Dorsey Burnette

I happen to own every top 40 recording that Dorsey Burnette did, which is one song, and there are two others that made the hot 100 but not the top 40, and I don’t have those.

This for me was a rare instance of barter. Some dude had a conflict with the appraisers that he hired for an insurance claim. I didn’t do much for him, gave him some advice, spent some time with him, and he paid me in kind, singles to be specific.

One of them was Tall Oak Tree by Dorsey Burnette. I don’t remember the man’s name, but I remember the story. His insurance appraisers, by the way, were another source of records for me, and me, being the duplicitous type, heard the story from them also, and got something out of it from them too. (It’s described in Somethin’ Smith & The Redheads).
Dorsey, by the way, was Johnny’s brother, and he didn’t die as young, but he didn’t leave as much of an impression either.

Dorsey Burnette:

• (There Was A) Tall Oak Tree – He starts by discussing creation and sin, and segues into an discourse about the environment. All this in just over 2 minutes. From the winter of 1960.