Kris Kristofferson Takes After Other Country Icons & Re-Records His Greatest Hits
In the aftermath of the death of country music legend Merle Haggard, the hottest-selling album on iTunes became a Merle selection called 40 Greatest Hits. Listeners were looking for a bargain, and the title offered them the most bang for their buck. But the songs weren’t the iconic recordings that had made Merle such a revered artist over his long career, or the songs so many country music fans remembered. They were new versions Merle recorded in 2004 in a bid to recoup more money from his back catalog since he barely made any money off of those early major label recordings.
This move has been in practice in country music and beyond for many years. Loretta Lynn has been re-recording many of her most iconic songs with producer John Carter Cash at the Cash Cabin Studio outside of Nashville over the last few years, and some of those new recordings of old songs showed up on her first record in nearly 12 years called Full Circle. Word from the Loretta camp is more re-recordings will be coming out in the coming years as part of her deal with Sony’s Legacy imprint.
Now Kris Kristofferson is getting into the game, though this one has a slightly different twist. In the case of Loretta and Merle Haggard, they were attempting to re-create much of the magic of the old recordings. Kris Kristofferson’s The Cedar Creek Sessions is taking a more live approach to his most iconic compositions.
Recorded in the summer of 2014 at the Cedar Creek Studios in Austin, Texas, musicians Shawn Camp on lead guitar, Kevin Smith on bass, Michael Ramos on keyboard, and Mike Meadows on drums did live takes of Kristofferson’s old songs, with Shawn Camp and Tamara Saviano producing the project.
The other difference when it comes to the new Kristofferson recordings is that most of his iconic songs are known for renditions done by other artists, like Janis Joplin’s take on “Me and Bobby McGee,” and Johnny Cash’s version of “Sunday Morning Coming Down.” There will also be a song on the two volume, 25-track collection—“The Loving Gift”—that Kristofferson has never done a studio recording of before. Sheryl Crow also showed up to sing on a song, because apparently Sheryl Crow has to be involved in everything.
READ: 10 Badass Kris Kristofferson Moments
Now that Merle Haggard has passed on, Kris Kristofferson is one of the few remaining links to country music’s most iconic era of classic songwriting. Kristofferson has also been candid about his struggles with deepening memory loss, so any new recordings should be considered a treasure. Though some re-recodings pose a dilemma for listeners since their ears are so accustomed to the older recordings, The Cedar Creek Sessions may make an interesting addendum to Kristofferson’s catalog.
The Cedar Creek Sessions will be released June 17th—five days before Kristofferson’s 80th birthday.
Track Listing for The Cedar Creek Sessions:
Volume One
1. โDuvalierโs Dreamโย
2. โThe Loving Giftโย (with special guest Sheryl Crow)
3. โThe Sabre and the Roseโย
4. โThe Law is for the Protection of the Peopleโย
5. โIt No Longer Matters What I Doโย
6. โStagger Mountain Tragedyโย
7. โThe Wife You Saveโย
8. โLay Me Down and Love the World Awayโย
9. โThe Bigger the Fool (The Harder the Fall)โย
10. โSunday Morninโ Cominโ Downโย
11. โSpooky Ladyโs Revengeโย
12. โForever In Your Loveโย
13. โWinterโย
Volume Two
1. โDarbyโs Castleโย
2. โMe and Bobby McGeeโย
3. โBroken Freedom Songโย
4. โCaseyโs Last Rideโย
5. โBilly Deeโย
6. โEaster Islandโย
7. โFor the Good Timesโย
8. โHelp Me Make It Through the Nightโย
9. โJody and the Kidโย
10. โLoving Her Was Easier (Than Anything Iโll Ever Do Again)โย
11. โRisky Businessโย
12. โTo Beat the Devilโย
April 25, 2016 @ 6:46 pm
This is exciting news. I love his album Kristofferson but production sounds a little antiquated. I’d love to hear some of that stuff updated. Shawn Camp is great on stuff he’s done with Guy Clark. Can’t wait!
April 25, 2016 @ 6:53 pm
He has done this once before with the Austin Sessions in the late 90’s. It is essentially a single disc greatest hits but many of the songs were done with a duet/harmony partner including Alison Krauss, Steve Earle, Vince Gill and a number of others. It is a good record.
April 25, 2016 @ 7:14 pm
I was just about to comment about the Austin Sessions, before I saw Ron’s comment. Excellent album, released in 1999.
April 25, 2016 @ 7:17 pm
That’ll be awesome!!!!!! I can’t wait to buy the cd and listen to them!!!!!!
April 25, 2016 @ 7:19 pm
I believe Shawn Camp has done some writing with Loretta Lynn also. Think he was in that PBS special from awhile back.
For a guy who only had a couple of minor hits over twenty years ago he seems to have had a meaningful career as a writer, musician and producer.
April 25, 2016 @ 7:41 pm
No “Silver Tongued Devil”?
Seriously, though, Kristofferson is a treasure. The last iconic songwriter left, besides Leonard Cohen. Kristofferson is, and has always been, a better songwriter than everyone, including Dylan.
I might add that he puts on a hell of a show. Scaled down, and just the man, his guitar, his harmonica, and his voice.
April 25, 2016 @ 11:06 pm
A great writer to be sure, but the “last” iconic one? What about Billy Joe Shaver?
April 26, 2016 @ 5:47 am
I love Shaver but he’s not in the same class as Kristofferson, Cohen or Dylan; however, we do still have John Prine. Guy Clark’s pretty Damn close, too.
April 26, 2016 @ 7:16 am
Not outlaw, but Dean Dillion comes to mind as one of the best songwriters over the last 30 years. He has written lots of Honkytonk and western swing songs over the years.
April 26, 2016 @ 8:39 pm
Bobby Braddock as well but right or wrong I separate artists from the Music Row folks who 9-5 it.
April 26, 2016 @ 7:22 am
Wrong!
April 26, 2016 @ 5:31 pm
Wow Smitty did you really say Billy Joe Shaver wasnt in the same class? Biting my tongue literally. Wow…
April 26, 2016 @ 8:37 pm
Yes, I did and I stand by that.
Billy Joe is a legend but when it comes to songwriting, he’s no Dylan, Cohen, Townes Van Zandt or Kristofferson. That’s ok though; I can’t think of anyone else who is. Lennon/McCartney and Hank maybe.
There’s no shame in not being on Mount Rushmore. He’s still an amazing songwriter but he hasn’t written anything that can hold up to a “Tangled Up in Blue”, “Me & Bobby McGee”, “Bird on a Wire” or “Pancho & Lefty”. To be honest I don’t think he’s written a “Sam Stone” or “LA Freeway” either.
I’d put him on the same level as Jerry Jeff Walker; a legendary journeyman songwriter but ultimately not one of the greatest (although JJW’s “Mr. Bojangles” is a bona fide classic).
April 27, 2016 @ 9:01 am
WhatEver Smitty. I dont think any of us should be saying “not in the same class as” “on the same level as” about a songwriter/performer who has been covered by more people then i can even try to count…Just watched a DVD -Willie,Waylon,Kris,BillyJoe and Kimmie Rhodes recorded in 1996. Eddie Shaver doing his amazing guitar. God Bless Kris an WilleWaylon an the boys…..
April 27, 2016 @ 5:49 am
I’m listening to Billy Joe Shaver and I’m reading James Joyce.
– Bob Dylan
April 27, 2016 @ 6:26 am
Yeah, Dylan’s certainly a fan. He’s covered “Old Five and Diners” multiple times and maybe “Ain’t No God in Mexico” (although I don’t know if that’s a fabricated memory or not).
April 25, 2016 @ 10:38 pm
The good of re-recording your older works is that the recording process is so much better sounding. The bad thing is that these guys don’t have the voice they once had. Would be cool to take the old recordings and lift the vocals to add to newly recorded music.
April 25, 2016 @ 11:20 pm
The worst thing about re-recordings is that they’re almost never explicitly designated as such, so they gum up the system. It’s a nightmare to navigate the discographies of some of country music’s greats because of the sheer amount of re-recordings. Hag also did some redos of his material when he was with Curb in the ’90s, so that’s just one more set to confuse newcomers or older fans that just want one or two best ofs. Johnny Paycheck must have recorded the same set of songs no less than ten different times for different labels, and ironically those newer imitation recordings are easier to find than the originals.
That said, I enjoy when an artist re-records their material and gives it a new spin. It’s more about artistry than a quick buck in that regard. As has been noted, Kristofferson has done this before with 1999’s The Austin Sessions, and those recordings were mostly new takes on well-worn material. Clint Black has done this a few times as well, but only sparingly. As for Kristofferson’s voice aging, I don’t mean to be crass (and the man is still very much a treasure and a favorite of mine), but he never had much of a voice to begin with. In fact, I’d call his singing even at his peak mediocre to terrible at best. Like Bob Dylan, you don’t listen to Kristofferson for the vocals, you listen for the lyrics. The voice in these cases is merely a platform to experience those stories and rhymes.
Nonetheless, I’m still excited to hear these new recordings. Too bad Kris and Willie never got around to recording that album with Merle they had been talking about for years. Hopefully we can get another album or two of originals from Kris before he’s called to rest.
April 26, 2016 @ 12:00 am
That is true. I have gone on iTunes looking to download an old song that I don’t have on my computer only to find several versions of the song. I usually prefer albums to songs and don’t buy best of albums, but sometimes you just want that one track from back in the days.
April 26, 2016 @ 2:40 pm
For me it’s the opposite problem. Being a younger listener, I like to pick up a good overview of an artist’s career (a two-disc if I can help it) to see if I enjoy their music or not. If I do, I’ll usually start collecting their albums. If not, I’m content to have their signature recordings. But it’s usually frustrating to figure out which release to start with. Often the re-recordings offer more value, hence Hag’s 40 Greatest Hits as opposed to 15 or 20, and they’re usually easier to find due to their bargain bin pedigree. But re-recordings that strive to imitate the originals are almost always inferior, and I’m a purist to boot when it comes to recordings so I wouldn’t want redos over the originals. It’s a headache.
May 4, 2016 @ 5:30 am
I feel the same as you, original recordings every time. If your looking for a great Merle Haggard set (2 Discs) look no further than The Very Best Of Merle Haggard by EMI. This set covers his Capitol recordings from 1964-1978. Every song you would want is on here, apart from I’d say Today I Started Loving You Again. All original recordings. Here is a link. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Very-Best-Merle-Haggard/dp/B000R4S5Z6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1462364979&sr=8-1&keywords=merle+haggard
April 26, 2016 @ 6:07 am
And the good thing about that, in regards to this, is that Kristofferson wasn’t much known for his vocals anyhow. Haha
April 26, 2016 @ 10:19 am
I am kind of glad “The Pilgrim, Chapter 33” isn’t on there. The original is perfect.
April 26, 2016 @ 11:59 am
Have you heard the version on the Austin Sessions project? Not a big fan of the updated song. It lost it’s soul on the remake. You’re right, the original is perfect. Gonna be played at my funeral, if I have to die.
April 26, 2016 @ 4:50 pm
I agree with everyone who prefers originals over redos. Logically, anyone wants to hear a vocalist in their younger prime as opposed to an aging vocalist, its just the way it is. For me, even if you gotta hear an ocassional pop and crack in the original recordings, id still choose it over a redo, no question. I do admite Kris for attempting rather “remakes” hence changing the sound completely than what were used to. Im certainly gonna check it out. In regards to Kris’ voice, ive always kinda liked it. Great with words but rough around the edges, i think its very symbolic of his life and songs that came from it. It really suits his gospel and more spoken word cuts. Hearing that scragly voice talking in the intro of To Beat the Devil really sets the tone well. (Happens to be my favorite track as well.)
April 26, 2016 @ 10:21 pm
Never knew he was suffering memory loss. Thoughts with him and his family.
May 3, 2016 @ 4:59 pm
Love u Kris for the good times will never forget u and your great songs
May 19, 2016 @ 3:36 pm
Trigger, I just noticed that Legacy is also releasing a Kris Kristofferson box set on June 10 (one week before The Cedar Creek Sessions). It’s billed as “The Complete Monument & Columbia Album Collection”, though that’s a bit of a misnomer given that it’s apparently missing A Star Is Born (with Barbra Streisand), The Winning Hand (with Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton and Brenda Lee) as well as Music From Songwriter (with Willie). Though these are all duet or multi-artist affairs (and truthfully A Star Is Born is more about Streisand), the set includes Kristofferson’s collaboration with his then-wife Rita Coolidge Breakaway. If they were avoiding duets it would have made sense to leave these others out, but with this it’s just confusing.
Still, this set is important as it also includes three live albums (two previously unreleased) as well as a disc of extras a demos, the latter possibly an inclusion of the Please Don’t Tell Me How The Story Ends: The Publishing Demos 1968-72 release from 2010 (or Columbia’s own version of the same thing). This is a big deal: seven of these albums have been out of print since the mid-’90s, save for a brief run of two-fer CDs from Wounded Bird Records back in 2009. Sure, most of these are also available on digital services, but I still like CDs. All of these releases fetch ridiculous scalper prices online so I’m especially excited about this. I’ll finally get to complete my Kristofferson collection (save for a few of those duet albums that are still OOP)!
I know you’re busy so this isn’t an indictment (and truthfully I never mean it as one), but I’m surprised you haven’t covered this, Trigger (don’t hate me ๐ ). It was just announced on May 12th or so, so it could be that you didn’t notice (but I doubt it). It’s the same type of release as the Highwaymen box set and the DAC birthday reissues from a few years ago (Legacy is even pulling the same card with Kris here, citing this as a birthday release). I checked for any mention of this set in this article and didn’t come up with anything (though I merely scanned). I can’t be the only one that’s interested in this. My wallet’s going to be dry before the summer is over.
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/legacy-recordings-celebrates-kris-kristoffersons-80th-birthday-with-release-of-the-complete-monument–columbia-album-collection-on-friday-june-10-300267569.html
May 19, 2016 @ 7:21 pm
These box sets are getting released all of the time, and frankly I can’t keep up, and 100 other outlets have covered it in the media echo chamber. I cover album release announcements when either nobody else covers them, or there is an underlying story beyond the release. Frankly, few SCM readers can afford about this collection, and most already own the music. It’s interesting, but not necessarily newsworthy.
May 19, 2016 @ 9:19 pm
Aye, gotcha. Sometimes I forget as a younger fan that most people that want this music probably have it already, at least in Kristofferson’s case and other famous but not quite mainstream talent. Sorry about that. I just got extremely excited about it and was slightly bewildered that there wasn’t any news about it from SCM. I just happened to see it in the suggested items scroll on Amazon while checking out my Highwaymen Live pre-order. Hopefully there’ll be a Johnny Paycheck reissue of this type somewhere in the pipeline for Legacy. Obviously that won’t do anything for fans of his Little Darlin’ material (unless the label is feeling froggy and jumps on a licensing opportunity, which I seriously doubt), but it’s better than nothing on his end. As I recall, Kristofferson’s only ever had a few Gold-certified records; he was always more about the critical acclaim and other artists making his work famous. Paycheck actually had a few Platinum records to his name, so if we’re talking purely in terms of sales history he might have a decent chance since Legacy is showing interest in a lesser-selling artist here, among others. On the other hand, Kristofferson wasn’t a one-hit wonder, and while Paycheck technically wasn’t either his other material has slowly regressed into the shadow of “Take This Job and Shove It” as the years have worn on. Perhaps it’s due to his relatively early death that he wasn’t able to foster much of a proper legacy (that and the much lamented fact that he re-recorded everything a million times). At any rate, thanks for clearing that up. I’ll step off of my soapbox now.