Burl Ives

[Jeff T.]

I have been listening to this old album from 1963 from Burl Ives. Such a nice warm beautiful recording from US Decca. Does anyone listen to this guy anymore do you think? Or has his time come and gone? Is he so uncool that he remains uncool rather than cool?

I know that the hip thing to do is get loaded up on some weed and pound down several drinks or beers, and listen to Zappa w/ the Mothers, or some Syd era Floyd.

I have some DVD footage of Syd with the Floyd band on the Harvested label. 1966/68 or whatever it is. And he looks iconic as the acid spaced out rock star with the Psych music swirling around him, and that "stare" into the camera. I watched it with some buddies a few weeks ago at 3am. The wives and gfs were out of town or whatever, so we were drinking beer and smoking til 4am with boot DVDs going of old footage of the who, floyd, etc. It was great. And us waysted with Syd also flying high on the wide flat screen it was kind of surreal in a good way.

But you know sometimes it's nice to be clean and sober and listen to something beautiful and pure. And Burl Ives singing songs for Boys and Girls from 63 is pretty pure and beautiful. And I'm sure it would sound fine in any setting.

I like to be clean and sober for extended periods of time. And I have gotten to the point in my life where I am not bored and not inclined to fire up just out of boredom. But at the same time, there is nothing like hearing a real hot live rock recording with a buzz on. Or any old progressive type of music just really sounds special and goes best with a joint. That live Rolling Stones - Midnight Rambler from Brussels 73 might be best heard with a couple of hits of that evil weed.

It's true, and I'm glad I have reached a point in my life where I don't need it, and yet I can use it if I feel like it too.

But the Burl Ives sounds really good to me for some reason. I needle dropped that album for future listens. I just wonder how many other people out listen to this. I'm sure none of you forum members could give a cent about it. Just thought I would write something because it has been a little slow here.

[Ed Bishop]

It's understandable you won't find many folks these days waxing rhapsodic about ol' Burl...who wasn't just a fine singer, but could act a little too (see EAST OF EDEN for proof). He was his own man--into old folkie and trad tunes, who finally went 'pop' with Owen Bradley around '61 with "(It's Just My)Funny Of Laughin'" and "A Little Bitty Tear" his biggest hits (my sister remembers the later "Goober Peas" with fondness, though never understood why--musta loved it as a kid?). But he was never really connected to the folk movement started by the Weavers and popularized by the Kingston Trio and then Baez, the Limeliters, and others; he tended to stay just outside the mainstream, although much of what he was doing was also being done by others less known, like Ed McCurdy.

If Ives is remembered for anything, I'm betting the holiday special RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER and the single "Holly Jolly Christmas" will hold interest more than anything else he ever did. That was 1964, after his big hits for Decca (but still with the label, which put out the TV soundtrack album).

I know some of his better known material (including a repackage of that special) has been reissued on CD, as has *some* of his Columbia sides. Not sure how much has been put out, but the biggest and best known hits, at least, are still available.


ED