Behold “Bullfrog Hop.” A fellow named Big Bob Dougherty recorded the song in Kansas City when the calendars read 19 and 62 for 12 whole months. More than 50 years later, bullfrogs are still hopping, we are still dancing, and Big Bob is perpetually playing that bass saxophone. Big Bob knew a thing or two about bullfrogs. For starters: what they say, aloud, which he describes through that big horn. He also knows that they (said bullfrogs) like to jump, shake, dance, and hop. This song should be featured on a NatGeo bullfrog doc!
Our suggestions for listening: grab your sweetie pie and crouch down low. When it makes sense, and / or when practical, well, hop around, hop around, hop up hop up and get down. You may find yourself quite amused by the life of a bullfrog. You may find yourself emulating bullfrogs in other ways. We take no position on this. If you feel like inhabiting The Ways of the Bullfrog, then by all means, go forward as you see fit. However, beware of the potential outcomes:
Uh, egads! While this concept is not new to the animal kingdom (I for one, have witnessed a torrid summer romance among a fox and a corgi) still, the question begs to be asked: who, pray tell, is next? A turtle? A heron? Shall the bullfrog be—uh, egads!—amorously mounting one of us? Where does it end, this desire for accoupling? I decided to confront a bullfrog with this query.
I went down to the riverside.
There, I found this rather stoic bullfrog basking in her glory. She refused to comment on my
salty, salty inquiry, but I could tell that, as an amphibian, she could type
with both hands. Clearly, she was thinking in the register of the bass
saxophone. And in French to boot: <<Mon ami, le crapaud Buber>> she thought
<<attend Buber Eats.>> In all seriousness though, we here at
Blood And Gutstein admire a hopper or jumper of another kind.
As many of you know, we do not “pshaw” the feats (or the feets) of athletes, and at that, we greatly admire the record-breaking effort of Ukrainian high jumper Yaroslava Mahuchikh. Nearly one week ago, she vanquished a 37-year-old world record by completing a high jump at 2.10 meters, or nearly 6 feet 10 inches. (You can watch the first 45 seconds of the video for the record-breaking hop.) For this, we think that Yaroslava is the most compelling athlete in the world right now. Perhaps she will break her own record at the Paris Olympics. We bet that, if she listened to Big Bob Dougherty, she might find an extra 0.1 meters in lift!
discographical information for “Bullfrog Hop”
Big Bob Dougherty. “Bullfrog Hop” A-side b/w
“Twistin Through the Rye” B-side. Kay D-12399. Kansas City (1962). Personnel: Big
Bob Dougherty (Robert Isaac Dougherty) bass saxophone; other musicians unknown.
[Note: the record reads “Featuring Bass Sax” and while it is almost certain
that Big Bob Dougherty is playing the bass sax, we cannot say for sure.] Compositional
credit: Dougherty.
22 comments:
downright dirty birdy dirty... ah seen they bullfrog act that way my neck uh the wood. & they say i'm a saucy varlet!
-marguerita
happily confused as to where the bullfrog leaves off and where the saxophone starts up and vice versa! great song and (egad!) bullfrog info. ~babsy
thanks, marguerita. you are enjoying a specialty cocktail in the attic? all varlets are welcome here as well as all valets. if you felt like you wanted to park a car or wait for Buber Eats, well, then, have at it. btw, do you want The Sandwich? --ba
hi babsy! yes, we don't know where the frog ends and the sax begins, where the sax ends and the dance begins, where the jump and the hop coincide, but they all do, they all don't. all is all and nothing is nothing, until it isn't, which it is and isn't. confused? well, i am. so i turn to music and frogs. hoping that you are well in babsyworld. ~ba
you have to ask if I want The Sandwich?
-'rita
can i have the sandwich? ~babsy
'rita: the ingredients, of coursee, have been assembled in anticipation of the fixture and its dietary requirements. ba
noooo. ... ... ohhhh, all right.
-'rita
'rita finna head out.
-'rita
'rita might get to it first, snooz ya looz, babz!
-'rita
'rita: oi. see you in a bit. ba
babsy: theoretically, of *course* you can have the sandwich. tell you what. i shall make a sandwich now and wrap it up. i shall place freezer tape on the sandwich and (with a sharpie marker) write "babsy" on it. the rest is up to you! ~ba
You sayin' froggy went a-courtin'?
tpw:
yes, i am saying that. the problem is -- froggy is a-courtin' everyone, everything, every species!
yrs, ba
this is so funny! gina
OMG OMG OMG. Gina! How are you? How is your dog (Rebar?) How is "Dave?" Jiminy Cricket. JIMINY CRICKET. --ba
i can't believe you remember me. thanks! dave is dave. sigh. rebar (my dog( is a great dog! his pronouns are me, me, me. dg
of course we remember you. i'm glad to hear all is well. you are the only person in the world who has a dog named rebar! --ba
Who do these frogs think they are? I'm hopping mad about this.
they are crouching in the muck & mire. what are they thinking? we knoweth not. we too could crouch in the muck & mire but what would that get us? muddy shoes. we cannot knoweth what the bullfrog thinketh. lo, we are hopping mad while the frog hoppeth casually. ba
I love it!
glad you liked it, Ted! --ba
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