This week on SWING ON THIS, I’ve got two Moons. That’s Moon as in Mullican, who’s represented by a 1939 recording of a song he wrote and performed with Bob Dunn’s Vagabonds and a 1955 King Records single version of a naughty Memphis Minnie blues that’s been in the repertoire of lots of Western-swing acts.
I’ve also got a song that gives us two degrees of separation between Johnnie Lee Wills and the Beach Boys, and I’ve once again indulged myself by playing “Gone Away,” the song I was honored to help Steve Ripley and Tim DuBois write some two decades ago. The version I’m playing Saturday is the Bill Anderson/Oak Ridge Boys recording from 2012, using the same musical bed that Steve laid down for his solo version (released in ’04). In fact, you can hear Steve at the beginning of Whispering Bill’s recording, along with my wheezy Vox Jaguar stylings from the original session.
That and a nice variety of Western swing, cowboy jazz, and plenty of surprises, all headed your way Saturday at 7 p.m. Tulsa time over radio station KWGS, 89.5 FM, and live-streaming at publicradiotulsa.org. We’ve got people listening in from all over the world, and we’d love to have you along as well, as SWING ON THIS rolls into its 19th year.
1. “Thank You Mr. Moon,” Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys (for ROBERT BLANCK)
2. “I’ve Just Seen a Face,” Leon Russell and the New Grass Revival
(for the LEON LIFERS)
3. “A Broken Heart and a Glass of Beer,” Hank Thompson and the Brazos Valley Boys
(for DWIGHT HALDERMAN and the GLASS LIFTERS)
4. “Tough Act to Follow,” Billy Parker
5. “What’s the Matter with the Mill,” Moon Mullican
(for DAN SEXTON)
6. “Gone Away,” Bill Anderson with the Oak Ridge Boys
(for TROY PIERCE)
7. “Guess Who’s in Town,” Bill Boyd and His Cowboy Ramblers
(for HAMILL TIME)
8. “Blue Canadian Rockies,” High, Wide and Handsome
9. “San Antonio Rose,” Genie
(for AP MCQUIDDY)
10. “Two Step Side Step,” Johnnie Lee Wills and His Boys
11. “I Love Western Swing,” Rick and the Ramblers
(for STEVE ZSCHECK)
12. “Never Let Those Deep Blues Get You Down,” Al Clauser and His Oklahoma Outlaws
13. “Oh Yes? Take Another Guess,” Hank Penny and His Radio Cowboys
14, “It Don’t Mean A Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing),” Tom Morrell and the Time-Warp Tophands
(for JACK & CAROLE BENDER)
15. “I Want the Whole World to Know,” Bob Dunn’s Vagabonds