Sweethearts of the Rodeo / One Time, One Night

Sweethearts of the Rodeo was the duo of sisters Janis (former wife of Vince Gill) and Kristine Oliver. While they found success at country radio, they were more prone to describing their sound as country-tinged rockabilly, in the vein of The Everly Brothers. That's a very good description of the music found on their first two albums, Sweethearts of the Rodeo (1986) and One Time, One Night (1988).

Thanks to the folks at Collectables Records, these two albums are available together on one CD. These were their first and most successful albums, spawning all their biggest hit singles. As bonus tracks, Collectables tacked on their other three charted singles, making this disc a complete retrospective of hits.

The song that drew my interest to Sweethearts of the Rodeo is the opening track of this disc, "Midnight Girl/Sunset Town." I think it's an amazing song. I would rate it amongst the top songs in any genre, in large part because of the masterful songwriting of Don Schlitz. (And because school is occasionally good for something, I got to hear Schlitz himself do a little bit of "Midnight Boy/Sunset Town" and talk a bit about the inspiration behind it. Great guy, great song, great experience.)

Tracks:
1. Midnight Girl/Sunset Town
See above. This one was a big hit, and deservedly so.

2. Hey Doll Baby
This is an old R&B tune that had been a hit for The Clovers. The Sweethearts took on eclectic material, but they did it well. This one was a fairly big hit.

3. Since I Found You
Another big hit from the album. Not as memorable as some of the other singles, but good.

4. Gotta Get Away
I'd not heard this one before, but it's quite good. Yet another big hit from the album.

5. Chains of Gold
Nice song. Not the strongest on here but good. Also a big hit.

6. Chosen Few
Very clever song, in my opinion. Another Schlitz songwriting credit.

7. Everywhere I Turn
This one almost sounds Buddy Holly-influenced to me. It's a great song! Janis Oliver cowrote it.

8. I Can't Resist
To end the self-titled album, the Sweethearts slowed it down a bit on this one. Rodney Crowell co-wrote this tune. The harmonies on this are beautiful. It reminds me of something Roy Orbison might have tackled in his heyday. I think it was a good idea to focus this album on uptempos, which the pair does very well, but this is a very strong slower selection.

9. Satisfy You
The opening track from One Time, One Night was also its first single, and yet another big hit for the Sweethearts. Don Schlitz and Janis Oliver did the writing for this one. The theme is a familiar one, but the song works very well.

10. Blue to the Bone
This sounds like an updated version of "Lovesick Blues" to me. It's nothing special, in my opinion, but it's not bad. It was another big hit.

11. We Won't Let That River Come Between Us
A Kevin Welch cowrite. Nice tune. I like the lyrics on this one. It doesn't showcase their vocal style as well as some of the other tracks, though. Still, a good tune and further evidence of the Sweethearts' diversity.

12. So Sad (To Watch Good Love Go Bad)
A remake of the old Everly Brothers hit. They do it very well, keeping that sibling harmony duo effect strong.

13. Don't Look Down
Further evidencing the diversity of their material is this song, which bears a Lindsey Buckingham cowriting credit. This isn't surprising, as there is a faint rock influence on this, but for the most part it sticks to the rockabilly the Sweethearts do so well. Strong song.

14. One Time, One Night
The album's title track is a good one. Lyrics contain some good subtle commentary.

15. You Never Talk Sweet
Another Janis cowrite with Schlitz. Kind of a different, perhaps some more modern way of addressing the same topic as "So Sad." Quality track.

16. I Feel Fine
This remake of the big Beatles hit became another big Sweethearts hit. Adapting Beatles songs to other genres is always a tricky affair, and when it's not done properly, the results tend to be nearly unlistenable. Thankfully, that is not the case here. This arrangement works very well, and the song remains great.

17. If I Never See Midnight Again
The last single from the album was a moderate hit. In my opinion, it deserved better. Schlitz cowrote it, and it's a lyrically creative and poetic expression of love. It may have been too sophisticated for the average listener. I can't think of any other good reason why it wouldn't have become huge.

18. Gone Again
This is a decent song about life on the road. It's not one of the better songs on the album, but it's worth a listen.

19. Until I Stop Dancing
One Time, One Night closes with this track. Not a bad choice. It's quite pretty.

20. This Heart
The first bonus track is their final top 40 hit and only charting single from their 1990 album Buffalo Zone. It's a very rockabilly-sounding song and it's quite good.

21. Hard-Headed Man
The second bonus track is another Don Schlitz cowrite. It was a minor hit in 1991 from the Sisters album. It's a clever take on the subject of men that deserved better. "When I say yes / He says no / When I want to stay / He says come on baby let's go / He'll roar like a lion / Then he'll cry like a man / But when it all comes down to me / He's tender as can be / He's a hard-headed, soft-hearted man."

22. Devil and Your Deep Blue Eyes
The third bonus track was the final Sweethearts song to chart, though just barely. It too comes from the Sisters album. It's more of what they do well, and while it's not quite as striking a track as "Hard-Headed Man," it's still quite good and didn't deserve to tank.

So there you have it. The folks at Collectables have done a nice job with this disc. It's perfect for those looking for an overview of the Sweethearts' most popular songs, and even those looking for a more complete picture of their career will likely find this disc to be a fine starting point. While their popularity didn't last long, the Sweethearts of the Rodeo made some undeniably good music.