He may have failed in his attempts at professional baseball and the governorship of Tennessee, but the "King of Country Music" did manage to become the biggest star of his era. This 20-song collection opens with 1936's "Great Speckle Bird," the gospel number that first brought him fame, and includes his biggest 1940s hits. Acuff combined elements of old-time, string-band, and hillbilly music (adding Dobro and then harmonica), forging an emotional, pure, polished sound; his lonesome voice was capable of great sensitivity as well as a jocularity carried over from his medicine-show days. The gloomy "Wreck on the Highway" marks a highlight, as do remakes of his early hits, "Freight Train Blues" and the Carters' "Wabash Cannon Ball." --Marc Greilsamer