A Session with Chet Atkins

A Session with Chet Atkins
Studio album by Chet Atkins
Released	December 1954
Genre	Country, pop
Length	33:09
Label	RCA Victor LPM-1090 (Mono)
Chet Atkins chronology
Stringin' Along with Chet Atkins (1953) A Session with Chet Atkins (1954) Stringin' Along with Chet Atkins (1955)
Alternative Cover
The 1961 re-issue LP cover.

A Session with Chet Atkins is the title of a recording by American guitarist Chet Atkins. It features Atkins introducing standard pop and jazz melded with country sensibilities. The liner notes state this is the first use of a celeste on a country record. The musicians include Homer and Jethro in the rhythm section. Atkins uses his new EchoSonic amplifier for the first time on his recordings.^[1]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[2]

Allmusic music critic Richard S. Ginell praised the album and wrote "With a roomful of crack Nashville session men, Chet Atkins' first 12-inch album is one joyful, yet sophisticated and controlled compilation of mostly standard pop and jazz tunes all decked out country-style."^[2]

Track listing

Side one

1. "South" (Ray Charles, T. Hayes, Bennie Moten) – 2:45
2. "(Back Home Again in) Indiana" (James F. Hanley, Ballard MacDonald) – 3:20
3. "Alabama Jubilee" (George Cobb, Jack Yellen) – 2:35
4. "Have You Ever Been Lonely (Have You Ever Been Blue)" (George Brown, Peter DeRose) – 2:40
5. "Red Wing" (Kerry Mills) – 2:22
6. "Ol' Man River" (Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein II) – 2:32

Side two

1. "Caravan" (Duke Ellington, Irving Mills, Juan Tizol) – 3:25
2. "Corrine, Corrina" (Chatmon, Mitchell Parish, J. Mayo Williams) – 2:20
3. "The Birth of the Blues" (Lew Brown, Buddy G. DeSylva, Ray Henderson) – 3:20
4. "A Gay Ranchero" (J. J. Espinosa, Francia Luban) – 2:35
5. "Frankie and Johnny" (Traditional) – 2:35
6. "Honeysuckle Rose" (Andy Razaf, Fats Waller) – 2:40

A 2-EP gatefold with the red cover was released in 1955. The tracks were:

1. "South"
2. "Alabama Jubilee"
3. "The Birth of the Blues"
4. "A Gay Ranchero"
5. "Have You Ever Been Lonely"
6. "Frankie and Johnny"

Personnel

• Chet Atkins – guitar
• Dale Potter – fiddle
• Bud Isaacs – pedal steel guitar
• Ray Edenton – rhythm guitar
• John Gordy – piano, celesta
• Jerry Byrd – lap steel guitar
• Henry "Homer" Haynes – guitar
• Kenneth "Jethro" Burns – mandolin
• Buddy Harman – drums
• Bob Moore – bass

References

1. Atkins, Chet and Cochran, Russ. (2003). "Me and My Guitars". Milwaukee. Hal Leonard Corporation. ISBN 0-634-05565-8.
2. Ginell, Richard S. "A Session with Chet Atkins > Review". Allmusic. Retrieved July 2, 2011.