This was a different era for Waylon. He moved to MCA, was using many studio musicians (but he still used his bass player, Jerry Bridges, studio ace and Waylon regular Reggie Young, and even the future head of his horn section, Jim Horn), and didn't start introducing his own compositions, really, until the last two albums, A Man Called Hoss and Full Circle which, in my opinion, are the two best of his MCA era.

Even though he was moving back to a fuller, more polished sound with his last few RCA albums, the sound with MCA was... quite different. In a way, it was the Nashville Sound all over again. Waylon said in his autobiography that he didn't feel right with these albums -- he felt like he wasn't good enough, in a way. I believe he said his heavy smoking was hurting his voice, and it could be heard. In my opinion, he turns out some of the best vocal performances of his career on these albums. His voice was once again sounding fresh and rich -- sober, if you like.

The sound here is fine. It's DDD (all digital), so don't look for the analog warmth that you might hear on Honky Tonk Heroes or the DCC Dreaming My Dreams, because you won't find it. The last two albums don't sound as sterile. They sound much more natural. A Man Called Hoss is just a great sounding album. As we progress through the set the electronic drums and big digital reverb sound goes away a bit and, like I said, the sound is quite good on the last two albums. From a technical perspective, these are well produced albums, but, of course, there are some '80s sounds here, particularly the electronic drums. Waylon's performances are fantastic, though, and that's all that matters.

I have given this set 5 stars because any Waylon fan would, I imagine, be very pleased to have these four albums on a two CD set. The bonus tracks are also very nice. If you're familiar with Waylon's MCA years, this set will be a welcome addition to your collection. Don't buy this expecting the "outlaw" Waylon, because he's not here. But Waylon didn't have to be an outlaw to be badass, and he proves that on these albums. The production is slick, many of the songs (particularly on the first two albums) are from outside songwriters, and sometimes there are sounds that you wouldn't expect from Waylon's music, but overall the music is very good because of one key factor: Waylon Arnold Jennings.

Waylon fans, you'll love this.

(By the way, does anyone else think the title "Full Circle" was Waylon's way of saying he realised he was back to the "Nashville Sound" and whatnot and was not pleased with it? Food for thought...)

Waylon's legacy ultimately rests with the music he recorded for RCA, particularly his peak years of the mid-seventies, but fans should not overlook his four albums for MCA - Will the wolf survive, Hanging tough, A man called Hoss and Full circle - all presented here in their entirety. As if that were not enough, there are a couple of bonus tracks including a duet with Johnny Cash, Even cowgirls get the blues, which appeared on a duet album (Heroes) that they recorded for the Columbia label.

Highlights include Rose in Paradise (a country number one hit) and Baker Street (a cover of the Gerry Rafferty classic), but perhaps the most interesting aspect of this collection is the third of the four albums, A man called Hoss. Legend has it that Waylon thought about writing his autobiography but that doing it properly would bring libel actions by several people (although he eventually wrote that book before he died). He therefore decided (at the time) to do a musical audio-biography instead, hence the album. Of course, an album can never explore the depths that a book can but it is still fascinating.

Some of the music has a definite eighties feel to it but Waylon's fan should still find plenty to enjoy here. Nevertheless, anybody just starting to collect Waylon's music should begin with his seventies music before worrying about this.

For Waylon's fans, this easily justifies five stars.

It has recordings that you've heard. Had them on cassette back in the day. I'm still waitin for them to release the rest of his albums on CD or the next format to come? Waylon is great but over looked theese days. This newer generation needs to discover real country music' not that stuff they play on the radio cause it ain't country!

I was really impressed with this collection. There is no way that you can go wrong with the RCA stuff but there is no way that this shouldn't merit moree attention then it does. This is a really coool collection. I had no idea about what to make oput of the second disc but it is really cool with the reminiscing that he does and his super cool dedication to his wife Jessi with You Deserve the Stars in My Crown. It is a really unique concept that will have you scratching your head at first but he executes it extremely well. The first disc is pretty straightforward compared to the second and features some great songs on it. You would be hard pressed not to really dig on; Suddenly Single, They Ain't Got 'Em All, Workin' Without a Net, Will The Wolf Survive, Etc.

The best thing that I found is that mind blowing voice is still in peak form and achingly awesome. I don't think that Waylon ever gets anywhere the due that he deserves for his mastery. The two things that bummed me out were the facts that Waylon at first doesn't play guitar, some of the greatest guitar ever played in country music for his originality and feel not to mention a deceptive lack of skill and a lack of Ralph Mooney, a definite genius on the ol' pedal steel. These were two of the factors that were prominent on the rca recordings and my guess would be that he obviously decided to put them on ice for a little while but they appear later in the collection and definitely won't let you down.

In summation, this collection is definitely well worth the money and might as well get it now while you can still get it kinda cheap. It is awesome you will not be disappointed.

There are some songs on this CD that I hadn't heard before so I love it.