Recently I tracked down Burgess Meredith's delightful autobiography, So Far, So Good, and was finally able to get a tidbit of information about his 1960 lp that I'm so fond of: Songs and Stories of the Gold Rush. I've previously covered this album and parts of another one where he recites and sings at this blog, and now let's listen to the last four cuts of the batch and hear what Meredith himself had to say about the project.
Chuck-a-Luck Here to See the Diggin's My Government Claim Burgess lp Outro
We join Mr. Meredith as he talks about his years in Choir School of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine (somewhere in New York State, I believe) from age ten to fourteen, segueing into his later singing experiences:
"The sad fact is that my voice, which started out so sensationally, never developed. I became an occasional soloist, but not the lead. Although I had the vocal endowment, my nerves were not dependable. My mind did not permit my voice to flow. I have been complimented for the quality of my speaking voice, but relatively few people know that I sing, although I have recorded several albums. One of them, Songs and Stories of the Gold Rush, was a best-seller and was recently reissued as a compact disc. However, to this day, when fatigue sets in, my voice dries, becomes constricted."
Meredith penned these lines in 1993, but I can find no evidence of an 'official' CD release for this lp after several searches over the years. For those curious enough to hear more, I suggest tracking backwards using the blog link above to my last Burgess-centric post. Meantime, here's some more of Meredith singing in his unique way (PS - he doesn't appear on My Government Claim, which I've included above for conpleteness).
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