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Claude King was a country music singer, songwriter and guitarist, born near the country music hub of Shreveport, Louisiana in 1923. He got a baseball scholarship to the University of Idaho, and served in the US Navy during WWII, before starting to play country music, joining the new radio show The Louisiana Hayride when it started broadcasting from Shreveport in 1948. Working in a band with future star Tillman Franks, he made his first records in 1947, and recorded occasionally during the ‘50s for Gotham in 1950, for Specialty in 1952, and DeeJay in 1957, before joining Columbia in 1961 and having a debut hit with his first single followed by his landmark country No. 1 with “Wolverton Mountain” in 1962. This 34 track 2-CD collection comprises all his A&B sides on the President, Gotham, Specialty, Dee-Jay and Columbia labels from these years, plus the tracks from his Columbia album “Meet Claude King” not otherwise released on singles. It features his US pop and country hits from this era, including the country No. 1 “Wolverton Mountain”, along with “Big River, Big Man”, “The Comancheros”, “The Burning Of Atlanta”, “I’ve Got The World By The Tail” and “Sheepskin Valley”. It’s as complete and substantial a collection as we could compile from this era, and it’s an admirable showcase for a distinctive and talented artist.
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