The Carlisles were a hillbilly country group formed in the early 1950s by Bill Carlisle, who had previously recorded with his brother Cliff as The Carlisle Brothers during the 1930s and ’40s until Cliff retired in 1950.

Bill, who was known as Jumpin’ Bill Carlisle, because of his habit of leaping around the stage, formed a new group under the name The Carlisles, that included singer/guitarists Betty Amos and Roy Sneed and bass player Ernie Newton, and they had several hits during the 1950s, continuing to record into the 1960s as their style evolved.

This 61-track set comprises most of their A- and B-sides for the Mercury and Columbia labels from era, along with EP and LP tracks, with guitarist Chet Atkins featured on many of the recordings. Also included are some Bill Carlisle solo releases for RCA. It features all their country hits as a group, including the No.1 No Help Wanted and the Top 10 hits Too Old To Cut The Mustard, Knothole, Is Zat You, Myrtle, and Tain't Nice (To Talk Like That), many of them typical of what Bill Carlisle called his “crazy songs”.

It’s a reasonably comprehensive overview of their recording career during this era, and is a thoroughly entertaining slice of unalloyed hillbilly country music, which makes few compromises even as they adapt their music to the pot rock ’n’ roll era.

REVIEWS

Featuring 61 performances, there's a lot going on in this retrospective. Old school harmonies, novelties, and boogies/pseudorockabilly and rock'n'roll - all on offer. It's a hugely entertaining release. - Howard Cockburn (Now Dig This Issue 459)