The Daddy of 'Em All was
Ernest Tubb's first actual LP (not just a collection of pre-existing singles), was cut in mid-1956 and released a year later, and was one of the great honky tonk long-players of its era. Among the surprises is
Tubb's tour back through his own history -- required to deliver a dozen finished tracks,
Tubb made the most of the opportunity, reaching back to songs that he'd written and never recorded, or tried without success to record in prior years, including "When a Soldier Knocks and Finds Nobody Home," "Mississippi Gal," and "I've Got the Blues for Mammy." Those, plus his excellent recordings of the old
Tommy Duncan/
Bob Wills standard "I Knew the Moment I Lost You" and
Rex Griffin's "My Hillbilly Baby" make this an amazingly strong debut album (and a "debut" LP for an artist with a solid string of hits who'd been recording since 1936!). The backing band includes
Billy Byrd on electric lead guitar,
Tommy Jackson on the fiddle, and
Owen Bradley and
Floyd Cramer sharing the piano chores.