Sweet Dreams: Her Complete Decca Masters (1960-1963)

In 1960, after five years of recording with 4 Star (distributed via Decca Records), Patsy Cline signed directly to Decca Records and producer Owen Bradley. Bradley was already producing Patsy's recordings, but was limited by 4 Star's insistence on dominating the copyrights of the songs she was recording. Owen and Patsy immediately looked more broadly for material, and their first three song sessions under the new contract instantly produced gold in "I Fall to Pieces," her first Country #1 and her first charting recording in almost three years. The next year also produced her classic "Crazy," and "She's Got You," and Patsy Cline's star has shown brightly ever since. All she needed was the right material, and Owen Bradley and Decca provided it. Unfortunately, that illustrious combination only was to last until Patsy died in a plane crash at age thirty in March 1963. By then, she had recorded the fifty-one masters on this new collection, and these fifty-one tracks have become the crown jewels in this Country Queen's recorded legacy. From standards to country classics, from Cole Porter and Irving Berlin to Willie Nelson and Hank Williams, the songs, Bradley's full-bodied productions, and Patsy's performances shine throughout. The great re-mastered music is elaborated on by a series of remarkable period photos and insightful liner notes by Colin Escott.