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THERE'S A TEAR IN MY BEER contains tracks recorded for Everstate records from 1949 to 1950, and songs recorded for Capitol from 1951 to 1953. Personnel includes: Big Bill Lister, Del Dunbar. Personnel: Loren Otis Shook, O.B. 'Easy' Adams, Chester B. Atkins (guitar); Don Helms (steel guitar); Grady Martin (mandolin); Jerry Rivers (fiddle); Owen Bradley (piano). Liner Note Author: Kevin Coffey. Recording information: Castle Studio, Nashville, TN (??/??/1949-04/05/1953); KCOR Radio Station, San Antonio, TX (??/??/1949-04/05/1953); KMAC Radio, San Antonio, TX (??/??/1949-04/05/1953). Illustrators: Colin Escott; Walter Kleypas; R.A. Andreas. Photographers: Colin Escott; Walter Kleypas; R.A. Andreas. Big Bill Lister's importance in the annals of country music stems more from his association with Hank Williams than his music. One of Williams' closest friends, Lister recorded Williams' composition "There's a Tear in My Beer" in 1952. Lister then made country music history decades later by rediscovering Williams' original acetate demo of the song and giving it to Hank Williams, Jr. who overdubbed the track to produce a 1989 hit. There's a Tear in My Beer compiles Lister's early-'50s Capitol recordings along with some early independent label tracks, most of which are country weepers and honky tonkers. Lister's voice resembles a whiny Ernest Tubb and becomes grating over the course of a full-length disc; his vocals are more bearable on the up-tempo numbers, of which there are far too few among these 30 tracks. There's a Tear in My Beer is an historical artifact for serious Hank Williams fans who will appreciate the opportunity to hear these recordings, but the actual listening value of the collection is slight. ~ Greg Adams
