Little Green Thing – The Songs & Tunes

Unless noted otherwise, all songs and tunes are traditional, with adaptations and arrangements by Gillygaloo. Original songs, lyrics, compositions, and arrangements by Michael Gorin, Shlomo Pestcoe or Suzi Shelton are fully copyrighted. All rights reserved. (P) & (C) 2003 Gillygaloo.

1. GILLYGALOO (Gorin) 3:21
   Suzi, vocals; Michael, fiddle; Shlomo, button accordion; Bob, guitar and bass; Ray, guiro

Our band's "anthem" is Michael's lyrical take on the legend of our namesake, the Gillygaloo, a fanciful creature found in the tales of the giant lumberjack Paul Bunyan. Inspiration for the song's music comes from the Clifton Chenier's 1964 zydeco hit, Ay Ai Ai. The tune (which calls to mind that old favorite Polly Waddle Doodle) is actually one of the most common melody forms found in the Black Creole tradition of south western Louisiana. We play the melody with much more of a Caribbean rhythm and feel, which is fitting since one of the main roots of Louisiana's Black Creole cultural and musical heritage is the West Indian island nation, Haiti.

Read more about Zydeco Music.

2. DOWN IN THE VALLEY 3:44
   Suzi, vocals; Michael, fiddle; Shlomo, guitar and mandolin; Bob, bass and elephants

   Animals are on parade in our version of this African American ring dance from the Georgia Sea Islands, part of a chain of small islands that hug the coastline of northern Florida, Georgia and South Carolina. The Sea Islands are home to communities of descendants of African slaves who created a unique creole language and culture, called "Gullah" or "Geechee," which retains elements of their West African cultural heritage.

   Down in the Valley comes from the singing of Bessie Jones (1902-1984), who was the last active member of the original Georgia Sea Island Singers, a group of Islanders formed in the 1930s to preserve the old songs and singing tradition of the Gullah/Geechee communities. Like many other religious folk throughout rural America, the Gullah/Geechee people in the old days did not hold with "sinful dancing" and spurned the fiddle and banjo as "the devil's boxes." Instead they favored "play party" type dances, which the Islanders referred to as "ring dances" and "plays," done to the singing and hand clapping of the participants, without instrumental accompaniment.

   We, however, like to do this song in the style of yet another venerable African American musical tradition from the rural South-- that of the fiddle-led string band. Our version also reflects the influence of the blues string bands and jug bands once common in the rural and urban African-American communities of the South and Mid-West.

   To learn more about Bessie Jones and hear her perform Down in the Valley, you can visit Rounder Records, a great label for all types of folk music.

   Here's a link to a fascinating website devoted to the history and culture of the Sea Island Gullah/Geechee communities.

3. UNCLE LEWIS' TUNE #1 / THREE DAYS OLD (Gorin) 2:26
   Michael, fiddle; Shlomo, mandolin; Bob, guitar and bass

   One common "urban myth" is that American fiddle music begins in the Southern Mountains and ends in the West. Well, folks (red, white and black) have been fiddlin' here in the Empire State--as well as in neighboring New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New England – since the beginning of European settlement.

   By way of example, we offer an Upstate New York fiddle tune from the family tradition of Adirondack fiddler Vic Kibler (1919- ) and one from Manhattan, recently composed by Michael.

   More information about Vic Kibler and his music.

   Michael's contra dance band, Grand Picnic, has recorded a fantastic album of New England and Northern-style fiddle music. Check out their CD Baby web page to hear some samples.

4. LITTLE GREEN THING (Pestcoe) 3:54
   Reporters: Emma and Molly G.; Suzi, vocals; Michael, fiddle; Trip, harmonica; Shlomo, finger-style blues guitar and bottleneck slide guitar; Bob, rhythm guitar and bass; Chorus Boyz: Michael, Bob and Ray

   The Big Apple is known as "The Capitol of the World" because we have millions of folks living, working, playing and visiting here who come from literally every land on the face of the earth. Is it so farfetched then to speculate that our fair metropolis may one day attract tourists from way, way out of town... say, the other end of the universe?

   As a bit of musical "food for thought" on the matter, we offer Little Green Thing. We do this number in a down-home style reminiscent of the African American blues string bands and jug bands, which saw their heyday in the 1920s and '30s.

   Want to learn more about the blues? Check out the Blues Foundation's super website.

5. SWEET LEI ILIMA (adapted & arranged by Pestcoe) 1:08
   Shlomo, vocals and tenor ukulele

   Shlomo's arrangement of this old Hawaiian song fuses together a version that he found in an old ukulele tutor by Ernest Ka'ai (circa 1916, Honolulu, Hawaii) with one from the first 78 rpm recording by Kalama's Quartet in 1927, MEDLEY OF HULAS. The song is a tribute to sweet-smelling lei necklaces made from the ilima and lehua flowers as well as the joys of riding in an automobile and on a bicycle as they glide down the road like an aku (a bonito or "skip jack" fish) swimming in the sea. His approach to singing this song was inspired by the distinctive singing style of Raymond Kane (pronounced "Kah'ney"), a grand old kumu ki ho 'alu (master of the Hawaiian "slack-key" guitar style). Here's a terrific online source for Hawaiian music. Bounty Music (Maui, Hawaii) has a great website devoted to the ukulele.

6. BROOKLYN GIRLS (words by Pestcoe)
   Suzi and Wendy, vocals; Shlomo, mountain dulcimer; Bob, 5-string banjo, guitar and bass
   BLACK-EYED SUSIE 2:48
   Suzi and Wendy, vocals; Michael and Shlomo, fiddles; Bob, 5-string banjo and guitar

   Brooklyn Girls is Shlomo's parody of The Johnson Boys, a Southern old-time country favorite. Our arrangement features the Appalachian mountain dulcimer (a fretted zither also called "the lap dulcimer" because it's typically lain flat across the player's lap in order to be played) and the 5-string banjo, played here by Bob in the traditional down-picking style known as "frailing" or "clawhammer." It's followed by Black-Eyed Susie, a classic old-time fiddle and banjo breakdown. Our version of this tune is based on a 1927 recording by the legendary Kentucky fiddler, Doc Roberts (1897-1978). As a boy, Doc had learned many of his tunes from Owen Walker, a prominent local African-American fiddler.

   The Old-Time Music Homepage  is a good online resource for Southern-style old-time country music.

7. PRELUDE (Gorin)/ Michael, fiddle; Shlomo, concertina; Bob, guitar and bass
   LEANDRE B. (Pestcoe) / Michael, fiddle; Shlomo, tenor banjo; Bob, guitar and bass; Ray, dumbec drum
   CUIL AODH 2:22 Michael, fiddle; Shlomo, button accordion; Bob, guitar and bass; Ray, tambourine

   Leandre B. is a double jig that celebrates the birth of Shlomo's niece.

   Cuil Aodh (pronounced "Cool Ah") is a popular Irish session tune named for a village in the Gaeltacht (Irish-speaking) region of County Cork. The village is noted as the home of the late Sean O Riada, one of Ireland's greatest composers and a pioneer of the contemporary revival of traditional Irish music.

   On Michael's suggestion, we "folk processed" this Irish double jig and recast it as Italian tarantella. To Michael's seasoned ear, Cuil Aodh has more of an Italian accent than an Irish brogue. Back in his "salad days," Michael had backpacked through the Italian country side. Wherever he went, he heard tarantelle played on the organetto (button accordion) and the tamburello (a large tambourine). The bounce of Cuil Aodh reminded Michael of those great tunes, so he thought it would be fun to play it Italian style. As we listened down to this cut after recording it, a big smile crossed Michael's face. He raised up his arms and commenced to dance a tarantella... right there in the control room!

   Here are two exceptional websites for learning more about Irish and Celtic music: Ceolas and IrishMusic.com. Here is an extremely valuable online source of Irish tunes (in standard notation).

8. THE SINGING ALPHABET / MAMA LIZA JANE 2:13
   Vocals: Suzi and Wendy; Kids' Chorus: Emma, Molly D., Molly G., and Sebastian

   The Singing Alphabet is from a 1941 Library of Congress field recording of Mrs. May K. McCord of Springfield, Missouri. Suzi and Wendy sing it a cappella in the same fashion as Mrs. McCord on the original recording. To the modern ear, it may sound strange to sing a folk song without a guitar or some sort of instrumental accompaniment. Actually, in most older folk traditions, songs, ballads and work chanties were typically sung a cappella. Mama Liza Jane is a net-hauling chantey from the African American menhaden fishermen of the Chesapeake Bay. The menhaden is a small fish which served as a cheap alternative to whale oil in the late 19th century and is used today in the manufacture of fertilizer and animal feed as well as paints and cosmetics.

   To learn more about the rich vibrant tradition of the menhaden fishermen and their songs, here's a link to the Maryland Marine Notes section devoted to them.

   You can hear the original version of Mama Liza Jane on a great CD, The Menhaden Chanteymen: Won't You Help Me To Raise 'Em (CD220). It's issued by Global Village Music, a fine indie label devoted to various ethnic music traditions.

9. PEELER CREEK WALTZ 1:26
   Michael, fiddle and vocals; Vicki, vocals; Shlomo, concertina; Bob, guitar

   Peeler Creek Waltz is an old-time tune that's a favorite at square dances and contra dances all over. Sometime in its long history, an anonymous musician or dancer came up with the lyrical bit of sage advise to parents that Michael and Miss Vicki sing here. Singing and/or roaring out verse couplets over an instrumental dance tune is a venerable tradition in old-time country music.

   Like most traditional tunes, the origins of Peeler Creek Waltz have been obscured as it has wended its way through the folk process over the years. There is a Peeler Creek that runs through Davie County, North Carolina: it's named for the Biehler family, German immigrants who settled there sometime in the 1750s. Could this beautiful waltz have been composed by a Davie County fiddler in days gone by?

10. CITY BUS (Pestcoe) 3:38
    Suzi, vocals; Michael, fiddle; Shlomo, tenor banjo and button accordion; Bob, guitar and bass; Ray, guiro; Kids' Chorus: Mimi, Riva, Roy and Xavier

    Back in 1997, The Imagination Workshop Band (Suzi and Shlomo's first kids' music group with Lou Gallo and Albert Elias) came out with its debut album, Subway Train. The title cut, a rollicking calypso-esque ode to NYC's subway system written by Shlomo, became a minor hit with the local playground set. A few years later, Shlomo decided that the Metropolitan Transit Authority's buses deserved a paean of their own and came up with City Bus.

    Like Subway Train, City Bus has a pronounced Caribbean musical accent. Both songs were written with an ear to Trinidadian calypso from the 1920s and '30s and mento, the banjo-driven party and dance music of rural Jamaica.

    Here are some hand motions to do as you sing the chorus:

Beep the horn, (pump your hand as if beeping the horn in the center of the bus' steering wheel) As the wheels go 'round; (roll your hands ala "The Wheels on the Bus") City Bus, (both hands move as if operating a big steering wheel) Take me, (point your thumb towards your chest) Downtown! (gesture over your shoulder with the same thumb)

To hear a bit of Subway Train and the other critically-acclaimed original songs on the IWB's classic debut album, visit Subway Train's CD Baby web page.

To find out more about Jamaican mento, the granddad of reggae and ska, check out this way cool site.

For everything and anything on NYC's buses, subways, trains and ferries, be sure to visit the Metropolitan Transit Authority of New York's website.

11. BRUDMARSCH FRAN RATTVIK (Bridal March from Rattvik)
    Reporters: Sam, Cody and Efrain; Fiddles: Michael and Shlomo
    FREYLACHS FUN DER CHUPPE (Joyous Tunes from the Wedding Canopy) 3:09
    Michael, fiddle; Shlomo, concertina and mandolin; Bob, guitar and bass

    Our fine feathered friends waddle down the aisle to a bridal march from the Dalarna province of Sweden, a region famed for its rich heritage of fiddle music. Back in the day, weddings in the Swedish countryside were marked by village processions led by fiddlers playing various types of ceremonial tunes, such as the brudmarsch (bridal march) and skanklat (gift-bearing tune).

    The celebration continues with some Jewish klezmer music, Freylachs Fun Der Chuppe (Joyous Tunes from the Wedding Canopy), originally recorded by Harry Kandel's Orchestra in 1917. The tune's title refers to the conclusion of the wedding ceremony (which is performed under a canopy called a chuppe), marked by the chassan (bridegroom) stomping down to break a wine glass (the startling noise reminds us that even in moments of our greatest joy we must never forget that there's pain, suffering and oppression in the world). With that, everyone cheers the couple, shouting "Mazel Tov!" ("Good luck!", "Congratulations!"), and the klezmorim (traditional musicians) strike up a lively freylach to lead the wedding party off to the reception.

    Read more about Klezmer and Swedish Music.

12. KITTY WALTZ 2:10
    Suzi and Wendy, vocals; Shlomo, lead guitar; Bob, rhythm guitar

    This charming old parlor song comes from a 1929 recording by Sara and Maybelle Carter of the original Carter Family, "The First Family of Country Music." We do it pretty much as Sara and Maybelle recorded it: just two voices and two guitars.

    Care for a waltz? Just grab a partner and glide across the floor to the beat: 1-2-3, 1-2-3....

    To learn more about the Carter Family and their tremendous influence on the evolution of American folk, bluegrass and country music, check out the Southern Music Network's amazing website (its covers the whole gamut of Southern music from blues to rockabilly).

    The Carter Family recorded some 300 songs between 1927 and 1941. You can find the words to many of them by visiting the Bluegrass West! website.

13. ALI OIDAK POLKA / HOHOKUM POLKA 3:25
    Spoken Introduction: Suzi and Sebastian; Michael and Shlomo, fiddles; Bob, guitar; Ray, snare and bass drums

    Here we have two tunes from the fiddle tradition of Southern Arizona's Tohono O'odham ("Desert People," formerly known as the Papago and Pima Indians). This tradition stretches back to the earliest days of Spanish colonization, when Catholic missionaries introduced European string instruments to the Tohono O'odham for use in church services. In the mid-19th century, Tohono O'odham fiddlers picked up the latest "pop" dance music forms to come over from Europe-- the waltz, polka, mazurka, etc.-- and adapted them to fit their musical culture. Fiddle bands provided the music for religious festivals, community celebrations and social dancing until the 1950s, when the fiddle gave way to the button accordion and saxophone of the modern waila or "chicken scratch" bands. The 1980s brought a revival of interest in the old-time Tohono O'odham fiddle tradition, which continues to grow, guaranteeing that this wonderful music will be played and enjoyed well into the future.

    We learned these polkas from the playing of the Gu-Achi Fiddlers (named for their village in Southern Arizona), which featured the talents of two great fiddlers, Elliot Johnson and Lester Vavages, who have since passed on. True to their style, we play this medley on two fiddles, guitar, snare drum and bass drum.

    Here is a link to Canyon Records' webpage for the Gu-Achi Fiddlers' album, Old-Time O'odham Fiddle Music (1988), where you can hear a bit of the original version of Ali Oidak Polka. Canyon Records is a small label devoted to presenting Native American music in all its many forms.

14. HEY DIDDLE SWING (Pestcoe) 2:46
    Spoken Introduction: Suzi, Wendy and Michael; Bob, vocals, rhythm guitar and bass; Michael, fiddle; Shlomo, lead guitar; Ray, snare drum; Kitty Cat Chorus: Suzi, Wendy, Michael and Bob

    Back in the day, if you wanted to hear the best jazz and swing music, you'd take the "A" train and head uptown to Harlem. You might have caught a show by some hot fiddler like Stuff Smith or Claude Williams at the Savoy. Or, as Shlomo's song relates, you might have headed to the Old Catnip to hear Miss Kitty Kat fiddle to make even "the bull dogs dip and dive...."

    Our own "hep cat" Bob takes center stage for our musical retelling in swing time of the old tale about the fiddlin' feline.

15. SALLY GO 'ROUND THE SUNSHINE (adapted & arranged by Shelton) 2:15
    Suzi, vocals; Trip, harmonica; Bob, guitar; Game Players: Emma, Molly D., Molly G. and Sebastian (with assistance from Molly D.'s mom, Wendy, and Emma and Molly G.'s mom, Sarah Henry)

    Suzi puts a new spin on this well-known play-party game, variants of which are found throughout North America, the West Indies and the British Isles. We knew we had a hit on our hands when our kids took to the studio floor to dance and play during the recording of Sally Go 'Round The Sunshine: they couldn't help but breakdown in peals of laughter and giggles each time they went 'round!

    Definitely try this one at home!

16. THE MORE WE GET TOGETHER 3:24
    Suzi, vocals; Michael, fiddle; Shlomo, cuatro and button accordion; Bob, guitar; Ray, dumbec drum

    Balkan and Caribbean rhythms get together in our very unusual rendition of this old favorite. Our main source of inspiration was a field recording of a group of Jamaican elders singing this song to the improvised accompaniment of a harmonica and a boom pipe (a bass folk horn made from a long piece of hollowed-out bamboo or a section of PVC pipe). Folk processing it a bit more, we mixed in a little Balkan beat and the dulcet tones of the Puerto Rican cuatro (a small 10-string guitar-like instrument) to come up with our "Only-in-New-York" version of this classic children's song.

Total Recording Time -- 44:19

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