Producers include: Harold Bradley, Owen Bradley, Walter Haynes, Harry Silverstein.

Compilation producer: Mary Katherine Aldin.

Recorded between 1954 & 1981. Includes liner notes by Mary Katherine Aldin.

All tracks have been digitally remastered.

Although it's not a complete introduction to Bill Monroe's extensive career, THE VERY BEST OF BILL MONROE & HIS BLUEGRASS BOYS is an admirably thorough 22-track sampling of Monroe's finest recordings for Decca and MCA. Spanning more than 30 years, this collection covers the period from Monroe's signing with Decca in late 1949 to 1981's haunted "My Last Days on Earth" (a ballad that highlights bluegrass's connection to traditional English folk music). THE VERY BEST hits all of the high points from Monroe's less-frenetic later period, leaving out nothing that's essential and including absolutely no filler. There are more comprehensive Bill Monroe anthologies covering the Decca/MCA years, but this single-disc compilation takes the prize for concision.