Reviews (page 4 of 14)
Un gran tema pero lo demás muy monótono
Me gusto. Un country que parecen para musicalizar escenas de viaje de personajes. Un album muy para escuchar en el auto.
Fuck yeah.
This album cashes in on the 50s cowboy nostalgia and feeds memories of the old West. The Indian wars were within living memory when this album was made and makes you realise how young a country America is
Great songs and instrumentation, but is voice is too golden for me to believe this. Needs a little Cash snarl or Willie rasp or whatever the hell came out of Merle haggard. Still a solid album, but a bit more kitsch than authenticity.
Des ballades blues de cowboy, on se fait un peu chier
Où est mon cheval ? Trop calme et pas assez diversifié
Pas trop ma came
Tästä ei ole kerta kaikkiaan mitään muuta sanottavaa, kuin että tämä on järkyttävän huono. Ei minkäänlaista kosketuspintaa ainakaan näin eurooppalaisittain. Amerikan rillumareita, hirveää kuraa. 1/5
Do you like songs about love, horses, and gun violence? Then this is the album for you! Very cinematic and entertaining. Robinns has a style and sticks to it, so it gets a bit repetitive. Otherwise pretty solid music. "The Strawberry Roan" and "The Master's Call" were my favorite tracks.
Listened to this during my first time eating at a Cracker Barrel First country album from here. Never really been a country gal, but I do kind of like "Big Iron", it's a very iconic song. Another one I liked more than I expected to is "The Master's Call", but I wouldn't say i have any favourites. I appreciate the storytelling, but that's about as far as my praises can go.
Love the ol Classic Western ballads. You don't? give a listen.. you may get turned on. I can listen to "El Paso" on a loop! That in itself is worth the listen. Good job! 826
Wasn't to sure at first about a country album from 1959, but I did enjoy it some fun songs I really loved. Some different country styles. Good. 1. The Master's Call 2. They're Hanging Me Tonight 3. Utah Carol
This is Western music, not country music per se; it's also a lot of the same sound to do in one sitting, so perhaps not totally well suited to this album-based exercise. But everything here is at least pretty good, and the best stuff - the title track, "Big Iron," "The Strawberry Roan" - is some of the best of its era.
It's exactly what it's trying to be and it's perfect at it. Also big iron is an all time classic. 5
Really great. Reminds me of Orbison and Elvis in all the best ways. Get ready for El Paso to get stuck in your head. I would pick this up in a record store without a second thought.
cinco o seis canciones del estilo vale, quince ya no
sorprendentemente me ha gustado y mucho, un sólido 9
Not heard this before
Definitely not an album that ought to be in a list of essential lessons. It’s fun and he’s got a lovely voice, but it’s no masterpiece.
Cowboy music. Outdated but fun listen. Some interesting guitar. Woulda been great short stories back in the day.
Liked: Big Iron
I've always felt a way about country music and this album never stood a chance on changing that feeling.
Different times.
Every song is about outlaws, fair maidens, and guns. Don’t like this kind of country music at all. Sounds extremely dated, and I would turn this off if it came on the radio. I’ll give it a 2 just because of the cool album cover and the storytelling (albeit repetitive).
All time classic. If you can listen to this and not want a big iron on your hip, you may not be a human being.
Have I turned into an old man? Are we singing too happily about the "hanging tree" and being trampled by cattle? I don't know why, but I'm loving this album and I haven't even played Fallout: New Vegas!
I need to be on a 13-mile hike and mourning the loss of my wife and child in that damned cruel fire while taking swigs from my whiskey flask to truly appreciate this album I think. I am Positive I've heard Big Iron before--Johnny Cash, perhaps?
A pivotal album in the development of country and western music. A little dated but it still sounds great. Marty's voice is impeccable and his songwriting skills are some of the best.
I recognize a bunch of these songs by title, but this is my first time listening to this entire album. This is exactly what I expected, and it's solid.
The hits are great but I don’t gravitate towards the rest
Yippe Kai Ye Mother Fucker
It’s wild something recorded in 1959 can still resonate. If that isn’t a testament of music I don’t know what is. 3.4.
This isn’t an album I’ll probably ever listen to again. That said, I found myself enjoying it more than I expected, based on the year and genre. A bit slow, but held my interest better than expected. 6/10 Pretty Good
Big Iron. So fucking good.
Sounds exactly like the cover of the album looks. Some good square dancing tunes n here (if that's even still a thing). I didn't need to listen to much of this.
4.5 - I am yet to come across a better album for shooting-up in the west.
DO NOT SIMP FOR LATINAS
El tiene muy buena voz. Son lindas baladas muy estadounidense similar a Elvis.
Cowboy music.
sentimenteel cowboy gezang
After Frank Sinatra yesterday, this app is starting to test my patience. 10 seconds each from the first two tracks is more than enough to assess. Heard before ❌️ Listened this time ✅️ 20 seconds Revisit ❌️ Horrific ★☆☆☆☆ (2/10) Total reviewed : 261 Already owned : 60 Purchased : 15 To buy list : 1 Nope : 185
wait why is this so fun lol? dont judge if you catch me listening to big iron
Timeless voice. Great old album.
I don't really believe this guy is capable of killing anyone for love or money, not with the little wry smile he has while he sings, as if to say, "Isn't this fun, pretending we're in a cowboy movie?" Except the outlaw country that works is sung by people who believe that these songs are about real life in some way, that not only people but they themselves are capable of desperate acts, and that these songs are about the beauty and depravity of the human condition. The fun someone like Johnny Cash or Steve Earle has isn't cosplay, it's gallows humor. Not "Let's pretend" but "You gotta laugh or cry."
And it was also the night that the skeletons came to life The bones are their money So are the worms They pull your hair up, but not out To turn into a man and have another chance at life All they want is another chance at life They’ve never seen so much food as this Underground there’s half as much food as this And the worms are their money The bones are their dollars
Brings back every Western film I watched as a child. Country guitar picking and perfectly pitched harmonies. Delivers exactly what it is meant to.
This was fun and I’m glad it’s on the list. I can’t think of another circumstance in which I would have listened to it.
Trying to keep an open mind but Not for me. As my daughter said, I could die without listening to this one.
Got El Paso on it. Pretty good stuff, and the title describes it perfectly.
Not much variation but still nicely done.
Cash meets a Mighty Wind. I dig it.
After Fallout this album is shown in a new light. Love the lyricism, this is a ballad in its classical sense of the word.
- Pre-listen: I am actually so fucking excited to listen to this album. - 6 7 in track 8. - I always love a good 1950s/1960s era guitar ballad album because you get to hear some of the best goddamn guitar playing you maybe have ever heard. The "lead" guitar player on this album is fucking phenomenal, like, he just absolutely shreds improvisations for the entire goddamn album. Holy shit this guy is so fucking good and its awesome. - I also love me some goddamn four part vocal harmonies. This is just fucking awesome. The simple instrumentation is so fucking awesome. Just upright bass, 2 guitars, a snare with brushes, and four voices. It's beautifully simple and it is just awesome. - I recognize Big Iron from Fallout: New Vegas. However, it's such a good fucking song??? It's definitely my personal favorite on this album, I just love the bass singer so much, I love the upright bass part, I love the guitar player shredding, and Marty Robbins just fucking holds the vocals down. God what a fucking phenomenal album. - This may be surprising, but this gets an 8/10 from me. I think this is some of the best "American Western" music you can get, and it's not boring. When I think of traditional "American Western" music I think, "oh, this is just gonna be the same song form over and over again and the singer sings about a woman or a horse," and while that is true, it really isn't boring. You get invested in the story of the song, because these songs are folk tales at their cores. This, however is not something I would have on loop, which loses it points, but it is just so fucking good. Four stars, 8/10.
Absolute monstrosities sung in the most cheery and soothing voice. I love the storytelling and every song is so catchy. This is so cinematic and atmospheric, makes me want to ride a horse and wear a hat.
This was fun, but very samey. Got a bit fatigued by the end as the songs all blended into each other. Didn't hate it, could have done with more variety as an album to break up the relentless gunfighter ballads and trail songs, but when all the songs are supposed to be gunfighter ballads and trail songs then I guess that's on me. If you're in the mood to listen to nothing but well performed gunfighter ballads and trail songs then this is the best you could ask for.
Seems like a niche that didn’t need filling. But it was popular in its day.
This is the biggest surprise on the list for me so far. It's old school gangster country. I am here for it.
meh. some fun stories i guess.
Surprisingly chock full of complete bangers. Cowboy music may be the peak of human achievement.
Not my thing. Pretty samey
Light 3,5
Classic country
Excellent old schools westerns
I enjoyed it!
Pure, iconic, genre-defining country that's so exceptional it's hard to believe. My fellow Glendale boy was cooking with napalm on this one
Ótimo álbum!
A little too one note for my overall liking, but a good listen. Made me want to go watch a western (I did) and I enjoyed the song structure for a lot of the tracks.
Not bad. Definitely sounds like songs from the era. 3/5
Western is one of the worst genres to ever come out of the US. Listening to this was an excercise in pain, even if the lyrics weren't the most horrible thing to exist.
I surprisingly absolutely loved this, it sounds like something my gran would listen to.
Cute
Classic Country album with monotonous beat.
It's difficult to rate an album I can’t connect with musically, I really don't like country at all. Also I don’t like these "cowboy‑gun" lyrics. "Big Iron" has become more of a meme after beeing heard in the Fallout games and tv show, that's nice but the rest of this album sounds more or less the same to me.
Surprisingly great sound quality for how old it is, also surprisingly fun!
Was shocked about the good quality for such an old album. I was also surprised i had no problem, finishing it :)
Low poly cowboy obsessed with counting things. I'll have one and nineteen more sips of that cool water pleaseandthankyou. Five sheriff badges.
better then the usual country stuff and nice flashbacks to new vegas
Unexpectedly really good!
There is no album that captures the spirit of 1950s country Western music quite like this one. Tales of guns and outlaws are the predominant theme, and are mirrored with Robbins accessible American drawl, transporting you to the idealistic old West saloon. This is the album's main essence: a tribute to a nostalgic and, even in Robbins time, long gone and unrealistic ideal. But listening to this album you can't help but believe it, at least for a time.
8/10
I love this album
Muito bom! Ouvirei mais vezes
This was a really fun listen. I have to admit I groaned when I saw the album cover but this is beyond the country music I thought it would be. These are true cowboy songs which I’m already a bit of a fan of….the Dead have a great catalogue of them. And funnily enough they do a cover of one of the songs on here, El Paso. Marty has a great voice. It’s smooth and clear and has a warm tone to it. He’s got the perfect story telling voice. I probably wouldn’t listen to this again but I thoroughly enjoyed it. This is a super strong 3. Considered giving it a 4.
Extremely dated but a good collection of songs. This is exactly what I would expect my grandfather to be listening to while working in the yard. No complaints from me. Just some good ole trail songs from the 1950’s.
The original gangster rap album. Western side!
Perfect music for sitting around a fire eating beans.
The first couple of songs were interesting but then it got weird. He really likes singing about times when men could shoot other men. By the end I was openly hostile towards the album.
Love this! I always wanted to add some Marty Robbin’s to my library and here it is! Most of my family is in El Paso and Mr Robbins is SO descriptive that you can really feel the place and put yourself in the saddle.
What a charming record. Very much of its time (in a way...I guess he's harkening back 60 years or more thematically), the songs are simple, enjoyable and varied enough to be interesting. Very refreshing to listen to.
Good old country music!
Not for me, but Big Iron really is quite good
Marty's voice, and the way it carries over these old-school cautionary Western fables, carries that warm desert wind. It evokes so well that feeling of watching your Dad's favourite vintage frontier flick with half-lidded eyes, its dusty prairies populated with anacronistic Cowboys and Indians and all those who brave the untamed lands of the New World with nothing but a Colt revolver and a Stetson hat. Somebody's been bouncing from saloon to cantina on the run from the lawmen. You can imagine, maybe anachronistically, these sweet songs being plucked out by some dry vaquero, strumming away comfortably at a beaten-up maplewood acoustic in the corner, sipping straight whiskey after a long day ranching cattle on the lonesome road. With every re-telling the details would change a little; the men meaner, the women heartier, the lands wilder. And he'd pick up all of these tunes as he travelled, penning them for his own amusement in the mental ledger to be passed on like ghost tales of men that may have once existed under different names and forgotten circumstances. There's this simplicity in the homesickness of its storytelling and the complex relationship between man and nature being flattened out into these little stories of the kind shared amongst men at the poker table, steeped so thickly and unapologetically in its rural locality, that becomes endearing. Life in these songs is tough but there's an incomparable beauty to the setting of the red sun on provincial redder sands, and the drifters who follow along its primordial horizons. For a drink, stranger, I'll tell you them stories what I heard out droving. Fav tracks: Big Iron, Billy The Kid, El Paso, Cool Water, In The Valley, The Master's Call
So pointless, so goofy. Blech
4/10 An album like this is always interesting to get. It’s a genre that I have no real fondness for outside of a few artists here and there that just click with me, but I’m always open to hearing something different, so I was hopeful enough when I gave this a spin. The first thing to note is that the production and musicianship are both excellent here. The sound is crisp and clear, and apart from Marty’s vocal being a little too prominent, meaning things got a little lost behind him now and again, the balance and coherence of the sound is really good, particularly for a 67 year old record. The band are really tight, but play with a fun, free style that elevates the feel of the songs really well. Marty himself is an excellent singer, and when they’re playing the more fast paced numbers, I found myself getting a bit more into it, but when things slowed down, I began to struggle quite a lot more. Crooning singing with fast vibrato really grates on me and when he started on that kind of stuff this became much less engaging. Fortunately, the record did shift around a bit and things rarely stayed at the same pace for long. As a whole, it kind of has the sound of an Elvis record had Elvis stuck to playing white boy music, rather than pinching black music and packaging it for his white audience. I did find myself bobbing along to this and, while it was generally fairly simple stuff, there were little moments of musicianship and composition that just perked up my ears a little and helped me along. All in all, not a bad record at all, but just not one that is really my thing, and it didn’t have enough of musical interest to drag it over the line into something that would have grabbed hold of me and demanded further attention. Big Iron - There’s a decent pace and bouncing rhythm to this. His vocal style reminds me a bit of Elvis, but it feels a bit more honest. It’s not exactly complicated or anything, but it does what it sets out to do really well. The production is great, the backing vocals are really nice and it’s just a pretty coherent and consistent song. Nice. Cool Water - This is more hard for me to stomach. Warbling vibrato croony vocals are a bit of a kryptonite for me. There’s nothing terrible about this, but it’s pretty plodding and where the previous track had a bit of drive and groove to it, this just settles back into benignity. As a composition, it’s pretty standard and doesn’t offer anything particularly interesting, but it kind of hits the tone it’s going for. Billy The Kid - Ah, a cowboy waltz, why not? Again, this is quite a plodding, but there is more of an interesting choice of chords here to create a bit of an uncertain feel to it as it shifts between major and minor tonalities. Unfortunately, it’s more of that vocal style that doesn’t work for me. A decent production, an interesting song, but ultimately not something that really grabbed me. A Hundred And Sixty Acres - This a bit less croony. It’s still a bit plodding, but feels a bit more foot forward so drags itself along with a bit more panache. There are some decent bits of guitar work from the lead here that add a bit of extra depth to the composition, but it’s still a little on the dull side. They're Hanging Me Tonight - Oh, we’re backing the pace down again. This does sound quite a lot like a crooning Elvis track and it’s just not for me. Compositionally, it’s very basic, both structurally and instrumentally and it leans too much on the warbling vibrato. It does sound great for a 1959 recording though. Strawberry Roan - The pace has picked up again now and it’s more engaging for it. When he’s not crooning, he is way more subtle with his vibrato, which helps a lot. It’s quite a plodding rhythm, but there’s some pretty decent lead guitar that drifts around in there. The way the vocal climbs and falls up his register is quite nice too. II don’t think this is bad actually, but I do think it’s a little on the boring side. El Paso - Some pretty guitar to kick us off here and Marty’s vocal is subtle but well delivered. The composition shuffles around into different movements pretty nicely. It’s quite a breathless song, despite not only having a moderately fast tempo, but it’s pretty persistent. The band are really tight and flow around each other really nicely, and the vocal harmonies are really consistent and well controlled. It does drag on a little too much though, sadly. In The Valley - Back to an extremely plodding, croony number. The thing is, the quality of the playing, singing and recording is really good, but it’s just a little bit uninspiring and doesn’t particularly do anything to grab hold of me. It’s very nice, but that’s about it. The Master's Call - The rhythm and swing to this is way better. The bass line is a little too deep in the mix, which is a shame as it gives this a bit of a bouncing drive to it that I quite like. There are some pretty interesting developmental changes at places in this that don’t always take things the way you would expect, but it does get a bit samey as it goes along. I’m finding the general pace and groove of this pretty decent and I feel like I want to like it more than I actually do. Running Gun - More pace, yeehaw! There’s a nice bouncing groove to this, some solid instrumental work and it’s got some decent hooky melodies in the vocals. As with the rest of the album, the quality of the playing and production is great. This was an enjoyable little ride, did its thing and then it was done. Lovely stuff. Down In The Little Green Valley - We’re back in croon town, sadly. Again, it’s competently done, there are some nice tight harmonies, but it’s a bit too plodding and croony for me. It’s a decent example of the genre, but it’s the genre itself that I find the problem. I can appreciate the artistic quality of this, but it’s just not for me. Utah Carol - This is quite plodding and rhythmically uninspiring. The melodies are decent if a bit too repetitive. It’s quite a nice little track, the performances are decent, but it’s also just… Not that interesting.
4/5. A really lovely album that has a lot of staying power. Robbins takes both new and old songs and records them with a wonderful backing band and his own superb overdubbed vocals. Melodies and harmonies admittedly grow stale here, which is what keeps me from calling this a 5, but I do think that's a symptom of listening to the album as a whole rather than a few songs at a time. The style of the genre doesn't lend itself to a ton of variation, so it's not shocking that there's a lot of sameness between each song, but it wearied me all the same.
How fun, I recognized the first song right away. What a pleasant and fun old country western sound. Listened though a couple times, then spent the day listening to similarly styled music courtesy of Spotify auto play. I enjoyed the lyrics/storytelling, style and sound. Definitely culturally significant… Why am I not rating this a 4*? Not quite sure it had what I need to get it over that threshold, but I definitely appreciated the listen.
Happy trails indeed.
Didn't mind listening to this at all. An interesting historical capsule of the western craze of the '50s.
Favorite Tracks: Big Iron / Cool Water / The Strawberry Roan / Hanging Tree / El Paso Rating: 3.8 Have never heard of Marty Robbins, but I immediately recognized "Big Iron" from Fallout lol. I liked this way more than I was expecting! I literally never listen to country music, but this album was a treat. Great voice, wonderful storytelling, fun guitar work, cool badass cowboy ballads full of gun battles, wild horses, and beautiful Mexican maidens. Good stuff.
yeehaw
why was it actually nice and enjoyable
Every song has the same throughline but the lyrics/storytelling gives each song a unique feeling. Very fun album.
Pure cowboy kitsch in the absolute best way.
A fucked with it, so iconic
It’s ok
Charming and entertaining. Not something I’ll probably listen to again. But i wouldn’t turn it off if it was on. A 3.
4/5
Good fun and love music that tell stories, even though the stories were a bit too simple but that's kinda the nature of this genre sometimes.
Elvis if his voice was actually nice
Sensational album
Expansive and Western. Great. Almost all classics, and a worthy western inclusion on the list. Includes murder ballads, classic cowboy stuff, and even early cosmic country on The Masters Call that I think prefigures other life and death / spiritual themes later on in country. Highlights: Strawberry Roan, The Masters Call, and all of the other songs. From Musicboard (OG 1/18/26 [#30] Imported 2/26/26)
15/02/2026 *1. big iron - already know this one from fallout... love it <3 love the storytelling.... 2. a hundred and sixty acres - immediately liking the fingerpicking guitar... really lovely voice... *3. they're hanging me tonight - love this one already!!!!! *4. cool water - slide guitar at the start? nice :) 5. billy the kid - :) *6. utah carol - love how atmospheric the stories are. 7. the strawberry roan - cute horse song <3 *8. the master's call - liking the bass in this one... backing vocals are really nice as well. his vocals are so nice in this one. 9. running gun - the sound of these songs is getting a bit repetitive, but the stories are immense! *10. el paso - already lovelovelove this one!!!!! love how the story keeps escalating and how dramatic it is.... *11. in the valley - slower and calmer... really sweet..... 12. the little green valley - nice :) *13. the hanging tree - guitar and trumpet makes this one stand out a bit more compared to the others.... love the backing vocals. 14. saddle tramp - nice again :) really liked this one :) got a bit repetitive after a while, but would definitely listen to it again.
I've never heard of Marty Robbins was surprised to see that a couple of the tracks on this album had over a hundred million streams on Spotify. I enjoyed this more than expected; lots of good story telling.
I really tried to give this a red hot go, but couldn’t really get into it
just cool
The "El Paso" song was catchy, but the rest all sounded very similar. I love the vocal tone though.
3,25
Surprisingly smooth, but songs are all about shooting folks and running off. Great performances and subject matter that I didn’t think the 50s could produce. 3.9/4.0
This is like an album of title sequence songs from 1950s B-movie westerns. I am far from convinced this is an album I needed to hear.
I liek a lot
yip dang hee haw gidde up
Another user commented, "This was a real breath of fresh hair". I don't know what the hell they are on about, but can confirm this album felt like a real breath of fresh air. I was admittedly pretty bummed when I saw the cover this morning thinking this was going to be some dusty ass country western snoozer. There have been a couple on this list. It certainly is a dusty ass country western relic, but no snoozing here. I am typically not a fan of this genre, but found myself highly engaged throughout. Bro belts out some badass country bangers. Big guns, big fights, big outlaws, big landscapes, big skies. Imminent death by gun or noose, and tales of love woven throughout. This was some great story telling and I don't think today's Country demographic has much bandwidth to either create it or digest it. Orville Peck took notes on this one.
Americana cowboy ballads
Good old fashioned songs about running from the law, gunfights, and stampedes. I really enjoyed it. I also think the mixing is interesting. You can barely even hear the guitar on some tracks. It gives it a very folksy and lyric-driven vibe.
just some root-tootin cowboy music. maybe it lacks some of the cinema that i'm used to in the genre, but there's something pleasantly elvis about all the crooning. Big Iron is evergreen, i also quite liked The Master's Call
Rating: 6/10 Marty Robbins cosplaying as a cowboy and crooning over a guitar, telling outlaw stories of the old west. This storytelling aspect is probably the best part of the album. It's not a bad listen at all but it gets a bit samey through the whole of the album as I felt some of the tracks were like lesser versions of the best ones. Big Iron is easily the best one in my opinion, there's a reason it's a country classic and still actually holds pop cultural relevance in ways.
Pleasant and cool vibe, but super simple 3.8/10
Muy ambiental y muy “de su tierra”, se nota que es una americanada country, pero es agradable y recuerda a Elvis antes de toda la influencia rock. No es mi estilo, pero para una película de Tarantino no estaría nada mal, me gusta.
Country fantástic
Every song rules. Amazing melodies. Amazing stories. Amazing voice. Master's Call is one of my favorite songs. Legit one of the greatest albums ever
This feels like a John Ford cowboy movie - a touch corny and lacking the raw grit that Sergio Leone would bring to the genre, but there's still a great time to be had to be here. Both homely and comforting, Robbins is a phenomenal storyteller with a voice that demands your attention. I was already familiar with 'Big Iron' due to the internet memes and the album is more of the same. Robbins is completely committed to the cowboy concept. There is a mix of fast songs and slow ballads to add variety to a record with the same lyrical themes. There's a reason why both the Fallout series and Breaking Bad have both gone back to this record to evoke feelings of the Wild West.
I need to play rdr2
Although not usually a fan of country-western music, Marty Robbins iconic songs "El Paso" and "Cool Water" were popular when I was a child. This album was released when I was five years old, and although we weren't a musical family, the radio station my mom had on during the day would occasionally feature some of these songs.
Big iron was good
Every song sounded the same but it was pretty good fun nonetheless. Foot-tapping, cowboy country can't score lower than a 3 in my eyes.
Now this is storytelling and poetry
Review - if I were a little American boy obsessed with Westerns in the late '50s this would be the best thing I'd ever heard. But I'm not, so it's not. Rating: 5.5/10 Need to listen? YES
very silly and inoffensive. Don't have much to say other than that
Immediately greeted by an absolute banger I fell in love with from playing New Vegas. The rest of the album is amazing too and I'll surely be coming back to it when I need a western fix
Classic love old western songs
would listen while driving on an empty road at night
Absolute surprise but this is gold. I've enjoyed this a lot, some good songs, lyrics and arrangements throughout.
Big iron is a bop
This rootin, tootin, outlaw shootin, bronco scootin, studded leather bootin cowboy sure can tell a damn good story! Only complaint is that the songs are repetitive, but that tends to happen with storytelling songs, since they’re focused more on the story than the musical ideas. YEEE HAW!
This album is a no for me. I listen to the first couple songs and I just couldn’t anymore.
BIG IRON ON HIS HIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
a total classic!!!!!
Love this style of narrative song (see Harry Chapin too), but a whole album of the same tone is tough to manage. First track is a classic.
BIIIG IIIIRON BIIIG IRRRONN
Old country folksy songs.
Favourite Songs: The Master's Call
Ok, we get it Marty, you’re a cowboy and you’re forlorn.
Perfect
My kind of country. Feels like I should be playing Fallout or RDR while listening to this. Amazing songwriting and singing with the guitar and background harmonies.
Classic album full of classic songs.
a lot better than I expected!
Big Iron - 4.5/5 Cool Water - 3.5/5 Billy the Kid - 3.5/5 A Hundred and Sixty Acres - 3.5/5 They're Hanging Me Tonight - 4/5 The Strawberry Roan - 4/5 El Paso - 4/5 In the Valley - 3/5 The Master's Call - 3/5 Running Gun - 3.5/5 Down in the Little Green Valley - 3.5/5 Utah Carol - 3.5/5 An excellent exhibit in how storytelling can elevate an album to be greater than it already is. I haven't particularly enjoyed the country albums so far, but this one is different in a good way. Overall: 3.5/5 Favorites: Big Iron, They're Hanging Me Tonight, The Strawberry Roan
Such a cool and classic sound. Smooth as silk and salt of the earth. It’s prime soundtrack and montage fodder these days.
3.5 - great western songs but got a bit stale by the end
Some fun little stories
Great early country music which my wife accurately described as old cowboy film music.
4/5
It's fine for what it is. Can only take about one song though before I'm ready to switch
First Listen; 3.5; The strong and clear singing is what really draws me into this album. Not quite soaring, but very much front and center and very strong. The music is also very snappy and fun, and put together with the lyrics, feels like a great western record. Has a very calm and cool feel while maintaining and outlaw feel. Favorite Track: Big Iron
I'll need to listen to this again (was a bit distracted at the time)... but I dug it.
Very cozy
This album is really great. It's obviously quite old with a consistent sound throughout. The vibe of the sound really could carry the whole album alone and it would be solid, but each song really does have a lot of character, so you don't get lost in the sound too much. Will definitely return to this.
country
Big Iron is real pimp shit.
I'll admit that this became an unexpectedly pleasant experience, listening to the tales of outlaws, unrequited love and buffalo stampede among other things. This is so engaging and such easy listening. Robbins has a voice like velvet, the harmonies are gorgeous and after a few listens you could understand why he was revered by the likes of Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash. It's not my go to genre, or era, but there are far worse albums on the list and I'm glad ive been introduced to this artist. Favourite songs are Big Iron and El Paso, and it's a solid 3*.
Not my thing but for the Genre it's very good.
Top Track: They're Hanging Me Tonight
Yiihaw
Aburridísimo.
Sounds surprisingly clean and crisp. Some of these songs I've heard multiple versions of. I'm not well versed enough in country to know how many are old standards vs Marty Robbins originals that have been covered later. Some interesting guitar sounds that I would normally associate with traditional italian music, especially on "Billy the Kid". I wonder whether that is spaghetti westerns influencing my idea of what italian music sounds like, or some natural affinity between the two. Definitely a classic and pretty well done, but I feel like I'm listening to it academically despite how emotional it's meant to be. Just a bit too far removed from my life and experience I guess. Pretty bored by the end. Going with 3 stars, my standard rating for something that I appreciate but don't particularly like.
Rätt mysigt men inget man blir hänförd av
Chill ballad beats to gunfight and trail to.
Den bästa Western musikn som finns! Älskar det när jag spelade New Vegas
Fallout-musik!
A lot of people were shot during the making of this album... It's basically a Western musical audio book with a lot of classic western stories. Musically, it is nice, but nothing super exciting. First track is the most recognizable. Overall, I liked it.
This and a strong black coffee rocking in a chair on the porch
I wondered whether this would appear on the list, and I’m very pleased it has. Marty Robbins’ Gunfighter Ballads is a terrific album, wonderfully indicative of a world long gone. If the past is another country, Gunfighter Ballads would be one of its many soundtracks. Opener “Big Iron” sets the scene, a classic western confrontation set to song – outlaws and lawmen – death dealt in the dust. “El Paso” – a Grateful Dead staple – is very much its equal, with some heartbreak on the side, and “They’re Hanging Me Tonight” tells a condemned man’s tale – and frankly he deserved it! The album plays out like a series of dramatic short films, Robbins is a master storyteller, and the listener hangs on to his every word. Absolutely nothing overstays its welcome and it’s no surprise that Robbins’ follow up album was more of the same. 9/10
This was fine, but not really my thing.
Good clean fun, great old songs about ironic ways to die in the west, kind of Happy Tree House Friends of the 50's. But the playing and the voice and those happy old lonesome cowboys singing cautionary tales as coyotes howl just pull you in. This was a guy with his own K-Tel Marty Robbins Gold 20 Original Hits album advertised during the cartoons while I was growing up - he even sang them in person in a cheap TV studio for the commercial. You couldn't not make fun of him. Then one day, you smarmily slide the mouse over to the 1 a little prematurely. Or should it be 2? And then from the ear buds, wham! El Paso. Holy shit. Lodges in your heart like a lump of steaming lead. You know you done him wrong. You struggle fix it, to slide the mouse up the scale. Then face smashing the keyboard, a red tear trickling down your cheek, you hang on just long enough to catch the final tunes before you expire.
I could have not listened to this before I died I think
Who knew country music could feel so elegant? Marty's vocal tone is lovely and the guitar is very tasteful. Great storytelling throughout.
Cool to learn this was recorded in a single 8 hour session. Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs paired well to sitting waiting on a couch for the routesetters to wrap up their day at Para Climbing Nationals. Prior to heading back to the Airbnb to watch the Bad Bunny concert in the football game. The sun was shining in the gym and the event was over. So I managed to just chill and listen to the music. While reflecting on a busy weekend.
yippee cayeh! LOVED the storytelling, made me feel like a real cowboy... This had me feeling like I wish I grew up in the wild west, but then I really thought about it, and how awful that would be, and how I wouldn't have this list, or this album even. So nvm, Im happy to admire cowboy life from an imaginative perspective. some melodies got repetitive, and there wasn't a ton of depth musically. BUT I really liked the storytelling aspects of this which bumps it up a notch for me. 7.5/10
****agreat western music album. Easy listening.
Album #1,038 Cowboy songs sung well. The song El Paso which most people probably have heard of is here, twice. One listen was fine. No need to revisit later.
I love this album. His guitar work is really worth listening to, and they're great tunes. There are one or two lesser tracks, though, which brings it down to a four overall.
I, like many people, was familiar with the song 'Big Iron' from Fallout New Vegas, and it's a damn great song even after all these years; just super tense, slick, catchy, and one of the coolest songs out there - it really does fit the atmosphere of that game perfectly. I'd say it remains the musical and lyrical highlight of the album, seeing as many of the other songs here follow suit. This is your typical outlaw country and blues album, with Marty's tender vocals and light guitar work guiding you through these dramatic stories as if they're just another day in his twisted life. Most songs sort of have this ironic twist thing going for them, ending with the protagonist dying at something of their own making, like with the shattered love of the epic 'El Paso', or on 'Utah Carol', where the thing that was meant to comfort his lover (A red blanket) led to the titular hero's ultimate demise. It was an enjoyable listen, sure, but it left me wanting a bit more out of the lyrics - maybe there's some deeper meaning here that I wasn't grasping. I did like 'The Master's Call' quite a bit because, despite it sounding a lot like 'Big Iron', it was maybe the most surreal thing here, with a lot of divine and spiritual imagery laced throughout the story. Otherwise, though, this is what I've come to expect from the outlaw country genre: pretty good at what it does, but not much that blew me away.
It’s nice to hear some respect for songs of American tradition. I’m sure there are things about this album that don’t hold up in modern culture, but I think it represents a good window into a specific era of America that idolized cowboys and the Wild West. The songs feel heartfelt and sincere and bring up a time when “manly” men thought and sung their feelings rather than push them down and pretend they don’t have them.
This is goooood cowboy music
Excelente, no sabía que el country clásico sonaba asi de bello
As much as I would like to get into the country and western genre, I seem to cannot do so... It's not the worst thing i have heard from this genre, this one is decent I'd say.
just fantastic through and through
- hienoja tarinoita - enää ei tehhä tämmösiä tarinankerrontabiisejä, sääli
3,5
Too Johnny cash
big iron on his hiiiiiiip
I really like this old time country western stuff even if it isn’t in regular rotation for me.
Album Review 061 Gunfighter Ballads And Trail Songs by Marty Robbins (1959) Rating 2/5 Here’s an album recorded almost 70 years ago that romanticises the Ol’ Wild-West of at least another 70 years earlier. This is primitive country music about cowboys, outlaws and how love will end up with you shooting someone of getting shot yourself. I can understand why this is seen as such an important milestone in the history of country music, and it may have sounded exciting and polished back in 1959, but now it just sounds hokey, dated and repetitive.
Honestly a vibe, such classic country
What a delight. The songs on this album are of a high standard, and it is no surprise that many have become widely covered classics. In its delivery, "Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs" is very much a product of its time. Marty Robbins’ smooth 'Nashville Sound' vocals, combined with the Glaser Brothers' backing harmonies, create a polished, sophisticated atmosphere. Refreshingly, Robbins avoids the heavy 'country twang' employed by many male country artists, a style I often find off-putting. Instead, the record reflects the production ethics and vocal purity of the late 1950s. There will be those who might dismiss the album because of its age, but that would be a mistake. To do so is akin to a modern film buff refusing to watch black-and-white cinema from the 1940s or 50s, wrongly deeming it inferior simply because of the medium. While it is a very good, easy-breezy listen, the lyrics deserve your full attention; they often hide a darker edge. The standout track for me is 'They're Hanging Me Tonight', but "Big Iron", "Cool Water", "Running Gun" , "El Paso" and the "The Hanging Tree" are also worthy of mention. A solid four stars. 1 "Big Iron" (5/5) 2 "A Hundred and Sixty Acres" (4/5) 3 "They're Hanging Me Tonight" (5/5) 4 "Cool Water" (5/5) 5 "Billy the Kid" (4/5) 6 "Utah Carol" (3/5) 7 "The Strawberry Roan" (4/5) 8 "The Master's Call" (4/5) 9 "Running Gun" (5/5) 10 "El Paso" (5/5) 11 "In the Valley" (4/5) 12 "The Little Green Valley" (3/5) 13 "The Hanging Tree" (5/5) 14 "Saddle Tramp" (4/5) 15 "El Paso" (full length version) (5/5) Total - 65 Average - 4.33 234/1001 130/234 albums reviewed were new to me.
For all us fans of engaging yet didactic outlaw stories and indistinguishable 3/4 country ballads, fret not; Marty Robbins has got us covered.
This was like the soundtrack to a cowboy movie. I enjoyed it, I like story songs and all of these were stories.
another banger, obsessed with his voice could listen to it all day, knew some of the songs because of caleb and because of that ill always think of him with this album. a few other songs i also enjoyed that i hadn’t heard before like little green valley, hanging tree, they are hanging me tonight ugh overall such good album
Knew El Paso and Big Iron already, others didn't really hit.
Amazing album. Very reminiscent of the tenor country songs I listen to in the modern era.
Que da hora a vibe faroeste. Curti o álbum todo, me lembrou um pouco do Johnny Cash, umas menos faroeste, mas um bom álbum. Eu já tinha uma curtida. Bom álbum, boa voz, boa histórias. Vou dar 4 pra esse.
Simply amazing!
Loved
I appreciate that the date is included in the description. Not my jam, but appreciate what it influenced.
Excellent songs for my gun fights
Um. I really liked this.
8.0/10 When I saw this album it looked like an automatic 1 star for me… but after listening I thought it was absolutely great. Marty’s voice and all the harmonies are amazing. It’s a perfect chill record for a lazy Sunday afternoon.
Good fun
Weird album tbh
I found it was pleasant and a cool theme (all out cowboy country/western) - maybe it's my unfortunate British sensibilities but I found it just fine really
This is my kind of country music. Love love
This one is for the REAL cowpokes, what a delightful little album!
Følte mig lidt som om jeg var i en western
Shoutout cowboys in a major way I love these guys and while this ofc helps add to the mythos of them being like wayward gunslingers rather than regular workers I do think the history cowboys have with music/folk music is cool and this is a great example of it. awesome storytelling Marty Robbins has a great voice.
Yea this one's not something I enjoyed.
Very unorthodox but I liked it. Was surprised that my friend knew the lyrics to like half of the songs. Like a more earthy Johnny Cash.
🤠🐎🐎 6/10 Wieder entertaining
Uh . . . I'm gonna say this was entertaining enough not get a 1, but, c'mon! What are we doing here?
The problem I have with Marty Robbins is that he always sounds like he's smiling when he sings. And it's kind of a smarmy smile that doesn't fit with the tone of the lyrics. So, when I listen, I just see this sort of oily 50s era guy farting out these songs. On the other hand, there's some really good songs on here that I like quite a bit. Sooo... 3 stars for me.
I probably shouldn’t like this since he’s playacting a cowboy, but I love it despite the lack of true emotional depth. I end up in a mid-century fantasy world and I’m cool with that. El Paso made a nice cameo in Breaking Bad. In fact, the last episode is titled Felina, the tragic love interest in the song. No doubt they liked that it made an anagram of “finale” too.
Listened to the first 3 and I think I got the flavor. Not something I would like in most circumstances, thus the low score. But it did make me think about how my enjoyment of music is very context-dependent. If I were cooking flapjacks in a rural cabin, or driving down a lonely western two-lane highway, or sitting in a diner in a David Lynch movie, this would have been perfect.
4/5 - This was great. I love when we get albums like this that execute well on some niche that I wouldn't otherwise listen to. I knew Big Iron was familiar, and it was from the video game Fallout: New Vegas, which made me laugh.
Well this comes out of no where what a fantastic album. I loved every second of this album start to finish beautiful lyrics and music that makes you feel like a badass cowboy the whole time.
Great country singer. Great voice, and music. Love his ballads.
It made me nostalgic for a time I didn't live, in a place I wasn't born. Didn't pick out no singular song tho. Next time I'm on the road gonna play this album
Fire. Lot of good classics and with some new music I can definitely hear inspiration.
Good but not something I would listen to very often
Enjoyed - smooth vocals. Only problem for me is that cannot really relate to Cowboy songs about horses so kinda washed over me with no emotional hook.
"He's about the worst bucker I've seen on the range." Do you happen to have any bad ones to tame? Said he's got one, a bad one to buck, -next line ends with luck, of course. Shootin' and a killin' and a ridin' and gettin' by, has never been so polite. He's got a nice voice and some catchy little ditties. Some Irish folk song derivatives in there.
It's the Fallout soundtrack! I love the theme and I love Marty's voice even if things get a bit repetitive. Favorite track: Big Iron
I enjoyed this album more than I thought I would, as this isn't my type of music. But many of these songs are quite fun and devilishly clever. I can't bring myself to give it 5 stars as I reserve that rating for masterpieces, but I have to admit that this album perfectly accomplishes what it set out to do.
For a millennial or a Gen-Z listener this may be almost impossible to imagine, but I grew up with two Dutch TV channels. When I was nearly fourteen, a third one was added. A year later, the first commercial channels arrived. On those two public channels there was exactly one afternoon per week of children’s television: Wednesday afternoon. The rest of the time? Test card. Hours and hours of it. I genuinely miss that thing. So what did you do if you wanted to watch TV? You turned on the Germans, of course. ARD and ZDF. And what did you watch there? Westerns. For about fifteen years I was convinced that cowboys spoke German, and Native Americans too—very convenient, really, since they understood each other perfectly. Cowboys were also the most popular carnival costume for boys when I was young (cap guns! which never worked because the paper caps got wet), with “Indian” as the obvious alternative. My older sister devoured the Arendsoog books; I collected Lucky Luke comics. Westerns were everywhere. And that’s the point. Roughly between 1960 (or a bit earlier) and 1975, the western was a dominant cultural force. TV series like Bonanza and Rawhide were hugely popular. Cinemas were flooded with westerns starring heroes like John Wayne or Clint Eastwood (who became famous via Rawhide), anti-heroes like Lee Van Cleef, or figures somewhere in between like Charles Bronson. From cheap pulp to the highly regarded Italian classics by Sergio Leone. “Spaghetti western” really does refer to the culinary preferences of its creators. To complete the cultural puzzle: these Italian westerns, often starring Americans, were frequently shot in southern Spain for the landscape. And yes, if film soundtracks were on this list, Ennio Morricone’s score for Once Upon a Time in the West—C’era una volta il West, obviously—would be a very strong candidate. We’ve already encountered those unmistakable Morricone guitar lines elsewhere. Which brings us, finally, to this album. Released right at the beginning of that western boom, it didn’t just reflect the genre—it helped shape it. This record is often seen as a high point, and possibly a catalyst, of the country outlaw movement. Almost all the songs deal with deeply immoral cowboys who usually meet their end by bullet—often several. Sometimes justice prevails. The title “They’re Hanging Me Tonight” is pretty self-explanatory. This album is an absolute pleasure to listen to. Stick to the original twelve tracks and you get just over 35 minutes of pure enjoyment. (The CD adds three bonus tracks, including the original mono version of the massive hit “El Paso.”) Marty Robbins is a wonderful singer with a warm, expressive voice. By modern standards he uses rather a lot of vibrato—a common feature in country—but it never becomes annoying. While listening I kept wondering: Robbins came to prominence slightly before Elvis Presley. Presley, who also started in country, exploded when he crossed over into the contemporary, black-influenced music of the time. Listening to Robbins’ voice, you can imagine a similar path—musically, at least. He didn’t have Presley’s looks or sex appeal, though he did have disastrously right-wing political views, an obsessive love of NASCAR racing (which he funded with his music income and occasionally did quite well in), and a heart condition from a young age. He died at 57, having released 52 studio albums. Right. Back to the music. Twelve songs, lots of lyrics, relatively short runtime—you’d expect musical simplicity. And yes, it’s simple, but never dull. A gently ticking drummer, a bassist, acoustic guitar as the backbone, and a prominent male backing choir. That choir does date the album somewhat (though far less offensively than Ray Charles’ barbershop backing vocals), but it’s never distracting. The bassist deserves a mention. Bob Moore mostly plays tonic–fifth patterns—root note, fifth, back and forth—creating that wonderfully bouncy PLOEM-ploem rhythm. It’s incredibly effective here. And yes, this is the same Bob Moore who played on early Elvis recordings. That iconic bass line on “Fever”? Same guy. One warning: don’t listen on headphones. Like many albums of this era it uses constructed stereo. Music hard right, choir hard left, Robbins dead centre. Extreme panning, and frankly unbearable. Picking standout tracks is almost pointless. There are no weak songs. The big hits “Big Iron” and “El Paso” are obvious highlights. One more thing worth noting: despite the brevity of the songs, they contain more key changes than Chic’s eight-and-a-half-minute “Good Times” (which has none). Try “The Hanging Tree”—technically a bonus track, but still illustrative. This album never reaches genius level; the music is too simple for that. But it is immensely enjoyable, expertly crafted, and completely confident in what it does. Bang bang.
I came to Marty Robbins pretty late in life, but maybe that's a good thing. Younger, hipper, try-harder me would've shrugged him off as unbelievably uncool. Which he is not. These songs are great - stories of the Old West, sung with feeling and panache. Marty has a wonderful voice. The guitar work is intriguing and beautiful. "Big Iron" and "El Paso" especially are masterpieces. This is a VERY strong FOUR STARS
l’impression d’être dans le pub où lucy gray chante dans hunger games ballad of songbirds and snakes je tape du pied quoi c’est entraînant #usa
Muziek waar je vrolijk van wordt, ondanks de teksten
Tof
What a jolly Album, reminds me of something my grandparents would love. Also could easily be in the Fallout series soundtrack
It really paints a picture, but it also makes me wonder why cowboys liked such dandy sounding music.
Very cool album and what a voice! I actually knew Marty Robbins from a playlist I made a few years ago called 'Best Story Songs' and had "Sante Fe" on the list. He has the voice you picture when you think of Western songs, just like Johnny Rotten has the voice of Punk. It's crazy how much Chuck Berry, Elvis, and the Beatles changed things for music. Great listen and is a leader for the genre but not my favorite type of music.
Super classic. Definitely lyrically driven, so not much of a background listen. Better to listen again while reading the lyrics. The sound of his voice with the harmonies is haunting, kind of creepy actually. I can see it playing in a horror movie. I can see the creepy cowboys from the Primus "Big Brown Beaver" video in my head and it makes the music even more unsettling.
I liked it, it was Def out of my usual taste but it reminds me of my grandpa and I love the song El Paso. I liked 4 or 5 of them and I’d rate the album 4/5.
fuck yes
Every song on this kind of sounds like every other song but it’s ok because it’s a song that I like
Every song is gold, everything is cohesive as well. My first 5 and it was immediate, how can you not love this.
I quickly got the idea but actually found it quite uplifting
Fun!
He plays both types of music. Country and Western.
I didn’t think this was going to be my thing, but after a few songs I was into it. I can hear where Orville Peck maybe got some inspiration.
Love this man. Always have, always will.
Aside from the constant playing of Big Iron in Fallout: New Vegas, I don't think I've listened to any Marty Robbins since the late 80s, so having this one pop up yesterday was a pleasant surprise. I do like Robbins' sound, and this album is a nice mix of country ballads that seriously invokes old-school westerns. For the nostalgia alone, I'm going to give this one 4.5 out of 5 stars.
I do like country quite a bit, and even though I'm not as well versed as real genre die-hards, I'd like to think I have an honest appreciation of what the genre is at it's best. However, you would not necessarily know this from my record on this website. I've enjoyed most country I've heard here, but not really been floored by any of it, and I honestly think it's kind of a curatorial issue. I think the authors of this book did a pretty good job, but I think there are a couple of gaping holes in the country selection here, particularly as far as ~60s-ish stuff goes. As a couple of examples, Glen Campbell and Townes Van Zandt are both *entirely* absent from this list, which is almost criminal. These musicians have created several of my favorite country songs *ever*, and I think Townes Van Zandt is one of the greatest American songwriters ever. What does this have to do with Marty Robbins? Very little. Do I mostly just want an excuse to mention these artists? Probably. But I also bring this up since the list has finally seen fit to give me a country album that I truly love. I don't think Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs is perfect, but its best songs may be. Firstly, let's get this out of the way: that isn't just a title, this album does consist pretty much entirely of gunfighter ballads and trail songs. I generally think the gunfighter ballads are the stronger of the two categories. And they are *very* strong. Some of these songs contain some of the finest storytelling in the history of country and western. They are all "Gunfighter Ballads", so there isn't a ton of variety in subject matter, but this subject matter is presented in a wide variety of ways. We have stories from the perspective of outlaws, rangers, strangers and disembodied narrators. Robbins explores various tones, and you never feel like you can assume "good" will triumph in the end. These songs are visual, and poetic, and masterclasses in building suspense. Big Iron is the most legendary song from this album. And it has earned this status. Big Iron manages to be both a fantastic country composition and a stirring micro-Western. The way the narrative unfolds almost feels like watching a short film. Billy The Kid feels convincingly like you've been cornered by a talented troubadour. And The Master's Call is a unique song among the others here. It is the tale of an outlaw turning to Jesus after miraculously surviving a storm. And even though I would not presently self-describe as Christian, the presentation here is incredible. It captures Christian music through the lens of cowboy mysticism. And the result leans into what feels almost like magical realism in the way that some of the more interesting stories of the Catholic saints feel like magical realism. God is presented as an interventionalist force of nature, and it is unique and refreshing to hear in a world of evangelical music. As I implied earlier, I am a touch less floored by the "trail songs", but they are still solid and still serve a purpose. They are vital in maintaining immersion in this album's world and stringing the center-pieces together. And even if the story telling isn't as flashy, there are very much still echoes of what makes the highs on this album so great. That being said, I am less inclined to revisit these songs, even though I think they are justified within a full album setting. I'd also like to mention that of all the '50s music I have heard through this project (so far), I think this may be the lead contender for the album that has aged the best. The core of these songs is a person and a guitar, and there are embellishments, but you could effectively perform these solo without making huge changes to the guitar parts. And this framework lends itself very well to frank, earnest songwriting. Which is why you can still find young people making music that resembles this, it's a medium which naturally lends itself to earnest expression. Contrast this with something like Elvis' Rock and Roll. You *can* still find artists tapping into a sound which directly recalls Elvis, but it's almost always a subversion or pastiche of the sound. And even if the artists in question have an earnest love of the source material, the art they are making serves a different objective than this source material. In short, the simplicity and honesty of the presentation here lends Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs a timelessness that it wears well. Marty Robbins delivered a landmark in country here, and the storytelling across this album absolutely still holds up. The trail songs make things a tad uneven, but the full picture kind of needed them. This is pretty excellent, and I feel happy with what I will officially call "a high 4".
2/5 No início você se sente no deserto texano em 1850. A piada, no entanto, fica velha rápido, e o álbum é unidimensional.
Big iron took me back to my youth playing new vegas. Goot times. Overall fun album
I am insnaely biased because of my time in New Vegas, but this album sets the perfect mood for a lone adventurer venturing into a pastiche of America we do not see anymore
Very one note. But the guy's s backstory was fun to read.
I was surprised but I actually liked it, western cowboy staple ig interesting
MNT
Overall relatively fun and catchy. Makes me feel like I need a horse!
Can see maybe the influence to Johnny Cash on this traditional cowboy album. Good storytelling in the lyrics.
Such a classic. Perpetuated the current pop cultural idea of cowboys, so that's a solid knock against it. Too bad its such a tasty jam of an album.
Day747 - definitely in on the gunfighter songs, el paso, billy the kid and big iron.
Really enjoyed this, great voice somewhat reminiscent of Johnny Cash. Also love a story song so very fun.
'El Paso' is a complete banger.
Hokey honky-ass shit.
Musik aus der Zeit, in der Cowboys noch die Helden waren. Für die Zeit eine gute Pop/Country Mischung. Mittlerweile etwas angestaubt. 2/5
Listened previously. Expectations: High - Verdict: Very Good - Really, really good western music. The thing holding this back for me is the fact that I know what a song like El Paso can become in the hands of the Grateful Dead.
Really cool relic of its time. Not something. I’ll go back and revisit much but worth hearing once , if I’m ever in the mood for something like this in the future
One of my favorites. It's worth listening to the whole thing, but I do find that it gets pretty repetitive; still, it reaches a really high high with Big Iron and El Paso.
A lot of the songs sound the same, but I like the sound.
It's fine but learning this guy was a right wing douche his whole life kinda sours the whole thing.
Great American country tunes! I know El Paso from the Grateful Dead / Bobby versions (RIP Bobby!).
Love this guy’s voice. It’s hard to feel anything negative or bad while listening to this.
top 3 - Big Iron, Billy The Kid, Running Gun. Not for me. I like his voice though! Same for the stories.
I do like some old school country like Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Hank Williams, and even all the way back to The Carter Family. But, I have never even heard of the name Marty Robbins. Or if I did, it did not stick in my brain. First impression - this is some corny, old timey music that reminds me of Burl Ives singing Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer - or something like that. After a few listens of the whole album, it started slightly growing on me. As soon as El Paso came on, I realized that I have heard that one somewhere before but couldn't place where or when. Perhaps from Breaking Bad? Could be. I also noticed some similarities between Marty's singing style and Roy Orbison. Not sure if they influenced each other or not - couldn't find evidence of that online. Some of the characters in these songs also reminded me of the types of characters found in the songs on Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska album - which is one of my all time favorite albums. Though I like the sound of Bruce's record so much more. Makes me wonder if Bruce is familiar with Marty Robbins. Another thought - I wonder if hip hop fans would like this since it's a lot about killing people that crossed your path or took your girl - so has some similarities thematically. Bottom line - it's ok, and I ended up clicking like on 5 songs (Big Iron, 160 Acres, They're Hanging Me Tonight, Cool Water, El Paso). They say he was influential on the "outlaw" country genre - but I'm not sure I see the connection. I'll probably never listen to the whole album again, but wouldn't mind these handful of songs popping up on my playlists. Liked songs on Spotify: 5/15 Rating: 2/5
I genuinely don't know how to rate this, but it does inspire me to be brave so I'll give it 3 stars. I love a lot of country/western/folk/American music. I grew up in the American south listening to a lot of country. This album is like the foundational sound of the "western" in country and western music (which is it's formal name). But, as with so many albums on this list, as much as I can recognize something influential or foundational or stylized in this album, I just don't want to listen to it. Maybe one-off songs here and there, but listening to the entire album in a sitting was a bit painful.
Dainos visiskai taip pat skamba it aint bad but like TIKRAI nesiklausyciau tokio albumo
Transports you through time
363/1089 - The singing is very solid. I found a lot of the songs very similar to each other. For example: Big Iron, The Master's Call, and Saddle Tramp are practically the same song and I think they should have just picked one (Big Iron) or used a significantly different arrangement. Saddle Tramp is somewhat different being in a different meter and all, and I think more choices like that should have been made in the arrangements throughout the album.
this is definitely not my thing but funny little listen!! Kinda enjoyed They're Hanging Me Tonight.. confused that El Paso is both track 10 and track 15..... lol really thought The Hanging Tree was gonna be the song of the same name from The Hunger Games lol it was not.
It's an ok, dated cowboy country album. Nicely sung and played. A pleasant listen. 3/5
Jeg gir alle disse albumene en sjanse bare så det er sagt altså… å Big Iron har jeg jo hørt før!!! Hørte dog ikke hele albumet
Vocals and tune super good throughout, but a lot of repeats of melodies with different lyrics
Yes, Fallout, we all love Fallout, but this is also a fantastic album. Sure, some of the songs start to sound the same, but Robbins’ voice is so straight and pure, beautifully telling us the various stories of good guys and bad guys featured here. The production is crisp, and it does feel like gathering around the campfire to hear a tale. Very enjoyable listen.
This album is actually pretty great. It's a very cinematic one, which gets you into a Western movie (just that it's in your head). Marty Robbins sings really well too. I've enjoyed it so much.
Fun Wild West stories (—and, in my age range, inextricably linked with Fallout: New Vegas.)
такий дуже хороший старий вайб я прям когбудтоби попала в америкоський бар 50х хожу собі в платтячках в горошек і мейджор чубчик і п'ю піво цей бро не оч оригінальний в назвах пісень хороший альбом щоб слухати на фоні, але він абсолютно не цікавий своєю композицією
Overall: 8/10 Vocals: 8/10 Lyrics: 8/10 Instruments: 8/10 Likely to listen again: 8/10 Good album, each song has its own story. It is like old-fashion western small town music, robins has a good raspy old-timey voice.
This is a good album its definitely got that late 50’s early 60’s vibes and the songs are pretty catchy. It also just a very chill album and I could see myself listening to these songs when I just want to chill. I think my top three songs are the masters call, they’re hanging me tonight, and Utah Carrol. I think that the worst song is a hundred and sixty acres.
Country isn't really my thing, but this is okay.