Except for "Michael," I discovered The Highwaymen rather late. Only about 2 years ago, I picked up their CD of "folk hits," and was very sorry I had not latched on to them when I was discovering the other folk groups of the early '60s...in the early '60s. The compilation CD is interesting in that it combines Highwaymen songs and sounds from the 1960s to the early 2000's. The more recently recorded cuts showed some gruffness in the "mature" voices, but the passion was there. They may have been a commercial group, but I enjoyed something that struck me as genuine. The story of how their friendship remained over the years added to my sense that they really were having fun and loved the music. The Highwaymen were not plagued with high profile personnel changes and they weren't all over PBS, and I think I have enjoyed connecting with this lower key group from the past. I hope the surviving members will continue to keep the music going.
Shadowman