God Be with You is an album of sacred songs recorded by country singer Jim Reeves and released in February 1959 on the RCA Victor label (catalog no. LPM-1950).[1][2]
| God Be with You | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | February 1959 | |||
| Genre | Country, gospel | |||
| Label | RCA Victor | |||
| Producer | Chet Atkins | |||
| Jim Reeves chronology | ||||
| ||||
The sessions
editThe album was Reeves' first of sacred songs.[3] He recorded the album shortly after signing a five-year extension of his contract with RCA Victor. In a single three-hour session on September 9, 1958, he recorded six standards: "God Be With You", "A Beautiful Life", "In the Garden", "Precious Memories", "Whispering Hope", and "The Flowers, the Sunset, the Trees".[4]
At the September 9 session, Reeves was backed by a woman guitarist Velma Williams Smith. At that time, there were no women working as session musicians in Nashville, and Smith later recalled that when she showed up at the September 9 session, Reeves gave her a look as if to say, "I bet this is gonna be good."[4] Smith went on to work on many of Reeves' records.[4]
Reception
editOn the album's release, Billboard wrote: "He does a top notch job. Performances are sincere and skilled, and the recording job by Chet Atkins is excellent."[5]
Biographer Larry Jordan wrote that Reeves was at his "most moving" when singing sacred songs, citing "Evening Prayer" and "God Be With You" as prime examples.[6] Of the songs recorded at the September 9, 1958 session, Jordan wrote: "The religious songs he mastered that day have been enjoyed countless times by legions of his fans in the ensuing decades.[4]
Track listing
editSide A
- "How Long Has It Been" (Mosie Lister)
- "A Beautiful Life" (William M. Golden)
- "Teach Me How to Pray" (Kathryn Twitty)
- "In the Garden" (C. Austin Miles)
- "The Flowers, the Sunset, the Trees" (Mattie O'Neil)
- "It Is No Secret" (Stuart Hamblen)
Side B
- "Padre of Old San Antone" (Tim Spencer)
- "Precious Memories" (J.F.G. Wright)
- "Suppertime" (Ira Stamphill)
- "Whispering Hope" (Alice Hawthorne)
- "Evening Prayer" (Battersby, Gabriel)
- "God Be with You" (Rankin, Tomer)
References
edit- ^ "Jim Reeves – God Be with You". Discogs. Retrieved December 7, 2020.
- ^ "Jim Reeves – God Be with You". AllMusic. Retrieved December 7, 2020.
- ^ Larry Jordan (2011). Jim Reeves: His Untold Story; the Life & Times of Country Music's Greatest Singer. Page Turner Books International. p. 269. ISBN 9780615581163.
- ^ a b c d Larry Jordan, Jim Reeves, p. 260.
- ^ "God Be With You". The Billboard. February 23, 1959. p. 31.
- ^ Larry Jordan, Jim Reeves, p. 5.