EDITORIAL REVIEWS
(USA)

Johnny Bond and his sidekicks Jimmy Wakely and Dick Reinhart cut these 31 tracks for radio in the mid-1940s, not long after they'd left Gene Autry's show. The repertoire is diverse but emphasizes the Old West, both real (a surprisingly upbeat "Goodbye Old Paint") and romanticized (the mighty purdy "Silver on the Sage"). This hardcore California cowboy style may not appeal to even the casual country listener, let alone anyone else, but Bond was a wildcard talent with undeniable magnetism. He was a careful, measured singer, though when he let himself go he phrased more like an in-tune Ernest Tubb; when the other two sang behind him, they formed a lush cowboy choir. On tracks like the instrumental "Ridin' Down to Santa Fe," Bond offers swinging boogie guitar. It's not all big skies and starry eyes, though: "Tomorrow Never Comes" and "Headin' Down the Wrong Highway," among others, embrace the emerging honky-tonk sound. --John Morthland