CMH Records (County. Music. Heritage.) has been honoring several legacy releases by remastering them and making them available in digital format for the first time. Revived from the CMH archives, Merle Travis’ album Rough, Rowdy and Blue is out now on all digital and streaming platforms. The collection, first released on vinyl and cassette tape in 1986, showcases Grammy award winner Travis’ distinctive guitar picking.
Although he was known for his Country music, in 1982, just before his death, Merle sat down to pay tribute to the songs and stylings he always wanted to record. These special recordings of Travis playing the Blues on a 12-string guitar featured on his posthumous 1986 album.
The 12 original recordings feature Merle Travis performing some of his favorite Blues standards like “Cocaine Blues” and “Jelly Roll Blues.” The songs “Key to the Highway” and “On the Outskirts of Town” pay tribute to blues guitarist Big Bill Broonzy, while songs like “Whiskey,” “Honey, Take a Whiff on Me” and “Stack O’Lee” lend character to the album’s title: Rough, Rowdy and Blue.
Track List for Merle Travis’ Rough, Rowdy and Blue:
- Cocaine Blues
- Cairo
- Jelly Roll Blues
- Merry Christmas, Pretty Baby
- Key to the Highway
- (I’m Gonna Move Way Out) on the Outskirts of Town
- Stack O’Lee
- Whiskey
- Step It Up and Go
- Dry Bread
- Honey, Take A Whiff On Me
- Too Mean to Cry
