These are my comments on the records on the March 2000 Hanhurst tape.

1. Ribbon of Highway (Card 46) : Scooter Lee song, there’s a line dance.
2. Tonight The Heartache’s on Me (AR 108): Dixie Chicks song off their Wide Open Spaces CD.
3. Don’t Sweetheart Me (HH 5240): Apparently an old blue grass song; I found it on three blue grass oriented albums.
4. Til the Answer Comes (CRC 129): Gospel
5. North Carolina Cabbage / Little Liza’s Hoedown (BMV 27): Typical Black Mountain Valley recordings.
6. Kentucky Waltz (ESP 1042): Bluegrass classic (in its original waltz time). I found a sample of Bill Monroe’s version: 16 Gems. I like it, but I’ll probably use it for patter.
7. Highland Hoedown / Saw Dust (PIO 1003)
8. Then What (RMR 2002): Clay Walker song off his Rumor Has It CD. This is a nice cover which keeps some of the steel drums sound of the original.
9. Run for the Roses (GMP 111): Looks like this is a Dan Fogelberg tune (it shows up on five of his albums), but I finally found a sample of it on a Jerry Garcia album, titled, surprisingly, Run For The Roses. It’s also been covered by Michael Martin Murphey and Jane Olivor. (Actually, the Jerry Garcia and Jane Olivor renditions are so different, I’m not sure it’s the same song…Jane’s is a waltz).
10. Small World (SSK 105): I ask why…why do we need another version of “It’s a Small World”? Why do we get two versions on the same tape? Why has “It’s a Small World” turned into a yodeling song? I don’t remember the dolls yodeling on that nightmarish Disney ride. Why do record producers call it “Small World” when “Small World” is a perfectly reasonable song from the musical “Gypsy”?
11. Young Man’s Job (RYL 522): From a 1998 album Old Dogs by the Old Dogs (Waylon Jennings, Mel Tillis, Bobby Bare and Jerry Reed (not the caller…)). A funny, appropriate song for all us aging callers still trying to rock and roll. The original lyrics are by the late Shel Silverstein.
12. Boogie Beat Ho-Down (ESP 421): Rock-flavored patter.
13. Some Broken Hearts (GMP 405): An old Don Williams song (found a sample here: Vol. 2-Best Of Don Williams).
14. Changes in Latitude (SG 1003): A Jimmy Buffett tune. It’s on several albums, but there’s an MP3 sample here: Boats Beaches Bars & Ballads; and a MIDI version and the lyrics here: Changes in Latitude.
15. Diesel on my Tail (RYL 136): A classic bluegrass song about a little bitty compact (Japanese, of course) and a great big diesel truck (Amercan, no doubt). It’s on several albums; here’s one: The Jim & Jesse Story.
16. Long Tall Texan (ESP 1045): Hey, you know it had to have been a hit if it’s on a K-Tel collection:Silly Songs (K-Tel). This song, originally by Murry Kellum, shows up on collections like the aforementioned Silly Songs, Kooky Kountry, and Box of Funny Wacky Favorites. So break out your giant kowboy hat and have fun.
17. Happy Times (MAC 2430): There are a few different songs with this title, and I didn’t find any that sounded like this one.
18. Old Fashion Love in my Heart (BM 205): Couldn’t find this one.
19. Rolly Polly (LH 1048): Interestingly enough, there are at least two songs with this (well, really spelled “Roly Poly”) title. One’s a rhythm and blues one, done by Chuck Berry, Joey Dee, and some others; the other is this one, a Texas swing song, originally made popular by Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys. Frankly, I think this version doesn’t capture the flavor of the original at all; it’s clearly done with MIDI. Also, in this day of sensitivity to people’s concerns (some might call that PC-ness as an insult; I think it’s common courtesy), I wonder about lyrics like “Roly poly, daddy’s little fatty”.
20. Westward Ho / Lovin’ Little (DR 9012)
21. Small World (C 1005): Same music as the previous Chaparral release, new vocal with Dee Dee Dougherty-Lottie showing how much yodeling one can cram into one singing call. I was impressed. I still can’t stand the song. I was once trapped on the Pirate’s of the Caribbean Disney ride for about 20 minutes or so…stuck in the same place, so we heard the same sound effects over and over. Now imagine being trapped in the Small World ride…
22. Linger Awhile (GR 17250): A round.

    The rest of these are all rereleases.

23. The Pride is Back (RYL 201): I couldn’t find a version on CDNow, so I don’t know who did this originally. A web search for “pride is back” turns up mostly sports and gay sites, with a reference to Dave Cross’ HBO Special, The Pride is Back. I could see doing some lyric modification and using this song around Gay Pride days.
24. Happy Days Are Here Again (TNT 131): Be careful, this song has a 48-count figure, and the arrangement is break/figure/break/figure/break/figure/break/figure. I found it a little boring to hear the same tune over and over, so I think I prefer this song as part of a medley.
25. String Fever / Tennessee Pickin’ (RB 319)
26. Hallelujah Medley (ST 205): Starts off with Old-Time Religion, which is the only part heard on the tape, so I don’t know how the rest of the tunes sound.
27. Jessie James / Foggy Mountain Breakdown (ST 155)
28. Happy Song (SDT 001): The called side features a very simple figure that would be useful for a basic class. There are about a jillion Happy Songs, but I think they’re all different…somehow I don’t think Boney M and Jack Murtha are doing the same tune.
29. Louisiana Saturday Night (C 311): This is on both Mel McDaniel’s and Don Williams’ greatest hits albums.
30. Get Me Back to Dixie (SG 301): Have you ever noticed that you never hear songs like “Get Me Back to the Midwest, I love my Iowa”. What is it about the South that inspires such devotion. One could (but one wouldn’t, of course) do a whole dance themed around “goin’ back to Dixie”. Of course, one could always include the Tom Lehrer song, “I Wanna Go Back To Dixie,” with lyrics like “I wanna talk with Southern genn’lmen/Put my white sheet on again/I ain’t seen a good lynching in years.” For the complete lyrics, check here: I Wanna Go Back To Dixie.
31. T-Bird Jamboree / Confederate Country (TB 511)
32. Am I Blue (Yes I’m Blue) (ESP 149): This isn’t “Am I Blue”; this is a more Texas swing type song.
33. Smoky Mountain Memories (PIO 131): A bluegrass song; I found it on Larry Sparks : Classic Bluegrass.
34. Close Enough To Perfect (CD 222): Alabama tune. The original is at a substantially slower tempo than the square dance version.
35. Marty Robins Medley (SR 401)
36. First Enounter of a Close Kind (TB 197)
37. It’s All Right With Me (RR 142): I think this one might win as having the most versions listed on CDNow. This is a Cole Porter classic that’s been done by lots of artists. It was Frank Sinatra’s most popular song; and is originally from the musical Can-Can.