Liz Anderson - Country Style
In this week's episode we're featuring a 1969 album from prolific songwriting and singing talent Liz Anderson: "Country Style". After relocating from North Dakota, The Andersons moved to Southern California and by the end of the decade, demand was growing for Liz Anderson's songwriting. She'd routinely host many of The West Coast's greats in her living room for picking parties and song pitching opportunities and those connections paid off with her first real hit as a songwriter coming in 1961 when Del Reeves cut "Be Quiet Mind". She was an instrumental part of Merle Haggard's early career (Liz Anderson's "(My Friends Are Gonna Be) Strangers" proved the inspiration for The Hag's band name if you need any further proof of Anderson's importance), and Chet Atkins signed her to RCA in 1965. Liz Anderson enjoyed a few hits while at that label but was too often pushed towards fluffy semi-novelty material for sustained success. And while Anderson didn't possess the down-home twang of Loretta or the hurting of Tammy Wynette, to this reviewer's ears she did have some of Kitty Wells' plaintive stylings and her everywoman vocal is right at home on "Country Style".