Webb Pierce Sings This Thing

AMG Review of Webb Pierce Sings This Thing

Greg Adams
All Music Guide

This Thing is exemplary of the consistent quality and sound that Webb Pierce maintained throughout the '60s -- it could be played side by side with one of his records from 1960, and there would be no discernible difference. The title track was his final Top 20 hit, and "If I Had Last Night to Live Over" also made the country Top 40. Half of the songs are credited or co-credited to Pierce's wife, Audrey Grisham (including "This Thing"), and other songs are from the pens of Pierce's longtime confederates Wayne P. Walker and Mel Tillis. Pierce covers Bobby Edwards' hit "You're the Reason," although his arrangement is more similar to Johnny Tillotson's version than the original, and "Lo-Lenna" is a watered-down Cajun number. The album would have benefited from a couple more up-tempo songs, but This Thing is a solid album that is sure to please Pierce's fans.