500 miles - Viimeinen vihellys

Well, the numbers keep getting bigger and bigger. This time we keep an old promise. On the flip side of the 1964 single "Sitruunapuu" (see earlier entry) by vocal trio Anki, Bosse and Robert, was the song "Viimeinen vihellys" (The last whistle). It was a cover of the well-known country classic "500 Miles". The first version was recorded by an US vocal group called The Journeymen. The group consisted of John Phillips, Scott McKenzie and Dick Weissman. Their version of "500 Miles" went nowhere, even if the group got some potential; John Phillips was the future Mamas & Papas leader, and Scott McKenzie was of course the 'San Francisco' -man six years later. The song has been successfully covered many times, most notably by Peter, Paul & Mary and Bobby Bare. The song was written by Hedy West, a folksinger and songwriter. This was her most famous song, and was put together from fragments of a melody she had heard her uncle sing to her back in Georgia . She copyrighted the resulting patched song, and the rest is history ...

Meu limão, meu limoeiro - Lemon tree - Sitruunapuu

Anki (see ealier entry), Bosse & Robert (see arlier entry) released "Sitruunapuu" (Lemon tree) as a single in 1964. On the crest of the blooming folk music wave it became a hit, together with the cover of another classic "500 miles" on the flip side (we will present that later). It is not generally known that the song is of Brazilian origin. This old folk song was called "Meu limão, meu limoeiro" (My lemon, my lemon tree) and it was recorded first time in Brazil in the 30's. In some sources US writer and lyricist Will Holt appears as writer of the song but he only made the English lyrics. He also recorded it himself (with Dolly Jonah) in 1960. The song was made popular by Peter, Paul and Mary on their hugely successful debut album in 1962. The most known version is of course the one in 1965 by Trini Lopez. Now we proudly present the first original recording of the song made by Jorge Fernandes in 1937, and the first popular English language version by Peter, Paul & Mary.

Here's the triplet:

Footprints in the Snow - Nellyn palmikko

The folk music movement took Finland by the storm in the beginning of the 60's. Among the first pioneers were the Österberg brothers Lars and Robert. The cut a couple of unsuccesful singles, but they hit big in 1964 as Bosse & Robert and with the song "Nellyn palmikko" (Nelly's pigtail). It tells a story of a young man climbing up to his girlfriend's quarters with the help of her long pigtail hanging out of the window. And what happens, when ... The brothers later joined forces with Anki (Lindqvist) and made several hits as a trio. Words and music for the original song "Footprints in the Snow" were done by Harry Wright already in 1880's in USA. It has been a bluegrass standard since, but it was popularized by Bill Monroe and his band when recording it in 1939. The girl Nelly is the same in Finnish and US versions, but the story is different. One can wonder why, becouse the "Snow" -theme would have suited well for Finns ;-).

Here's the pair: