Reviewed by Dave Brassington

The first thing worth mentioning is the tremendous value for money this album represents (like most in the Timeless series), at a mid price for CD or cassette you get 30 tracks with a running time of an hour. This material comes from the late great singer's days with Word in the mid 1970s when he had finished recording with the Capitol label, where he had been one of their best selling artists ever since they started operating on the west coast in 1947. Although classed as a country singer, with his unusual (at least for country music) rich deep baritone voice, much of his material came from the more popular sides of American music. By the time he recorded for the Word label of Waco, Texas, Ernie's voice had definitely lost its fine edge. I remember quite a bit of this material coming out originally. The songs are basically standard fare of many a southern gospel singer, not just country and include a whole host of Timeless Classics' like "The Uncloudy Day", "Room At The Cross", "What A Friend", etc along with some of the best of the newer gospel material "One Day At A Time" and several associated with the Gaither Family Trio from their heyday. It's hard not to enjoy such fine material, although it has to be said I have heard better versions of most of the songs recorded here. The backing is certainly middle of the road, with its heavy chorus and at times big backing, only Ernie's voice and the more country material put it into the country field. I am sure this album will appeal to many older folk who still remember Ernie Ford when he was a regular in our newly created UK hit parade.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

Interested in reviewing music? Find out more here.