Johnny Tillotson - All His Early Hits - And More !!!! (1990)

The ultimate single-disc collection of Johnny Tillotson's early years, All His Early Hits compiles 30 recordings from 1958-1963, including two takes of "Poetry in Motion." "Well I'm Your Man" from 1958 is perhaps Tillotson's most rocking side, but most of these recordings are light rock and pop. Tillotson was firmly in the teen idol camp and had the requisite adolescent-sounding voice, but his performances display more subtlety and expressiveness than is typical of the genre, particularly on his excellent version of Willie Nelson's "Funny How Time Slips Away." This set includes a number of pop covers of country hits ("Send Me the Pillow That You Dream On," "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry"), one silly teen novelty ("A Very Good Year for Girls"), and a few other cloying cuts seemingly written for 12 year olds, but ultimately the good outweighs the silly. Tillotson was one of the most talented of the teen idols and wrote some of his own material; his recording of his most famous composition "It Keeps Right on a-Hurtin'" is here as well.