Al Dexter was a country singer, guitarist and songwriter who began his career in the era of hillbilly country in the 1930s, and helped to popularise the style of music known as “honky-tonk”, being probably the first country artist to use the term in a song when he wrote and recorded his first hit “Honky Tonk Blues” in 1936. He is most famous for writing and recording the hit song “Pistol-Packin’ Mama”, which was also a hit for Bing Crosby & The Andrews Sisters, The Pied Pipers, and in 1960 for Gene Vincent. His style was informal and unsophisticated, his songs dealing with the customary lifestyle-related themes of down-home country, while his recordings also included some fine instrumental performances.

These 54-tracks comprise selected A and B sides from his releases on the Vocalion, Okeh and Columbia labels. It features all his 16 career hits in the US pop and country charts, including the country No. 1s “Pistol-Packin’ Mama”, “Rosalita”, “Too Late To Worry”, “So Long Pal”, “I’m Losing My Mind Over You”, “Guitar Polka” and “Wine Women And Song”. It is worth noting that this success came in the years before the business of country music became more commercial and urbane. It’s an entertaining cross-section of his work, and admirably showcases the many facets of his style and talent.