Old Shep
| "Old Shep" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Rambling Red Foley with Cumberland Ridge Runners | ||||
| B-side | Sing Me An Old Hillbilly Ballad[1] | |||
| Published | June 24, 1935[2] | |||
| Released | March 18, 1936[3] | |||
| Recorded | December 9, 1935[1] | |||
| Studio | American Furniture Mart ARC Studio, 666 N Lake Shore Drive, 21st Floor, Chicago | |||
| Genre | Hillbilly, Western | |||
| Length | 3:23 | |||
| Label | Melotone 6-03-53[1] | |||
| Composer | Clyde Julian Foley[2] | |||
| Lyricist | Willis Arthur[2] | |||
| Rambling Red Foley with Cumberland Ridge Runners singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Old Shep" is a song composed by Red Foley, with lyrics by Willis Arthur, published in 1935,[4] about a dog Foley owned as a child. In reality, the dog, poisoned by a neighbor, was a German Shepherd called "Hoover".[5][6] Foley first recorded the song on December 9, 1935, for American Record Corporation (ARC) in Chicago, then re-recorded it on March 4, 1941, his first session for Decca Record Company, and again for them on July 31, 1946. He recorded for Decca the rest of his life, 1941 to 1968.
Other versions
The song, later recorded by many artists including Hank Snow and Elvis Presley, became a country classic.[7] Tex Morton 1941, Hank Williams 1942, Elvis Presley 1956, Hank Snow 1959, Ralph DeMarco (1959 - #10 in Canada[8]), Walter Brennan 1960, Dave Dudley 1965, Johnny Cash 1975, Everly Brothers & Garrison Keillor 1988, Pat Boone 1994, Burton Cummings (as Elvis) 1994, Alabama 2006.
A version of the song by Clinton Ford appeared in the UK Singles Chart in October 1959, spending one week at number 27.[9][10]
Colombian performer Marco recorded a Spanish language version in 1986.
Elvis Presley connection
On October 3, 1945, Elvis Presley sang "Old Shep" at age ten for his first public performance, a singing contest at the Mississippi-Alabama Fair and Dairy Show. Dressed as a cowboy, he stood on a chair to reach the microphone. He came in fifth place, winning $5 and a free ticket to the fair rides.[11] At sixteen years of age, in 1951, he again performed it for a talent show at L. C. Humes High School, where he was a student, winning an encore for his performance. Presley's cover version was released in 1956.
References
- ^ a b c "MELOTONE 1936 78rpm numerical listing discography". www.78discography.com. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
- ^ a b c Library of Congress. Copyright Office. (1935). Catalog of Copyright Entries 1935 Musical Compositions New Series Vol 30 Pt 3. United States Copyright Office. U.S. Govt. Print. Off.
- ^ Praguefrank (October 3, 2015). "Red Foley, part 2". Praguefrank's Country Discography 2. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
- ^ Martin Popoff (2017). Led Zeppelin. All the Albums, All the Songs, Voyageur_Pr, p. 87.
- ^ Wolfe, Charles K. (2015). Kentucky Country: Folk and Country Music of Kentucky, University Press of Kentucky, p. 131.
- ^ The Encyclopedia of Country Music, Oxford University Press, (2012), p. 166.
- ^ "Red Foley Fans Tribute". My space. Archived from the original on January 15, 2009. Retrieved March 14, 2009.
- ^ "CHUM Hit Parade - January 4, 1960".
- ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records. p. 207. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ Mawer, Sharon. "Biography". All music. Retrieved July 4, 2009.
- ^ "Biography", Elvis.com, archived from the original on March 22, 2009, retrieved March 14, 2009.
