Lyle & Doris Mayfield-In The 1960s:
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1. The Ballad of The Saddle Tramp (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal
2. The Blind Child (Traditional): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal
3. The Old Country Preacher (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal and Recitation
4. May I Sleep In Your Barn Tonight, Mister (Traditional)-Doris Mayfield, Lead Vocal
5. I Cannot Give An Answer (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal
6. The Old Country Preacher (Demo) (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal
7. The Ballad of The Saddle Tramp (Demo) (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal
8. Who Says I Don't Love You (Demo) (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal
9. Three O'clock Blues (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal
10. I Miss The Whistle (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal
11. Possum Up A Gum Stump (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal
12. The Ghost That Walked Main Street (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Recitation
13. The Ghost On The Fence (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Recitation
14. A Story For Children (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Recitation
15. Why Don't You Leave Me Alone (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal
16. Gonna Take A Little Walk (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal
17. Why Don't You Leave Me Alone (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal
18. Who Says I Don't Love You (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal
19. If You'd Rather Have Your Pride (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal
20. Gonna Take A Little Walk (L. Mayfield): Lyle Mayfield-Lead Vocal
# 1-4 From The Mayfields"The Old and The New" (1st 45 rpm) released in 1964
# 5-14 Various Recordings made in 1964
# 15 Recorded in 1966
# 16-18 Live Over The Air in 1966
# 19-20 From The Mayfields 2nd 45rpm released in 1969
Following their contributions to compilation album "Green Fields of Illinois" in 1963, Lyle & Doris Mayfield found themselves in demand for performances all over the country on folk music circuit. Some of these performances included several appearances at the Arkansas Folk Festival (founded and hosted by Jimmy Driftwood), an appearance at the Old Town School of Folk Music and culminating in an appearance in Washington DC at the Smithsonian Institution in 1976 during the Bicentenial celebration. During this time period, they continued to perform on their regular radio program and released two 45rpm records. This album captures the Mayfield family at the beginning of their boom period featuring the songs from the two 45rpm releases as well as a host of other recordings made during this period, but never released. Rounding out the collection are some demo recordings of signature mayfield songs (some made the day the song was written) and some recordings from their radio program during this period.
Selected Song Information:
1. The Ballad of The Saddle Tramp: "Zane Grey and Louis Lamour have always been high on my reading list. There was one character in their books that fascinated me...the saddle tramp. Often he would wind up as the "sacrificial lamb" in those stories. I figured his story should be told more completely. For the melody, I borrowed part of a tune my father-in-law played on the guitar. It was known only in the family as "Papa's Slovak Tune". I wrote this in 1963 to the rythmn from an autoharp."
2. The Blind Child: The Blind Child is the oldest song Lyle knows. His mother used it as a lullabye as she rocked him in an old maple rocking chair that now sits in dignity in the Mayfield living room.
3. The Old Country Preacher: "From 1957 to 1961 we lived in Nokomis, Illinois. During that period of our life we saw some less than prosperous times. One of the brighter aspects of our four-year sojourn there was friendship with a Baptist preacher named Brother John Eller. John became almost a surragate father to me. We shared many wonderful hours together. This song and recitation was based on him and his life. His death was a great loss to me and my family. It's one of the numbers we did regularly in our performances. It's also one of my compositions that has been most well received."
4. May I Sleep In Your Barn Tonight, Mister: This is a song that both Doris and Lyle learned from their parents. It features the pure, country singing style of Doris and the harmonica artistry of Lyle.
5. I Cannot Give An Answer: "A discussion with a college student about patriotism provoked these thoughts and words."
6. Who Says I Don't Love You: "One day I decided to write a waltz. After the melody was completed, I gave thought to the lyrics. I had heard a girl ask a boy friend, "Who says I don't love you?" It was the "hook" I needed."
7. Three O'clock Blues: "The clock said 3:00 am. The rain was coming down. I'd worked an evening shift and was sitting alone in our living room. I couldn't sleep because as the old saying goes...I was "bright-eyed and bushy tailed." Out of all this came this song."
8. I Miss The Whistle: "The old steam engines were an important part of my growing up years. This piece is my protest against their demise. Diesels may represent progress, but I still miss the whistle and smell of the old coal-fired locomotives."
9. Gonna Take A Little Walk: "While I'm a luke warm fan of bluegrass music, it's not my favorite for extended listening. I did set out to write a song of that type with this one."
10. If You'd Rather Have Your Pride: "Pride can get in the way all too often. This song sums up how pride can stop two people who love each other from making up."