Given recent events, this seems the appropriate time to remember the musical stylings of Mr. Fess Parker.You've probably heard at least one of his four versions of "The Ballad of Davy Crockett", but Fess didn't stop there. He recorded enough other stuff to fill two whole LPs - and then some.
Over half of Fess's musical output is now available on two CDs (see them HERE.) Several of those tunes are featured on YouTube, but a couple of my favorites are not, and I present them for you here:
"Be Sure You're Right" by Fess Parker & Buddy Ebsen
"King of the River" by Fess Parker
For links to more of today's Forgotten Music, visit the master deejay Scott Parker.
In my opinion this is the best music ever heard. You can rock the party with such type of music and also can get off the hearts of the dear ones.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE the song...but, officially: is it Jim "Booie" or "Bowie?"
ReplyDeleteThere's pretty good evidence that Big Jim, at least, pronounced it Booie. Some years before the Alamo he had moved to Texas and become a Mexican citizen. When his name is mentioned in Mexican accounts or documents it's usually spelled phonetically as "Buy" or "Bui".
ReplyDeleteAs a kid I had the Disney 45rpm with two of Fess' songs from WESTWARD HO THE WAGONS. http://www.amazon.com/FESS-PARKER-WRINGLE-DOWNLOAD-INCLUDED/dp/B001RY23Z8/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1269524725&sr=1-5
ReplyDeleteThanks Fred! Those songs (along with others) are also on an LP called "Cowboy and Indian Songs", as yet not available on CD.
ReplyDeleteI grew up on the Disney Channel back when it was still a premium channel and its programming was considerably more eclectic. I saw all of the old Davy Crockett episodes with Fess Parker but my favorite was actually the Swamp Fox with a very young Leslie Nielsen in the lead role.
ReplyDeleteI also had a small record player and a collection of Disney 45 rpm records. Davy Crockett w/ the B side of Swamp Fox was my favorite of those 45s.
Thanks for this post it brought back a flood of memories.
My goodness, who knew there was so much Fess singing? Besides you, of course, Evan. I suppose he made a fair amount of money from these records, eh?
ReplyDeleteIt's a shame Fess gave up music when he did. I heard he became a wealthy real estate agent after he quit show business.
ReplyDeleteI love that Swamp Fox theme too. I have several versions and will likely be posting them eventually. If anyone would like to hear them sooner, email me and I'll send mp3s.
ReplyDeleteI don't know what all Fess was doing in the post-Daniel Boone years, but he eventually opened a winery. There's a coonskin cap on the label of every bottle.
http://www.fessparker.com/
I am so totally getting those CDs for my eight-year-old son. He's just now learning about history and, being a Texan, he'll be sure to learn all the great history of this state. Thanks for this post.
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