What do you get when you combine one of country's most underrated outlaws and one of the 20th century's most beloved poets? A new box set from Bear Family will answer that question across eight incredible discs.

Bobby Bare Sings Shel Silverstein Plus collects more than 100 tunes the unlikely duo collaborated on during Bare's tenure on the RCA and Columbia labels between 1973 and 1983. The set represents a dozen of Bare's albums, including six presented in full herein. An impressive 25 tracks are being released for the first time, either as bonus tracks or as part of two newly-curated Stray Bare Tracks volumes in the set. In addition to all those songs, the box includes a 128-page hardcover book featuring lyrics, detailed session notes, a new essay on Silverstein's work with Bare by Dave Samuelson and even a new interview conducted with the singer himself earlier this year - still kickin' at 85 years old.

Shel Silverstein is beloved the world over for idiosyncratic stories and collections for children like The Giving Tree (1964), Where The Sidewalk Ends (1974) and A Light In The Attic (1981). Those with a flair for pop trivia know he's the writer of "A Boy Named Sue," Johnny Cash's biggest pop hit, or Dr. Hook and The Medicine Show's Top 10 novelty "The Cover of The Rolling Stone"; graduate-level disciples may have even heard his own albums of off-kilter country-pop. But it was alongside Bare that his musical and lyrical talents shone brightest, from the time Bare tackled Silverstein's "Sylvia's Mother" (also a hit for Dr. Hook) in 1972. Bare's version went to No. 12 on Billboard's country charts, and the first album they collaborated on afterward, 1973's Lullabys, Legends and Lies, yielded Bare's biggest country hits: the No.2 "Daddy What If" (a duet with his young son Bobby Jr., now a member of Guided By Voices), and the chart-topping "Marie Laveau."

From there, nearly every one of Bare's albums for RCA and Columbia had Shel's handiwork in whole or in part, including Singin' In The Kitchen (1974), Hard Time Hungrys (1975), Cowboys and Daddys (1975), The Winner and Other Losers (1976), Bare (1978), Down & Dirty (1980), Drunk and Crazy (1980), Ain't Got Nothing To Lose (1982) and Drinkin' From The Bottle, Singin' From The Heart (1983) - all of which are represented in whole or in part on this box set. And of course there's the live set Great American Saturday Night, recorded in 1978 but only released by the BFD label back in April; it's ready for rediscovery here with another three unreleased tracks.

The first 300 orders of the box include an autograph from Bare himself. Bobby Bare Sings Shel Silverstein Plus will be available October 2 and can be pre-ordered below at Bear Family's official site. (Amazon placeholder links also currently exist, though it's unclear if it will be stocked there.)

Bobby Bare Sings Shel Silverstein Plus (Bear Family Records, 2020) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Disc 1: Lullabys, Legends and Lies (originally released as RCA Victor CPL2-0290, 1973)

1. Lullabys, Legends and Lies
2. Paul
3. Marie Laveau
4. Daddy What If
5. The Winner
6. In The Hills Of Shiloh
7. She's My Ever Lovin' Machine
8. The Mermaid
9. Rest Awhile
10. Bottomless Well
11. True Story
12. Sure Hit Songwriters Pen
13. Rosalie's Good Eats Cafe

Disc 2: Hard Time Hungrys Plus (1-12 originally released as RCA Victor APL1-0906, 1975; * previously unreleased)

1. Hard Time Hungrys
2. (Taxes On) The Farmer Feeds Us All
3. Alimony
4. Two For a Dollar
5. Back Home In Huntsville Again
6. Daddy's Been Around The House Too Long
7. Warm and Free
8. Able Bodied Man
9. $100,000 In Pennies
10. Bottles and Boxes
11. Truck Driver, Truck Driver
12. The Unemployment Line
13. Too Much Blues *
14. Things To Sell *
15. Door To Door *
16. Poor Blues *
17. It's Good To Know The Sun's Still Shinin' Somewhere *
18. Lead Me Back Home *

Disc 3: Singin' In The Kitchen Plus (1-12 originally released as RCA Victor APL1-0700, 1974; * previously unreleased)

1. Singin' In The Kitchen
2. The Monkey and The Elephant
3. Lovin' You Anwyay
4. Where'd I Come From
5. Ricky Ticky Song
6. The Giving Tree
7. You Are
8. The Unicorn
9. Cloudy Sky
10. She Thinks I Can
11. Scarlet Ribbons
12. See That Bluebird
13. Sylvia's Mother (Mercury single 73317, 1972)
14. You Know Who (RCA Victor single APB0-0063, 1973)
15. Staying Here With Me *
16. The Wheel *
17. Love and Flowers *
18. The Stranger (from Cowboys and Daddys - RCA Victor APL1-1222, 1975)
19. Chester (from Cowboys and Daddys - RCA Victor APL1-1222, 1975)
20. Bald Headed Woman (from The Winner and Other Losers - RCA Victor APL1-1786, 1976)
21. Baby Wants To Boogie (from The Winner and Other Losers - RCA Victor APL1-1786, 1976)
22. Brian Hennessey (from The Winner and Other Losers - RCA Victor APL1-1786, 1976)
23. Climbin' The Ladder and Climbin' The Walls (from The Winner and Other Losers - RCA Victor APL1-1786, 1976)
24. Yes, Mr. Rodgers (from The Winner and Other Losers - RCA Victor APL1-1786, 1976)

Disc 4: Stray Bare Tracks (* previously unreleased)

1. Sweet Larraine *
2. Lemme Be Something *
3. Vince (from The Winner and Other Losers - RCA Victor APL1-1786, 1976)
4. Make It Pretty For Me Baby *
5. Vegas (RCA Victor European single PB1-0852, 1976)
6. It Ain't Easy *
7. February Snow (from Bare - Columbia KC 35314, 1978)
8. Sing For The Song (from Bare - Columbia KC 35314, 1978)
9. From The Jungle To The Zoo *
10. Too Many Nights Alone (from Bare - Columbia KC 35314, 1978)
11. Greasy Grit Gravy (from Bare - Columbia KC 35314, 1978)
12. They Held Me Down *
13. This Guitar Is For Sale (from Bare - Columbia KC 35314, 1978)
14. There's An 18-Wheeler In Front Of The Ritz Hotel *
15. More Like The Movies *
16. Hattie Halle and Big Dupree (from Bare - Columbia KC 35314, 1978)

Disc 5: More Stray Bare Tracks (* previously unreleased)

1. Nobody Wants To Go Home *
2. Childhood Hero (from Bare - Columbia KC 35314, 1978)
3. A Week On The Town (Gone As a Goose) *
4. Yard Full Of Rusty Cars (from Bare - Columbia KC 35314, 1978)
5. When She Cries *
6. Cold Day In Hell (from Ain't Got Nothin' To Lose - Columbia FC 37719, 1982)
7. So Good To So Bad (from Ain't Got Nothin' To Lose - Columbia FC 37719, 1982)
8. The Diet Song (from Drinkin' From The Bottle, Singin' From The Heart - Columbia FC 38670, 1983)
9. When Hippies Get Older (from "Numbers" single - Columbia 1-11170, 1979)
10. Jennifer Johnson and Me (from Drinkin' From The Bottle, Singin' From The Heart - Columbia FC 38670, 1983)
11. Me and Jimmie Rodgers (from Drinkin' From The Bottle, Singin' From The Heart - Columbia FC 38670, 1983)
12. You Jumped Off The Gravy Train (from "The Jogger" single - Columbia 38-03809, 1983)
13. Time (from Drinkin' From The Bottle, Singin' From The Heart - Columbia FC 38670, 1983)
14. Drinkin' From The Bottle (from Drinkin' From The Bottle, Singin' From The Heart - Columbia FC 38670, 1983)
15. Someplace To Come When It Rains (from Drinkin' From The Bottle, Singin' From The Heart - Columbia FC 38670, 1983)
16. Stacy Brown Got Two (from Drinkin' From The Bottle, Singin' From The Heart - Columbia FC 38670, 1983)
17. The Jogger (from Drinkin' From The Bottle, Singin' From The Heart - Columbia FC 38670, 1983)
18. Three-Legged Man (from Drinkin' From The Bottle, Singin' From The Heart - Columbia FC 38670, 1983)
19. Rodeo Queen (from Drinkin' From The Bottle, Singin' From The Heart - Columbia FC 38670, 1983)
20. The Diet Song (Version 2) *

Disc 6: Great American Saturday Night Plus (rec. 1978 - Tracks 1-2, 5-7, 9-16 released as BFD 228, 2020; * previously unreleased)

1. Great American Saturday Night
2. Red-Neck Hippie Romance
3. Kids Today *
4. Dirty Ol' Me *
5. The Diet Song
6. Paintin' Her Fingernails
7. Goodnight Little Houseplant
8. I Can't Sleep *
9. The Living Legend
10. They Won't Let Us Show It At The Beach
11. The Day All The Yes Men Said No
12. Time
13. Whiplash Will
14. Me and Jimmie Rodgers
15. Someone To Talk To
16. Great American Saturday Night (Reprise)

Disc 7: Down & Dirty (released as Columbia JC 36323, 1980)

1. Good For Nothing Blues (Funky Water)
2. Numbers
3. Some Days Are Diamonds
4. Tequila Sheila
5. Rock Star's Lament
6. Crazy Again
7. Tecumseh Valley
8. Blind Willie Harper
9. Rough On The Living
10. Down To My Last Come and Get Me
11. Quaaludes Again
12. Goin' Back To Texas
13. I Can't Watch The Movie Anymore

Disc 8: Drunk and Crazy (released as Columbia JC 36785, 1980; * previously unreleased)

1. Drunk and Crazy
2. Food Blues
3. The World's Last Truck Drivin' Man
4. I Can Almost See Houston From Here
5. If That Ain't Love
6. Rock and Roll Hotel
7. This Much Rain *
8. Song Of The South
9. Appaloosa Rider
10. Bathroom Tissue Paper Letter
11. Willie Jones
12. Gotta Get Rid Of This Band
13. Drinkin' and Druggin' and Watchin' TV
14. Your Credit Card Won't Get You Into Heaven
15. I've Never Gone To Bed With An Ugly Woman
16. Desperados Waiting For a Train