03/04/2023

This week’s genre is Rockabilly. Rockabilly has it roots in my neck of the woods – a combination or country and early rock-and-roll. As with most anything these days, you can find many different definitions of the same subject. I will defer to Jim as he always gives of a good definition of each challenge. Check out his post for more details. The best way I know to define rockabilly is by listening to the music!

This week I decided to go with a fun ‘answer song’ (which by the way Jim might be a good topic if you have not already used it). An answer song is defined as a song that ‘answers’ a previous song generally recorded by a different artist.

“Hot Rod Lincoln” was written and recorded by rockabilly singer/songwriter Charley Ryan in 1955. It was in answer to the song “Hot Rod Race” released in 1950 by Arkie Shibley. “Hot Rod Race” was said to have given birth to all the hot rod songs that would follow.

”Hot Rod Race” is a song about a hot rod race up US. Route 99 (now I5) to Los Angeles, and through the Grapevine canyon. I found a video on YouTube of the old U.S. Route 99 which gives you an idea of the route as it might have been in the song. Skip it if you are not interested. You will need to view on YouTube. The original race that Chaley Ryan drove was actually up the Spiral Highway in Lewiston, Idaho. He changed the road referenced in the song to match the road in “Hot Rod Race”.

Back to the song. The original was released in 1955 and was released again under a different label in 1959. Here’s the original rockabilly version by Charley Ryan and the Livingston Brothers.

The song was released by country singer Johnny Bond in 1960. This is often considered the favorite version of the song by many. The lyrics were changed somewhat from the original including modifying the engine size from a V12 to a V8. It reached #26 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Another version of the song was released by Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen in 1971. This would be the most ‘chart successful’ version of the song reaching #9 on Billboard’s Hot 100. You can find it along with the lyrics on YouTube.

Asleep at the Wheel also covered the song in 1988. Their version is one of my favorites.

The 50s and 60s and even the early 70s were the time of young men and their cars! Every guy I knew tinkered with cars, knew how to drive the, fix them, and soup them up (did you know the term ‘souped up’ came from a narcotic injection (soup) given to race horses to make them run faster.) The things you learn on Song Lyric Sunday.

I found a great article about these hot rod songs that I thoroughly enjoyed. If you are a fan of the history I recommend it.

Hot-Rod Songs of the Northwest

Linda is taking us on a safari with her topic this morning. Why not check out her post and join in on the fun?

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “wild animal.” Choose a wild animal (or many wild animals) and use it any way you’d like in your post. Enjoy!

We have not seen many wild animals on the field camera lately. We are fortunate to live on 3 acres of wooded land and we do get the benefit of our nature neighbors stopping by frequently.

Right now as spring is just peeking out from a long winter nap, most of the animals are staying under cover. Once the trees and shrubs leaf out, I am sure we will see more of them.

The black bears are not uncommon in our backyard. They can smell the bird feeders miles away. Our bears den up in winter but since our weather is more temperate, they emerge from their dens earlier than their northern cousins. This is why our feeders come in every night.

We can see (and hear) wild turkeys. Deer are also a common sight. We have seen coyotes on the camera, but it is rare that they come near the house. We are also fortunate to have seen bobcats from time to time. They are gorgeous but they can be very dangerous so we give them a wide berth. Foxes, raccoons, and opossums are also common visitors.

It won’t be long now, though. In the interim, enjoy these snippets of spring. Click to see the slideshow and the captions.