The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, formed in Long Beach, 1966--
1970, Mr. Bojangles
I used to hear this song before I was in high school. I remember one summer afternoon walking on the elbow of Fish Canyon across the street from Colleen Black.
Jerry Jeff Walker wrote the song in 1968. Wikipedia notes that,
Walker said he was inspired to write the song after an encounter with a street performer in a New Orleans jail. While in jail for public intoxication in 1965, he met a homeless man who called himself "Mr. Bojangles" to conceal his true identity from the police. Mr. Bojangles had been arrested as part of a police sweep of indigent people that was carried out following a high-profile murder. The two men and others in the cell chatted about all manner of things, but when Mr. Bojangles told a story about his performing dog who was killed by a car, the mood in the room turned heavy. Someone else in the cell asked for something to lighten the mood, and Mr. Bojangles obliged with a tap dance.[2][3] The homeless "Mr. Bojangles", who was white, had taken his pseudonym from Bill "Bojangles" Robinson (1878–1949), a black entertainer.[4]
Walker's voice doesn't match that of The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band's Jeff Hanna.
1980, "Make a Little Magic," with Nicolette Larson, 1952-1997, whose voice was better than the songs that she was known for. Neil Young's 1978 "Lotta Love" is a sweet song, but doesn't really showcase her beautiful voice. "I Only Want to Be With You" does a better job of showcasing her voice. "Lotta Love" got so much airplay. 1978 I was still working at Colamco in San Dimas. It was the year that Sean died from drowning out at the SG Riverbed.
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