From This Pen/Get While the Gettin's Good

Liner Note Author: Jon Philibert.
Bill Anderson has had a remarkable career as a jack-of-all-trades in the entertainment world. He's been a radio DJ, sportswriter, journalist, talk show host, game show host, and for years he had a regular role in the soap opera One Life to Live. Known for his gentle singing voice and frequent spoken word narrations, Anderson also hit the country and pop charts frequently in the '60s and early '70s as a recording artist. Most importantly, though, he has always been a top-notch songwriter, and his songs have been recorded by seemingly everyone under the sun, from Brad Paisley to Aretha Franklin. This set combines two of his earliest albums for Decca Records, 1965's From This Pen and 1967's Get While the Gettin's Good. The 1965 LP features Anderson singing a dozen of his own compositions, including "Saginaw Michigan" (a hit for Lefty Frizzell), "City Lights" (a big hit for Ray Price in 1958), "The Tip of My Fingers" (a hit for Anderson in 1960, it was also a big hit for Steve Wariner in 1992), and "Still" (Anderson's signature tune; it was a hit in this version on both the country and pop charts in 1962), while the 1967 LP mixes in Anderson originals with re-imagined versions of the old country gospel song "A Satisfied Mind" (probably best known in the version done by Porter Wagoner), and Liz Anderson's "Ride, Ride, Ride," among other covers, and together like this, these two early albums show Anderson at his commercial peak, and they show as well a singer and songwriter who was a subtly quirky maverick even as he blended easily, naturally, and without clamor into the countrypolitain sound that was then dominate in Nashville. ~ Steve Leggett