Kisses sweeter than wine
GARELICK
Who composed the song "Kisses sweeter than Wine?" It was a big national hit
for the Weavers in the early 50s, until the group was blacklisted by McCarthy.
Despite the blacklist, the song continued to be popular for years. Did one of
the Weavers write the song? Has anyone recorded it lately?
GUS GARELICK
MIKE REGENSTREIF
According to Pete Seeger, Lead Belly heard an Irish traditional song
called "Drimmin Down" to which he changed the rhythm to create the melody we
now know as KSTW. Pete got the idea for the line "Oh-oh kisses sweeter than
wine," Lee Hays then wrote 7 verses which Pete, Ronnie Gilbert and Fred
Hellerman edited down to the five in the song.
The most recent version is a duet of Jackson Browne and Bonnie Raitt
that's included on the 2-CD set WHERE HAVE ALL THE FLOWERS GONE: THE SONGS OF
PETE SEEGER (Appleseed 1024). The album is due out on March 17 but of you're
in the Montreal area, you can hear the song along with two others from the
album on my radio program tomorrow (Thursday) morning from 9-11:15 on CKUT
(90.3 FM).
Mike Regenstreif
Doc W
This song was on the first LP I ever bought, around about
1958 by a pop singer called Jimmie Rodgers, not the great
train driver Jimmie but a Korean war vet whose studio turned it
into a POP song which got lots of airplay in the US and Europe.
Jimmie was savagely beaten years later by the LAPD, and in
about 1967 appeared at the New Mexico State Fair. He collapsed
on stage from severe head pain, and if I remember rightly, died
some weeks later from left over brain trauma.
Bill H.
GARELICK wrote:
>
> Who composed the song "Kisses sweeter than Wine?" It was a big national hit
> for the Weavers in the early 50s, until the group was blacklisted by McCarthy.
> Despite the blacklist, the song continued to be popular for years. Did one of
> the Weavers write the song? Has anyone recorded it lately?
>
> GUS GARELICK
My understanding is that it came from and old Leadbelly song he had
collected--Dickie Drimmer. A story of a cow. You will find it, along
with the Weavers version (it is a bonus Leadbelly CD) in a 2 CD set
called "Kisses Sweeter Than Wine; A compilation from the Weavers private
collection". I have played it many times on our program.
Bill Hahn
Traditions
WFDU/FM
Teaneck, NJ
Stewa1
Goodness...Jimmie Rodgers is VERY much alive and still singing "Kisses Sweeter
Than Wine" and all his other hits like "Honecomb," "Just a Closer Walk with
Thee," "The Long Hot Summer," and on and on. He recorded tons of albums.
He was savagely beaten in LA, and went through a VERY long and painful
recovery, which Joey Bishop documented with frequent updates on his ABC late
night talk show.
I heard from Jimmie's son Michael on the internet about a year or so ago;
Jimmie sings in Branson from time to time.
He made a lot of hits with Roulette, then a lot with Dot, and a few with A&M
before moving on to a smaller label.
Doc W
"Stewa1" said in reply to Doc W's post
Goodness...Jimmie Rodgers is VERY much alive and still singing "Kisses Sweeter
Than Wine" and all his other hits like "Honecomb," "Just a Closer Walk with
Thee," "The Long Hot Summer," and on and on.
He recorded tons of albums.
He was savagely beaten in LA, and went through a VERY long and painful
recovery, which Joey Bishop documented with frequent updates on his ABC late
night talk show.
I'm glad that I was at least partially correct, and my apologies to
Jimmie and everyone else. I still have those worn and frequently played 50's LP's.
Thanks to Stewa1.
Sharon Stein
GARELICK <gare...@aol.com> wrote in article
<19980311160...@ladder03.news.aol.com>...
> Who composed the song "Kisses sweeter than Wine?" It was a big national
hit
> for the Weavers in the early 50s, until the group was blacklisted by
McCarthy.
> Despite the blacklist, the song continued to be popular for years. Did
one of
> the Weavers write the song? Has anyone recorded it lately?
>
> GUS GARELICK
>
According to Pete Seeger in "Where Have All The Flowers Gone," the tune
for "Kisses" came from an old Irish song called "Drimmin Down." Leadbelly
changed some of the chords around, but kept the original words:
A srrowful ditty I'll tell you right now,
Of an Old man that had bu one cow.
He took her to the field to be fed,
And all of a sudden poor Drimmer dropped dead
Oh--mush-a-sweeter than thou.
Seeger kept the song in his idea folder, and in 1950 when the Weavers
needed a song to follow their hit with Leadbelly's Goodnigt Irene, they
pulled out this tune. Lee Hays rewrote the words, and ta-da, "Kisses
Sweeter than Whine"
One final note. You should check "Where Have All the Flowers Gone" by
Pete. It is a great book and has the stories and music behind just about
every song he sang or wrote. Hope this helped.
Dan Stein
ols...@erols.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted using Reference.COM http://WWW.Reference.COM
FREE Usenet and Mailing list archive, directory and clipping service
--------------------------------------------------------------------