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Carl Perkins - The Classic Carl Perkins (Bear Family)

Track listing:
Volume 1
  1. Honky Tonk Gal (Babe) [Alternate-Take] 1:53
  2. Movie Magg [Alternate-Take] 2:07
  3. Honky Tonk Gal [Lp-Version] 1:58
  4. Movie Magg [Single-Version] 2:11
  5. Turn Around [Alternate-Take] 3:01
  6. Dialogue With William Cantrell - Carl Perkins & William E. Cantrell 0:47
  7. Turn Around [Single-Version] 3:01
  8. Let The Jukebox Keep Playing [Lp-Version] 2:54
  9. What You Doin' When You're Crying [Lp-Version] 2:53
  10. Let The Jukebox Keep On Playing [Single-Version] 2:53
  11. You Can't Make Love To Somebody (Alternate) 2:36
  12. Gone, Gone, Gone (Alternate) 2:58
  13. Gone, Gone, Gone [Single-Version] 2:41
  14. Dixie Bop / The Perkins Wiggle 2:40
  15. Blue Suede Shoes (Take 1) 2:03
  16. Blue Suede Shoes (Take 2 - Master) 2:18
  17. Blue Suede Shoes (Take 3) 2:17
  18. Honey Don't (Take 1) 2:11
  19. Honey Don't (Take 2) 2:26
  20. Honey Don't (Take 3 - Master) 2:52
  21. Tennessee 3:06
  22. Sure To Fall (In Love With You) 2:35
  23. All Mama's Children (Alternate) 2:13
  24. Everybody's Trying To Be My Baby (Alternate) 2:15
  25. Boppin' The Blues (Alternate) 2:34
  26. Put Your Cat Clothes On (Alternate) 2:49
  27. Boppin' The Blues [Single-Version] 2:51
  28. Only You 3:22
  29. You Can't Make Love To Somebody [Lp-Version] 2:25
  30. Right String, Wrong Yo-Yo 2:34
Volume 2
  1. All Mama's Children [Alternate-Take W/ False-Start] 2:51
  2. All Mama's Children [Single-Version] 2:09
  3. Dixie Fried [Lp-Version] 2:43
  4. Everybody's Trying To Be My Baby [Lp-Version #1] 1:58
  5. Put Your Cat Clothes On [Lp-Version] 2:43
  6. Everybody's Trying To Be My Baby [Lp-Version #2] 2:15
  7. Dixie Fried [Compilation; False-Starts] 1:02
  8. Dixie Fried [Single-Version] 2:28
  9. I'm Sorry, I'm Not Sorry [Single-Version] 2:29
  10. That Don't Move Me [Outtake] 2:09
  11. Lonely Street [Lp-Version] 2:47
  12. Drink Up And Go Home [Home-Tape/Demo] 3:38
  13. Pink Pedal Pushers [Home-Tape/Demo] 2:18
  14. The Way You're Living Is Breaking My Heart [Home-Tape/Demo] 3:06
  15. Take Back My Love [Home-Tape/Demo] 3:38
  16. Somebody Tell Me [Home-Tape/Demo] 4:22
  17. Instrumental #1... [Home-Tape/Demo] 1:29
  18. Instrumental #2... [Home-Tape/Demo] 1:35
  19. Red Wing [Home-Tape/Demo] 2:21
  20. Down By The Riverside [Home-Tape/Demo] 1:29
  21. Her Love Rubbed Off [Lp-Version] 2:21
  22. Caldonia [Outtake] 2:05
  23. You Can Do No Wrong [Outtake] 2:25
  24. Sweethearts Or Strangers [Alternate-Take] 2:45
  25. Be Honest With Me [Outtake] 2:29
  26. Sweethearts Or Strangers [Lp-Version] 2:21
  27. Your True Love [Alternate-Take; Original-Tempo] 3:03
  28. Matchbox [Alternate-Take] 2:29
  29. Your True Love [Single-Version] 2:46
  30. Put Your Cat Clothes On [Alternate-Take] 2:46
Volume 3
  1. Matchbox [Single-Version] 2:10
  2. Put Your Cat Clothes On [Lp-Version] 2:53
  3. Keeper Of The Key [Outtake] 3:24
  4. Roll Over Beethoven [Outtake] 2:55
  5. Try My Heart Out [Outtake] 2:53
  6. That's Right [Alternate-Take] 2:48
  7. Forever Yours [Single-Version] 2:39
  8. That's Right [Single-Version] 2:50
  9. Y. O. U. [Lp-Version] 2:40
  10. I Care [Lp-Version] 2:19
  11. Y. O. U. [Alternate-Take] 3:20
  12. Pink Pedal Pushers [Alternate-Take] 2:39
  13. Pink Pedal Pushers [Lp-Version] 2:28
  14. Lend Me Your Comb [Alternate-Take] 1:57
  15. Look At That Moon [Outtake] 1:59
  16. Lend Me Your Comb [Single-Version] 1:58
  17. Look At That Moon [Outtake] 2:21
  18. Glad All Over [Single-Version] 1:46
  19. Tutti Frutti [Lp-Version] 2:07
  20. Whole Lot Of Shakin' Going On [Lp-Version] 3:00
  21. That's All Right (Mama) [Lp-Version] 3:36
  22. Where The Rio De Rosa Flows [Lp-Version] 3:05
  23. Shake, Rattle 'n' Roll [Lp-Version] 3:29
  24. Long Tall Sally [Lp-Version] 3:00
  25. I Got A Woman [Lp-Version] 3:14
  26. Hey, Good Lookin' [Lp-Version] 2:43
  27. Sittin' On Top Of The World [Lp-Version] 2:11
  28. Good Rockin' Tonight [Lp-Version] 2:20
Volume 4
  1. Jive After Five [Single-Version] 2:23
  2. Rockin' Record Hop [Outtake] 2:21
  3. Pink Pedal Pushers [Single-Version] 2:37
  4. Just Thought I'd Call [Outtake] 2:16
  5. Ready Teddy [Lp-Version] 2:05
  6. Jenny, Jenny [Lp-Version] 2:11
  7. You Were There [Outtake] 2:36
  8. Because You're Mine [Outtake] 3:08
  9. Pop, Let Me Have The Car [Single-Version] 2:45
  10. Levi Jacket (And A Long Tail Shirt) [Single-Version] 2:14
  11. When The Moon Comes Over The Mountain [Outtake] 2:14
  12. Sister Twister [Single-Version] 2:51
  13. Hambone [Single-Version] 2:24
  14. This Life I Live [Single-Version] 2:26
  15. Please Say You'll Be Mine [Outtake] 2:17
  16. Honey, 'cause I Love You [Single-Version] 2:19
  17. Y. O. U [Single-Version] 2:38
  18. I Don't See Me In Your Eyes Anymore [Single-Version] 2:45
  19. Highway Of Love [Single-Version] 3:06
  20. Pointed Toe Shoes [Single-Version] 2:01
  21. One Ticket To Loneliness [Single-Version] 2:52
  22. The Drifter [Outtake] 2:51
  23. Too Much For A Man To Understand [Alternate-Take] 2:34
  24. L-O-V-E-V-I-L-L-E [Single-Version] 2:17
Volume 5
  1. Blue Suede Shoes - Outtake 2:15
  2. Big Bad Blues [Single-Version] 2:42
  3. Say When - Outtake 2:30
  4. Lonely Heart [Single-Version] 1:58
  5. A Love I'll Never Win - Outtake 2:53
  6. Let My Baby Be [Single-Version] 2:30
  7. Monkey Shine [Single-Version] 3:03
  8. Mama Of My Song [Single-Version] 2:23
  9. One Of These Days [Single-Version] 2:27
  10. I Wouldn't Have You [Single-Version] 2:12
  11. Help Me Find My Baby [Single-Version] 1:56
  12. After Sundown [Single-Version] 2:42
  13. For A Little While [Single-Version] 2:31
  14. Just For You [Single-Version] 2:40
  15. When The Right Time Comes - Outtake 2:29
  16. The Fool I Used To Be [Single-Version] 2:25
  17. Forget Me (Next Time Around) [Single-Version] 2:39
  18. Hollywood City [Single-Version] 2:10
  19. I've Just Got Back From There [Single-Version] 2:15
  20. Too Much For A Man To Understand [Single-Version] 2:47
  21. Turn Around - Outtake 2:42
  22. The Unhappy Girls [Single-Version] 2:41
  23. Someday, Somewhere, Someone Waits For Me - Outtake 2:28
  24. Anyway The Wind Blows [Single-Version] 2:18

Notes

This is a Bear Family release that even casual listeners can sort of agree with. The five CDs contain close to 150 tracks, most notably Perkins' complete Sun Records output in close, glittering sound, plus all of his Columbia sides from 1958 through 1962, and his oft-overlooked early-'60s recordings for both American and English Decca. The Sun material is the best part of this box, and while it has been available as a triple CD from Charly, the latter is now out of print and had nothing like the crisp, clean sound you get here. The Sun outtakes may make the casual listener hesitate, but it's in the multiple takes that rock & roll as you know it was born, and all of the stuff is different enough between the takes to make hearing it worthwhile even for the non-scholar, to show that classics like that don't just "happen." Moreover, these differences aren't the little arrangement polishes and little tempo changes that one finds in most outtakes, but represent the evolution of a style -- musically, they're at least as interesting as any of Elvis' Sun session outtakes. Beyond the rock & roll history, however, the reality is also that anyone buying it should have as much love of good honky tonk-style country music as they do for rock & roll. The Columbia sides are available separately, but they just aren't as interesting. The Decca stuff, which is unique to this set, represents Perkins' serious attempts at a comeback in the face of his huge concert success in England in the wake of the Beatles' recording of his music. The booklet is good, though not quite as comprehensive as one would have liked.