COWBOY LIBRETTOSongs With a Face: The Essential Cindy Walker
LISTEN AND EXPLOREFrom a pink Royal typewriter in Mexia, Texas, Cindy Walker crafted over 650 songs that defined the emotional vocabulary of Western Swing and country music. This essential playlist traces her six-decade career through the recordings that made stars of Bob Wills, Ray Charles, Jim Reeves, and countless others—songs that, in Walker's words, possess 'a face' that makes them instantly recognizable.
Western Swing Classics (The Bob Wills Collaborations)
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1Cherokee MaidenBob Wills & His Texas Playboys1941Walker's breakthrough Western Swing composition, a romantic ballad that became one of Wills' signature songs
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2Dusty SkiesBob Wills & His Texas Playboys1941Written when Walker was twelve, inspired by Dust Bowl newspaper accounts, capturing the era's environmental and human tragedy
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3You're From TexasBob Wills & His Texas Playboys1944Walker's first top-ten country hit, a prideful celebration of Texas identity
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4Miss MollyBob Wills & His Texas Playboys1942A jaunty dance number so beloved that both Bob Wills and Johnny Cash named daughters after Cindy
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5Sugar MoonBob Wills & His Texas Playboys1947Co-written with Bob Wills, demonstrating the collaborative chemistry that defined their partnership
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6Bubbles in My BeerBob Wills & His Texas Playboys1948Co-written with Tommy Duncan, a honky-tonk classic about drowning sorrows that became a barroom standard
The Country Standards
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7You Don't Know MeRay Charles1962Originally recorded by Eddy Arnold (1956), but Charles' soul interpretation transformed it into one of the greatest ballads of unrequited love in American popular music
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8Warm Red WineErnest Tubb1949A honky-tonk classic showcasing Walker's ability to write hard-core country
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9Take Me in Your Arms and Hold MeEddy Arnold1950A tender ballad that demonstrates Walker's skill with romantic material
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10Dream Baby (How Long Must I Dream)Roy Orbison1962Walker initially lacked confidence in this song, but Orbison's recording became a crossover hit; later covered successfully by Glen Campbell (1971) and Lacy J. Dalton (1983)
The Jim Reeves Collaborations
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12This is ItJim Reeves1965Posthumous release demonstrating the enduring quality of Walker's Reeves material
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13Distant DrumsJim Reeves1966Another posthumous hit that became one of the most poignant records of the Vietnam War era
Crossover and Revival
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14Blue Canadian RockiesThe Byrds1968Originally written for Gene Autry (1952), revived by the Byrds on Sweetheart of the Rodeo, introducing Walker's work to the country-rock movement
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15In the Misty MoonlightDean Martin1967Also recorded by Jerry Wallace (1964), showing Walker's ability to write for pop crooners as well as country artists
Contemporary Interpretations
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16You Don't Know MeWillie Nelson2006From Nelson's tribute album released days before Walker's death
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17Cherokee MaidenAsleep at the Wheel1970sDemonstrating how Walker's Western Swing compositions found new audiences during the 1970s roots revival