Also included are classic duets with George Jones, “We Loved It Away,” “Golden Ring,” “Near You” and “We’re Gonna Hold On.”
Legendary Performances: Marty Robbins covers all aspects of Robbins’ music career from country crooner to country & western balladeer to pop crossover sensation. Robbins, whose life was cut short by a heart attack at age 57, contributed greatly to the history of country music and is often woefully overlooked. Beginning his career in the late-1940s on a local Arizona radio station, Robbins was soon discovered by Little Jimmy Dickens and was soon moving to Nashville to join the Grand Ole Opry in 1953. The DVD starts four years after in 1957 with two songs recorded on the Armed Forces produced “Country Style USA,” a country music show designed as a recruitment tool (with several episodes recently released on DVD by Bear Family). The performances here span from those 1957 shows to a 1979 appearance on the syndicated “Pop! Goes The Country.” Robbins confesses in the interview section that he was very nervous when he first began appearing on television in Arizona and as the DVD progresses you can see Robbins’ confidence grow as a performer as he goes from standing still and singing in 1957 to hamming it up for the audience in the 1976 clips from “Pop! Goes The Country.” Also included on the DVD are a few performances for the seldom seen “Marty Robbins Show” and “Marty Robbins Spotlight.” Robbins’ syndicated music program from the late-1960s and late-1970s, respectively.
In addition to the great performances included here, each DVD includes extra features that consist of a more personal look at the artist. For Wynette we are offered footage of her 1998 Hall of Fame induction, new footage of her 1978 wedding to George Richey and two interviews from the mid-1980s. For Robbins we get his 1982 Hall of Fame induction and a lengthy interview 1982 with Dick Heard that covers everything from race cars, the fans, his beginnings in music and reincarnation. These two items are particularly poignant due to the fact that the interview is from March of 1982 and his HOF induction was in October of the same year, the year that would end with his untimely December death.
Both volumes are welcome releases for many reasons. For newer country music fans who haven’t had the chance to hear or see these two legends that are no longer with us, these DVDs make for excellent introductions to their contributions to the history of country music. For fans of either artists, or of country music in general, these are great additions to their library.
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