Highwayman

Editors’ Notes Easily the greatest country supergroup of all time, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson formed a consecrated quartet of outlaw twang that yielded a couple of chart toppers. A slightly Texas-toned take on Jimmy Webb’s “Highwayman” (one of the album’s two hits) opens boldly as each country legend takes a verse over Chips Moman’s production – a glossy studio sheen that nicely contrasts the true grit of their weathered voices, especially when they all come in harmonizing together on an anthemic rendition of Guy Clark’s “Desperados Waiting for a Train” (the second hit here). Despite a loungy sounding electric jazz piano, Woody Guthrie’s “Deportee (Plane Wreck At Los Gatos)” gets a desolate bandito feel that can only be rivaled by The Byrds’ hipper version on their 1969 album Ballad of Easy Rider. Porter Wagoner may have recorded the definitive version of “Committed to Parkview,” on 2007’s Wagonmaster, but listening to The Man In Black’s original here is still sure to put a chill up your spine with its disturbing narrative and spooky western vibe.