| Stringin' Along with Chet Atkins | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1955 | |||
| Genre | Country, pop | |||
| Label | RCA Victor 1383 (Mono) | |||
| Producer | Steve Sholes | |||
| Chet Atkins chronology | ||||
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Stringin' Along with Chet Atkins is the fourth studio album recorded by American guitarist Chet Atkins released in 1955. It was a 12-inch re-release of the 1953 10-inch vinyl record of the same name with additional and omitted tracks.
RCA packaged some of Atkins' early recordings between 1950 and 1953 originally released on 10" versions for this title. They filled the collection out with more tracks for this 12" LP. The 1967 re-issue is in "phoney stereo."
Atkins had two hit singles in 1955, "Mr. Sandman" and a guitar duet with Hank Snow called "Silver Bell." [1] Also that year he endorsed a Gretsch guitar he helped design and built his first home studio in his garage. [2]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [3] |
Allmusic music critic William Ruhlmann wrote of the album, "Atkins' playing is as distinctive as ever, and if the sources of the material are various, his style holds it together into a coherent collection." [3]
Chester Burton Atkins, also known as "Mr. Guitar" and "The Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nashville sound, the country music style which expanded its appeal to adult pop music fans. He was primarily a guitarist, but he also played the mandolin, fiddle, banjo, and ukulele, and occasionally sang.
Merle Robert Travis was an American country and western singer, songwriter, and guitarist born in Rosewood, Kentucky, United States. His songs' lyrics often discussed both the lives and the economic exploitation of American coal miners. Among his many well-known songs and recordings are "Sixteen Tons", "Re-Enlistment Blues", "I am a Pilgrim" and "Dark as a Dungeon". However, it is his unique guitar style, still called "Travis picking" by guitarists, as well as his interpretations of the rich musical traditions of his native Muhlenberg County, Kentucky, for which he is best known today. Travis picking is a syncopated style of guitar fingerpicking rooted in ragtime music in which alternating chords and bass notes are plucked by the thumb while melodies are simultaneously plucked by the index finger. He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970 and elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1977.
"Mr. Sandman" is a popular song written by Pat Ballard and published in 1954. It was first recorded in May of that year by Vaughn Monroe & His Orchestra and later that year by The Chordettes and the Four Aces. The song's lyrics convey a request to "Mr. Sandman" to "bring me a dream" – the traditional association of the folkloric figure. The pronoun used to refer to the desired dream is often changed depending on the sex of the singer or group performing the song, as the original sheet music publication, which includes male and female versions of the lyrics, intended.
A Session with Chet Atkins is the third studio album recorded by American guitarist Chet Atkins. It features Atkins introducing standard pop and jazz melded with country sensibilities. The liner notes state this is the first use of a celeste on a country record. The musicians include Homer and Jethro in the rhythm section. Atkins uses his new EchoSonic amplifier for the first time on his recordings.
Stringin' Along With Chet Atkins is the second studio album recorded by American guitarist Chet Atkins on the RCA Victor label. It was available as a 10-inch vinyl record. RCA subsequently released it as a 12-inch [LP] in 1955 with additional and omitted tracks.
Chet Atkins' Gallopin' Guitar is the first studio album released by American guitarist Chet Atkins on the RCA Victor label. It was available as a 10-inch vinyl record.
Chet Atkins in Three Dimensions is the fifth studio album recorded by American guitarist Chet Atkins. The recording mixes unique arrangements of traditional tunes, pop songs, and classical arrangements. Atkins stated in his 1974 autobiography that this album was the first time he strayed away from country, even though he had been fired numerous times from various radio shows for "not sounding country enough".
Finger-Style Guitar is the sixth studio album by American guitarist Chet Atkins, released in 1956.
Hi-Fi in Focus is the eighth studio album recorded by American guitarist Chet Atkins, released in 1957.
Down Home is the nineteenth studio album by American guitarist Chet Atkins.
Guitar Country is the twenty-fourth studio album by American guitarist Chet Atkins. It was nominated for the 1964 Best Country & Western Album Grammy award but did not win. It reached number 1 on the Country albums charts. Prior to 1964, there was no separate genre chart for Country LPs, thus Chet's previous charting albums were on the Pop charts. Numerous future Atkins releases "crossed over" from the Country and Pop charts.
Solo Flights is the thirty-sixth studio album by Chet Atkins. Side one of this album features Atkins' experiment with the "Octabass Guitar," where he replaced the two low strings with heavier strings in order to drop an octave and create a fuller sound with bass.
The Atkins–Travis Traveling Show is the title of a recording by guitarists Chet Atkins and Merle Travis, released by RCA Records in 1974. The two musical legends team up on 11 songs, earning the 1974 Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental Performance. Rehearsed in Nashville, this album was recorded in California.
Jazz From the Hills is an album by American guitarist Chet Atkins and The Country All-Stars. It is a reissue of sessions from 1952–1956.
Superpickers is a 1974 album by guitarist Chet Atkins and top recording session players in Nashville, TN.
Guitar Legend: The RCA Years is a two-disc compilation recording by American guitarist Chet Atkins. The 50 tracks included here focus on his first recordings in 1947 to the 1977 release Nashville Guitar Quartet.
The Essential Chet Atkins is a two-disc compilation recording by American guitarist Chet Atkins, released in 2007 on the Legacy label.
Galloping Guitar: The Early Years is a multi-disc box-set retrospective recording by American guitarist Chet Atkins, released in 1993 on the Bear Family label.
Eclectic Guitar is a compilation recording by American guitarist Chet Atkins, released in 2007 on the El label.
Boy Wonder is a studio album by jazz guitarist Lenny Breau that was recorded in 1956 and released in 1998. The session was engineered and produced by Al Hawkes of Event Records.
