Trail of Memories: Anthology (Dig)

Customer Reviews:

• Randy at his Best!!!!!: The songs, music and quality of R.T.'s voice are at its best!!! I'm glad I purchased this cd.
• Look Heart, No Hands....: "I'll sleep. But in my dreams I'll stray, back across the miles, to where my darlin' smiles, in memories of Old Sante Fe." -- Memories of Old Sante Fe
  
  
  If Haggard is the poor man's poet, then Randy Travis is the poor man's Sinatra. His down-home but intelligent look into a man's feelings about love, loss, and life have a universal thread all men understand. In essence, Randy Travis shows the common man to be anything but common. Though women liked Travis, his music was always targeted to men, both good ones and those fallen and looking for redemption.
  
  Travis remained true to his music and his audience, never trying to keep step with the latest female magnet without the talent to leave a lasting legacy. It is because of that integrity, not only to the music but that of Travis himself, that like his song "Heros and Friends" he has himself become a country hero. Every single song in this 44 track anthology has something great going for it. Any man who has ever taken some old love letters out of a shoe box to read will understand "Diggin' Up Bones."
  
  
  "I'm goin back to the folks I used to know, where everyone is what they seem to be." -- Better Class of Losers
  
  
  Even good men who would never stray knew the temptation Travis sung about in "On the Other Hand." Every man knew what it was to be tempted, but have a ring, either yours or hers, be a stop sign. They also understood the happiness of love professed for eternity in "Forever and Ever, Amen." Travis had seen some life himself, however, and also recorded with great tenderness and feeling what it was to fall from Grace and find your way back.
  
  
  "Thre is a point when you cannot walk away. When you have to stand up straight and tall and mean the words you say." -- Point of Light
  
  
  There are many fun and uptempo hits here also, however, so that the mix makes this an easy listen. Songs with dark humor such as "Send My Body" and toe-tappin' classics like "Cowboy Boogie" are scattered throughout. The fun of "Better Class of Losers," which Travis co-wrote with pal Alan Jackson, never grows old no matter how many times you hear it. But nothing can top the almost painfully hilarious "Before You Kill Us All."
  
  
  "Said he was a cowboy when he was young. He could handle a rope and was good with a gun. And I thought, that he walked on water." -- He Walked On Water
  
  
  Perhaps no song represents Travis' empathy and understanding of pain and anguish, however, more than "Reasons I Cheat," written by Travis himself for his Storms of Life album. It is a poignant and almost painful look at what brings a man to seek solace with another. It is not simplistic and is one of the greatest country songs ever recorded. Travis, who's been married to the same woman for years, understood that even good men could understand the sadness and despair which could lead a man to fall, even if they themselves had never crossed that line.
  
  
  In some ways, the career of Randy Travis has been like a mirror to that of Rosanne Cash, with everything reversed. Whereas Cash's gracefully elegant and often deeply personal songs about love's journey, filled with both joy and heartbreak were deemed not country enough, Travis' more earthy yet just as personal songs of that same journey were deemed too country. Though both have garnered many big hits and critical praise, both slowly faded from radio play and found new venues to explore. Travis has chosen to go even deeper into the origins of country music, recording award winning country Gospel albums that have brought to him new fans. Somewhere on his ranch in Hawaii he must be having a good laugh.
  
  "No chains, no fences, no net. Just you to catch me when I fall." -- Look Heart, No Hands
  
  
  Randy Travis is the real deal, always has been and always will be. This isn't just a trail of memories for Travis and his music, but a trail of memories for every good man. Like Travis, it is substance without the flash. A country hero.
• Spectacular!!: I have had this album for months, but just now I got to spend the afternoon with it--and to savor it. This 2 CD anthology is absolutely spectacular! The other reviewers here obviously think so too. I know country music is supposed to contain emotion, etc., however, I found myself bawling at the profound words in some of these songs. How did Randy select and/or write such meaningful songs? I have no other album that even comes close to this. And to top it off, for you audiophiles, Rhino has done nearly a perfect job at mastering this set. All I can say is BUY IT!!
• The best songs...of the best singer...: I cannot honestly sit here and tell you that I never thought Randy Travis "too country." I did. I cannot sit here and tell you that I never thought him too emotional, too sentimental. I did. I have not been a Randy Travis fan his entire career; he's been singing longer than I've been alive. Nor have I listened to his songs with an open ear all the time.

  But I can sit here and tell you, without a single lie creeping into these words, that this is a grand collection of one of country music's most worthy alums--a master of country music, Randy Travis. At his best? That's for you to decide. Is this collection good?

  It's unbelievably good.

  This two CD set covers an amazing career, and almost beautifully-crafted songs. Whether Travis wrote them or not, he owns them. "Reasons I Cheat", "Diggin Up Bones", "This Is Me," "He Walked On Water," and "The Hole" tell it like it is. "No Reason to Change," "Highway Junkie," "Heroes and Friends," and "Waiting on the Light to Change" all could describe Travis himself.

  "Send My Body," "Anything," "Forever and Ever, Amen," "What'll You Do About Me," "Card Carryin' Fool," "Allergic to the Blues," "Before You Kill Us All," "Would I," and "Stanger in My Mirror" all use humor and light-heartedness to cover serious topics. The duets stand out as well, but Randy Travis himself is, of course, the reason you buy this collection. There is not a moment here when he doesn't shine, no matter what position the songs did (or didn't) reach.

  You are probably a Randy Travis fan already; if you are not, you are probably wanting to join. Go ahead--Randy Travis promises to welcome one and all here. Just remember: you must like your country honest, true, and straight to the bone. I once made the mistake of overlooking Travis's traditionalism; now, with this collection, I have the chance to see what I missed.

  Trust me, country music fans: this collection is one you must have. No country CD collection can be complete without "Trail of Memories."

• A magnificent collection of Randy's finest music: By far the strongest collection of Randy's music yet released, this contains all his hits for Warner and also a couple of his hits for Dream Works. To those who are disappointed that some Dream Works hits are missing, I say that they probably want to save them for their own compilation. Instead of those, Warner included a few choice album tracks, particularly some duets from the Heroes and friends album. Only one of the duets was a big hit single but three others are added here, and they are most welcome.

  Randy had fifteen number one hits on the country charts and they are all here. They are Digging up bones, On the other hand, Forever and ever amen, I won't need you anymore, Too gone too long, I told you so, Honky tonk moon, Deeper than the holler, Is it still over, It's just a matter of time (originally a pop hit for Brook Benton), Hard rock bottom of your heart, Forever together, Look heart no hands, If I didn't have you and Whisper my name. Some of the other songs got very close, peaking at 2 or 3.

  Randy's voice has similarities with Lefty Frizzell, Merle Haggard and Clint Black, but their contrasting musical styles ensures that you won't normally confuse one with another. A 40-page booklet provides extensive notes, far more detailed than you normally get with this type of compilation. Thus the quality of the booklet contents matches the quality of the music on the two CD's.