Earworm of the Day: Streets Of Laredo

Possibly one of the most over-performed cowboy songs ever at C&W bars (indeed, even the Smothers Brothers chose to parody it, in their show in the sixties), few can find fault with a request to play this version.

Johnny Cash – there aren't many people in the Western world who don't at least recognize the name; they made a couple of movies about him, after all.

Marty Robbins, on the other hand, seems almost forgotten outside the Redneck community, and that's a doggone shame, considering how much he brought to the industry and our ears.

He was born Martin David Robertson, into deep poverty, in the Arizona desert near Phoenix, served in the US Navy during WWII seeing action in the Pacific – and, during the long quiet moments, learned to play guitar (take that, those of you who say you can't learn a useful skill in the Nay-vee!). Once out of service and into show business, he drove full-bore through life with a gusto seldom seen, and with a musical productivity equally rare.

His all-time biggest hit, though, wasn't this, but El Paso. Enjoy 'em both, and more.