joined 's in 1961, the first step in a lifelong friendship between the two men. From that point on, the pair never fell out of touch. At the height of his superstardom in 1980, cut a duet album with called , the first of three joint efforts they'd cut over the years. Whenever the pair got together, they'd sing the old songs, Western swing standards and honky tonk classics from the '50s and '60s -- the songs that form the core of , a salute delivered three years after 's 2013 death. Supported by producer and arranger -- a duo who also were friends with and completed his final album, -- doesn't make any attempt to freshen up these songs, which is the album's charm. salutes every phase of 's career, reviving the lush Nashville strings of 's early-'70s hits in addition to the dry, dusty Texas two-steps and shuffles. All of these sounds are considered traditional from the vantage of 2016 and, in effect, extends the tradition, not through reinvention but rather adherence. has been singing these songs all of his life, recording them several times a decade, but instead of seeming recycled, underscores how the song may remain the same but the singer does not. is showing his age -- his voice is leathery and tattered, much thinner than it was just ten years ago -- and yet that's part of the point of the album. sang these songs with and now that is gone, sings them a little differently, his love and melancholy accentuating his weathered voice. It makes for an affectionate and bittersweet album, one that is a fitting tribute to a lifelong friend. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine