I almost got through “The Essential Glen Campbell:  The Capitol Years 1962-1979, Volume One” last night.  It has 23 songs on it and I got through 20 of them.  Hit after hit after hit.  So many to choose from.  The chosen one is, “Mary in the Morning.”  There is something so pure about the melody and lyrics, they are almost dream-like.  The lyrics are poetic and Glen Campbell does justice to them.

Released in 1994, The Essential Glen Campbell Volume One is the first of a series of three albums which cover Glen Campbell’s recordings for Capitol Records between 1962 and 1979. The tracks are presented in a non-chronological order. All three Essential CDs contain, next to single and albums tracks, previously unreleased recordings. On The Essential Glen Campbell Volume One, these are “Twelve Blues”, “I Walk the Line” (a jazz version of the Johnny Cash hit) and “Blue Sky Shining”, from a 1979 recording session led by Nelson Riddle. The Essential albums are also notable for containing some of the songs from The Artistry of Glen Campbell, the only original studio album by Glen Campbell that has not been released on CD or as a digital download. Included here are “Banjo Garden” and “Shenandoah”.

https://youtu.be/OrOiz3GeBA4

Nothing’s quite as pretty as Mary in the morning
When through the sleepy haze I see her lying there
Soft as the rain that falls on summer flowers
Warm as the sunlight shining on her hair

When I awake and see her there so close beside me
I want to take her in my arms,
The ache is there so deep inside me

Nothing’s quite as pretty as Mary in the morning
Chasing a rainbow in her dreams so far away
And when she turns to touch it I kiss her face so softly
And then my Mary wake to love and love again

And Mary’s there in summer days or stormy weather
She doesn’t care cuz right or wrong the love we share,
We share together

Nothing’s quite as pretty as Mary in the evening
Kissed by the shade of night and starlight on her hair
And as we walk, I hold her close beside me
All our tomorrows for a lifetime we will share

Nothing’s quite as pretty as Mary in the morning x 2

Songwriters: Johnny Hendry Cymbal / Michael C. Rashkow