Yes, I’m old. Yes, my tastes are “fossilized,” even “petrified.” But I know what I like – and I claim I have good reasons to prefer it to the modern crap, even if I decline to discuss them.
Accordingly, have a terrific tune from the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s classic album Uncle Charlie and His Dog Teddy:
Prodigal’s Return
He come a ridin’
He come a ridin’
He come a ridin’
He come…
Four A.M., look who come a callin’
Ridin’ down the road
Billy come back from a journey of folly
Ridin’ down the road
He come ridin’ back home
Warming the hearts of his own
He come downtown Des Moines
And now he starts to putting me down
I don’t think he’s been rolling too long
Eighteen years of total revolution
Ridin’ down the road
Say listen to me daddy Now I’ve got a solution
Ridin’ down the road
Why not let me come in
I’m still your boy and your kin
Remember the prodigal sin
Said son we’re gonna give unto you
What mama thinks you got comin’ due
He come a ridin’ (Billy come a call come a call, call)
He come a ridin’ (He’s ridin’ down, down, down, yeah)
Eighteen years of total revolution
Come ridin’ down the road
Say listen to me mama Now I’ve got a solution
Ridin’ down the road
Why not let me come in
(HE SAID…) I’m still your boy and your kin
Remember the prodigal sin
Said son we’re gonna give unto you
What daddy thinks you got comin’ due (yeah)
He come a ridin’ (Billy come a call come a call, call)
He come a ridin’ (He’s ridin’, ridin’ down the road)
He come a ridin’ Ohhh
He come a ridin’ Ridin’, ridin’
He come a ridin’ Ridin’, ridin’
He come a ridin’ Ridin’, ridin’
He come a ridin’ Ridin’, ridin’…
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Thank you for reminding me of a band that is sadly unrepresented in the myriad “Songs of the XXs” Youtube videos. I knew there was one I was forgetting…
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The NGDB were among the less-recognized and less-applauded of their era, probably because they were explicitly “country” and very much pro-American. The Seventies were a dark time for our country. Few who didn’t live through them could appreciate how dark. The music popular during those years doesn’t entirely capture that darkness, despite its role in spreading it.
Oh, I dunno. “Hotel California” is pretty dark…
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And thank you for on a particularly productive, informative day.
Thanks for the post. I endured the 70’s starting as a teenager spending a lot of my minds energy absorbing all I could of the generational music’s popularity. NGDB music brought so much to that table. I didn’t collect but two of their LPs sadly. If I had I would have heard and absorbed this gem of a song. Am I the only one who heard a rap style in parts of the vocals on that cut?
One of their first big hits led me to discover Jerry Jeff W. And the first “Circle” double set LP introduced me to the marvel of Doc Watson’s musical journey.
Fran, I’ve owned that album since it first came out. “Prodigal’s Return” wasn’t/isn’t one of my favorites and the song everybody remembers is “Mr. Bojangles”. I think they were a mix of bluegrass and country and I remember going to one of their concerts when I was in college.. “House At Poo Corner” was one of their ‘pop’ songs.
As for the 70s, my lottery number was 4. Although thanks to the sainted Mr. Nixon who ended the draft just in the nick of time, I never had to go.
It comes with the territory. I loathe the modern crap some people call music. And some of it isn’t “music” at all.