I Am What I Am [Legacy Edition] info.txt
George Jones - I Am What I Am [Legacy Edition]
Epic/Legacy
EK 63591
2000
Tracklist :
1. He Stopped Loving Her Today
2. I've Aged Twenty Years In Five
3. Brother To The Blues
4. If Drinkin' Don't Kill Me (Her Memory Will)
5. His Lovin' Her Is Gettin' In My Way
6. I'm Not Ready Yet
7. I'm The One She Missed Him With Today
8. Good Hearted Woman
9. A Hard Act To Follow
10. Bone Dry
11. I'm A Fool For Loving Her
12. Am I Losing Your Memory Or Mine?
13. The Ghost Of Another Man
14. It's All In My Mind
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I Am What I Am announced that George Jones had officially returned to form artistically
and, in the process, it became his biggest hit album ever. It's easy to see why -- the
production is commercial without being slick, the songs are balanced between aching
ballads and restrained honky tonk numbers, and Jones gives a nuanced, moving performance.
"He Stopped Loving Her Today," "I'm Not Ready Yet," and "If Drinkin' Don't Kill Me (Her
Memory Will)" were the hits, but the remaining seven album tracks are exceptionally strong,
without a weak track in the bunch. It's mature country, both in the laid-back approach and
subject matter, but that doesn't mean it's dull -- like the best country music, these are
lived-in songs that are simple, direct, and emotionally powerful, even with the smooth
production. I Am What I Am is the sound of George Jones at his peak and it's the highlight
of his later years. Four bonus tracks -- "Am I Losing Your Memory or Mine?," "The Ghost of
Another Man," "It's All in My Mind," and "I'm a Fool for Loving Her" -- give the 20th
anniversary version of the album an added richness.
-- Stephen Thomas Erlewine
In or out of context, George Jones's "comeback" album of 1980 is an unassailable classic of
modern country music. Since 1975, Jones's solo career had been in a tailspin, taking him to
the Top 10 only twice in four years, so that by late 1979, he had soused and doped his body
from 150 to 100 pounds. He might have died, were it not for the musical and commercial
resurrection of I Am What I Am. Produced by Billy Sherrill, the sound is stunningly advanced,
full of complex, layered guitar tones, exquisitely placed harmonies, and an elegant melding of
lyrical spaciousness and hard honky-tonk. Opening with perhaps the greatest country single ever,
"He Stopped Loving Her Today," Jones lends both a regal authority and a humble sorrow to lyric
after lyric, all uniformly graceful and stately. The only weak track is "His Lovin' Her Is Gettin'
In My Way," an anticipation of the cloying bounce of Hot Country, though even that slight number
is redeemed by Jones's underrated comic gifts. This 2000 reissue includes a wise essay by Glenn
Gass, a personal reflection by the Possum himself, and four previously unreleased cuts, all of
which are as memorable as the haunting, original recordings themselves. Essential doesn't begin
to describe the treasures you'll find here.
-- Roy Kasten
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Ripped with :
EAC 1.0b3
Secure Mode
Test & Copy
Flac 8
All artwork is also included
in 600 dpi scans in PNG
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