Howdy Do! Songs of the Urban Cowpoke

Howdy Do! Songs of the Urban Cowpoke. Performed by Hopalong Andrew. CD. Approx.32 min. Produced by Andrew Vladeck. 2018. CD: $11.98; Download: $9.49.

K – Gr 5 –

Hopalong Andrew (Vladeck) performs 11 parodies of well-known country western songs and one original song in country western and bluegrass musical styles. “Howdy Do!” parodies “The Happy Wanderer,” a song that I learned in elementary school. It was nice to hear that tune again. “Back in the City Again” parodies “Back in the Saddle Again” made famous by Gene Autry. A taxi driver claims “I’ve Been Everywhere in New York City” by naming most of its streets, a parody of “I’ve Been Everywhere.” The “Kaw-liga” parody, “Tyrannosaurus,” tells listeners of a night in the museum. Instead of “Thank God I’m a Country Boy,” Hopalong says “Thank God I’m a City Boy.” Everyone runs for the ice cream truck in “Ice Cream Dude,” a parody of “Jingle Jangle Jingle.” Instead of a “Home on the Range,” Hopalong wants a “Home on the Town.” And he wants to “Bring Back My Cowgirl to Me” from the west (New Jersey) to New York, in a parody of “My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean.” The remaining songs include “The Yodeling Ranger of Central Park” (“The Yodeling Ranger”); “Outside!” (“Rawhide”); “Broadway Was a Native American Trail” (“The Old Chisholm Trail”); and his original “Buffalo, Buffalo.” This is a fun, entertaining album for everyone, but especially for country folk who wished they lived in the city.