By April MacIntyre Oct 27, 2009, 4:59 GMT
Kenny Rogers: The First 50 Years is a retrospective box set of music that has landed Kenny Rogers in the pop and country charts every single decade for the past fifty years, a feat no other artist has matched.
Released October 27th (via Time Life in association with Dreamcatcher Artist Management), the 45 track collection includes all original versions of his biggest hits as well as three new songs, one with his longtime collaborator Dolly Parton.
Love went into the making of the set, with carefully compiled information, all packaged in a booklet that features photos from Kenny’s personal collection, ach disc reflects a distinctive style that Rogers has built his iconic career around; Duets, Story Songs, and Love Songs.
The set also marks the first time all of Rogers’ hit duets have been collected in one place. In addition to the box set, a single disc called The Greatest Duets is available at retail outlets beginning October 27th.
The kid from Houston Rogers began his recording career in 1957 and immediately became a local sensation in his Houston neighborhood and throughout Texas. In 1968 he made the leap to the national stage his group, the First Edition.
Makes his bones with Ruby
Rogers' band quickly amassed 10 hits in four years including the powerful “Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love To Town.” After leaving the First Edition, Rogers embarked on a solo career at the age of 37 and defied the youth-driven pop charts with his 1977 runaway hit, “Lucille,” a massive crossover sensation that became part of mainstream pop culture and remains one of his most iconic songs.
Rogers begins notable duets That year, Kenny discovered his love of duets. By chance, he recorded “Every Time Two Fools Collide” with Dottie West. As an artist, he was impressed by the chemistry that a duet creates. As a chart-topper, he saw the appeal of a song that didn’t feature just his own vocals, giving fans something different to listen to.
Since then, Kenny has continued to make duets an important part of his career, recording with Kim Carnes, Sheena Easton, Gladys Knight, Don Henley, James Ingram, Tim McGraw, Ronnie Milsap and Travis Tritt. His favorite partner by far is Dolly Parton. They share a particularly powerful chemistry that fans love hearing again and again, and produced megahits “Islands in the Stream,” “Real Love” and now their newest song, “Tell Me That You Love Me“. Kenny has a love for story songs and no one does them better. Fans embraced his easygoing storytelling manner from the onset of his career, driving “Ruby” and “Lucille” to the top of the charts.
But perhaps there is no greater story song ever recorded than “The Gambler” (1979) which became his second pop culture phenomenon. It is one of his biggest hits of his career, spawning no fewer than 5 movies and was made into a five-episode mini-series (starring Rogers) that became the longest running mini-series in the history of US television and was seen by 100 million people. Love songs also are a Rogers hallmark. “If you kind of break down the hits I’ve had, I think the love songs say what every man would like to say and every woman would like to hear,” Rogers said. His #1 pop and country hit, “Lady” (a collaboration with Lionel Richie), was a surprisingly subtle combination of country and R&B that swept the charts. His songs “She Believes In Me” and “You Decorated My Life” remain perennial wedding favorites while “Through The Years” catches up with those couples as they celebrate their anniversaries years later. “The great thing about all of this is that it represents the first 50 years of my music career,” says Rogers. “I’m currently working on the next,” he adds. Kenny Rogers: The First 50 Years DISC 1: DUETS1. Islands in the Stream Kenny Rogers duet with Dolly Parton2. Make No Mistake, She’s Mine Ronnie Milsap & Kenny Rogers3. We’ve Got Tonight Kenny Rogers and Sheena Easton4. What About Me? Kenny Rogers with Kim Carnes and James Ingram5. Owe Them More Than That Kenny Rogers featuring Tim McGraw6. ’Til I Can Make It on My Own Kenny Rogers and Dottie West7. Calling Me Kenny Rogers featuring Don Henley8. Real Love Dolly Parton with Kenny Rogers9. Every Time Two Fools Collide Kenny Rogers and Dottie West10. If I Ever Fall in Love Again Anne Murray with Kenny Rogers11. All I Ever Need Is You Kenny Rogers and Dottie West12. If I Knew Then What I Know Now Kenny Rogers duet with Gladys Knight13. Don’t Fall in Love with A Dreamer Kenny Rogers vocal duet with Kim Carnes14. If I Were You Kenny Rogers duet with Travis Tritt15. Tell Me That You Love Me (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED)Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton DISC 2: STORY SONGS1. Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love to Town Kenny Rogers and the First Edition2. Lucille3. Reuben James Kenny Rogers and the First Edition4. Sweet Music Man5. The Gambler6. Abraham, Martin and John / Precious Memories (Medley)7. Coward of the County8. San Francisco Mabel Joy9. Scarlet Fever10. Twenty Years Ago11. The Factory12. Ol’ Red13. The Greatest14. Harder Cards15. Goodbye (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED) DISC 3: LOVE SONGS1. She Believes in Me2. I Don’t Need You3. Love Will Turn You Around4. You Decorated My Life5. Lady6. Love The World Away7. Crazy8. I Prefer The Moonlight9. A Love Song10. Beautiful (All That You Could Be)11. The Vows Go Unbroken (Always True To You)12. Morning Desire13. Through the Years14. Buy Me a Rose Kenny Rogers with Alison Krauss & Billy Dean15. Loving You Is a Natural Thing To Do (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED)
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