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Idaho, the Song

2/23/2021

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When you hear the word Idaho, the first thing you think of is jazz, right? Right?
 
Okay, maybe not. But there is a pretty great song called “Idaho” that is a fairly well-known jazz piece. It was written by Jesse Stone who, as far as I know, had no connection to Idaho.
 
“Idaho” was originally recorded by Alvino Rey and his orchestra in 1941. The next year, Benny Goodman had a version that hit number 4 on the pop charts. Here’s a link to that one. You’ll probably have to endure a few seconds of commercial before you get to it. Oh, and don’t expect the singing to start right away. Guy Lombardo sold 4 million copies of his version.
 
The song is a snappy little number. Even so, I was surprised to learn that Stone was also the writer behind the decidedly rock, “Shake, Rattle, and Roll.”

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The cover for the sheet music of “Idaho.” Potatoes aren’t mentioned in the song, but they made the cover!
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    Author, Speaker

    Rick Just has been writing about Idaho history since 1989 when he wrote and recorded scripts for the Idaho Centennial Commission’s daily radio program, Idaho Snapshots. One of his Idaho books explores the history of Idaho's state parks: Images of America, Idaho State Parks. Rick also writes a regular column for Boise Weekly.

    Rick does public presentations on Idaho's state park history and the history of the Morrisite war for the Idaho Humanities Council's Speakers Bureau.idahohumanities.org/programs/inquiring-idaho/
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    Check out Rick's history of Idaho State Parks.

    The audio link below is to Rick's Story Story Night set called "Someplace Not Firth"

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