Conglomeration 2008 - Friday Filk part 5 - The Green Hills of Earth & Rambling Rover

[fairportfan2]

The late Meade Frierson III had a tape that was, he said, Frank Zappa doing a very nice doo-wop version of "Green Hills".

I never managed to get a copy from him.

His source said it had been recorded for the album "Crusin' with Ruben and the Jets" but not used - possibly because they couldn't get clearance.

it sounded like Zappa and the Mothers of the period, and more specifically had the same sound that Frank got on "Ruben"; as a big Zappa fan at the time, i agreed that it likely was.

[barnabysquirrel]

@fairportfan2 Meade gave me a copy of that tape back in about '78 at a con in Atlanta. I agree - it does sound like Zappa. I believe I still have the tape "somewhere in storage", and am going to make a serious effort to dig it out. I was humming it to myself while driving to work just a couple of days ago...

[fairportfan2]

@barnabysquirrel

He made a video back about then, too, using clips from all sorts of things, including anime.

[LadyShesu]

I believe this video just explained everything about filking. Thank you.

[chengloki]

The original song was a sea chantie, "Rolling down to old Mau'i". "We're homward bound from the Arctic Round, rolling down to old Mau'i".I love filking. But, not when they steal from the old songs. Leslie Fish is the greatest!!!=Stefan=

[Blinkymyt]

Based on Rhysling the Space Singer's mournful lyrics in Robert Heinlein's short story "The Green Hills of Earth", I also was captivated by this song. (Refer to "John Dennis Dickey" via YouTube for a more upbeat, albeit not necessarily preferable, rendition.) I first heard this similar version in a 1950's radio show called "Dimension X" (and later done on radio in "X-Minus One"). Rhysling may not have cared for my more Pollyanna version...but I had to match my slide collection. Thanks, Flk gang.