Rich, Charlie

***The Hi recordings of CHARLIE RICH are in many ways the most reckless and adventurous of his career. In 1966 and 1967, Hi, a small Memphis label that hosted acts such as Willie Mitchell (and later Al Green) and the Bill Black Combo believed, like Sun, RCA , and Mercury before them, in Rich’s prodigious talent but had no idea where to put him categorically. Mostly here are the songs associated with Hank Williams. They are revelatory in that they reveal just how wide-ranging Rich’s vision was. Beginning with Williams’ own “My Heart Would Know,” Rich takes the songs deep into his own musical soul and, like Ray Charles before him with Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music, makes them his own, turning them into timeless pop classics. Among Rich’s recordings, these 12 songs are some of the most enduring. This collection is essential for Rich fans, and something to consider for any fan of timeless, restless country-soul from the 1960s.