Music Albums » I Wonder What The Poor Folks Are Doing Tonight!
I Wonder What The Poor Folks Are Doing Tonight!
2004
Track Titles
- Sunny Side of the Street
- 1
- (Shane Patrick Mac-Gowan, Jem Finer)
- Ukuleles: Pops Bayless and Derrick Gabbard; Uke Lead Licks: Andrew Hardin; Bass:Ryan Gould; Vocals: Debbie Porter; Whistling: Pops Bayless
- Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea
- 2
- (Ted Koehler, Harold Arlen)
- Uke and Vocals: Debbie Porter; Guitar: Stephen Bennett
- I Wonder What the Poor Folks Are Doing Tonight
- 3
- (Deb Porter)
- Uke and Vocals: Debbie Porter; Rhythm Uke: Pops Bayless; Uke Lead Licks: Andrew Hardin; Harmonica: Lil Rev; Bass:Ryan Gould
- The One Rose
- 4
- (Del Lyon, Lani McIntire)
- Uke and Vocals: Debbie Porter; Dulci-bro: Lee Rowe
- What'll I Do
- 5
- (Irving Berlin)
- Uke and Vocals: Debbie Porter; Mandolin:Clive Gregson
- Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen
- 6
- (Shalom Secunda, Jacob Jacobs, Saul Chaplin, Sammy Cahn)
- Uke, Kazoo and Lead Vocals: Lil Rev; Harmonies: Debbie Porter
- That's My Desire
- 7
- (Helmy Kresa, Caroll Lovesday)
- Guitar and Vocals: Debbie Porter; Uke Lead Licks and Harmonics: Andrew Hardin
- My Buddy
- 8
- (Walter Donaldson, Gus Kahn)
- Uke and Vocals: Debbie Porter; Tiple: Andrew Hardin
- Revvin'
- 9
- (Lil Rev)
- Harmonica: Lil Rev
- Waiting For a Train
- 10
- (Jimmie Rodgers)
- Ukes: Debbie Porter, Pops Bayless, and Derrick Gabbard; Lead Uke: Andrew Hardin; Harmonica: Lil Rev; Vocals/Yodel: Debbie Porter
- Blue Moon Medley
- 11
- (Standards Arranged by Deb Porter)
- Uke and Vocals: Debbie Porter; Harmonica: Lil Rev
- How Deep is the Ocean
- 12
- (Irving Berlin)
- Uke and Vocals: Debbie Porter
- Keep On the Sunnyside
- 13
- (A.P. Carter)
- Banjo Uke: Debbie Porter; Guitar: Andrew Hardin; Dulci-bro: Lee Rowe; Harmonica: Richard Porter; Vocals: Debbie Porter, Shake Russell, DeeDee Hedley, Andrew Hardin, Gigi Benno, and Bradley Kopp
- You Are My Sunshine
- 14
- (Governor Jimmie Davis)
- Uke: Debbie Porter; Harmonica: Richard Porter; Vocals: Debbie Porter, DeeDee Hefley, and special debut of De Heath
Sample the Music
- Sunny Side of the Street
(0:32) - Revvin' (0:56)
- Waiting for a Train (0:51)
Front Cover
The front cover is a detailed view of a ukulele's dark wood and four strings, and in its sound hole is a photograph of Deb. She sits on an old weathered front porch in a black and turquoise Hawaiian shirt with a long black skirt. Her bare toes are painted red. She smiles while strumming her banjo uke. A second dark wood ukulele stands nearby on the steps.
Liner Notes
"I wonder what the poor folks are doing tonight!" was my grandmother's favorite saying whenever we were having fun. Whether we had money or not, if we were having a good time with the folks we loved, life was good.
My most important "treasure" as a kid was my $15 ukulele. More than a material possession, the ukulele was truly my best friend starting at age 11. We moved a lot and as I made friends in new schools I always had my oldest friend with me - the uke. What a joy it has been for me to get to make this recording with good friends who also happen to be some of the best ukulele players in the country and to showcase this "user-friendly" musical instrument. Wonder what the poor folks are doing tonight? There are some really happy ones playing ukulele. Join us and... Enjoy!
Heartfelt Thanks
To the musicians, family and friends who helped me with the recording and who support my efforts to fit music into all the cracks of my life. Special thanks to the engineers: Bradley Kopp at Redboot Ranch, Dennis Byron, Billy Stull at Masterpiece Mastering, and gratitude always to Bobby Arnold at Fire Station Studios.
Cover photo by Joe Besse at Acadian Village in Lafayette, Louisiana. 1960 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud courtesy of Dr. Hypolite Landry, Jr., Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
This recording is dedicated to my Aunt Lady, who was a great fan with a sweet and lovely soul and to my maternal great-grandfather, Daddy Sublett, who was a true singing cowboy from the Panhandle of Texas.