Ray Stevens - All-Time Greatest Hits

1. Sergeant Preston of the Yukon

2. Ahab the Arab

3. Harry the Hairy Ape

4. Funny Man

5. Freddie Feelgood (And His Funky Little Five Piece Band)

6. Unwind

7. Mr. Businessman [Single Version]

8. Isn't It Lonely Together

9. Gitarzan

10. Along Came Jones

11. Sunday Morning Coming Down

12. Have a Little Talk With Myself

13. Everything Is Beautiful

14. America, Communicate With Me

15. Bridget the Midget (The Queen of the Blues)

16. All My Trials

17. Turn Your Radio On

18. Nashville

19. Streak

20. Everybody Needs a Rainbow

See all 23 tracks on this disc

Tracks:

The Streak
Shriner's Convention
Would Jesus Wear A Rolex
Mississippi Squirrel Revival
Gitarzan
It's Me Again, Margaret
Ahab, The Arab
In The Mood
Freddie Feelgood
Bridget The Midget

Customer Reviews:

Ray Stevens - Greatest Comic Hits.......2005-08-11

I enjoyed this CD very much. Ray is a very funny fellow.
I have also seen and enjoyed his video of the same name.

Ray's first for CURB.......2003-02-05

this was the first CD that was released on Ray from CURB Records, the label he joined after he left MCA after five huge years (1984-1989). this CD spotlights 10 comedy songs with the album cover shot looking like a promo for one of the songs, "It's Me Again, Margaret". all in all, this CD went GOLD primarily because of the last track: "Bridget the Midget", a 1970 satire on go-go dancers that hit #50 pop and #2 in England. in the CD age, "Bridget the Midget" was new to collector's. for fans who joined the Ray Stevens bandwagon in 1984 at the height of "Mississippi Squirrel", hearing older songs were a rare treat. this is the CD in which introduced me to "Bridget..." and it made me hunger for more of his older songs because the way i saw it, if a song of his is this great and i've never heard of it talked about before, i wonder how many OTHER great songs are hidden on his albums that critics or reporters don't talk about? i played my hunch and as of 2/5/03 i have everything he's recorded since 1967 on vinyl or cassette format.this 1990 CD is only necessary for new fans. CURB shrewdly compiled six comedy songs off 1987's "GREATEST HITS", added three from 1987's "GREATEST HITS, VOL. TWO", and they end it with 1970's "Bridget the Midget" not found on any CD compilation at the time as an added feature. prior to it's arrival on CD format, you had to go all the way back to a 1977 vinyl compilation entitled "THE MANY SIDES OF RAY STEVENS" to even find "Bridget the Midget" on an album! the song was THAT rare! since 1990, other CD's on Ray have greatly dwarfed this CD's importance but it's still worth checking out for those who want to complete your collection.

great songs.......2000-06-22

ray stevens is a great comedian and in is songs you can picture what he's talking about. Plus there really funny and great to listen to

Average customer rating:

A good choice
Great introduction to Ray's music
An incredible collection!
stunning!!
Timeless songs from a true original

Ray Stevens - All-Time Greatest Hits
Ray Stevens
Manufacturer: Varese Sarabande
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Country | Styles | Music

General | Pop | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

General | Oldies | Pop | Styles | Music

Country Comedy | Comedy | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Mississippi Squirrel Revival
Crackin' Up
Lend Me Your Ears
Osama-Yo'Mama
Classic Ray Stevens

ASIN: B00005B17A
Release Date: 2001-04-03

Tracks:

Sergeant Preston of the Yukon
Ahab the Arab
Harry the Hairy Ape
Funny Man
Freddie Feelgood (And His Funky Little Five Piece Band)
Unwind
Mr. Businessman [Single Version]
Isn't It Lonely Together
Gitarzan
Along Came Jones
Sunday Morning Coming Down
Have a Little Talk With Myself
Everything Is Beautiful
America, Communicate With Me
Bridget the Midget (The Queen of the Blues)
All My Trials
Turn Your Radio On
Nashville
Streak
Everybody Needs a Rainbow
Misty
Indian Love Call
Young Love

Customer Reviews:

A good choice.......2005-12-13

The only thing I can add to the excellent previous review is that I was pleased to find that this collection contains the version of "Freddie Feelgood" WITHOUT the canned laugh track. It's too bad that if you want a collection of Ray's original versions from the Sixties you have to buy 2 CDs, but aside from the lack of the Mercury versions of "Harry" and "Ahab", this is a good choice for the Monument and Barnaby material.

Great introduction to Ray's music.......2005-03-31

Ray originally tried to establish himself as a serious singer but he met without success until he started recording comic material. The best of his comic songs from the sixties and seventies are here including Ahab the Arab, Gitarzan, Along came Jones, Bridget the midget and The streak.

Having established himself as a comic singer, Ray eventually had some success with more serious songs including Mr Businessman, Sunday morning coming down, Everything is beautiful and Turn your radio on.

One of Ray's best recordings is his cover of Misty. Johnny Mathis recorded this song in the fifties as a tender ballad with lush orchestration, but Ray interprets it as an up-tempo country song.

As the seventies progressed, Ray's fortunes declined. He did a very strange cover of Glenn Miller's In the mood (not included here), in which he posed as a group of chickens. After some quiet years, he had some success with comic songs in the eighties but is you must look elsewhere for Shriner's convention, Mississippi squirrel revival, The haircut song, It's me again Margaret and his other songs from the period.

This serves as a wonderful introduction to Ray's music.

An incredible collection!.......2004-08-10

Ray Stevens is a comedian. He's a songwriter. He's a singer. He's a great performer--whether telling a joke, or provoking the conscience of upper-class America. He has a rich, full-ranged voice, and great piano playing skills. Not to mention some of the funniest voices in music. Who can beat his camel noise?

This album came as a surprise to me. I knew Stevens could be a serious singer ("Everything Is Beautiful" is an incredible song) but I hadn't expected this CD to contain so many serious numbers. I was a bit disappointed at first...then I realized that Stevens had something: serious singing/songwriting talent. I mean SERIOUS. This album just proves that Ray Stevens is one of music's best.

He made a name for himself through such comedic novelty hits as "Ahab the Arab," "Gitarzan," and "The Streak;" and to be true, he's a very funny man. But his serious side deserves a mention...and maybe first prize. "Mr. Businessman" is probably the best, most well-written song on here ("Let's have your autograph/Endorse your epitaph") about upper-class people (and those from the lower classes to, of course) who put fame and fortune before humanity. There's "Isn't It Lonley, Together", a heart-wrenching look at a couple gone wrong. "Funny Man" is absolutely stunning, a number about how even the most outgoing of people have tearful secrets. The 1970 song "America, Communicate With Me" deals with the problems concerning Vietnam; "Misty," while not too serious, is an upbeat, chared, blue-grass love song. "Indian Love Call," in the same vein as "Misty," has a steady, listenable groove. And Stevens was the first to record Kris Kristofferson's legendary "Sunday Morning Coming Down." His voice fits the song wonderfully, though the production leaves a bit to be desired.

An incredible collection, an incredible performer. Ray Stevens is one of music's most-overlooked singer/songwriters. That's probably because people take him as a joke--after all, he made his career through comedic songs. But this album with show you that he has a serious side, too, and it is much better than those of many other performers of his era. Ray Stevens may not have legendary status, but he has legendary skill, and that's all it takes.

stunning!!.......2003-01-17

Ray Stevens has not had the typical achievements that qualify for an act to be called a super-star. He never had the consistent #1 hits like Conway Twitty or Merle Haggard; he never had the George Jones type of voice; heck, he's never even won any awards from the ACM, CMA, or the AMA...how can such an act remain so popular for 45 years? one simple reason: Ray Stevens has talent in a wide variety of things. Ray could've easily been happy playing on sessions, writing songs, or producing artists...he did all of those things and more as we all know!This CD highlights 23 songs. it kicks off with the ultra-rare 1960 single "Sgt. Preston of the Yukon", which all Ray Stevens fans know is the turning point in his early career. when his 1957-1959 singles failed to break outside of Georgia, Ray wrote this song about the Canadian mountie but he didn't get permission from King Features Syndicate {owners of Sgt. Presont} and so when NRC released it in 1960, King Features threatened a lawsuit! NRC yanked the song off the market just as it was about to break into the Hot 100 (it peaked at #108!) "Sgt. Preston" was a novelty single and it gave Ray the idea to write and record comedy songs and in 1961 he released "Jeremiah Peabody" on MERCURY and that novelty went to #35 pop and the rest is history.Varese Vintage doesn't spotlight Ray's hyper and motor-mouth Brother Dave Gardner influenced tracks that he recorded for MERCURY in 1961-1963. instead, we're treated to remakes of his MERCURY material. "Ahab the Arab", a 1962 #5 pop and #9 R&B smash, is heard via his famed 1969 remake as is "Harry the Hairy Ape", which originally hit #17 pop #14 R&B in 1963. "Funny Man" originally hit #81 pop in 1963 but the version here is off his 1968 'EVEN STEVENS' album. aside from those three remakes, all the remaining 20 tracks are original recordings. Ray has simply had too many Hot 100 pop and Top 100 country hits during 1961-1991 to really do a definitive collection. Ray's roots are in early R&B and novelty songs and somewhere along the line he was embraced by the country audience and since 1984 he's been officially a country comedian (he's won 10 Music City News Comedian of the Year awards between 1986 and 1994) This CD contains "Everybody Needs a Rainbow", which up until this CD came out, couldn't be found anywhere unless you had the original 45 RPM vinyl single like i've got. i love that song and i also love "Isn't It Lonely Together?", dealing with unwanted pregnancy by two people who really don't love each other but are willing to remain together and raise the baby. This CD is a must for anyone wanting to hear "Sgt. Preston of the Yukon" or "Everybody Needs a Rainbow". i do wish Varese would do a box set on Ray's work because it's so eclectic and innovative. look at the back of the CD and you'll discover that Ray wrote the majority of his hits! for whatever reason, Varese left off every hit that he recorded from 1976's "You Are So Beautiful" to 1991's "Workin' For The Japanese". like i said, Ray's had too many hits in many genres that it's hard to be definitive. since the '90s, Ray has been more associated with his multi million selling home videos but as this CD shows, Ray is much more than the Clown Prince of Country Music.

Timeless songs from a true original.......2002-10-10

I have always loved both the comedy hits and the serious ballads, and the fact that two tracks are not the oiginal recordings is of no concern to me. Songs like Unwind, Mr Businesman and Isn't It Lonely Together reveal lyrical depth and demonstrates his skillful vocal style, while his version of Kristofferson's Sunday Morning Coming Down stands out as one of the most beautiful amongst thousands of interpretations of this classic tune. Everything Is Beautiful wih its children's choir is inspiring and uplifting, America Communicate With Me is impressive and his country version of Misty (1976) is poignant and moving. My favorites amongst the comedy tracks include the energetic little pop opera Bridget The Midget (UK top ten in 1971), The Streak from 1974, and of course the old classics like Ahab, Harry, Gitarzan and Along Came Jones. This collection confirms this singer's originality, his versatility and his considerable songwriting skills. The album will please all those who enjoy literate pop music performed with feeling.

Music Album:

Music Album