In response to my request for the lyrics to Leadbelly's song about the Titanic, Art Thieme sent me a tape of his album "Outright Boldfaced Lies," Kicking Mule # 150, available from Fantasy Records. I sent him the following message after listening to it:

Art, I just received the tape and listened to it straight through over a lunch of turtle soup--er, canned chili. It is terrific. I especially loved the two banjo tunes and the guitar on "Fare-thee-well Titanic," but the whole thing is currently my number one album. If it were a CD it would knock Fielding right out of my clock radio (he's been there a month, now--of course I don't set my alarm much during Christmas vacation): I'd wake up with "Sally Ann" and stay in bed at least through "Scotland the Brave," even on work days.

The stories are wonderful, too. I might spring the "Great Turtle Drive" as my solo at the Starry Plough some night--with some additions to the narrative to make it an Irish story ("Paddy and the Great Turtle Stampede"?)--crediting the source, of course.

I'm going to order it in sufficient quantities for my friends (and your other Kicking Mule stuff--and the tapes from Sandy), and now I'm going to copy this message and start a new thread with a review of it. Thanks, my friend. It's a real treasure.

--seed(Charles Kratz)