"When the sun came up this morning..."

Almost anyone who grew up in the South during the '70's (or probably older) should remember "The Bill Dance Show". One of the better fishing shows syndicated (on channel 6, when I was a kid), Bill wasn't blustery like Roland Marlin or some of the others who migrated (Bill along with them in the '90's) over to cable TV. With his Vols cap and wry smile, watching Bill was like sitting in a boat with another fisherman. The few times I went out on a boat, my uncle didn't say more than two words the entire time; he was serious about the rules of silence when bass were concerned. Bill didn't talk too much either, but when he did, it was worth listening to, not just "I think you got you a big 'un, Earl."

The highlight, of course, was the first two minutes of the show, and, after I got older and cared more about music and girls, soon turned out to be the only part of the show that I watched. Those two minutes was the theme song, which, after I discovered filesend, megashare, limewire, and Utorrent, I hunted down like a mad beast, along with Loretta Lynn's "Red, White, and Blue", Rod McKeon's "A Boy named Charlie Brown" and "Piss-bottle Man" by Mike Watt. About three months ago, on a mega-torrent containing about 20 Jerry Reed albums, I finally found it.

If you remember Bill Dance, you'll remember this song...


"Today is Mine..."