Shorty Long "Hey Doll Baby! The Shorty Long Story: 1947-1956" (El Toro Records, 2003-?) (CD)
The best overall Shorty Long career retrospective you're ever likely to come across... This dips all the way back to his early days with the Santa Fe Rangers, covers a lot of his subsquent solo singles, throws in a little bit of his Broadway-era pop recordings (including a trio of tunes backed by the Marty Gold orchestra) and includes a string of bonus tracks with cameos by guest performers such as hillbilly swing star Bob Newman, future Nashville diva Skeeter Davis (as part of her old duo, The Davis Sisters), rockabilly firebrand Janis Martin, and several tracks featuring the King himself, Elvis Presley. Curiously, there's very little of Dolly Long to be heard here... Not sure why; guess we'll have to take it up with the folks from El Toro someday.
Shorty Long/Various Artists "The Golden Age Of Country Music" (Binge Disc/Cattle Records, 2006) (LP)
A broad swath of Shorty Long's repertoire is given here, heard in a bunch of his earliest recordings from the late 1940s and early 'Fifties, even with a little bit of Louis Prima-ish/Bill Haley-esque rock/blues material from 1953. Long comes off as an amiable though plainspoken vocalist, while the material is pure, postwar hillbilly heaven, including covers of classics like Floyd Tillman's "I Love You So Much It Hurts" and "Air Mail Special." Also included on this disc are the flat-voiced Buddy Starcher in a series of rigid but sincere gospel numbers, which may appeal to fans of Wally Fowler and the like. The real magic here comes in an exquisite pair of old Okeh singles recorded back in 1953 and '54 by the amazingly obscure Webster Brothers -- Audie, Earl and Willie Webster -- who perform in the same harmony-rich, melody friendly style as the better-known Louvin Brothers, as well as that of bluegrass pioneers Jim & Jesse McReynolds. Their delightfully sweet hillbilly tongue-twister, "Till The End Of The World Rolls 'Round," was a favorite from the old days of KFAT radio, and is an absolute gem. Recommended!
Shorty Long & His Santa Fe Rangers "Blue Ranger" (BACM, 2003) (CD-R)
Despite their odd choice of technical formats (some kind of kooky plastic CD-R) the folks at the British Academy Of Country Music sure can deliver the goods. They tend to avoid material that's been anthologized elsewhere, and dig deep into already-obscure musical careers. This compilation focusses in on Shorty Long's early years with the Santa Fe Rangers, and gathers a bunch of swell rarities. Worth tracking down!
Shorty Long/Dolly Long/Various Artists "Join Right In There" (Dollo Records, 19--?) (LP)
The Longs are joined here by seven-year old "Little Vickie" Giannoti and a guy named Tom Smith, each of whom get their own solo solo numbers as well as joining a vocal quartet. The backing is by an edition of the Santa Fe Rangers that included Barry Long on drums, Lou Long (piano), Wash Martin (steel guitar), Bill Rehrig (guitar), Clyde Shellenberger on bass, and a cornpone comedian called Crazy Elmer (aka ClenRoy Geist (1935-2021), who recorded his own solo album on Dollo Records (seen below).
Shorty Long/Various Artists "The Shorty Long Show: Live At Ontelaunee Park" (Dollo Records, 19--?) (LP)
A souvenir of Dolly and Shorty Long's longtime venue, Ontelaunee Park, this album was recorded live with guest artists that included local TV personality Sally Starr, as well as Jay Earle, Eddie Butterworth, and others. Long sold Ontelaunee Park in 1982, following a heart attack the previous year, but continued to perform off and on over the rest of the decade.
Shorty Long & Cindy Owens "The Best In The Country" (Santa Fe Records, 19--?) (LP)
Yup. Pretty darn confusing, but "Cindy Owens" was just one of many stage names used by Dolly Long... aka Dotty Dimples, nee Gladys Ulrich... Regardless of her arcane nomenclature, this is another solid set from the Longs. Not sure who all the musicians were backing them or when this came out,
Shorty Long "Polka Party" (Cindy Records, 19--?) (LP)
Along with other hillbilly old-timers such as Jimmy Heap, Shorty Long found himself doing stints on the comedy club circuit, as heard on this album. Along goofball numbers such as "Butter And Eggs Polka" and "Rest Room Polka" are tracks such as "The Duck Song," "I'll Drink To That," "The Best Friend A Bar Ever Had " and "Kissing And Potato Chips."
Shorty Long & Dolly "Tennessee Candy" (Dollo Records, 19--?) (LP)
Although this isn't a gospel set, the Longs are backed here by the Blue Ridge Quartet...
Shorty Long & Dolly "34 Hymns And Recitations" (Dollo Records, 19--?) (LP)
A three-LP(!) set of country gospel songs recorded later in their careers... The duo is backed by "Brother Lou at the Kimball organ" and there's a photo of all three together at TV station WRFY (were they on the air there?)
Shorty Long & Dolly "Folk Album" (Dollo Records, 19--?) (LP)
Shorty Long, Uncle Jack & Mary Lou "Live At The Reading Fair: July, 1971" (Dollo Records, 1972) (LP)
An homage to a pioneering figure in the hillbilly music scene of the 1930s and '40s, "Uncle" Jack Nelson (1987-1972). Nelson and his wife Mary Lou were originally from Ohio, but like many performers in the radio era, they moved around a lot; eventually they settled in Pennsylvania, and for over a decade operated their own music venue, Himmelreich's Grove near Womelsdorf, PA, where they worked for most of the 1940s. Nelson's connection to the Longs dates back to the Great Depression when they worked together on radio, maintaining that relationship for many decades to come. The liner notes are remarkably forlorn and circumspect, as Long recounts his attendance at Nelson's funeral in April, 1972, where he and Dolly Long joined a handful of old-timers. Apparently, although Uncle Jack and Mary Lou were big stars on the radio, they never recorded singles or albums, at least that's what Long says here, so this concert recording from a show in Reading, Pennsylvania makes a fitting epitaph for a now-obscure country legend.
Shorty Long & The Nashville Ramblers "Country Greats" (Stereo Gold Award, 1976-?) (LP)
This UK reissue LP includes covers of classics by Eddy Arnold, Jim Reeves, Hank Williams and others...
Shorty Long & Dolly "Me And My Country Girl" (Malvern Records, 19--?) (LP)
Crazy Elmer "The Other Side Of Crazy Elmer" (Dollo Records, 19--?) (LP)
Though the front cover shows a picture of country comedian Crazy Elmer in full clown makeup, we also see him in his civilian garb, as singer ClenRoy Geist. Mr. Geist (1935-2021) was born in Longswamp, Pennsylvania and started his career at age thirteen, singing in the chorus of a traveling minstrel show. A year later, he was promoted to become one of the show's solo-act comedians, and was still working the vaudeville circuit when he was recruited by Shorty Long to join the Santa Fe Rangers, where he took on the cornpone persona of Crazy Elmer, often performing his skits in regional Dutch dialect. This album is a straight country tribute to Jim Reeves, with backing from Shorty Long, Dolly Long and their band, a souvenir of the many years he worked at the Longs' entertainment venue Ontelaunee Park, near Allentown. In 1977, Crazy Elmer left Shorty Long's orbit and started his own group, The Outlaws, which also included Geist's grandson Kyle Isamoyer on lead guitar. He worked with the Outlaws well into the 21st century, and the band continued on after Mr. Geist's passing in 2021.
Not to be confused with the Alabama soul singer of the same name, country singer Shorty Long -- ne Emidio Vagnoni (1923-1991) -- was born in Reading, Pennsylvania and was a stalwart of the Rust Belt country scene. Shorty Long was a real jack of all trades in the postwar entertainment industry: in addition to being a prolific songwriter and longtime fixture in the East Coast and Midwestern country scene, Long was a successful Broadway actor (playing the hick character Herman, in the original cast of Frank Loesser's "Most Happy Fella") and he also did A&R and session work for RCA records, where he worked with stars such as Eddy Arnold and Elvis Presley. Allentown, PA was his main stomping ground, though -- in addition to live performances on radio, TV and on stage, he operated two successful live music venues: Santa Fe Ranch opened in 1948 and later gave way to the Ontelaunee Park venue after Long found a bigger plot of land in 1965. Mr. Long was married to Gladys J. Ulrich (1925-1998) -- a country singer who used several different stage names, including Dotty Dimples, Cindy Owens, and Dolly Long, her married name. Here's a quick look at their work...
