These dozen 1940s-vintage recordings by Foy Willing and the Riders of the Purple Sage range in sound quality from decent to good. The origins aren't indicated, although they seem to be radio transcriptions. The songs are core western repertory: Cool Water, Home on the Range, Red River Valley, The Last Round Up, Tumbling Tumbleweeds, and Jack O' Diamonds (aka Rye Whiskey). Traditional folk material is represented by Blue Tail Fly and Big Rock Candy Mountain. Willing and company owed a lot to the Sons of the Pioneers, and in the overall scheme of things the original Pioneers' renditions of much of this repertory would be preferable, but Willing and his group, featuring Al Sloey, Jimmy Dean (not the future sausage king), and Scotty Harrell on vocals, had more of a Western swing approach to music. The group's version of Blue Tail Fly is a real treat, and the yodel-version of She'll Be Comin' Round the Mountain (which features an ocarina solo) done in a similar swing version is one of the CD's highlights. On the opposite end of the spectrum, The Old Chisholm Trail is done in a basic, stripped-down version that sounds not too different from a trail recording, with minimal instrumental backing. And Oh Bury Me Not on the Lone Prairie is worth the price of the disc by itself. The rendition of Mexicali Rose featured here is almost entirely instrumental, which makes it a bit unusual, especially in the exceptionally prominent twangy dobro flourishes, which makes one wonder if it was done in the wake of Anton Karas' zither-laden score to Carol Reed's #The Third Man. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi

1		Cool Water
2		Home on the Range
3		Red River Valley
4		The Last Round Up
5		Big Rock Candy Mountain
6		Tumbling Tumbleweeds
7		Mexicali Rose
8		Blue Tail Fly
9		She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain
10		The Old Chisholm Trail
11		Jack O'Diamonds
12		Oh, Bury Me Not on the Lone Prairie