“Listen to the Mocking Bird’ was written by Septimus Winner, the man who also gave us “Whispering Hope,” “Ten Little Indians,” the words to “Where Oh Where Has My Little Dog Gone,” and a score of other songs. He was twenty-seven years old at the time, a music teacher and the owner of a music store in Philadelphia. Winner was acquainted with a young African American boy, Dick Milburn (called Whistling Dick), a beggar who collected coins for his whistling and guitar playing on the streets. His whistling often turned to a beautiful imitation of a mocking bird, and this attracted Winner’s attention and thought. It gave him an idea for a song and he promptly went to work on it. He finished “Listen to the Mocking Bird,” gave Whistling Dick a job in his store, and published the composition in April, 1855, using the pseudonym Alice Hawthorne. Pseudonyms were common practice in those days, for example Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) and Artemus Ward (Charles Browne). Winner chose Hawthorne after his mother’s maiden name. He never explained the “Alice” part of it.

Within months this song hit all parts of our nation and people everywhere went wild over it, especially in the South where the mocking bird is a common sight. For years afterwards Southern mothers named their baby girls Hally (or Hallie) after this song. President Abraham Lincoln said of this song “It is as sincere as the laughter of a little girl at play,” and King Edward VII of England remarked, “I whistled ‘Listen To the Mocking Bird’ when I was a little boy.”

The song became popular all over Europe and it is estimated that by 1905 total sheet copies sold ran approximately twenty million. This song’s immense popularity has struck solidly for over a century. It is truly one of our old-time, all-time song hits.

Retrieved from Bard of the South: https://www.bardofthesouth.com/a-song-popular-during-the-civil-war-a-song-about-vicksburg/

Thanks for listening.

Listen To The Mockingbird

Originally written and produced by the band, Garbage, this cover tune by Mike Slickster is the first one recorded in his new studio.

Number One Crush Redux

Song written by June Carter Cash and Merle Kilgore; although, it's believed Johnny Cash co-wrote it during a wild binge. He went on and made it into a hit record. Cover art © by Mike Slickster. Thanks for listening.

Ring Of Fire

Song composed by George Gershwin for the opera Porgy and Bess; lyrics by DuBose Heyward, author of the novel Porgy, after which the opera was based. Cover art: Mike Slickster Lazin' By the Delaware River ©Nine Gables Productions: Thanks for listening.

Summertime Revisited 2022

Old rhythm-and-blues chestnut written by Eddie Cooley and Otis Blackwell for Little Willie John, who recorded it as a single in 1956. Peggy Lee in 1958 recorded an altered arrangement with rewritten lyrics, whose rendition inspired this cover. Thanks for listening

Fever 2022

Written by Marc Campbell and David Kaufman of The Nails. Cover and art by The Steampunk Boogie Band and Nine Gables Productions. Not for the easily offended. This tune is fun to sing and play, yet it reflects the freewheeling culture and explicit language of the early-'80s, which would be torn apart and cancelled by Social Media had it been recorded originally today.

88 Lines About 44 Women Redux

Almost at this season's all-star break and I'm filled with baseball fever. This funky, rockin' cover was inspired by Trevor Hurst's 1998 version of the classic 1908 Tin Pan Alley tune by Jack Norworth and Albert Von Tilzer. This one has a Philadelphia Phillies' flavor, featuring audio of the team's 1964 announcers found on YouTube at www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBrDcs074…ab_channel=py1957. Recorded At Nine Gables Studio. Thanks for listening.

Take Me Out To The Ball Game Boogie

Written and recorded originally by Ray Davies and the Kinks. Cover art ©Nine Gables Productions. Music and vocal performed by Mike Slickster. Thanks for not listening.

Sunny Afternoon

Song written by the Clash in 1981. Music and vocals performed by Mike Slickster and his one-man, boogie band. Cover Art  by Nine Gables Productions.

Should I Stay Or Should I Go?

Written by Neil Young and Jeff Blackburn, recorded in 1979, released on the album, Rust Never Sleeps. Cover art by Nine Gables Productions. Vocals and music by Mike Slickster.

My, My, Hey, Hey, Out Of The Blue

Song written by Paul Simon. Cover and cover art by Mike Slickster

Take Me To The Mardi Gras

From the opera, William Tell, written by Giachino Rossini; arrangement, instrumentation and cover art by Mike Slixster.

Call To The Cows - William Tell Overture

Song recorded by Green Day, written by Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt and Tré Cool; cover instrumentation & vocals by Mike Slickster and the Steampunk Boogie Band. Cover art borrowed from the Net. Thanks for listening.

Brain Stew

Tune written by John McCrea of Cake about his version of the ideal fantasy woman; cover instrumentation, vocals and art by Mike Slickster and the Steampunk Boogie Band. Thanks for Listening.

Short Skirt/Long Jacket

A  reggae-styled, traditional Christmas song, covered by the Steampunk Boogie Band. Happy Holidays.

Jingle Bells Reggae

Cover tune featuring Rie Waits, Mike Slickster and the Steampunk Boogie Band. This Christmas Classic, written in 1944 by Frank Loesser, has been banned recently from airplay on radio stations in Cleveland, San Francisco, and Denver. The song was taken off the forbidden list by KOSI in the mile-high city as a result of a listeners' poll that stated the song wasn't offensive to them. With today's charged, politically correct society, one has to watch out what they say, sing and retweet for fear of being ostracized.

Baby Its Cold Outside - Remix

Song written by David Bowie; Cover instrumentation & vocals remixed to remove latency from prior recording. New cover art by Mike Slickster. Uploaded on the third anniversary of David's death (January 10, 2019).

Cat People Redux - A Tribute to David Bowie

Fun in my home studio. All instrumentation, arrangements and cover art are by Mike Slickster and his one-man Steampunk Boogie Band, except where noted. Thanks for your support.

Mike Slickster & His One-Man Steampunk Boogie Band

Popular tracks