UPDATE: Spoilers added. What can I say? I'm impatient, though gratified at the answers obtained so far.
Well, how else would you categorize them?
Since I was remiss in not doing a quiz yesterday, I felt kinda bad for you C/W fans who don't get the 50s (etc.) Rock 'n' Roll. I feel especially bad for our buddy KG who knows no music before Jim Croce.
But as I sit here trying to unlax after a miserable, work-filled weekend, I tossed a NGDB album on the old turntable and life is much better. Because I like Rock 'n' Roll. And I like Country/Western. And I like Bluegrass. And the NGDB does them all, and quite well, I might add.
So for those of you who are not familiar with them, pray let me introduce you to them. I'm sure you've heard some of their stuff. We saw them in person at the Mid-State Fair many years ago, when the current college students were mere babes, and they were spectacular as always. Of course, one problem with them, as with so many bluegrass artists, is that much of what they play is instrumentals. Unfortunately, instrumentals don't lend themselves well to trivia quizzes. Be that as it may, we shall persevere and endeavor to amuse and entertain you with a proper trivia quiz, hobbled only by our adherence to songs with actual lyrics, and with proper homage to the classic lineup of [genuflect] Jeff Hanna, John McEwen, Jim Ibbotson, and Jimmie Fadden, and with a special shoutout to the late, great Uncle Charlie and his dog Teddy. May they rest in eternal peace.
No particular order, except that the TOTALLY obvious ones will come first (and the fact that I actually have in hand only two albums, but will use my further knowledge for other questions as well):
1) Who did I meet in a cell in New Orleans when I was down and out? [Boy Named Sous: Mr. Bojangles]
2) It's a crazy feelin' and I know it's got me reelin'. What am I so glad about? [Answer: I'm so glad that you're revealin' your love for me]
3) As far as I can see, there's no reason for goodbye. All this talk about leaving is strictly bad news, so what should you do? [Answer: Settle down and stay with the boy that loves you]
4) Who was Mickey murdered by (to the tune of "Cripple Creek")? [Answer: To the tune of Cripple Creek, he was murdered by a man from Santa Rosa]
5) I've known of all the heartheaches and I've known of all the pain. When have I seen you? And what have I seen you do? [Answer: I've seen you when the sun shines and I've seen you when it rains, and I've seen you make a look of love from just an icy stare (and, BTW, I've known you for a long time but I've just begun to care)]
6) I wandered much further today than I should. Where can't I find my way back to? [Julie: My way back to the wood (specifically, the Three Acre Wood)]
7) I thought I'd give my love to anyone today but when it came to you one thing was for sure. What are your little games like? [Answer: It's like taking sick when nobody knows the cure]
8) We took a little bacon and we took a little beans and what did we do? [Boy Named Sous: We fought the bloody British in the town of New Orleans]
9) Buy for me the crystal pools that fall upon the lane. What will I buy for you? [Answer: I'll buy for you a rainbow and a million pots of gold - if you've never heard this song, you owe it to yourself to track it down]
10) I was standing by my window on one cold and cloudy day. What did I see come rolling by and why? [Shit. I'm crying now] [Mike: I saw the hearse come rolling for to carry my mother away]
11) We're steppin' by the river where the woodchucks go. Down where? [Answer: Down by the Yukon Railroad]
12) El Dorado fins, whitewalls and skirts; drives just like a little bit of heaven here on earth. When I die, buddy, throw my body in the back of what? [Bill: Throw it in the back of my Cadillac (which, of course, will thereafter tear up the highway like a big ol' dinosaur)]
13) Clifton Clowers has a pretty young daughter and is mighty handy with what? [Mike: He's mighty handy with a gun and a knife]
14) Ain't no place you can hide where I can't find you, and ain't no place you can get where I won't see. Even if you're marooned in space, I'll come and get you. Girl, you may as well do what? And (just for a bonus) I'm going to wrap my arms around you like what? (Minor hint: Eww) [Answer: You may as well resign yourself to me. Truly, a stalker's theme song. Oh, and for the EWW part, I'm going to wrap my arms around you like two gooey old band-aids]
15) Hmm. Where do I have to pull a pirogue? And what will I do with it? [Joel: Me gotta go pull the pirogue down the bayou, and for the record, with that pirogue I'll catch all the fish in the bayou]
DAYUM! I'm enjoying listening to these guys! And so I'm going to throw out a SPECIAL BONUS QUESTION!. And that special bonus question is:
Identify any or all of the following people and explain to whom they are important and why: Old Dan Wheelin', Little Jimmy Wheezer, and Big Tom Sargent. [Amazing Mike: They are the fiddlin' competition for the Mountain Whippoorwill] [One additional note on this one: As many of you well know, I normally detest sappy songs, or in this case, sappy spoken verse; there are, however, rare exceptions to that rule and this is one of those exceptions]
Posted by Ken S at August 12, 2007 06:09 PM | TrackBack (0) | Category: Country/Western Trivia1) Mr. Bojangles
8) We fought the bloody British in a town called New Orleans.
6. The wood (as in Winnie the Pooh's woods.)
Posted by: Julie at August 12, 2007 07:37 PMheh, it's not that I know no music before Jim Croce, it's just I was under the impression that it was all sang by the likes of Elvis, the Rat Pack, and others that sang with a full ensemble...
Posted by: KG at August 12, 2007 09:53 PMI can only recall part of 10, it was a hearse, but I forget who it was carrying away (the singer's mother, maybe).
Number 13: he's mighty handy with a gun and a knife.
For the bonus question, they are the competion to the "Mountain Whipperwill" in the fiddling contest described in a Steven Vincent Benet song (I think the title was "Hell Broke Loose in Georgia"). The words to the song were written in a book of his poems my mother used to read to me when I was a kid. Brings back some pleasant memories of childhood. Thanks for the reminder!
Mike
Posted by: Mike Dubost at August 13, 2007 07:25 AMOutstanding Mike! I expected the bonus to go unanswered. And correct on both of the others, too.
Posted by: Ken S, Fifth String on the Banjo of Life at August 13, 2007 08:13 AMWell, I did get lucky on the bonus, since it is an old favorite. I do still sometimes jokingly use the line "the 'let's-go-easys' and the fair-to-milddlers" to describe the sort of people that kind of poke along all the time.
Mike
Posted by: Mike Dubost at August 13, 2007 08:33 AM15. If it's this easy, I must have it wrong. You pull the pirogue down the bayou to see your Yvonne (the sweetest one)? Then again, everybody who thinks they can fiddle does a version of that, so it's probably not what you're looking for.
Posted by: Joel, President of Catholics for Xenu at August 13, 2007 09:18 AMIt was that easy. I guess not ALL the obvious ones were up front.
Posted by: Ken S, Fifth String on the Banjo of Life at August 13, 2007 09:38 AM#12 Throw my body in the back and take me to the junkyard in my Caddilac.
Posted by: Bill at August 13, 2007 10:48 AMTHREE? It's a HUNDRED Acre Wood. Just ask the boy who grew up with a stuffed Winnie-the-Pooh.
Posted by: Boy Named Sous at August 13, 2007 09:31 PMWell, in the NGDB's version they sing "three acre wood". I can't explain the 97% discrepancy, perhaps the property was subdivided.
Posted by: Ken S, Fifth String on the Banjo of Life at August 14, 2007 06:00 AMActually, Kenny Loggins wrote it, and he sings it "I can't seeem to find my way back to the wood."
Incidentally, his children's CD, titled "Return to Pooh Corner", is a must for anyone with kids (or grandkids). It's very calming (as opposed to some kid's music which is designed to pep them up!) and you get to hear some really cool and uncommon children's music (including Gene Wilder saying "Close your eyes, make a wish" from the *real* Willy Wonka movie.)
two gooey old band-aids--there's definitely an "eww" factor there.
Posted by: Kate P at August 14, 2007 07:48 AM