EARLY IDAHO SONGS OF THE MONTH - June 2011

 

Farewell to Old Elm (unknown songwriter, 1860s or 70s?). This seven-stanza song in Vardis Fisher's book Idaho Lore (1939) speaks of a Texas cowboy's troubles causing his departure for Idaho. The reference to Lige (Bivins), a Texas outlaw, ties the song to Elm, Texas in the Big Bend country of the Rio Grande. The phrase "now when this war is over and I return again" seems to peg the song to the Civil War era.  Noted Idaho cowboy poet/singer/songwriter Wayne Nelson of American Falls took the lyrics and adapted them to a plausible melody on this track.

IdahoLore

 

In the Valley (Clarence E. Eddy, 1908). This pensive poem was published in Death Valley Magazine. It was inspired by an unmarked grave seen by Poet-Prospector Clarence E. Eddy. "Ghost fires" refers to the mysterious night lights often reported for over 100 years in the Death Valley region. John Larsen of Givens Hot Springs gives an excellent recitation on this track.
EddyAtMonteCristo

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