Hey John:

You know, the Bob Gibson songs I remember well on the two albums I just bought as a re-issue still sound fine. I don't have any memory of the songs that I didn't enjoy now. Maybe I didn't enjoy them all that much back then, or I would have remembered them. I also wouldn't want to relegate Bob Gibson to the same company as Jimmie Rodgers or Rusty Draper. I had the great pleasure of booking Bob Gibson late in his career, and still thoroughly enjoyed him.

As for Squirt, when I first tasted it back in the late 40's, it actually had a little bit of grapefruit pulp in it. It was supposed to actually be good for you, so I'm amazed that as a kid I would even drink it. I suppose it's when you first tasted something, as formulas and production changes over the years. Take Dr. Pepper for example. There was a Dr. Pepper bottling plant in my home town, just a few blocks from where I lived. I never liked it as a kid... thought it tasted like it had prune juice in it. That may just have been my kid's taste buds, but when I tried it again when I was in my 30's, I really liked it. It tasted very "clean" and brisk. I don't know whether the formula changed over the years (which is very possible) or my taste changed. Probably a little of each.

One thing hasn't changed. Even as a little kid, in the summer if I was really hot, I'd come in and drink cold water... not Kool-aid or pop. That still works for me. I rarely drink pop anymore (soda for you non-Midwesterners) because of the sugar. The diet sodas avoid that problem but there's usually a chemical aftertaste.

Besides, nothing has changed about water.

Still the same production company.

Jerry