For my dad

Stu Smith, 1936-2009

My dad passed away on Christmas Eve. He was a great guy who always got the most out of life. He loved his old sailboat and his old cabin in the north woods (even though it lacked indoor plumbing). He also loved a cold beer and a good tune.

To honor his memory I decided to resurrect this blog and post a few of his favorite songs here. Those of you who have spent time with Stu will remember hearing many of them on the boat, by the barbecue, or at the cabin. Some of them I've enjoyed my whole life (thanks to him).

Lyle Lovett - If I Had A Boat (buy). My dad loved every kind of boat from canoes to freighters and spent as much time as he could near the water. This was one of his favorite boat songs.

Jimmy Buffett - Son Of A Son Of A Sailor (buy). Another regular tune heard on Smith family sailboat rides. Almost always with beer in hand.

The Country Gentlemen - Fox On The Run (buy). My dad's favorite style of music was bluegrass, so naturally I learned this one at a young age.

The Osborne Brothers - Rocky Top (buy). You can't have one without the other (at least you couldn't in our house growing up).

Lucinda Williams - Crescent City (buy). "Everybody's had a few." I know that feeling. So did my dad. My dad enjoyed having fun with family and friends at our favorite spots. Giving this album to my dad was probably my most successful music recommendation ever. He really loved it.

Tom T. Hall - The Little Lady Preacher (buy). My dad was a clever guy. So it's no surprise he was a big Tom T. Hall fan. He really liked the funny ending to this one.

Bill Monroe - I'm Going Back To Old Kentucky (buy). You can't be a bluegrass fan without playing a lot of Bill Monroe, which my dad did frequently.

The Stanley Brothers - Rank Strangers (buy). Another one of my dad's favorite bluegrass songs.

Glen Campbell - Gentle On My Mind (buy). This was a huge hit back in the 1960's when my sister and I came into my dad's life. The songwriter, John Hartford, with his love of life (and boats), reminds me of my dad.

Gordon Lightfoot - Christian Island (buy). This song about enjoying a quiet time on a sailboat in the Summer on Georgian Bay. This one best captures my dad's general attitude towards life. He usually liked the mood he was in, especially on his sailboat (at least when the wind was cooperating).

John Denver - Country Roads (live) (buy). If he wasn't on a boat, then my dad wanted to be on a two-track country road.

Willie Nelson - My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys (buy). Finally, here's a song from one of my dad's favorite artists that was used in one of his favorite movies.

Are you bluegrass curious?

Tired of the same old country and rock? Looking for something new? Why not give bluegrass a shot?

It's folky without being maudlin. It features great technical playing without sacrificing its downhome soulfulness. It's got those wonderful close harmonies. And it's a truly independent music scene. (There's not much money in bluegrass.)

Today's bluegrass sales pitch is prompted by a great bluegrass mix over at Stranger Dance. Check it out! It's just about the right size for CD and makes for some nice autumnal listening. My little girl and I had it on the car radio yesterday on our way to go apple picking. Good stuff. (Anybody need a ton of fresh-picked Michigan apples?)

Now enjoy some great old bluegrass from some of the giants of the genre:

The Dillards - Dooley (buy). Read about The Dillards at AMG.

Ralph Stanley - Rank Stranger (buy). I've always loved this one.

Doc Watson - My Rose Of Old Kentucky (buy). Read about this great album.

The Osborne Brothers - Down In The Willow Garden (buy). You can't have a bluegrass post without at least one murder ballad.

The Country Gentlemen - Fox On The Run (buy). For sentimental reasons, this is probably my favorite bluegrass song. My daughter's too. My son prefers Rocky Top. Can't argue with that.

Bill Monroe - Rocky Road Blues (buy) Read more about the Father of Bluegrass over at Old Blue Bus.

If you're intrigued but not sure where to get started, check out this post by Brendan (from The Rising Storm) about The Essential Bluegrass Discography.

Video: Bill Monroe - Blue Moon Of Kentucky

Start your week with a little Bill Monroe:

A man in Kentucky sure is lucky . . .

Last week's theme at Star Maker Machine was the fifty states.

Going through my “state” songs, I wasn't surprised to see that Texas, California, Georgia, Alabama, and Tennessee inspired more than their fair share of good songs. Another top tier state, with a deep roster of quality tunes, is Kentucky.


The Bluegrass State has a great musical tradition. Notable Kentuckians include Bill Monroe, Loretta Lynn, and Tom T. Hall.

In addition to great music, Kentucky is also known for its bourbon, tobacco, horse racing, basketball, and fried chicken.

Sounds like a fellow could have a pretty good time there.

Anyway, here’s a Kentucky mix to enjoy with a nice bourbon over the rocks:

Dwight Yoakam – South Of Cincinnati (buy)
The Gosdin Brothers – Bowling Green (buy)
Emmylou Harris – Blue Kentucky Girl (buy)
Bill Monroe – Blue Moon Of Kentucky (buy)
Bill Monroe – Kentucky Waltz (buy)
Loretta Lynn – Coal Miner’s Daughter (buy)
The Louvin Brothers - Kentucky (buy)
Merle Travis – Kentucky Means Paradise (buy)
Merle Haggard – Kentucky Gambler (buy)
The Kinks – Kentucky Moon (buy)
Randy Newman – Old Kentucky Home (buy)
The Osborne Brothers – My Old Kentucky Home (buy)
Jann Brown - Louisville (buy)
Tom T. Hall – I Flew Over Our House Last Night (buy)
Ralph Stanley & Dwight Yoakam – Miner’s Prayer (buy)
Jimmie Davis – Roll Along, Kentucky Moon (buy)

For more state songs, check out Divinyl's excellent, and growing, list at Ceci N'est Pas un Blog.

More rose songs... (Updated!)

Yesterday's post on For The Sake Of The Song told the unfortunate story of a man under a court order to buy 124,000 roses for his wife. After reading the post I was surprised to find 47 different rose songs on my i-pod. No other flower comes close, not even "flower" itself.

Flower = 24
Daisy = 5
Lily = 4
Blossom = 4
Orchid = 3
Tulip = 1
Dandelion = 1
Violet = 1

Obviously the rose is a popular symbol--especially in country songs. Maybe it has something to do with the thorn? Anyway, here are eight more "rose" songs with a country flavor:

Waylon Jennings - Black Rose (buy album).
Here's one from my all time favorite country LP. Waylon sings Shaver.

George Jones - Wine Colored Roses (buy album).
A classic George Jones weeper. "When she sees the wine-colored roses, they'll tell her I'm still on the wine." Do ya think?

Merle Haggard - I Threw Away The Rose (buy album).
Hag's cautionary tale about the perils of social drinking.

Bob Wills - San Antonio Rose (buy album).
This version comes from Bob Wills last album, a feel-good reunion with the old Playboys in the early 1970s.

Bill Monroe - My Little Georgia Rose (buy album).
Here's a good one from the father of bluegrass.

Patsy Cline - A Poor Man's Roses (Or A Rich Man's Gold) (buy album).
Patsy faces a tough choice: Love or money.

Emmylou Harris - Roses In The Snow (buy album).
I just love Emmylou.

Lucinda Williams - Like A Rose (out of print).
Here's one from Lucinda's superb (and out-of-print) self-titled album. If you are a fan of songwriting, this one's a must have.

UPDATE! – Thanks to suggestions from Brendan, Cato, and Robert, here are three more great rose songs:

The Kinks – Rosemary Rose (buy album).
This one comes from the deluxe three-disc version of The Village Green Preservation Society, which is probably one of my top five albums of all time. GET IT!

Neil Young – Love Is A Rose (buy album).
Linda Ronstadt had a hit with a cover version of this tune.

Nick Lowe – The Rose Of England (buy album).
I just love this song. Nick Lowe knows how to write a catchy pop tune.

[Check sidebar for more mp3s.]

Mollie McCarty And Ten Broeck

From The New York Times, April 3, 1878:

"Louisville, April 2.—Col. M. Lewis Clark, Jr., President of the Louisville Jockey Club, has perfected arrangement by which Ten Broeck and Mollie McCarthy are to run four mile heats at Louisville July 4 next, for the sum of $10,000. Two or three other races will be given at the same time. The owner of Mollie McCarthy thinks she can beat any horse in the country. The mare will be brought from California to Louisville in Budd Doble’s car, which has been chartered for the round trip, and will probably arrive here about the last of May to prepare for the contest. Ten Broeck was never in better condition than at present..." [download pdf].

If you know the famous bluegrass song inspired by this race, then you know that Mollie could not, in fact, beat any horse in the country, at least not in Louisville on July 4, 1878.

Here's a description of the race, according to Thoroughbred Heritage:

"They started evenly, and Mollie led for the first mile, 'with such a beautiful and apparently easy stroke, and the horse seemingly at labor, but really annoyed at restraint, that a shout went up that she had already beaten him.' Mollie led for the second mile, but after the quarter pole Ten Broeck drew ahead, and by the time they had reached 2-1/2 miles he was leading by a length, and at the third mile he was ahead by twenty yards. At 3-1/2 miles Mollie gave up the chase, and Ten Broeck cantered home easily in the slow time of 8:19-3/4. 'Such a shout as went up over the triumph of Ten Broeck, and such a scene of wild and extravagant excitement, I never saw before, and never expect to again, outside the impulsive state of Kentucky.' It was Mollie's first defeat, in fact, her first defeat in any heat at any distance. This race was Ten Broeck's last."

The impulsive excitement did not stop at the track, but instead inspired a famous musical tribute.

And now check out a couple versions of "Molly and Tenbrooks" from proud Kentuckians Tom T. Hall and Bill Monroe:

The first comes from Tom T. Hall, with special guest Bill Monroe on the mandolin. Hall downplays Tenbrooks' homefield advantage, saying that the horses "met half way." Actually, Ten Broeck only had to travel from Lexington to Louisville, while poor old Mollie had to ride the rails all the way across the Rocky Mountains, but I'm not going to hold that against Tom: Tom T. Hall – Molly And Tenbrooks (buy album!).

And here's a nice live version by Bill Monroe taken from a Grand Ole Opry broadcast: Bill Monroe – Molly And Tenbrooks (buy album).

For another cool version of the song, check out "Legend Of Ol' Tenbrooks" by Hearts And Flowers over at The Rising Storm.

Light Of The Stable + Bill Monroe

Not surprisingly, one of my favorite Christmas albums is Emmylou Harris' Light Of The Stable (1979). Emmylou mixes popular carols such as Silent Night with less-well-known (but still great) material like Rodney Crowell's Angel Eyes. She delivers the material over an accoustic band with just the right tinge of twanginess. Backing vocals are provided by none other than Willie Nelson, Linda Ronstadt, Dolly Parton, and Neil Young. Read the excellent AMG review here.

Get a taste with these two tracks:

Angel Eyes

O Little Town of Bethlehem

Then do yourself a Christmas favor and buy it.

As a bonus, here is one of Emmylou's heroes, Bill Monroe, performing a track that she covers on Light of the Stable: Bill Monroe - Christmas Time's A Coming (buy album).

And because you can't have just a little Bill Monroe, here's another one with a winter theme: Bill Monroe - Footprints In The Snow (buy album). (By the way, what happened to Nellie?)