Kyle Park "The Big Time" (Lazy SOB/Winding Road, 2005)

Kyle Park "Anywhere In Texas" (Winding Road, 2008)

Kyle Park "Spring, 2010" (EP) (Winding Road, 2010)

Kyle Park "Fall, 2010" (EP) (Winding Road, 2010)

Kyle Park "Make Or Break Me" (Winding Road, 2011)

Gram Parsons - see artist discography

Dolly Parton - see artist discography

Johnny Paycheck - see artist discography

Leon Payne "I Love You Because" (Bear Family, 1999)
Payne was one of the more mysterious songwriters from the '50s honkytonk scene... But if George Jones recorded a whole album full of his material, well, there's probably a reason. As a singer, Payne wasn't exactly top-flight, but like Harlan Howard, he had his charms. The earliest material on here, at the disc's start, has some unfortunate fake-black shuckin'-and-jivin', along the lines of Red Foley's "Tennessee Saturday Night"... Not quite outright blackface minstrel material, but in the same neighborhood. If you can get over the rough start, though, this CD has a nice payoff, with some fairly straightforward honkytonk singing. Not stellar, but compelling, particularly since the songs are so well-written.

Leon Payne "Lost Highway" (BACM, 2005)
More solo stuff from songwriter Leon Payne. This collection is a perfect compliment to the Bear Family disc listed above -- different songs and even rarer material. A real boon to Payne's fans. (Available through the British Archive of Country Music specialty label.)

Hank Penny "Crazy Rhythm: The Standard Transcriptions" (Bloodshot/Soundies, 2000)
What the hell are you waiting for? Go get this disc now. For sheer fun value, this is one of the best releases in Bloodshot's new Soundies series, made up of old radio transcription recordings... Penny was one of western swing's most impish, playful performers, and also one of the fellows who had the deepest connections to the jump blues scene that blossomed alongside the postwar country boom. Penny regularly covered popular R&B tunes, and found his own songs picked up by blues bands (most notably, Louis Jordan's version of "Bloodshot Eyes"). The thirty tracks on this CD are all killer -- ranging from bouncy, upbeat novelty tunes to quite pleasant romantic schmaltz. A hefty chunk of the songs are Hank Penny originals, and the other are pretty well chosen, top-notch material. Although Penny is often cited as a favorite by revivalists such as The Dave and Deke Combo and Big Sandy, his material is pretty hard to find. Although another recent collection on the Krazy Kat label was pretty disappointing, this disc is HIGHLY recommended. Like I said, go get it. Now. What the hell are you waiting for?

Hank Penny "Flamin' Mamie: 1938-1941" (Krazy Kat, 2004)
Penny's early years during the rough-and-tumble birth of western swing, when blues and jazz collided with hillbilly stringband music... Cool historical document; when I check it out later, I'll give y'all a full review.

Hank Penny "Hollywood Western Swing: 1944-1947" (Krazy Kat, 2000)
This collection was fairly disappointing -- especially in comparison to the Soundies disc reviewed above. I'm not sure why. The material is pretty good; mostly scrappy indie-label material with a heavy blues flavor. Maybe it's just the pacing of the disc. Or maybe I'm just nuts. But if you're a Hank Penny fan -- or even just curious -- you should check this disc out. Don't listen to me.

Hank Penny "The Penny Opus #1" (Jasmine, 2000)

Hank Penny "Hillbilly Be-Bop -- The King Anthology: 1944-1950" (Westside, 2002)

Hank Penny "King Of Hillbilly Bebop" (Proper, 2005)
A budget-priced 2-CD set; not sure what the sound quality is like, but it's probably worth checking out if you haven't found any of the others listed above.

Jackie Phelps "Golden Guitar Classics: The Ten Talented Fingers Of Jackie Phelps" (Starday, 1963) (LP)

Jackie Phelps & Jimmie Riddle "Stars Of Hee Haw & The Grand Ole Opry" (Gusto, 2005)
Veterans of Roy Acuff's Opry band, and later members of the Hee-Haw TV show, guitarist Jackie Phelps and harmonicat Jimmie Riddle played mostly instrumental numbers, although there are a few vocal tunes on here as well. An interesting example of how the old-school country variety show performers kept chugging away in the more modern TV-show era.

Jackie Phelps & Buck Owens "Buck Owens At His Best" (Gusto, 2006)

The Phelps Brothers "Two Decades Of Country Music By..." (Binge Disc, 1998)
This is fairly marginal material, one of the few Binge Disc releases that I haven't been totally ga-ga over... The Phelps Brothers were a rather rough-hewn brother duo, and made only a slight impression on the country scene of the 1950s... Years later, the home tapes were rolling when they recorded some loosey-goosey blues sessions, with a lackadaisical electric guitar at the center of things. Those home tapes make up the bulk of this disc, and they aren't really that exciting. You can skip this one.

Charlie Phillips "Sugartime" (Bear Family, 2011)

Stu Phillips "A Journey Through The Provinces" (Bear Family, 1993)
Solo acoustic work from a Canadian country star who hit the big-time in Nashville's Grand Ole Opry. These recordings were made for a Canadian indie in the late 1950s, before Phillips headed down South for the big lights of Music City.

Stu Phillips "You Love The Hurt Away" (Watermark, 1997)
An all-gospel album...

The Pickard Family "Walking In The Parlour: Old Time Playing And Singing" (BACM, 2005)
(Available through the British Archive of Country Music specialty label.)

Fiddling Jack Pierce "...And The Oklahoma Cowboys" (BACM, 2005)
(Available through the British Archive of Country Music specialty label.)

Webb Pierce - my hero!!

Charlie Poole "Volume One: Old Time Songs Recorded From 1925 To 1930" (County, 1994)

Charlie Poole "Volume Two: Old Time Songs Recorded From 1926 To 1930" (County, 1996)

Charlie Poole "Volume Three: Old Time Songs Recorded From 1926 To 1930" (County, 1999)

Charlie Poole/Various Artists "You Ain't Talkin' To Me" (Sony Legacy, 2005)
This fascinating 3-CD set sheds light on the career of country music pioneer Charlie Poole, whose Depression-era recordings helped set the standard for the energy level and professionalism of the new musical style, and who recorded many songs that became hillbilly standards for decades to some. This set is unusual, however, in that it spotlights not only Poole's work, but the recordings of several of his contemporaries, rivals and imitators in the 1920s and '30s, artists such as Arthur Collins, Kelly Harrell, Uncle Dave Macon, Ford Van Eps, and numerous craggy old-time stringbands from the pre-bluegrass, pre-swing, pre-honkytonk era. There's plenty of homespun humor, salty raunchiness, bluesy twang and several dazzling tracks, including whizbang instrumentals like Dave Macon's amazing "Uncle Dave's Beloved Solo." Poole emerges as an immensely charismatic figure, and hearing him in the full context of his times is a treat. If you just want to hear Poole by himself, the old anthologies on the County label will do ya right, but this is a fun, well-thought out collection... Recommended!

Charlie Poole "...With The North Carolina Ramblers And The Highlanders" (Proper, 2005)

Groovey Joe Poovey "The Late, Great Me" (Koch/Little Darlin', 2004)
A Texas rockabilly dude who hung out long enough to slide back into country, and then went retro-billy when the country stuff didn't work out, Poovey was definitely a minor leaguer, though some of his slower, more hillbilly stuff is kind of nice. There's a lot of perfunctory rockabilly revival stuff on here (Elvis covers, etc...) and that does very little to stir and excite me, but the handful of tunes he recorded under the pseudonym "Johnny Dallas" is kinda cool, notably Heart Full Of Love" and "What's Gonna Happen To The Little Folks" (an awkward little weeper that picks up where Tammy Wynette's "D-I-V-O-R-C-E" left off...) This isn't great music, but for those of us who like to mine the off-the-radar stuff, it has its moments. 'Billy fans who like Sleepy LaBeef may dig this guy as well.

Groovey Joe Poovey "Greatest Grooves" (Dragon Street, 1999)
An overview of his career that centers on his early rockabilly, but also stretches out to include some late-'70s honkytonk and a couple of Christmas novelty tunes.

Ray Price - see artist discography

John Prine - see artist discography

Orval Prophet "The Travellin' Kind" (Bear Family, 1999)
Well, in my book, you just gotta root for someone with a name as goofy as this guy, on principle alone. One of Canada's hopeful prodigals, Prophet rode onto moderate fame in the wake of Hank Snow's 1951 US breakthrough, even going down South to record a bunch of sides with a crew of crackerjack Nashville pickers in the Decca studios. He shared Snow's soft-edged Canuck grumble, but it's combined with a mousy warble that was a fairly comedic reflection of Mac Wiseman's more accomplished tenor. (What is it about Canadians and their voices? Did Neil Young hear Prophet's records when he was a lad??) Anyway, despite his vocal shortcomings, Prophet had a lot on the ball, mostly the strength of his sentimental, old-fashioned material. If you like Hank Snow, this fellow is well worth checking out as well... Also included on here are a handful of rock-era teenpop-ish tunes recorded under the name "Johnny Six" (which I sincerely doubt fooled anyone, but are still kinda cute...) Cool record.

Whitey Pullen "Country Music Star" (Crown, 1963)
It's kind of a stretch to call Dwight Pullen (who also went by the names Whitney or Whitey Pullen) a "country star..." He never came near the country charts, and is primarily associated with the 'Fifties rockabilly scene, having been Gene Vincent's manager back in the glory days. Still, this is an interesting LP, gathering together numerous obscure singles Pullen cut for indie labels in the late '50s and early '60s, many of which are no doubt collector's items among the retrobilly crowd... Side One of the album is poppy rockabilly -- a bit too smooth, maybe, but not bad -- while Side Two actually does get into some bona fide country material, mostly milky ballads, but some stuff with grit as well. Pullen didn't have much of a voice, but this is still worth checking out if you get a chance -- there are a few okay songs, and his heart seems to have been in the right place.

Whitey Pullen "Sunglasses After Dark" (Hydra, 2005)

Hick Music Index