GREAT FUN FOR UNDER $14.27

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GOLDEN HITS
by Roger Miller
released: 1965
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This particular ROGER MILLER compilation is a significant aural piece of my childhood. Miller was a real favorite for my Pa, and thus my siblings and I were introduced to his goofy Country-Western hits at a very young age. My Pa always had a wacky sense of humor, which I seem to have inherited in spades. He enjoyed a well-turned phrase and comedy that bordered on (or even reveled in) the outrageous. (One of my great regrets in life is that I never sat him down and forced him to watch 'MONTY PYTHON & THE HOLY GRAIL' -- he would have loved it!)
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Even my Pa acknowledged that Roger Miller did not have what one would describe as a "great" voice. (It was kind of a cross between Willie Nelson and Cold Beer mixed with Warm, Raw Honey. Ya got that?). But Miller's voice was perfectly suited for the tenor of his novelty songs. It is a distinctive voice that definitely grows on the listener to become quite enjoyable to hear.
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Pa felt that after Roger got off "the sauce" his songs suffered. I don't know if that's true (I even dig some of his later, primarily subdued stuff), but these 11 short songs (the "epic" of this collection times out at just 2:26) originate from Roger's "bottle-tipping times", and there's nary a "dog" in the pound.
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Our excursion through Miller's Wacky World is initiated by his signature tune, 'KING OF THE ROAD'. ("Third boxcar, midnight train / Destination: Bangor, Maine / Old worn out clothes and shoes / I don't pay no union dues.")
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Then we move onto his classic of self-loathing, 'DANG ME'. ("Dang me, dang me / They oughta take a rope and hang me / High from the highest tree / Woman would you weep for me?")
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'ENGINE ENGINE #9' is enjoyable, yet rather straightforward by Miller standards, and 'IN THE SUMMERTIME' features his trademark phrasing, irregular meter changes, and some of the funniest yodeling on record!
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More than any other track here, 'YOU CAN'T ROLLER SKATE IN A BUFFALO HERD' reminds me of my youth because Pa (always an early-riser) was fond of blasting it loudly in order to awaken us kids for school. What a way to start your day! (Yes, just like Roger Miller himself, my Pa was a "strange duck", making me a Son-Of-A-Strange Duck, and you know how birds of a feather flock together.)
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The title 'DO-WACKA-DO' pretty much tells it all. ("I hear tell you're doin’ well / Good things have come to you / I wish I had your happiness / And you had a do-wacka-do".)
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'ENGLAND SWINGS' and so does the song.
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My Nephew -- the latest Rogerian convert to the family -- likes 'CHUG-A-LUG' the best. It's about a boy's first experience with "the sauce". ("4-H and FFA on a field trip to the farm / Me 'n' a friend sneak off behind / This big old barn where we uncovered a covered-up moonshine still...". "Uncovered a covered-up" -- only Roger, Dylan, and Tom Waits could've-would've written something like that. That requires an E.M. -- Elastic Mind.)
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'ONE DYING AND A BURYING' is deadly serious. It's sad. It's morose. I like it.
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'KANSAS CITY STAR' is probably my favorite track as it appeals to the overly-developed under-achieving trait in my personality ("Got a letter just this mornin' it was postmarked Omaha / It was typed and neatly written offerin' me this better job / Better job at higher wages, expenses paid and a car / But I'm on TV here locally and I can't quit, I'm a star".)
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'ATTA BOY, GIRL' is fun-4-all boys and girls.
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If you think that life is too damned serious to take seriously; if you think there's nothing wrong with rhyming "purple" with "maple syrple"; if you think "you can be happy if you've a mind to"; and if you've found that "you can't change film with a kid on your back" then ROGER MILLER is just waiting for you. What're you waiting for?
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In 'DANG ME', Miller sings, "Just sittin' around drinkin' with the rest of the guys / Six rounds bought, and I bought five / Spent the groceries and half the rent / Like fourteen dollars and twenty-seven cents." My Pa was admitted into the hospital in the first week of April, 1996 and he passed away on the 10th. He was joking right up until the time he slipped into unconsciousness and then slipped away entirely. When the nurse later turned over his belongings to me, I couldn't help noticing that he had entered the hospital with a total of $14. and small change (I didn't think to count the exact amount) in his pants pocket. Hmmm.... Pa's last little joke came after he was already gone. I used the money to buy beer for his wake -- he'd have wanted it that way. Roger Miller's GOLDEN HITS keeps some of my Pa's life in my heart, but I think it'll put some heart in your life, too.
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"Stay tuned -- we're gonna have a Popeye cartoon in a minute."
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~ Stephen T. McCarthy
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