Irish Songs, Country Style

By the early 1960s, Hank Locklin had become a successful recording artist. He had several major hits, including "Please Help Me, I'm Falling," "Geisha Girl" and "Send Me the Pillow That You Dream On." Many of these hits also became successful in Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom and Ireland.[2] In 1963, he embarked on a successful tour of Ireland where his shows drew large crowds. Locklin became so successful in Ireland, that he became inspired to record an album of traditional Irish songs. Locklin was also of Irish descent and believed the album would pay tribute to ancestry.[2][3]

Locklin recorded the album once returning to the United States. The sessions were cut in Nashville, Tennessee at the RCA Victor Studio. It was produced by Chet Atkins, who had also recorded Locklin's previous seven albums. The session musicians chosen for the recorded were part of The Nashville A-Team, which included Floyd Cramer, Grady Martin and The Jordanaires.[3] Irish Songs, Country Style was a collection of twelve tracks, all of which were traditional Irish songs recorded in a country fashion.[1][3] Songs on the album included "The Old Bog Road," "Danny Boy" and "Galway Bay."[3]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
Record Mirror	[4]

Irish Songs, Country Style was released in January 1964 via RCA Victor Records. It was Locklin's eighth studio release in his career.[3] The project was distributed as a vinyl LP, containing six songs on either side of the record.[5] No known singles were spawned from the album, unlike Locklin's previous studio releases.[6] In later years, it received a less favorable rating from Allmusic, who only gave it 2.5 out of 5 stars.[1] It was later released on a compact disc as part of a two-disc compilation set that also included various songs from his years at RCA Victor. This particular compilation received a favorable response from reviewer, Steve Leggett, who praised Locklin's voice and musical legacy. "Possessing a clear tenor voice and a knack as a songwriter for emotionally direct and deceptively simple songs, Hank Locklin was a bridge between country's rustic honky tonk roots and the lusher, modern pop sound of country that Nashville ushered in during the 1960s," he commented.[7]

All credits are adapted from the liner notes of Irish Songs, Country Style.[3]

Musical personnel

• Brenton Banks – strings
• George Binkley – strings
• Cecil Brower – strings
• Floyd Cramer – piano
• Ray Edenton – guitar
• Lillian Hunt – strings
• The Jordanaires – background vocals
• Jerry Kennedy – guitar
• Buddy Harman – drums
• Grady Martin – guitar
• Booker Rowe – strings

Technical personnel

• Chet Atkins – producer
• Bill Porter – engineer