Retrospective: The Dutchman

The first thing I wanted to celebrate in my history with Star Maker is the folk-blogger sub-group. Not that we have ever given ourselves a formal title, and certainly not one so clunky. But there are three of us, and when we want to post folk music here, we often check with each other to see who will take the song. And we often find that it was a good thing we asked. In considering what song to post for this, I saw only one option: The Dutchman. Let me explain.

Michael P Smith: The Dutchman

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It all began when Susan joined us. She and I quickly discovered that anything by Joni Mitchell was a duplication risk. Later, we added Dar Williams, and sometimes Tracey Grammar to the list. But during Silly Songs week, I posted a song by Steve Goodman. I had always assumed that Goodman had written The Dutchman, and blithely said so. Susan set me straight in the comments. The song is actually by Michael P Smith, and later that week, Susan introduced me to his work by posting The Princess and the Frog. That song has become a favorite in my family. So, even though The Dutchman was never posted before on Star Maker, it is my first choice for this theme.

Steve Goodman: The Dutchman

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Alert readers will have noticed that I said there were three folk bloggers here. The third is Boyhowdy. If you have ever visited his own excellent blog, Cover Lay Down, you know that he specializes in folk cover songs. (If you haven’t visited there, you really must do so as soon as you finish with this post.) So, now that I know that Steve Goodman’s Dutchman is one of the greatest folk covers in history, it seemed all the more appropriate to start this week with the song. Boyhowdy and Susan, thank you so much for your friendship. I can’t wait to see where it takes us next.