State Songs #8: Delaware

At one point I thought the Perry Como song would be my only contribution to Delaware's State Song inventory.

Luckily I re-discovered the Duhks track posted below and my encyclopedic colleague Pete Marsh recommended Dolly Parton's Down From Dover. Martin Anderson from WNCW also emailed me with a tip about a bluegrass band called Front Line who apparently have a great song called Delaware but sadly I couldn't find any trace of that group.

So, a fairly meager selection I'm afraid. If you do have other suggestions please leave a comment and I'll make further investigations.

MP3: Perry Como - Delaware

My first cheat of the journey. Perry Como's 1960 hit isn't really about Delaware and mentions 14 other States. Anyone who's compared the cover of the Sun with the New York Post will know that us Brits love a pun much more than our American cousins so it's unsurprising that this reached #3 in the UK charts but only #22 in the US.
More Perry Como: fan site | Amazon | 7digital

MP3: Dolly Parton - Down From Dover

When Dolly originally recorded this mini tragedy for her 1970 album The Fairest of Them All Porter Wagoner told her that songs about unfortunate unwed mothers would be radio suicide. This version is from her 2001 acoustic album Little Sparrow and adds an extra verse.
More Dolly: official site | Amazon | 7digital

MP3: The Duhks - Dover, Delaware

I discovered the Canadian band The Duhks at the Cambridge Folk Festival a few years ago. They're an impressive and diverse group and this track doesn't really sell their range or energy. Still, it's a beautiful song.
More Duhks: official site | Amazon | 7digital

I hope you enjoyed this somewhat lean posting. Next time we'll be taking a detour to the Nation's Capital, Washington, DC.

Related Posts
State Songs - links to every post in my musical road trip