Any Major Dogs
While this site is moving servers, with all the problems this creates, here’s a selection for the dog lovers first posted six years ago: 26 songs about canines — and one by dogs. Excluding some of the obvious choices, they range from the happy to the spooky to the amusing to the sad. I’ve tried to keep the sad ones to a minimum; as any dog or cat owner will know, the time when a pet has to be put down is nearly as traumatic as losing a family member.
Ken-L Ration Commercial – My Dog’s Better Than Your Dog (1960s)
Kids usually brag about whose Dad is the strongest; in this TV commercial, the kids don’t argue: the kids with the Ken-L Ration eating dog win by dietary default. The jingle was based on a song by the great singer-songwriter Tom Paxton.
The Beatles – Martha My Dear (1968)
Martha was Paul’s dog that roamed his overgrown garden in St John’s Wood, London. Paul never wrote as lovingly about Jane Asher…
Harry Nilsson – The Puppy Song (1969)
Lonely Harry wishes for a puppy with whom to “share a cup of tea” and escape from alienating society.
Cat Stevens – I Love My Dog (1967)
Yup, Cat loves his dog.
Johnny Cash – Dirty Old Egg Suckin’ Dog (1969)
Call the pet protection agency! Cash might like his dog, but if he messes with the chicken again, he will visit violence upon the hound. And this is a light-hearted song…
Dolly Parton – Me And Little Andy (1977)
Dark spooky stuff about a death-bound visitor and her dog. One for opening those tear-ducts.
Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians – Ghost Of A Dog (1990)
Some years ago Edie put her dog to sleep – and now he is nocturnally spooking the yard. Cold shivers!
Nellie McKay – The Dog Song (2004)
Adopted dog turns around singer’s pitiful life by being tail-wagging and cute.
Bobby Bare Jr – Your Adorable Beast (2004)
Country giant’s son sings a love song to his dog. All dog owners think about playing it for their pooch.
Bright Eyes – Stray Dog Freedom (2006)
Oberst digs the freedom of the stray dog. Or he means himself. Does anyone ever really know with that guy?
Klaatu – All Good Things (1980)
The band that wasn’t The Beatles after all sing about losing their best friend: “I never had a closer friend than you, but all good things must end.” Start up those tear-ducts again.
Jerry Jeff Walker – Mr. Bojangles (1968)
The original version. Bojangles is sobering up in jail and tells his fellow inmates about his hoofing life on the road, and about his beloved dog. *** SPOILER ALERT *** The dog died.
Anonymous – Your Dog Loves My Dog (1960s)
From an album of recordings from the civil rights movement, the song tells the story of two dogs, one owned by a black person and the other by a white man, who are great friends. The metaphor is patently obvious, but some people still do not get it.
Tom T. Hall – Old Dogs, Children And Watermelon Wine (1972)
An old guy tells Tom about the three things “that’s worth a solitary dime”. Superannuated canines rank among these.
Jean Shepard & Ray Pillow – I’ll Take The Dog (1966)
Jean and Ray are getting divorced and amicably settle on who gets what, until it comes to the custody of the pooch, at which point they turn into Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney – a Pillow fight, so to speak (oh come on, everybody loves a putrid pun!). Watch out for the surprise ending.
Webb Pierce – I’m Walking The Dog (1953)
In questions of romance, Webb values his freedom, preferring to walk his dog. Unless the song’s title serves as a euphemism.
Elvis Presley – Old Shep (1956)
An old country lament for a dog that gone died. Originally recorded by Red Foley, Old Shep was the favourite song of the young boy Elvis down Tupelo way – so much did young Elvis love the song that he sang it at his first ever public performance, as a ten-year-old at a talent show at the Mississippi-Alabama Fair and Dairy Show. Elvis didn’t win (and the winner either never had to buy a drink again, or felt like a total fraud when Elvis became famous), but he recorded Old Shep on his debut album.
Three Keys – That Doggone Dog Of Mine (1933)
The Three Keys’ mutt cannot do much but it cost only 15 cents, in 1933 money. And what follows is a lovingly compiled doggy CV.
Dolly Dawn and her Dawn Patrol – Where Has My Little Dog Gone (1939)
The nursery rhyme rendered in big band style. It’s quite brilliant.
Hank Williams – Move It On Over (1947)
Hank is in the dog house, now the big, mad dawg is moving in, so scratch it on over, small dog.
Rufus Thomas – Stop Kickin’ My Dog Around (1964)
Rufus, whose moniker is a popular canine name, had a string of songs about man’s best friend: Walk The Dog, The Dog, Somebody Stole My Dog , Can Your Monkey Do The Dog and this song counselling somebody to mind their bad temper.
Nancy Sinatra – Leave My Dog Alone (1966)
People, leave the dog alone. And her cat. And Nancy.
Pet Shop Boys – Suburbia (The Full Horror Mix) (1986)
Because I Want A Dog is much too obvious.
Ferlinghetti & Dorough – Dog (1958)
An existential poem about dogs set to jazz (“Congressman Doyle is just another fire hydrant to him.”). Snoopy would dig it.
The Monkees – Gonna Buy Me A Dog (1966)
The Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart song about getting a pet to recover from a break-up was intended to be performed straight, and The Monkees recorded it thus on a version that went unreleased for the next three decades. On this take, released in 1966, Micky Dolenz and Davy Jones certainly don’t play the song straight, instead lacing it with some really bad jokes.
Homer & Jethro – That Hound Dog In The Window (1953)
Yes, we’re well into the novelty section of dog songs now. Comedy duo Homer & Jethro corrupt that nice Patti Page hit about the price for the pooch in the store window. It probably was quite hilarious in 1953.
Don Charles and the Singing Dogs – Oh! Susanna (1955)
Doggies bark a song. There is a reason this song comes at the end of this collection…
As always, the mix is timed to fit on a standard CD-R. Home-bred covers are included. I borrowed the graphic for the front cover from papillonpalsrescue.com, an adoption agency for dogs. If you are in the market for a canine, please consider adopting a dog.
GET IT
Or: https://rapidgator.net/file/0264d3e1691a9839a57c6fa10f13f4bd/dogs.rar.html
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I love the fact that you didn’t even feel the need to go with “Mandy” or “Shannon.”
My Dog and Me, John Hiatt
Lobo – Me and You and a Dog Name Boo.
I could swear that the Brady Kids sang this song on their cartoon show. I have a vague memory of that, except that their dog looked like Hotdog from the Archie show.
What? No Beatle Barkers??
Where is the PW, supposed to be in comments.
@Jean-François Trépanier
PW = amdwhah
a weeper in glorious pop stylings
PFR – Goldie’s Last Day
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDg0C-78dik
A better link (to the actual artist vid)
http://www.artistdirect.com/video/pfr-goldie-s-last-day/36103
Jane Siberry “Everything Reminds Me of My Dog”
The Story “Dog Dreams”
The Be Good Tanyas “Dogsong (Sleep Dog Lullaby).” They also have a sequel called “Dogsong II” about burying a dog. It’s really depressing.
Pink Martini “Lilly”
The Magnetic Fields “Fido, Your Leash Is Too Long”
KaiserCartel “Dog Stars”
(I can’t even listen to John Hiatt’s “My Dog and Me” two years after my beloved dog died. He peed all over the place.)
Nice mix. You could also have gone with Bobby Whitlock’s “Thorn Tree in the Garden” from Derek & The Dominos “Layla” album.
Nice package, thanks!
The greatest dog song not on the list:
Martin Mull’s “In the Eyes of My Dog I’m a Man”
“Let Me Play Wit’ Yo’ Poodle” by Johnny Bucket.
I think that’s about a dog.
Anxious to hear this , but having a problem: when I attempt to open the file, immediately get a “file cannot be opened. File may be corrupt or incomplete.” (Or words to that effect.) The file is complete. I figure the problem is that I am never asked for a password. The same thing happens with the Bacharach Originals file. Can you help me figure this out? Thanks so much.
Wayland
I have no idea. Very odd. Have you tried re-downloading it from the other available file hosting service (I mean, if you use Crocko, try from Zippyshare)?
I wonder if somebody l stumbling on the comments might know.
Unfortunately I did discover “Any Major Dogs” a little late (a three years late…) and the links have died.
If you would be so kind as t reup the links, I would be very grateful!
It’s up again:
http://www45.zippyshare.com/v/oNyXmSYx/file.html
Wow, great!
Thank you so much, I really do appreciate your swift action!
Interesting and funny. So many songs dedicated to dogs and cats. Perhaps only one dedicated to a rat, “Ben” by Michael Jackson.
A mellow one dedicated to a dog is “Brandy” by The O’Jays (from their PIR 1978 album “So Full Of Love”).
Peace and a great salute from Tarragona!
Mate – a great collection and many that I have never heard. BUT – I really expected to see Peter Shelley – Love Me, Love My Dog in there as well. It was the first song I thought of when I read the title.
Cheers!!!
For your consideration, The Austin Lounge Lizards:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6mhYXeKRCE
Oh, that would have been a good inclusion. I never knew that song…
Submitting a vote for “Bugler” by The Byrds for another heart-wrenching dog song.