More Bear Family DVD's

Jussi Huhtakangas · Post by **Jussi Huhtakangas** » 24 May 2003 9:12 am

I just got the two latest releases of BF Town Hall Party-series DVD's; Marty Robbins and The Collins Kids. Especially the Marty Robbins disc is interesting, since it mostly features Marty's own road band and James Farmer does some really nice steel work on many cuts. He's playing his beat up ol' Fender Dual 8 and has, what I think is a Shot Jackson assembled pedal, for those E9 changes. And of course mr Robbins has one of the prettiest voices of country music and he even does a couple of his Hawaiian tunes. Tompall Glaser and The Glaser Brothers are also featured, both as a backing vocal group and as an act of their own.
The Collins Kids is pretty much like they are on the Ranch Party shows, Larry bouncin' around like an electrified rabbit with his Mosrite. No steel on their show, but if you haven't seen the Ranch Party shows or The Collins Kids, you need to check out this DVD.

Don Benoit · Post by **Don Benoit** » 24 May 2003 11:47 am

Is Les "Carrot Top" Anderson on the DVD? I am told that Les ran that show in the background. He was a vcalist on the show. In the early 40's, he replaced Leon on the Bob Wills band while Leon was in the service.

------------------
http://members.shaw.ca/dben/psg.htm

Jussi Huhtakangas · Post by **Jussi Huhtakangas** » 25 May 2003 12:29 am

No, Les is not among the regular THP crew on these shows. These were filmed in -58, -59, the cast features basically the same musicians than the Ranch Party shows; Joe & Rose Maphis, Skeets MacDonald, Pee Wee Adams, Merle Travis, Margie Warren, Jimmy Pruett and Billy Mize is the house steel player.

Alvin Blaine · Post by **Alvin Blaine** » 26 May 2003 10:10 pm

Les "Carrot Top" Anderson is on the "Ranch Party" tapes(wearing a shirt with carrots embroidered on it) as one of the cast singers. He sang on the group sing alongs and every now and then would be featured on a song. One show has him singing "Don't let the stars get in your eyes"(Skeets big hit some 8 or 10 years earlier) while Skeets McDonald stands behind him.

Jason Odd · Post by **Jason Odd** » 31 May 2003 6:41 pm

Yeah sure Carrot Top was on the show, but by 1959 he was hardly on the show, he was working Vegas a bit by then and had a group with Bud Issacs at one stage.

By the late 1950s THP and the Ranch Party were featuring less and less of the older pickers and trying to showcase younger acts.