Roger Miller

[Shawn]

I have never been a fan of country music...in fact it falls into the same category as root canals for me. But man, I make an exception when it comes to Roger Miller. This guy was just TOO friggin' hip.

He's almost a country music version of Louis Jordan. On the surface, it appears to be novelty music...but underneath there's a whole wonderful world of crazy/deep meaning. Regardless, it's just plain good music and always cheers me up.

Favorite Song: "My Uncle Used To Love Me But She Died"

[kenny weir]

Shawn I agree totallly. I think he's wildly under-rated - to my mind he's the real American troubador (forget Dylan or Woody Guthrie or whoever).

Some of his tunes are wickedly funny, others have some really devastating pathos, some have both (Dang Me).

Fave tunes: Hitchiker, Burma Shave, I Get Up Early In The Morning. Little Green Apples, Sorry Willie, When Two Worlds Collide, Lock Stock And Tearrops, Chug-A-Lug (Best Drinking Song Ever).

[maren]

Roger Miller was a big, welcome part of the soundtrack of my childhood... "King of the Road"... "Kansas City Star"...

(but it was Bobby Russell who wrote the words and music to "Little Green Apples")

Edited October 18, 2004 by maren

[Spontooneous]

Nothin' wacko about it. The man knew EXACTLY what he was doing.

Hear his musical "Big River," based on "Huckleberry Finn." It has enough elegance, class and focus to be Richard Rodgers, but it's pure Miller.

[JohnJ]

Count me as a fan too. I saw the 'King of the Road - The Genius of Roger Miller' box at a cheap price and picked it up on a whim. To say the least, I have been very impressed by the quality of the songwriting on this set. All in all, an excellent collection.

[JackTracy]

I think his Kansas City Star lyric is brilliant--he was a helluva talent with a great wit.

Jack Tracy